[Announce] Archbishop Beltran gets it right!

[Robert Waldrop]

Archbishop Beltran has published a wonderful statement about the primacy 
of Catholic Social Teachings in the social apostolate of the church. His 
column for the current edition of the Sooner Catholic is given below, in 
full.

Robert Waldrop, Romero Catholic Worker, Oklahoma City

http://www.catharchdioceseokc.org/sooner/beltran_e.htm

...ONE, HOLY, CATHOLIC and APOSTOLIC
by the Most Rev. Eusebius Beltran, Archbishop of Oklahoma City

During the past six months, a terrible conflict has emerged among some 
Catholic people in the Oklahoma City area. Last spring I addressed this 
matter with an article in the Sooner Catholic titled “Our Citizenship Is 
In Heaven.” I urged the proponents of each side to pray and study. I 
recommended the study to include Catholic Social Teaching and especially 
a re-reading of Pope Benedict’s Encyclical Letter DEUS CARITAS EST. I 
also said I would try to arrange for a formal lecture. Unfortunately, 
the very competent speaker I had chosen later had to cancel. In the 
meantime, Pope Benedict XVI, prolific writer that he is, issued another 
Encyclical titled CARITAS IN VERITATE.

Caritas In Veritate is a further official teaching of the Holy Father on 
the important current development of Catholic Social Doctrine of the 
Church.

I believe that my challenge to all our people to read and study these 
two recent crucially important documents has resulted in many people who 
never before read an Encyclical to do so. The problem now is that an 
Encyclical, like any other written document, including the Bible, can be 
misunderstood or taken out of context. It is most important therefore 
that Pope Benedict's official teaching through an Encyclical be received 
as an expression of the ordinary Papal Magisterium. Catholics should 
adhere to this teaching with religious assent. In this way, we are all 
safely guided by the Church in our daily pilgrimage of faith. We are 
sinful human beings, hopefully on our way to claim our citizenship in 
heaven. But first, however, we must be good and holy and faithful people 
right here on earth, loving God first and foremost and our neighbor as 
ourselves.

Following my own advice to you, I too have prayed and studied and 
observed. I have witnessed the growing conflict which has no place in 
the Church. I regret that the present historical moment in our country 
and indeed throughout the world is filled with fear, distrust, anger and 
hostility. This negative atmosphere seems to be creeping into the 
Church. This should not be. The Church is the Body of Christ. The Church 
is built on the Good News of Jesus. The members of the Church share the 
responsibility of living, proclaiming and sharing this Good News. We are 
not called to insulate ourselves from the world but we are directed to 
make this world a better place in which to live. Jesus did not come to 
condemn the world but to save it.

When Jesus established His Church through the apostles whom He called 
and commissioned, He promised us special guidance. The apostles and 
their successors act in the Name of Jesus and on His authority. Since 
the apostles (and their successors) as individuals are human beings, as 
individuals they will not always be good or faithful or perfect. 
However, the Holy Father, as successor of Saint Peter and the visible 
head of the Church enjoys infallibility when he proclaims by a definite 
act a doctrine of faith or morals. The infallibility promised to the 
Church is also present in the body of bishops when, together with the 
Pope, they exercise the supreme Magisterium.

Since the Magisterium, (the Pope, and the Pope and Bishops) is the 
authentic and official teacher of the Catholic faith, even those 
teachings which are not infallibly defined but presented as the ordinary 
teaching of the Church must be adhered to with religious assent. Thus an 
Encyclical and the commentaries of various bishops constitute our 
official Catholic teaching.

The Social Doctrine of the Church is not a recent innovation in the life 
of the Church. It goes back to Jesus. In the last hundred years, 
however, the public teachings of the Popes clarified and advanced that 
social teaching in view of the radical changes in society. From the time 
of Pope Leo XIII (1903) until this present moment, all 10 Popes have 
issued official teachings on the social doctrine of the Church in the 
form of Encyclical letters or other documents.

The Social Doctrine of the Church is based on the fact that all human 
beings are created in the Image and Likeness of God. Therefore, human 
life is sacred and is to be respected and cherished. Moreover, Christian 
people, reborn in the Sacrament of Baptism, have an obligation to share 
the Good News of Jesus with others. Catholics have even a greater 
obligation than others — to the rest of society — because we have the 
promise of Jesus to protect and watch over us through the Magisterium 
which teaches us in His Name.

Through our Religious Education, Family Life Office, Catholic Charities 
and other offices or agencies of the Archdiocese of Oklahoma City, we 
have always followed the guidance and direction of the United States 
Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB). The American Bishops have 
faithfully and enthusiastically presented the teachings of the Holy 
Father and the Magisterium of the Church. The Social Doctrine of the 
Church is not partisan or political. It is, however, based on the 
dignity of the human person and the sanctity of life. Therefore, it 
touches on every area of human life including the public, civic and 
political areas. (Read carefully the excerpt from Pope Benedict’s 
Encyclical Caritas in Veritate.)

Last spring, a number of parishes, following the principals of Catholic 
Social teaching, joined together with churches in a coalition to work 
together in areas of common concerns. They formed the Oklahoma 
Sponsoring Committee (OSC). Upon doing this, they were challenged by 
some Catholic people for using the Industrial Areas Foundation (IAF) 
guidelines for organization and training for "community organizing."

IAF was severely condemned as a liberal political entity conspiring to 
seduce the churches. The term "community organizing" was called into 
contempt. In my April article I mentioned some of the failures of the 
past where IAF used bad tactics and undo force to meet its goal. 
However, I also mentioned that during the past 30 or 40 years, 
interfaith groups inspired by the good organization of the IAF have been 
formed in many dioceses. They have withstood the test of time and proven 
to be solid and helpful for people, for the Church mission and for the 
local societies. I have consulted with the bishops of these dioceses and 
they all attest that such interfaith coalitions are good and effective.

When a group forms and seeks to address common concerns, the outcome 
will be good or bad depending on the vision, beliefs and dedication of 
its members. This is the reason Catholic Social Teaching encourages our 
people to be the leaven in the world. Catholics with a vibrant faith and 
nurtured by the sacramental life of the Church are the very best 
candidates to give leadership and inspiration to these organizations. As 
I said in my earlier article: "Our present secular society does not seek 
truth nor does it engender faith. The current political climate does not 
uphold the dignity and worth of the human person. Only those who profess 
faith themselves can share faith with others. Only those who believe in 
God can restore a true respect for the intrinsic dignity of human 
beings." Therefore, I want to encourage the committees of the six 
parishes as representatives of the Catholic Church to continue their 
efforts of being witnesses and leaven in the world. I thank your pastors 
for their commitment to Catholic Social Teaching. These pastors have 
assured me that they will always follow our Catholic teachings. If they 
saw any danger to our Catholic faith, practices or beliefs, they would 
immediately withdraw from the group. They did not have to express this 
assurance in words as their pastoral dedication and service to God's 
people portrays a faithfulness and love of our Holy, Catholic Church. 
Thank you, Fathers!

I also wish to commend the good women and men of our Archdiocese who 
expressed their concern fearing potential danger or harm to the Church. 
Your calling this to my attention has increased our examination and 
study of Church teachings, including these beautiful Encyclicals of Pope 
Benedict XVI. Your continuing prayers and study, especially of our 
Catholic Social Teachings, will be informative and liberating. Grounded 
in faith, guided by the Magisterium of the Church and strengthened by 
the sacramental life we share, we will all overcome fear, sin and evil. 
Our hope and our trust is in Jesus Who gave us this Church. Jesus alone 
is our Lord and Redeemer. He never abandons us. Sometimes, however, we 
are not true to His call as we tend to settle our own problems solely in 
human terms. The nasty notes written to me and the Sooner Catholic 
lacked the charity that must underlie all our activities. The damage 
done to people's reputations must be healed. The false attacks which are 
being spread undermine the good works of our Catholic Charities. Public 
radio and the Internet cannot be used to slander the mission and work of 
the Church. Otherwise, it leads to scandal, hatred and contempt of our 
Catholic faith.

It is my hope and my prayer that the events of the past six months will 
have been a blessing for all of us. We must continue our pilgrimage of 
faith on this earth to life everlasting in heaven through the One, Holy, 
Catholic and Apostolic Church with which the Lord has gifted us.