“The individual who is animated by true charity labors skillfully to discover the causes of misery, to find the means to combat it, to overcome it resolutely.” (PP 75; CV, 30 )
The resurgence of social activism, the mushrooming of social movements, the awakening of philanthropists and the multiplication of charities are just among the indicators of the complex social upheavals or “social questions” of the post-modern time. They were born ideally to counter an undesirable human condition. They tried to respond to the root causes and offered solutions to alleviate human suffering. Anyone with a heart for social justice needs answers to these questions but oftentimes falls short of its resolution.
At this juncture, I would like to propose a concise reflection based on the third encyclical and first social encyclical of Benedict XVI “Caritas in Veritate”. This reflection will focus on the fundamental ideas of the encyclical and its implications to our specific situation as servants in the world of health. Caritas in Veritate calls again for a renewal of our Christian faith and commitment by going back to its original spring and intention. It challenges the ministers of the sick to work skillfully, to be active in confronting social issues related to health and together overcome it resolutely. Only this is possible, if one is animated by true charity.
Social action can be defined as a commitment to respond to a given particular social question. It is not simply an act in itself but primarily a commitment that arises from a conviction of certain values (gospel) and principles. It is a commitment to work for an authentic development of every person. For instance, a Camillian responds to the lack of access to health care because he believes in the value of respect and openness to life. However, this will work only if one is guided by the light of truth. “Truth is the light that gives meaning and value to charity. That light is both the light of reason and the light of faith, through which the intellect attains to the natural and supernatural truth of charity: it grasps its meaning as gift, acceptance, and communion. Without truth, charity degenerates into sentimentality.” (CV, 3). Truth makes charity comprehensible and meaningful, which brings about real fruits of solidarity and communion. Truth liberates charity from mere acts of “dole outs” and goodwill as well as a “ticket to heaven.” Truth communicates the real substance and essence of the love of God communicated to man.
Charity is defined as “an extraordinary force which leads people to opt for courageous and generous engagement in the field of justice and peace.” (CV, 1). It is a force, which is of divine origin. It is a gift that is independent of any human merit and offered to all human beings. Any commitment to work for justice and solidarity in the world of health must be animated by charity, or else, it will just remain only a passion that is always prone to exhaustion and dissolution. A commitment for social justice animated by charity directs one to look into competently the causes of injustices, the resources to fight for it and the wisdom that will provide the right response to the social question. (cf. CV, 30).
Charity demands justice, transcends it and completes it. “Charity goes beyond justice, because to love is to give, to offer what is “mine” to the other; but it never lacks justice, which prompts us to give the other what is “his”, what is due to him by reason of his being or his acting.” (CV, 6). Any act of charity is an act of justice but not all acts of justice are acts of charity. Justice aims to give what is due to the person and so thus charity, but it is not its end, for charity aims to establish a “relationship of gratuitousness, mercy and communion.” (CV, 6). The fulfillment of justice is not the removal of what John Paul II called the “structures of sin” but the building up communion and solidarity among peoples where each one works for the common good so that each one attains freely the fulfillment of himself, the primary vocation of man to be re-united in God. (PP, 15). “To desire the common good and strive towards it is a requirement of justice and charity.” (CV, 7). This is what health is all about, an integral well-being of man which is not only biological but also spiritual.
The mission of the Church, our mission is to promote integral human development. Integral human development is defined as a development that concerns the whole of the person in every single dimension. (cf. PP, 14; CV 11). This presupposed the perspective of eternal life, which is the end of our hope. Any attempt to limit human development to its material aspect is not integral and real. The transcendental aspect of human progress is intrinsic and completes it. So, the person is at the center in any forms of progress. Progress in ministry cannot be simply gauged by the number of institutions or organizations established but by the progress of each individual person towards the fulfillment of his/her vocation according to the design of his Creator. Working for social justice in the world of health means working for the common good, which is the sum of all those conditions of social life, which allows the human family, and each member to attain fulfillment in their lives. One of those conditions is health.
One of the main causes of the lack of access to medicines especially in developing countries is the WTO provision of intellectual property rights. Pope Benedict stated that, “there is excessive zeal for protecting knowledge through an unduly rigid assertion of the right to intellectual property especially in the field of health.” (CV, 22). This is a clear deviation and manipulation of the ends of globalization as a process of worldwide human integration and solidarity. This is an anti-development attitude that breeds massive inequality among peoples and nations. Another abuse of the process of globalization is the intrusion of the few developed nations into the internal affairs of the developing nations that led to unfair competitions and deregulation policies that resulted in budget cuts for social spending especially in health and education. (cf. CV, 25). Thus, the only way to remedy this situation is to reclaim the centrality of the person and its transcendent vision in any forms of human progress and development. The Church can do a lot to this since she has the truth, resources and mission of transforming the world through the “salt of charity.”
While it is true that the social teachings of the Church do not offer concrete programs or a middle way between two extreme approaches, it indeed provides some hints on what to pursue and the reason of doing it. One of them is to move along the line of development programs. Though this primarily concerns the field of economy, it can be also adopted in the field of health. Development program lies in the belief that the peoples themselves have the prime responsibility to work for their own development but in the spirit of communion and solidarity. People are active participants and not just mere recipients of our donations and “dole outs.” They should be directly involved in the planning and implementation. (cf. CV, 47). This is the philosophy of Primary Health Care program as envisioned by the World Health Organization. The common language used here is empowerment.
The task of promoting justice and solidarity in the world of health should take into account the fundamental truths communicated by God in his gift of charity. Love is always directed to the person and ends in the fulfillment of himself according to his divine vocation. Witnessing the merciful love of Jesus Christ and sharing his compassionate love to the sick which is a concrete expression of charity should led the person towards communion with God and solidarity with humanity. (cf. CV, 15). The problem of access of health, underdevelopment and poverty are not primarily problems of material order but of ill will, which entices man to focus only for his own sake and not for the sake of the common good. Structures of sins are its obvious effect. In order to overcome this, one should be guided by the light of truth, which is comprehensible through faith and reason. Social action then is necessary but only when it is animated by true charity.
iGoogle
No comments:
Post a Comment