Fratelli Tutti: Points to discuss

FRATELLI TUTTI

Points for Discussion

This encyclical letter represents a summation of the underlying vision that Pope Francis has proclaimed throughout his papacy. “It is my desire that, in this our time, by acknowledging the dignity of each human person, we can contribute to the rebirth of a universal aspiration to fraternity. Brotherhood between all men and women” (no. 8).

Using many references to earlier statements and writings, as well as numerous quotes from previous Popes (most notably St. John Paul II and Benedict XVI) and Bishops’ Conferences, the key concepts of fraternity and social friendship are used to call us to reimagine politics – that is, how we live and interact with each other locally, nationally, and globally.

Taking inspiration from St. Francis’ visit to the Sultan during the Crusades (nos. 3-4), the Holy Father stresses that the first way to reimagine politics must begin with the desire to encounter others with humility.

Fraternity is the recognition that, quoting the Pope’s joint statement with Grand Imam Ahmad Al-Tayyeb, ‘“God has created all human beings equal in rights, duties and dignity, and has called them to live together as brothers and sisters’” (no. 5). This recognition demands that politics – the work of societies and governments – must be at the service of common good where no one is excluded.

This humble understanding – of our common fraternal bond – is what is necessary for peace and constructive cooperation; there has been too much disregard of the common good in public discourse of today. Here, each person, no matter what his or her nationality, must avoid believing that the Pope is referring to someone else or to some other nation – it is a universal problem.

Today, our world is deeply wounded by the fact that political programs are ignoring the common good and favoring policies and practices that are rooted in a radically self-centered individualism, as can be seen in an aggressive nationalism (no. 11), in consumerism and special interests, as well as in cultural colonialism (no. 14), etc.

The Parable of the Good Samaritan “eloquently presents the basic decision we need to make in order to rebuild our wounded world. In the face of so much pain and suffering, our only course is to imitate the Good Samaritan” (no. 67).

Many will criticize this encyclical as being too optimistic or idealistic, and as impossible to implement. To dismiss the Holy Father’s message, however, is to simply facilitate the problem. “Any other decision [than imitating the Good Samaritan] would make us either one of the robbers or one of those who walked by without showing compassion for the sufferings of the man on the roadside. The parable shows us how a community can be rebuilt by men and women who identify with the vulnerability of others, who reject the creation of a society of exclusion, and act instead as neighbors, lifting up and rehabilitating the fallen for the sake of the common good” (no. 67).

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How to imitate the Good Samaritan and reimagine politics begins with Social Friendships. Social friendships apply the universal fraternity of humanity to relationships between individuals, communities, and nations. Quoting Gaudium et Spes, The Holy Father notes that “Human beings are so made that they cannot live, develop and find fulfilment except ‘in the sincere gift of self to others’” (no. 87).

This gift is eroded by radical individualism. “Radical individualism is a virus that is extremely difficult to eliminate.... It makes us believe that everything consists in giving free reign to our own ambitions as if... we would somehow be serving the common good” (no. 105). Yet so many people are judged as having less dignity because they are poor or because they are born in less developed places (no. 106).

The practice of social friendship – whether it be between nations, peoples, or individuals – is one where each person knows and maintains his or her identity, but is also able to know and respect the identity of others and work toward “coming up with shared goals that transcend their differences and can thus engage in a common endeavor” (no. 157).

“Recognizing that all people are our brothers and sisters, and seeking forms of social friendship that include everyone, is not merely utopian. It demands a decisive commitment to devising effective means to this end. Any effort along these lines becomes a noble exercise of charity” (no. 180).

The way forward to a new political future based on fraternity and social friendship begins with “moving beyond ourselves.” This requires dialogue: “Authentic social dialogue involves the ability to respect the other’s point of view and to admit that it may include legitimate convictions and concerns” (no. 203).

Dialogue is not the feverish exchange of opinions on social networks, frequently based on media information that is not always reliable. “These exchanges are merely parallel monologues.... [that] engage no one, and their content is frequently self-serving and contradictory” (no. 200). Nor is the outcome of dialogue relativism, i.e., there is your truth and there is my truth. “Under the guise of tolerance, relativism ultimately leaves the interpretation of moral values to those in power, to be defined as they see fit” (no. 206).

Dialogue overcomes the basic obstacle of modern politics that affects our nations and our neighborhoods, which is that “we no longer have common horizons that unite us....Our world is trapped in a strange contradiction: we believe that we can ‘ensure stability and peace through a false sense of security sustained by a mentality of fear and mistrust’” (no. 26).

Religion can play a significant role in helping promote the dialogue of social friendship that leads to a greater sense of fraternity in our political world. “For ‘reason, by itself, is capable of grasping the equality between men and of giving stability to their civic coexistence, but it cannot establish fraternity’ [Benedict XVI] .... ‘If there is no transcendent truth, in obedience to which man achieves his full identity, then there is no sure principle for guaranteeing just relations between people.... The root of modern totalitarianism is to be found in the denial of the transcendent dignity of the human person’ [John Paul II]” (no. 272-272).

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SPECIFIC TOPICS RAISED IN THE ENCYCLICAL

Additional Support of the Universal Destination of Goods

•   “The right to private property is always accompanied by the primary and prior principle of the subordination of all private property to the universal destination of the earth’s goods, and thus the right of all to their use” (no. 123).

•   Business activity is good but must always be directed towards inclusive development. “The right of some to free enterprise or market freedom cannot supersede the rights of peoples and the dignity of the poor, or, for that matter, respect for the natural environment...” (no. 122).

  Additional Support for Opposition to the Death Penalty

 The Holy Father remarks: “I ask Christians who remain hesitant on this point, and those tempted to yield to violence in any form, to keep in mind ... Christ Jesus who, seeing a disciple tempted to violence, said firmly: ‘Put your sword back into its place; for all who take the sword will perish by the sword’ (Mt 26:52)” (no. 270).

Raising awareness of the current perilous nature of War

•   The development of nuclear, chemical, and biological weapons and accelerating new technologies “have granted war an uncontrollable destructive power over great numbers of innocent civilians” (no. 258).

•   “We can no longer think of war as a solution, because its risks will probably always be greater than its supposed benefits. In view of this, it is very difficult nowadays to invoke the rational criteria elaborated in earlier centuries to speak of the possibility of a ‘just war’” (no. 258).

•   The Holy Father emphasizes the inadequacy of deterrence that can be seen in asymmetrical conflicts, terrorism, cybersecurity, and the damages done to the environment and its implications for the poor. Such growing conflict is driven by fear and distrust.

  Immigration

•   Immigration remains a critical issue for the Holy Father and is used throughout the encyclical as an example of the central problem – an over-developed sense of individualism that is based on a fear that is divisive.

•   “Certain populist political regimes, as well as certain liberal economic approaches, maintain that an influx of migrants is to be prevented at all costs.... One fails to realize that behind such statements, abstract and hard to support, great numbers of lives are at stake. Many migrants have fled from war, persecution and natural catastrophes” (no. 37).

  On international governance

  •   The twenty-first century “is witnessing a weakening of the power of nation states, chiefly because the economic and financial sectors, being transnational, tend to prevail over the political” (no. 172).

  •   We need stronger and more efficient international institutions that must be based on the protection and advancement of fundamental human rights (no. 172). Specifically, reform of the United Nations Organization, economic institutions and international finance is needed so that the concept of the family of nations can acquire “real teeth” (no. 151).

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