Global Solidarity and Development

Above all else, we are one human family. Catholic teaching proclaims that no matter our national, racial, ethnic, economic or ideological differences, we have a global commitment to love our neighbors and to work for justice. We also have a commitment to work towards a just, even and fair development of our world, where no one society is exalted materially above the rest, and no other society is left, quite literally, in the dust. Development must respect the rights of all nations and their people, always promoting the moral, cultural and spiritual dimensions of each person.

“The solidarity which binds all men together as members of a common family makes it impossible for wealthy nations to look with indifference upon the hunger, misery and poverty of other nations whose citizens are unable to enjoy even elementary human rights. The nations of the world are becoming more and more dependent on one another and it will not be possible to preserve a lasting peace so long as glaring economic and social imbalances persist.”

- Mater et Magistra
Mother and Teacher
Pope John XXIII, 1961