The God-given dignity of humans and the obligation to promote the common good of all the world's people require the Catholic Church to speak on social issues, said the new "Compendium of the Social Doctrine of the Church."

The church's social doctrine offers criteria for judging various aspects of public and social life and provides guidelines for "conforming them to the demands of Christian morality," said the book, released Oct. 25 at the Vatican.

Drafted at the request of Pope John Paul II by the Pontifical Council for Justice and Peace, the compendium explains church teachings related to politics, war, the economy, the environment, work and legislation impacting family life, among other topics.

"Insofar as it is part of the church's moral teaching," the volume said, "the church's social doctrine has the same dignity and authority as her moral teaching…. By means of her social doctrine, the church shows her concern for human life in society."

At an Oct. 25 press conference about the volume (331 pages in English), officials from the justice and peace council said the book was reviewed and approved by the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith because it pertains to the church's moral teaching.

While the text cautioned against trying to claim any one political party could represent fully Catholic social and moral teaching, it called on lay Catholics "to identify steps that can be taken in concrete political situations" to put into practice respect for every human life, the promotion of justice and peace and true solidarity with the poor.

"A well-formed Christian conscience," it said, "does not permit one to vote for a political program or individual law which contradicts the fundamental contents of faith and morals."

At the Oct. 25 press conference, Cardinal Renato Martino, president of the justice and peace council, refused to answer questions about whether a Catholic ever could vote for a politician who supports legalized abortion.

Joaquin Navarro-Valls, the Vatican spokesman said, "the Holy See has never nor does it ever want to enter directly into an electoral or political question ... because it is the competence of the local hierarchy to provide enlightenment on these questions if they decide there is a desire and need."

On the topic of war, the compendium said that when a nation is attacked it has a right and duty to defend itself, which includes "using the force of arms."

However, echoing Vatican criticism of the U.S.-led coalition's decision to invade Iraq in 2003, it said, "engaging in a preventative war without clear proof that an attack is imminent cannot fail to raise serious moral and juridical questions."

"International legitimacy for the use of armed force, on the basis of rigorous assessment and with well-founded motivations, can only be given by the decision of a competent body that identifies specific situations as threats to peace and authorizes an intrusion into the sphere of autonomy usually reserved to a state," it said.

The compendium, designed to give Catholics a systematic understanding of church positions on social issues, explained that the principles flow from the Ten Commandments, from natural law and human reason and from biblical truths about people, the world and the reality of sin.

While based on 2,000 years of Christian moral teaching, the compendium said the church must respond to new situations in society, including the increasing number of women working outside the home, advances in biotechnology, globalization, the destruction of the environment and new attacks on human life and on the family.

The compendium insisted that "homosexual persons are to be fully respected in their human dignity," but said respect "does not justify the legitimization of behavior that is not consistent with moral law; even less does it justify the recognition of a right to marriage between persons of the same sex and its being considered equivalent to the family."

On another current topic, it said that while nations have a right and obligation to protect themselves from terrorism "this right cannot be exercised in the absence of moral and legal norms."

Individual terrorists must be identified, proven guilty and punished, it said. But responsibility for terrorist activity "cannot be extended to the religions, nations or ethnic groups to which the terrorists belong."

Throughout the volume, the sacredness and dignity of human life is emphasized. Legalized abortion is condemned repeatedly, as is the exploitation of any human being, including children, women, the poor and the indigenous.

On the question of capital punishment, the compendium repeats the traditional church teaching that society has a right to defend itself by punishing and, in some circumstances, taking the life of a person convicted for a serious crime.

However, it also said that modern societies have the means to suppress crime and render criminals harmless without taking their lives. "The growing aversion of public opinion toward the death penalty and the various provisions aimed at abolishing it or suspending its application constitute visible manifestations of a heightened moral awareness," it said.

The compendium said the Catholic Church does not bless or whole-heartedly endorse any economic system, political party or government configuration; rather it calls on Catholics and all people of good will to ensure that economic and political systems respect the rights of individuals, promote the common good and act in solidarity with the poorest and weakest citizens of their nation and of the world.

Morality, it said, cannot be decided by a majority vote. "If there is no ultimate truth to guide and direct political action, then ideas and convictions can easily be manipulated for reasons of power," it said.

The compendium called for a recognition of the unpaid work women perform at home and, while stating that women have a right to a profession and to not be discriminated against in the workplace, it also said employers have a moral obligation to ensure that women are able to work without sacrificing their basic obligations to their families.

Biotechnology, particularly in the field of agriculture, holds great hope for better feeding the world's poor, it said.

"The Christian vision of creation makes a positive judgment on the acceptability of human intervention in nature, which also includes other living beings, and at the same time makes a strong appeal for responsibility," it said.

In evaluating possible uses for new technology, profit cannot be the only consideration, the compendium said. The common good and possible negative side effects on human consumers and on the environment must also be considered.

---CNS