The Tension Between Solidarity and Subsidiarity
Summary
TLDRThis video explores the apparent contradiction between the principles of solidarity and subsidiarity in Catholic social teaching. Solidarity emphasizes our duty to care for others' material well-being, while subsidiarity respects the role of individuals and local groups in addressing their needs. The tension between these principles is resolved through the promotion of human dignity, ensuring that assistance is provided without undermining the autonomy and contribution of those in need. The video, by Andrew Abela, Dean of the Busch School of Business at The Catholic University of America, encourages viewers to consider these principles in their own lives when faced with societal problems.
Takeaways
- 🤝 Solidarity in Catholic social teaching emphasizes the duty to care for the material well-being of others and to ensure they have a just wage and necessities for a dignified life.
- 🏡 Subsidiarity respects the role of individuals and local groups in meeting their own needs in unique ways, avoiding one-size-fits-all solutions from higher powers.
- 🔄 The tension between solidarity and subsidiarity arises from the risk of overstepping with external help (solidarity) or neglecting to assist those in need (subsidiarity).
- 👥 The key to balancing both principles is the promotion of human dignity, recognizing the inherent worth of each person and their ability to contribute to society.
- 🕊️ Solidarity is rooted in the teachings of Christ, who set a high standard for caring for those in need, treating them as if they were Christ himself.
- 🌟 Subsidiarity promotes human dignity by acknowledging the role of every individual, including the needy, in contributing to the common good.
- 👨👩👧👦 Pope Francis highlights that true solidarity requires social participation and the involvement of intermediary bodies like families and small businesses.
- 👴 Pope Benedict XVI warns that without subsidiarity, solidarity can lead to paternalistic social assistance that undermines the dignity of those in need.
- 🛡️ Subsidiarity acts as an antidote to an all-encompassing welfare state by recognizing personal dignity and the capacity of individuals to give to others.
- 🔑 The principles of solidarity and subsidiarity, when applied together with a focus on human dignity, provide the best framework for addressing societal problems.
- 🎓 Andrew Abela, Dean of the Busch School of Business at The Catholic University of America, discusses these concepts in the context of Catholic social teaching.
Q & A
What is the apparent tension between the principles of solidarity and subsidiarity in Catholic social teaching?
-The tension arises from the seeming contradiction between the duty to care for others' material well-being (solidarity) and the respect for individual and local autonomy in addressing their own needs (subsidiarity).
How does the principle of solidarity promote human dignity in Catholic social teaching?
-Solidarity promotes human dignity by emphasizing the dignity of those in need and the duty of others to meet their essential needs, reflecting Christ's love for humanity as demonstrated through his death and resurrection.
What does the principle of subsidiarity mean in the context of Catholic social teaching?
-Subsidiarity means respecting the role of individuals and local groups in meeting their own needs in unique ways, avoiding interventions from higher centers of power and avoiding one-size-fits-all solutions.
How can the principle of subsidiarity be seen as promoting human dignity?
-Subsidiarity promotes human dignity by recognizing the role of every individual, including the most needy, in ensuring the common good and by valuing their social participation and contribution to society.
What is the risk with the principle of solidarity if not properly applied?
-The risk with solidarity is the tendency to swoop in from the outside with assumed superior solutions, potentially undermining the autonomy and dignity of the individuals and communities it aims to help.
What is the risk associated with the principle of subsidiarity if it is misinterpreted?
-The risk with subsidiarity is the potential to see others' problems as solely their own to solve, which could be used as an excuse to avoid helping those in need altogether.
How can the promotion of human dignity be the key to unlocking both solidarity and subsidiarity?
-The promotion of human dignity serves as the key by ensuring that both principles are applied with the respect for the inherent worth of every individual and the recognition of their role in society, preventing either principle from being applied to the neglect of the other.
What does Pope Francis say about the relationship between solidarity and social participation?
-Pope Francis emphasizes that there is no true solidarity without social participation and the contribution of intermediary bodies such as families, associations, and small businesses.
According to Pope Benedict XVI, how can the principle of solidarity be misused without the guidance of subsidiarity?
-Pope Benedict XVI warns that without subsidiarity to guide it, the principle of solidarity can lead to paternalistic social assistance that is demeaning to those in need, by not recognizing their capacity to contribute to society.
What is the role of reciprocity in understanding the human dignity according to the principle of subsidiarity?
-Reciprocity is at the heart of human dignity in the context of subsidiarity, as it acknowledges the person as a subject capable of giving to others and considers the mutual exchange as central to human nature.
How does Andrew Abela, Dean of the Busch School of Business, view the relationship between solidarity and subsidiarity in addressing societal problems?
-Andrew Abela suggests that when applied together with an eye to the human dignity of all involved, solidarity and subsidiarity provide the best framework for addressing societal problems, avoiding the pitfalls of either principle when applied in isolation.
Outlines
🤝 Principles of Solidarity and Subsidiarity
The script discusses the apparent contradiction in Catholic social teaching between the principles of solidarity and subsidiarity. Solidarity emphasizes the duty to care for the material well-being of others, advocating for a just wage and necessities to maintain human dignity. Subsidiarity, in contrast, promotes respect for individual and local autonomy in addressing needs without higher power interventions. The script uses the example of a fire in an apartment complex to illustrate these principles in action, highlighting the balance between community support (solidarity) and respecting local leadership (subsidiarity) in crisis response.
🔑 The Key to Balancing Solidarity and Subsidiarity
The script explores the tension between the principles of solidarity and subsidiarity, noting the risks of overstepping with external solutions (solidarity) or neglecting to assist those in need under the guise of self-reliance (subsidiarity). It identifies the promotion of human dignity as the key to harmonizing these principles. Solidarity is rooted in the Christian doctrine of caring for the least among us, as taught by Christ and the saints, while subsidiarity ensures that even the most needy have a role in contributing to the common good, avoiding paternalistic social assistance that could undermine personal dignity.
Mindmap
Keywords
💡Catholic Social Teaching
💡Solidarity
💡Subsidiarity
💡Human Dignity
💡Paternalistic Social Assistance
💡Reciprocity
💡Welfare State
💡Intermediary Bodies
💡Social Participation
💡Andrew Abela
💡Edify
Highlights
Catholic social teaching is sometimes seen as contradictory due to the apparent tension between the principles of solidarity and subsidiarity.
Solidarity in Catholic social teaching implies a duty to care for the material well-being of others and not to deprive them of a just wage or necessities.
Subsidiarity respects the role of individuals and local groups in meeting their own needs in unique ways, avoiding one-size-fits-all solutions from higher power centers.
An example of applying solidarity is neighbors mobilizing resources to help families affected by a fire.
Subsidiarity ensures that interventions respect local leadership, such as making resources available through local businesses, hospitals, and churches.
The risk with solidarity is external intervention assuming better ways to address needs than those directly involved.
Subsidiarity's risk is the potential for neglecting to help others by viewing their problems as solely their own to solve.
The tension between solidarity and subsidiarity has real implications for personal actions when faced with others' material needs.
The promotion of human dignity is the key to unlocking both solidarity and subsidiarity simultaneously.
Solidarity promotes human dignity by emphasizing the dignity of those in need and the duty to meet their needs.
Subsidiarity promotes human dignity by recognizing the role of every individual, including the needy, in ensuring the common good.
Pope Francis emphasizes that true solidarity requires social participation and the contribution of intermediary bodies.
Pope Benedict XVI warns that without subsidiarity, solidarity can lead to paternalistic social assistance that is demeaning to those in need.
Subsidiarity respects personal dignity by recognizing the capacity of individuals to contribute to others and reciprocity as central to humanity.
Subsidiarity is an effective antidote against an all-encompassing welfare state that overlooks personal contribution and dignity.
Applying solidarity and subsidiarity together, with attention to human dignity, provides the best framework for addressing societal problems.
Andrew Abela, Dean of the Busch School of Business at The Catholic University of America, discusses the balance between solidarity and subsidiarity in Catholic social teaching.
Transcripts
[Music]
catholic social teaching is
contradictory
i hear that sometimes from my new
students and on the face of it you might
think they have a point because what
they're usually picking up is on the
apparent tension between two main
principles of catholic social teaching
the principles of solidarity and
subsidiarity
so what are solidarity and subsidiarity
in catholic social teaching solidarity
means that we each have a duty to care
for the material well-being of others
solidarity says we shouldn't deprive on
others of a just wage or of the material
necessities which allow them to live in
a way fitting their dignity as children
of god
subsidiarity on the other hand means
that we should respect the role of
individuals and local groups in meeting
their own needs in unique ways this
means avoiding interventions from higher
centers of power or applying
one-size-fits-all approaches across many
communities for example imagine a large
apartment complex in a nearby town had a
devastating fire
the principle of solidarity says that
neighbors in the region should mobilize
financial and human resources to help
all the families affected the principle
of subsidiarity says we have to make
sure their intervention respects the
leadership of the most local actors they
can find perhaps by making resources
available through contacts at the
closest businesses hospitals and
churches
the risk with solidarity is that we try
to help by swooping in from the outside
assuming we have better ways to address
their material needs then the
individuals involved are those that live
closest to them the risk with
subsidiarity is that we can choose to
see others problems too much as just
their own to solve and we even use it as
an excuse to not help them at all
the tension between the two principles
isn't just an academic question it
should have real implications for you
and me in our own lives
after all we want to be good people
and what is a good person to do when you
become aware of individuals or groups in
other cities states or even countries
with significant material needs it seems
like a conundrum should you help them
directly which is solidarity or should
you leave them alone to help themselves
which is subsidiarity
where there's actually a key for
unlocking both solidarity and subsidiary
at the same time and the key is this the
promotion of human dignity
it's clear how the principle of
solidarity promotes human dignity saints
throughout all of church history have
preached solidarity always by
emphasizing the dignity of those in need
and the urgent duty of others to meet
their needs and it's always worth
revisiting the reason why it's a
profound insight after all and it could
only come from a church founded by
christ pope pius xii said that
solidarity comes from jesus christ's
decision to redeem every single one of
us by his death and resurrection
in other words abandoning people in need
by denying them essential goods is an
offense against jesus christ who loved
them so much he was willing to die for
them he even insisted that his followers
treat the least among us as if they were
our lord himself
so jesus established a clear and very
high standard for solidarity but what's
often less clear to new students of
catholic social teaching is the critical
way in which subsidiarity promotes human
dignity it insists that every one of us
including the most needy among us has a
role to play in ensuring the common good
including the good of their own families
and neighbors pope francis said this
about subsidiarity
he said there is no true solidarity
without social participation without the
contribution of intermediary bodies
families associations cooperatives small
businesses and other expressions of
society
pope benedict xvi also made this point
when he said that without the principle
of subsidiarity to guide it the
principle of solidarity can give way to
paternalist social assistant that is
demeaning to those in need
but how could helping those in need be
demeaning to them pope benedict explains
subsidiarity respects personal dignity
by recognizing in the person a subject
who is always capable of giving
something to others
by considering reciprocity as the heart
of what it is to be a human being
subsidiarity is the most effective
antidote against any form of
all-encompassing welfare state
so to return to the new students i
mentioned are solidarity and
subsidiarity really intention
well only if we try to apply one to the
neglect of the other but when we apply
them together always with an eye to the
human dignity of all involved solidarity
and subsidiarity become the best
framework for addressing society's
problems
i'm andrew abella dean of the bush
school of business at the catholic
university of america for edify
thank you for watching this video i
invite you to watch my edify video
entitled woke capitalism
[Music]
you
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