AT THE CENTER
Matthew Scherer on 9/11, the Financial Crisis, and Climate Change as Conversion Events (Full Screen)
RELATED RESOURCES
PEOPLE (20)
QUOTES (185)
Pope Francis on Redeemed Atheists and the Universal Duty to Do Good
May 22, 2013
Pope Francis on the Spiritual Motherhood of the Chaste to the Heads of Women's Religious Communities
May 8, 2013
Pope Francis on Why the Catholic Church Needs to Return to an Ethic of Poverty
May 8, 2013
May 22, 2013
Pope Francis on the Spiritual Motherhood of the Chaste to the Heads of Women's Religious Communities
May 8, 2013
Pope Francis on Why the Catholic Church Needs to Return to an Ethic of Poverty
May 8, 2013
PUBLICATIONS (78)
Towards Reforming the International Financial and Monetary Systems in the Context of Global Public Authority
October 24, 2011
Forming Consciences for Faithful Citizenship: A Call to Political Responsibility from the Catholic Bishops of the United States (2011)
October 4, 2011
Statement of the Holy See at the 54th Session of the Commission on the Status of Women
March 8, 2010
October 24, 2011
Forming Consciences for Faithful Citizenship: A Call to Political Responsibility from the Catholic Bishops of the United States (2011)
October 4, 2011
Statement of the Holy See at the 54th Session of the Commission on the Status of Women
March 8, 2010
The Catholic Church in World Affairs
Organizations (9)
As one of the most ancient and extensive institutions in the modern age, the Catholic Church has had and continues to exert a significant influence on diverse world affairs. From the heights of the Papacy to regional conferences of bishops to individual clergy and lay members alike, the Catholic Church remains active in its commentary and critique on modern political, economic, social, and religious issues. This page gathers together diverse sources and resources on what the Church has said on these various concerns, highlighting key thematic concentrations and categories for further study.
For more information on the broader tradition, explore our resources on Christianity.
For more information on the broader tradition, explore our resources on Christianity.
The Pontifical Council for Health Pastoral Care (also known as the Pontifical Council for Health Care Workers) was created by Pope John Paul II in 1988 in Pastor Bonus and Dolentium Hominum as a part of the Roman Curia of the Catholic Church and is tasked with working with and promoting the efforts of Catholic organizations in healthcare. It also defends Church teachings on healthcare and seeks to protect the Church's role in providing healthcare. The council also studies healthcare policy on...
The Pontifical Council Cor Unum ("one heart") for Human and Christian Development is a council of the Roman Curia of the Roman Catholic Church devoted to human and Christian development. The council was founded by Pope Paul VI in Amoris officio on July 15, 1971, on the principle that the Church is called to serve the needy and to encourage human bonds. It carries out this mission by raising funds and donations for disaster relief. In addition, the council encourages both volunteer service and...
The Pontifical Council for the Family is the primary Vatican organization devoted to the health and wellbeing of families. The council had its roots in Pope Paul VI's Committee for the Family but was established as a pontifical council in 1981 by Pope John Paul II in Familia a Deo Instituta. The council's main tasks are tied to the Church's understanding of family, and it promotes the Magisterium's teachings on a proper family life, which includes the Church's teachings on procreation and on...
The Pontifical Council for the Laity, composed mostly of laypersons, organizes and plans large gatherings, ranging from world youth days to assemblies of the laity. They also generate publications to address major issues affecting lay Catholics. The council emerged from the reformations of the Second Vatican Council, specifically emerging from Apostolicam actuositatem. The council was created primarily to promote the position of the laity in the Church by acknowledging and supporting the...
The Pontifical Council for Legislative Texts is part of the Roman Curia of the Catholic Church. While the council took on its current form under Pope John Paul II and Pastor Bonus, similar councils had been in existence since Pope Benedict XV's Pontifical Commission for the Authentic Interpretation of the Code of Canon Law in 1917. The council serves primarily to interpret the laws of the Church, though it also provides legal support for the Roman Curia, examines the decrees of the bishops'...
The Pontifical Council for the Pastoral Care of Migrants and Itinerant People is part of the Roman Curia of the Catholic Church. As its name suggests, the council is tasked with ensuring that migrants, refugees, exiles, and people that must travel as part of their work (including members of religious orders) are afforded spiritual services, physical supplies, human dignity, and their rights. The council was founded by Pope John Paul II in Pastor Bonus, though it can trace its roots back to...
Established in the wake of Vatican II, the Pontifical Council for Justice and Peace uses the social teaching of the Roman Catholic Church to promote social justice, human rights, and development around the world. Its justice work extends from critiques of the international economic system to promoting sustainable environmental practices, while its focus on peace addresses disarmament, international security, and evolving forms of violence such as terrorism. Work on human rights includes both...
The Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity (PCPCU) has been the locus of ecumenical activity within the Roman Catholic Church, encouraging ecumenical activity among other Catholic bodies and coordinating ecumenical dialogue with other churches and ecclesial communities. Created in 1960 as the Secretariat for Promoting Christian Unity, it began as an effort to include ecumenical observers in the Second Vatican Council; Pope John Paul II rechristened it the Pontifical Council for...
The Roman Catholic Church's Pontifical Council for Interreligious Dialogue is tasked with promoting mutual understanding between Catholicism and other religions, the study of other religions, and the "formation of persons dedicated to dialogue." Though briefly downgraded by Pope Benedict XVI, the council has been reinstated under the leadership of His Eminence Jean-Louis Cardinal Tauran. The council was created in 1964 as the Secretariat for Non-Christians under Pope Paul VI and...