Georgetown University Press Sacred and Social: Theological Foundations for Catholic Social Teaching (Moral Traditions series)

What is often neglected in studies of Catholic Social Teaching (CST) is the underlying theology that it presumes, especially the Biblical and patristic roots that have forged a broader tradition of social thought than is found in the more recent writings of the Catholic hierarchy. Sacred and Social fills this gap by providing an extended analysis of the Catholic understanding of the human person, especially the belief in human dignity and humanity’s essentially social nature. Himes argues that, prior to the documents of the modern papacy, there was already a rich existing tradition that shaped and informed a Catholic lens on social reality. He illustrates the theological basis for the ethical commitments in CST through a treatment of fundamental theological themes – creation, incarnation, Trinity, Body of Christ – that gave rise to a Catholic social imagination.