Christifidelis Laici 39

     You will recall that I said a few weeks ago that we would be making very slow headway in our study of Pope St. John Paul the Great’s exhortation; indeed, we then spent TWO weeks on paragraph 38.  This week we move on to paragraph 39 which is also very relevant to the present circumstance: “Free to call upon the Name of the Lord.”

     Here, our Holy Father recognizes that “[r]espect for the dignity of the person…demands the recognition of the religious dimension of the individual.”  He goes on to say “[i]n fact, the individual’s relation to God is a constitutive element of the very ‘being’ and ‘existence’ of an individual”. 

     This recognition of individual freedom of religion is not just for the good of the individual, for our Holy Father goes on to say that freedom “to profess and practice their religion is an essential element for peaceful human coexistence”, and it “is a point of reference for the other fundamental rights and in some way becomes a measure of them”

     We have seen this discussion take place in our national, state, and local discussion regarding what is considered “essential” in our community in this time of pandemic.  Indeed, it continues, which I see as a very good thing since it will help to make clearer the recognition that the practice of one’s religion is not merely a “private” concern; rather, the practice of religion (and not just the many works of charity our religious institutions provide) is in itself a public good.

        1.   Do I recognize the practice of my faith as a public good?

        2.   How do I profess and practice of my faith in a way that truly makes it an essential element for peace in my community, my nation, and the whole world?

        3.   What does the necessity of the free practice of religion in our community say about the construction and care of our church buildings?

Challenge:  JPII teaches that the freedom of religion “is a point of reference for other fundamental rights”.  Pick three (3) fundamental rights and consider how they would be negatively impacted if not for the freedom of religion.