Introduction
In a radio addre Pope John XXIII aid Confron ed b he nderde eloped co n rie the Church presents herself as she is and wants to be: the Church of all men, (sic)1 and in particular the Church of the poor.2 While the Pope did not initially offer any specific theological, biblical, ecclesial, or pastoral framework for the realisation of such a Church, there was evidence that this ecclesial challenge had some bearing on the deliberations of the Second Vatican Council (1962-1965).
We shall not meet the truest and deepest demands of our times; we shall not answer the hope of unity shared by all Christians, if we do no more than make the preaching of the Gospel to the poor one of the many themes of the Council. In fact, it is not a theme; it is in some measure the theme of the Council. If, as has often been repeated here, it is true to say that the aim of this Council is to bring the Church into closer conformity with the truth of the Gospel and to fit her better to meet the problems of our day, we can say that the central theme of this Council is the Church precisely in so far as she is the Church of the poor.3
There were a number of post Vatican II responses to this papal challenge and it will be my contention that these responses would become the major contributors to the formulation and de elopmen of he Ch rch eaching kno n a he preferen ial op ion for he poor
The CELAM4 Conferences at Medellín, Colombia (1968), and Puebla, Mexico (1979); the emergence of liberation theology; the more recent ecclesial renewal proposed by Pope
Francis, and the growing catalogue of Catholic Social Teaching (CST) will be critiqued in
1Throughout the course of this thesis there will be many quotes, including those from official Catholic Church documents that do not use inclusive language. The original quotes will be used but they express he a hor historical style and not my own. 2 Pope John XXIII, Radio Message to the Faithful, AAS 54, September 11, 1962. 3 Cardinal Lecaro, Documentation Catholique, March 3, 1963, col. 321, n. 2. 4 CELAM is an acronym for the Conference of Latin American Bishops. 2
rela ion o heir con rib ion o he Ca holic Ch rch eaching on he preferen ial op ion for the poor.
CST is the official teaching of the Catholic Church as presented by the Magisterium.5 It is an evolving body of work whereby each new document makes reference to its predecessors but also allows for new biblical, philosophical and theological insights to influence its content. The documents of CST display a capacity to adapt to changing historical contexts and therefore exhibit both continuity and innovation. Throughout the history of CST there has been a consistent challenge to society to protect and care for the poor. CST does not propo e an pecific poli ical or economic heor b i doe repre en he Ch rch documented attempt to bring gospel values to bear on the social and economic lives of all peoples. CST contains an underpinning optimism which argues that reasonable people of goodwill can sufficiently agree upon ethical principles that contribute to order, peace, justice and harmony in society.
Despite the teaching on the preferential option for the poor being a component of CST, its major contributors were the CELAM Conferences at Medellín and Puebla, and the liberation