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The principle of solidarity is a direct demand of human and Christian brotherhood. Solidarity is manifested in the first place by the fair distribution of goods and fair pay for work. We need to fulfill our human vocation in society. To achieve this we must have due respect for a just hierarchy of values.
Socioeconomic problems can be solved with the help of solidarity. Solidarity among the poor and solidarity between rich and poor: There should be solidarity among workers and between employers and employees. International solidarity is a moral priority and world peace depends on it.
Human society requires not only what is necessary for material well being but also what is for the good of the mind and the spirit. In society we are able to share our knowledge, exercise our rights and fulfill our obligations.
Society should help its members to seek and grasp genuine spiritual values. Together we should share our pleasure in appreciation of the beautiful things of nature and the best of our cultural heritage. We should be grateful for and honor the spiritual achievements of others and such achievements can give aim and scope to whatever has an influence on culture-al, economic and social values
Second Vatican Council and Social Justice
Catholics should feel themselves obliged to promote the true common good, and thus to make the weight of their opinion felt, so that civil authority may act with justice, and laws may conform to the moral precepts and the common good. Let the laity, by their combined efforts, remedy any institutions and conditions of the world which are customarily an inducement to sin, so that all such things may conform to the norms of justice and favor the practice of virtue rather than hinder it.
Often injustices have complex roots
And the corrective measures needed require intelligent planning as well as good will. Education for justice is an integral part of Christian education. This education for justice demands a renewal of heart, a renewal based on the recognition of sin in its individual and social manifestations. It will also inculcate a truly and entirely human way of life in justice, love and simplicity. It will likewise awaken a critical sense, which will lead us to reflect on the society in which we live and on its values. It will make people ready to renounce these values when they cease to promote justice for all.
Even God in his providence, does not seek at the cost of freedom, to wipe out all evils which flow from abuse of man’s freedom. Subject to the requirements of public order, to the extent that these can with reasonable effectiveness be satisfied by lawful means, the usages of society are to be the usages of freedom in their full range, and this means that the freedom of man is to be respected, and curtailed only when and insofar as necessary.
While the Church thus asserts the value of freedom, it also asserts that it is generally the function of the well informed Christian conscience of the laity to see that the divine law is inscribed in the life of the earthly city.
Christian hope looks forward to God’s mercy in this world, to the gift of Christ’s peace on earth. This peace, however, is not promised to us unconditionally; it is certainly not offered as a mere fruit of human progress. The future of this world is as uncertain as it is changing. The ultimate concern of Christians is for eternal life, but, eternal life begins in this world. Christians have a serious duty to bring the spirit of Christ to social life at every level, to bring mercy, justice, and peace, and they must give a reckoning to Christ who will judge all on the last day.