Don’t be afraid to let the Holy Spirit inform and guide you.
That was the message from several of the nation’s most distinguished academic leaders to a group of educators and students at the La Salle Academy and Catholic Schools NSW forum on Catholic Social Teaching in Australian Politics.
The forum was underpinned by the framework of the PM Glynn Institute works by Professor Greg Craven, Shadow of the Cross and explored how to apply the principles of Catholic Social Teaching to achieving better policymaking in Australian public life.
Co-hosted by the La Salle Academy’s Br David Hall and Catholic Schools NSW Dallas McInerney, the panel also included NSW Parliamentarians Susan Carter (Liberal) and Julia Finn (Labor), and the ACU’s Dr Sandie Cornish, who had just returned from the Synod in Rome.
Also at the event was ACU Professor Greg Craven, the author and architect of the 2021 PM Glynn Institute monograph, Shadow of the Cross.
Guided by this framework the panel explored the foundational principles of Catholic Social Teaching: solidarity, human dignity, subsidiarity, and the common good.
The two-hour event inspired a robust and engaging conversation that saw both Liberal and Labor politicians unite to espouse the virtues of Catholic Social Teaching in public policy.
Susan Carter MLC stating that holding true to her faith helped seeing the “people” at the face of any problem.
“I think the great strength that Catholic Social Teaching can bring to public life is the recognition that it is not just all about the market. It’s about the people who will thrive or suffer as the result of the market,” Mrs Carter said.
Meanwhile, Member for Granville Julia Finn echoed the statement with a practical example of how Catholic Social Teaching has benefitted students in Sydney.
“I really admire what Sydney Catholic Schools has done with the Amadeus program, it is very expensive, but it is a wonderful program which puts a wonderful value on music education.”
Ms Finn highlighted that while the expense of the program could be viewed as a deterrent, the Catholic ethos of investing in a comprehensive, faith-based and well-rounded education without a guaranteed return sees the investment as worthwhile.
“It is important in the broader sense of developing the whole person and has a huge influence on abilities in other subjects, particularly maths.”
Consensus and collegiality were also on display as the conversation switched to housing, with Catholic Schools NSW CEO Dallas McInerney pointing out how the removal of faith from politics has created the current housing crisis.
“The fact you cannot house yourself properly or adequately on a living wage in a first world economy, in one of the largest countries on the globe with technology abounding is a failure of the political class from start to finish,” Mr McInerney said.
Dr Sandie Cornish agreed by saying where the Catholic Church had influence, was as the largest non-government provider of education, health, and social services in the country.
“Housing is a human right, not a market commodity. Sometimes our contribution might not be proposing solutions but asking questions and sharing what we learn through providing social services,” Dr Cornish said.
At the conclusion of the forum, the panel was unanimous that Catholic Social Teaching being applied to political discourse was the fastest way to improve public policy.
“It is a very useful lens to put over policy proposals so that in that sphere, you note you are not going too far in one direction or another, recognising there will always be competing tensions between the rights of an individual and the common good,” Ms Finn said.
“There’s a compelling case, even for the non-believers, the traditional opponents of the church, if you don’t want to call it Catholic Social Teaching, but you want to take its main precepts, rebrand it and reapply it, that’s fine, we’ll take the win,” Mr McInerney said.
At the conclusion of the evening, leading Catholic academic, Professor Greg Craven finished with a final message to the assembled educators. If you want to bring about meaningful generational change and help the most marginalised, then live out Catholic Social Teaching in schools.
“When you think of the number of students we have in Catholic schools, hundreds of thousands, that is where we have the best chance of making an impact.
“We have to make it persuasive, not just telling everybody you’re at a Catholic school you have to behave in a Catholic way,” Professor Craven said.
Professor Greg Craven’s Catholic Social Teaching & Australian Politics is available to purchase online.