{"id":28430,"date":"2019-04-15T04:52:35","date_gmt":"2019-04-15T04:52:35","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/capp.mystagingwebsite.com\/?page_id=28430"},"modified":"2026-08-19T13:05:22","modified_gmt":"2026-08-19T13:05:22","slug":"human-dignity","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/5.capp-usa.org\/es\/human-dignity\/","title":{"rendered":"Human Dignity"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Join our Newsletter<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n
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Human Dignity is the Prime Principle<\/h1>\n<\/div><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n
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The Correct Understanding of the Human Person<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n

Promotes a Culture of Life<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n

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We are Made in His Image<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n

The Beginning of Human Rights<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n

The Source of Authentic Development<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n

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Human Dignity, rooted in a correct view of the human person, is the prime principle of the Catholic social doctrine.<\/span><\/h5>\n

Catechism of the Catholic Church, 1700<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n

Being made in God\u2019s image is <\/span>\u201c<\/span>the basis not only of the unity of the human family but also of our inviolable human dignity<\/span>\u201d<\/span>.<\/span><\/h5>\n

Pope Benedict XVI<\/a><\/p>\n

\u201c<\/span>Every human person possesses an infinite dignity, inalienably grounded in his or her very being, which prevails in and beyond every circumstance, state, or situation the person may ever encounter.<\/span>\u201d<\/h5>\n

Pope Leo XIV, 53<\/a>
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It is in this beginning that human rights are grounded.<\/strong><\/h5>\n

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Human Dignity Articles<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n
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\"In<\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n
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The Prime Principle<\/h4>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n

Pope St. John Paul II said, \"From this point forward it will be necessary to keep in mind that the main thread and, in a certain sense, the guiding principle...of all of the Church\u2019s social doctrine, is a \u200bcorrect view of the human person <\/strong>\u200band of his unique value, inasmuch as 'man ... is the only creature on earth which God willed for itself'. God has imprinted his own image and likeness on man (cf. Gen 1:26), conferring upon him an incomparable dignity, as the Church frequently insists...<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n

Read More<\/h3>

\u201cIn effect, beyond the rights which man acquires by his own work, there exist rights which do not correspond to any work he performs, but which flow from his essential dignity as a person.\u201d (Pope St. John Paul II, 11)<\/a> Human Dignity, rooted in a correct view of the human person, is the prime principle of the Catholic social doctrine. (Catechism of the Catholic Church, 1700)<\/a><\/p>\n

Pope Leo XIV distinguishes the dignity we can gain or lose \u2014 moral, social, existential \u2014 from the dignity beneath all of them that never changes: \u201cthe more profound and important level of ontological dignity<\/strong>. This is the dignity that belongs to every human being simply by virtue of existing, of having been willed, created and loved by God.\u201d No sin, failure, humiliation or exclusion can diminish it. (Magnifica Humanitas, 52)<\/a><\/p>\n

He closes his encyclical returning to this same point: \u201cThe dignity inscribed in each of us by the Holy Spirit can also be seen in our capacity to reflect critically, choose and love freely, and form authentic relationships. No computational system, however sophisticated, can create a heart that gives itself, or a conscience that discerns good from evil.\u201d (Magnifica Humanitas, 233)<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n

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No One...<\/span><\/h4>\n

can take away our dignity!<\/strong><\/h3>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n

\u201cFundamental rights are neither created by the lawmaker nor granted to the citizen. The value of human dignity\u2026takes precedence<\/strong> over all political decision-making\u201d.  (Pope Benedict XVI, First Things)<\/a><\/p>\n

\u201cThe value of persons\u2026does not depend on what they achieve or produce\u2026There are rights that apply to everyone simply by virtue of being human, and no human power can legitimately deny or arbitrarily limit them.\u201d  (Pope Leo XIV, 51)<\/a><\/p>\n

\u201cOur duty<\/strong> is to continue to insist\u2026that the human person and human dignity are not simply catchwords, but pillars for creating shared rules and structures\u201d. (Pope Francis, 1)<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n

Read More<\/h3>

Human Dignity is an Unalienable Right.<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"No one can take away this human right,\"\u00a0(Centesimus Annus, 9)<\/a>...not even the majority of a democratic political body, because this dignity does not arise from the state or the will of the governed.<\/p>\n

This concept is the core of Catholic Social Teaching going back to its earliest articulation by Pope Leo XIII in 1891:\u00a0\"No man may with impunity outrage that human dignity which God Himself treats with great reverence.\"\u00a0(Rerum Novarum, 40)<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n

St. Gregory of Nyssa, a 4th century Church Father, said: \"God did not make the heavens in his image, nor the moon, the sun, the beauty of the stars, nor anything else which you can see...You alone are made in the likeness of that nature which surpasses all understanding...Nothing in all creation can equal your grandeur.\" In 1891 Pope Leo XIII declared that \"the State is bound to protect natural rights, not to destroy them\"\u00a0(Rerum Novarum, 51)<\/a>. Pope St. John Paul II \u200b(Centesimus Annus,\u00a017)<\/a> stated clearly that, \"No one can take away this human right\", not even the majority of a democratic political body, because this dignity does not arise from the state or the will of the governed.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n

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No One...<\/span><\/h4>\n

can take away our dignity!<\/strong><\/h3>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n

\u201cFundamental rights are neither created by the lawmaker nor granted to the citizen. The value of human dignity\u2026takes precedence<\/strong> over all political decision-making\u201d.  (Pope Benedict XVI, First Things)<\/a><\/p>\n

\u201cThe value of persons\u2026does not depend on what they achieve or produce\u2026There are rights that apply to everyone simply by virtue of being human, and no human power can legitimately deny or arbitrarily limit them.\u201d  (Pope Leo XIV, 51)<\/a><\/p>\n

\u201cOur duty<\/strong> is to continue to insist\u2026that the human person and human dignity are not simply catchwords, but pillars for creating shared rules and structures\u201d. (Pope Francis, 1)<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n

Read More<\/h3>

Human Dignity is an Unalienable Right.<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"No one can take away this human right,\"\u00a0(Centesimus Annus, 9)<\/a>...not even the majority of a democratic political body, because this dignity does not arise from the state or the will of the governed.<\/p>\n

This concept is the core of Catholic Social Teaching going back to its earliest articulation by Pope Leo XIII in 1891:\u00a0\"No man may with impunity outrage that human dignity which God Himself treats with great reverence.\"\u00a0(Rerum Novarum, 40)<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n

St. Gregory of Nyssa, a 4th century Church Father, said: \"God did not make the heavens in his image, nor the moon, the sun, the beauty of the stars, nor anything else which you can see...You alone are made in the likeness of that nature which surpasses all understanding...Nothing in all creation can equal your grandeur.\" In 1891 Pope Leo XIII declared that \"the State is bound to protect natural rights, not to destroy them\"\u00a0(Rerum Novarum, 51)<\/a>. Pope St. John Paul II \u200b(Centesimus Annus,\u00a017)<\/a> stated clearly that, \"No one can take away this human right\", not even the majority of a democratic political body, because this dignity does not arise from the state or the will of the governed.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n

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Yet, It Is Under Attack<\/h4>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n
\u201cNew ideologies, characterized by rampant individualism, egocentrism and materialistic consumerism, weaken social bonds, fueling that \u2018throw away\u2019 mentality<\/strong> which leads to contempt for, and the abandonment of, the weakest and those considered \u2018useless\u2019.\u201d<\/h6>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n

Pope Francis, 1<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n

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A Dangerous Challenge
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Pope Leo XIV identifies another particularly dangerous challenge: the idea that a person must earn or justify his or her worth:<\/p>\n

\u201cI consider particularly insidious the [ideology] that suggests that every person must earn or justify his or her own worth, to the point of attributing greater value to those who are more efficient or effective. From this perspective, persons end up being reduced to a means of achieving results.\u201d (Magnifica Humanitas, 51)<\/a><\/em><\/em><\/p>\n

This danger takes on new urgency in the age of artificial intelligence. Human beings cannot be valued according to their productivity, efficiency, usefulness or measurable characteristics. Technology must always remain at the service of the human person \u2014 never become the measure of the human person.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n

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What Must I Do?<\/h4>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n

Both individually and corporately we are called on to make a practical difference in the world.<\/strong> (Lumen Gentium, 36)<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n

Each of us have unique responsibilities, appropriate to our state in life, to implement the social doctrine of the Church<\/strong> \u201cin a manner corresponding to his vocation and according to the degree of influence he wields\u201d. (Pope Benedict XVI, 7)<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n

\u201cWe, Christians, cannot \u2018play Pilate\u2019 and wash our hands\u2026We must participate in politics<\/strong> because politics is one of the highest forms of charity because it seeks the common good. And Christian lay people must work in politics.\u201d (Pope Francis)<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n

\u201cRespect, protect, love and serve life, every human life!\u201d (Pope St. John Paul II, 5)<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n

Learn more<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n
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\"Subsidiarity<\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n
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Human Dignity Articles<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n
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FAQs<\/h4>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n

Q: What is the correct understanding of the human person?<\/h3>

A: \u201cThe guiding principle\u2026 of all the Church\u2019s social doctrine is a correct view of the human person\u201d. (Pope St. John Paul II, 11)<\/a><\/p>\n

This means an understanding of each person\u2019s unique value. All Catholic social teaching flows from this \u2013 the inherent dignity of every person that comes from being made in God\u2019s image. It is in this beginning that human rights are grounded.<\/p>\n

Why is this important?<\/strong><\/p>\n

\u201cAs one created in the image of God, each individual human being has the dignity of a person;<\/em> he or she is not just something but someone, free, self-giving and entering into communion with others.\u201d (Pope Benedict XVI, 2007 World Day of Peace Message, December 8, 2006, 2)<\/em><\/a><\/p>\n

\u201cThe Incarnation reveals to us, with intense light and in a surprising way, that every human life has a very lofty and incomparable dignity.\u201d (Pope Benedict XVI, Prayer for nascent human life, November 27, 2010)<\/em><\/a><\/p>\n

\u201cIn comparison with all the other living beings that populate the earth man has an unmistakable originality. He lives simultaneously in both the spiritual and corporal dimension\u2026We are therefore spirit, soul and body. We are part of this world, tied to the possibilities and limitation of our material condition, while at the same time we are open to an infinite horizon, able to converse with God and to welcome him within us\u201d (Pope Benedict XVI, Prayer for nascent human life, November 27, 2010)<\/em><\/a><\/p>\n

\u201cGod loves us deeply, totally and without making distinctions. He calls us to friendship with him, he makes us part of a reality beyond every imagination and every thought and word: his divine life itself. With feeling and gratitude, let us be aware of the value of every human person\u2019s incomparable dignity and of our great responsibility.\u201d (Pope Benedict XVI, Prayer for nascent human life, November 27, 2010)<\/em><\/a><\/p>\n

Pope Leo XIV emphasizes that this dignity is also relational. The human person is not an isolated individual: \u201cCreated for relationship, every human person is planned and willed by God to enter into communion with him, with others and with creation.\u201d (Magnifica Humanitas, 50)<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n

Q: Is human dignity under assault?<\/h3>

A: \u201cToday, perhaps more persuasively and with more effective means than in the past, human dignity is threatened by aberrant ideologies, assailed by the misguided use of science and technology, and contradicted by widespread incongruent lifestyles\u2026 Moreover, propaganda and the growing acceptance of disordered lifestyles contrary to human dignity are weakening the hearts and minds of people.<\/p>\n

All this represents a threat to humanity, because peace is in danger when human dignity is not respected\u2026any offense to the person is a threat to peace; any threat to peace is an offense to the truth of the person: The human person is the heart of peace\u2019.\u201d (Pope Benedict XVI, Communiqu\u00e9 Announcing the theme of 40th World Peace Day, July 13, 2006)<\/em><\/a><\/p>\n

Twenty years later, Pope Leo XIV warns that this danger remains, even amid technological progress: \u201cThe first is that these rights are declared in a purely formal sense, while technological progress continues alongside covert or overt violations of human dignity.\u201d (Magnifica Humanitas, 56)<\/a><\/p>\n

The challenge, therefore, is not simply to proclaim human dignity, but to ensure that our political, economic and technological choices actually respect it.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n

Q: Is peace at risk?<\/h3>

A: \u201cA true and stable peace presupposes respect for human rights. Yet, if these rights are grounded on a weak conception of the human person, how could they not fail to be themselves weakened?\u201d (Pope Benedict XVI, 2007 World Day of Peace Message, 12)<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n

\"History has shown how dangerous and damaging a State can be when it proceeds to make laws that touch the person and society, while itself claiming to be the source and principle of ethics\". (Pope Benedict XVI, Address To Participants in the General Assembly of the Pontifical Academy for Life, February 13, 2010)<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n

Q: What did Pope Leo XIV say about human dignity in his first encyclical?<\/h3>

A: In Magnifica Humanitas, Pope Leo XIV affirmed that human dignity \u201cdoes not depend on a person\u2019s abilities, wealth or position in life, nor on the right or wrong choices made; instead, it is a gift that precedes and transcends each person.\u201d (Magnifica Humanitas, 50)<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n

He also reaffirmed that the right to life \u201cfrom conception to its natural end\u201d is foundational \u2014 without it, \u201cit is impossible to exercise any other right.\u201d (Magnifica Humanitas, 55)<\/a><\/em><\/em><\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n

Q: What is the \"bottom line\"?<\/h3>

A: \u201cRespect, protect, love and serve life, every human life! Only in this direction will you find justice, development, true freedom, peace and happiness!\u201d (Pope St. John Paul II, 5)<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n

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\"Three<\/div>

Three Key Principles<\/a><\/h2>

Catholic social teaching is built on three foundational principles -\u00a0<\/strong>Human Dignity<\/strong>,\u00a0Solidarity\u00a0<\/strong>and\u00a0Subsidiarity.\u00a0<\/strong>Human Dignity, embodied in a correct understanding of the human person, is the greatest. The others flow from it. Good governments and good economic systems find ways of fostering the three principles.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>

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Human Dignity<\/a><\/h2>

This means a correct understanding of the human person and of each person\u2019s unique value. All Catholic social teaching flows from this: the inherent dignity of every person that comes from being made in God\u2019s image.\u00a0<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>

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Solidarity<\/a><\/h2>

Solidarity is not \u201ca feeling of vague compassion or shallow distress at the misfortunes of others. It is a firm and persevering determination to commit oneself to the common good\u201d. (Pope St. John Paul II, 38)<\/a> Love of God and love of neighbor are, in fact, linked and form one, single commandment.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>

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Subsidiarity<\/a><\/h2>

Subsidiarity \u201cis a fundamental principle of social philosophy, fixed and unchangeable, that one should not withdraw from individuals and commit to the community what they can accomplish by their own enterprise and industry. So, too, it is an injustice and at the same time a grave evil and a disturbance of right order to transfer to the larger and higher collectivity functions which can be performed and provided for by the lesser and subordinate bodies\u201d. (Pope Pius XI)<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>

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