Last week we focussed on the principle of “Subsidiarity”. Today we focus on Part 1, Chapter 4, V, ‘a' and ‘b' of the Compendium on the Social Doctrine of the Church: Participation.

a) Meaning and value

“The characteristic implication of subsidiarity is participation ( Octogesima Adveniens), which is expressed essentially in a series of activities by means of which the citizen, either as an individual or in association with others, whether directly or through representation, contributes to the cultural, economic, political and social life of the civil community to which he belongs ( Gaudium et Spes ). Participation is a duty to be fulfilled consciously by all, with responsibility and with a view to the common good ( Catechism , 1913-1917).

“This cannot be confined or restricted to only a certain area of social life, given its importance for growth – above all human growth – in areas such as the world of work and economic activity, especially in their internal dynamics ( Mater et Magistra ); in the sectors of information and culture; and, more than anything else, in the fields of social and political life even at the highest levels.

The cooperation of all peoples and the building of an international community in a framework of solidarity depend on this latter area ( Sollicitudo Rei Socialis ).

“In this perspective it becomes absolutely necessary to encourage participation above all of the most disadvantaged, as well as the occasional rotation of political leaders in order to forestall the establishment of hidden privileges.

Moreover, strong moral pressure is needed, so that the administration of public life will be the result of the shared responsibility of each individual with regard to the common good.

b) Participation and democracy

“Participation in community life is not only one of the greatest aspirations of the citizen, called to exercise freely and responsibly his civic role with and for others ( Pacem in Terris ), but is also one of the pillars of all democratic orders and one of the major guarantees of the permanence of the democratic system.

“Democratic government, in fact, is defined first of all by the assignment of powers and functions on the part of the people, exercised in their name, in their regard and on their behalf. It is therefore clearly evident that every democracy must be participative ( Centesimus Annus ).

This means that the different subjects of civil community at every level must be informed, listened to and involved in the exercise of the carried-out functions.

“Participation can be achieved in all the different relationships between the citizen and institutions: to this end, particular attention must be given to the historical and social contexts in which such participation can truly be brought about.

The overcoming of cultural, juridical and social obstacles that often constitutes real barriers to the shared participation of citizens in the destiny of their communities calls for work in the areas of information and education ( Catechism , 1917).

“In this regard, all those attitudes that encourage in citizens an inadequate or incorrect practice of participation or that cause widespread disaffection with everything connected with the sphere of social and political life are a source of concern and deserve careful consideration.

“For example, one thinks of attempts by certain citizens to ‘make deals' with institutions in order to obtain more advantageous conditions for themselves, as though these institutions were at the service of their selfish needs; or of the practice of citizens to limit their participation to the electoral process, in many cases reaching the point where they even abstain from voting ( Gaudium et Spes ).

“In the area of participation, a further source of concern is found in those countries ruled by totalitarian or dictatorial regimes, where the fundamental right to participate in public life is denied at its origin, since it is considered a threat to the State itself ( Centesimus Annus ).

In some countries where this right is only formally proclaimed while in reality it cannot be concretely exercised while, in still other countries the burgeoning bureaucracy de facto denies citizens the possibility of taking active part in social and political life ( Sollicitudo Rei Socialis ).”

We can see from the above that it is a fundamental demand of justice and a requirement for human dignity that all people be assured a minimum level of participation in the community.

As Pope John XXIII stated in Pacem in Terris :

“The dignity of the human person involves the right to take an active part in public affairs and to contribute one's part to the common good of the citizens. For, as our predecessor of happy memory, Pius XII, pointed out: ‘The human individual, far from being an object and, as it were, a merely passive element in the social order, is in fact, must be and must continue to be, its subject, its foundation and its end.'”

The dignity of the human person requires that we build structures of participation to enable each of us to contribute to the true progress of our parishes, our community, our nation, and our world.

As Catholics we need to ask ourselves:

1. Do conditions exist in our communities and in T&T that allow all our people opportunities to exercise their right to participate in the economic, political, and cultural life of society?

2. What, if any, steps are needed to expand economic participation by citizens in T&T, broaden the sharing of economic power, and make economic decisions more accountable to the common good?