Oldal 19 [19]
1.2. The Unfolding of the Creation Protection Approach in the Social Teaching of the Church
instruments to God, which can be used to the extent that they lead to the
attainment of this ultimate end (i.e. God — ed.)." Pope John XXIII put it this
way in his encyclical Pacem in ferris.§ The common good must include all
that is due to each nation individually." One interpretation of the idea of the
common good now appears as a common heritage (authentically: common
heritage or common concern of humanity). In his encyclical Gaudium et spes, Pope
Paul VI wrote that man must therefore regard his rightfully possessed wealth
as not only his own, but also common, in the sense that he may benefit not
only himself but also others.”° The process of the Catholic Church’ turning
towards ecological problems, which began in the sixties, cu/minates in the Pope
Paul VT’s message to the UN Conference in Stockholm in 1972, which firmly takes
a stand for the goodness of creation as a whole, our responsibility towards our
natural environment and future generations, and the idea of solidarity.”’ He
pointed out that never before was there such a need to appeal to the moral
consciousness of man as it is today, in this age so strongly defined by human
development. For the danger does not arise from development, nor from
science: on the contrary, if they are used well, they can solve many of the
problems threatening humanity. The real danger lies in man, who has ever
more powerful tools, such as those capable of destruction, but also of the
noblest achievements.
The modern concept of development itself is questioned only in Pope John
Paul II’s encyclical Redemptor hominis.” The question of development, its
impact on the natural environment and its compatibility with the goals of
Christian human life are also dealt with in the encyclicals Laborem exercens
3 Sollicitudo rei socialis”*.
17 Ibid.
18 Pope John XXIII, Pacem in Terris (encyclical, 11 April 1963), Acta Apostolicae Sedis 55 (1963):
257-304, https://www.vatican.va/content/john-xxiii/hu/encyclicals/documents/hf_j-xxiii_
enc_11041963_pacem.html.
Y Tbid., paras. 55-56.
2° Gaudium et Spes: Pastoral Constitution on the Church in the Modern World (7 December 1965),
para. 60, https://www.vatican.va/archive/hist_councils/ii_vatican_council/documents/vat¬
ii_const_19651207_gaudium-et-spes_en.html.
A Pope Paul VI, Visit of His Holiness Pope Paul VI to the United Nations: Address to the United
Nations Organization (4 October 1965), https://www.vatican.va/content/paul-vi/en/
speeches/1965/documents/hf_p-vi_spe_19651004_united-nations.html.
2 Pope John Paul II, Redemptor Hominis (encyclical, 4 March 1979), Acta Apostolicae Sedis 71
(1979): 257-324, https://www.vatican.va/content/john-paul-ii/en/encyclicals/documents/
hf_jp-ii_enc_04031979_redemptor-hominis.html.
3 Pope John Paul II, Laborem Exercens (encyclical, 14 September 1981), Acta Apostolicae Sedis
73, no. 9 (1981): 577-647, https://www.vatican.va/content/john-paul-ii/en/encyclicals/
documents/hf_jp-ii_enc_14091981_laborem-exercens.html.
4 Pope John Paul II, Sollicitudo Rei Socialis (encyclical, 30 December 1987), Acta Apostolicae
Sedis 80 (1988): 513-86, https://www.vatican.va/content/john-paul-ii/en/encyclicals/
documents/hf_jp-ii_enc_30121987_sollicitudo-rei-socialis.html.
17