3. In your own opinion, why the human rights become so important to CST?

The Catholic Social Teaching is the central and essential element of faith of an individual,
especially the Catholic people. It is the teaching that is based upon the life and words of Jesus Christ
while He was here on earth. Even if He is the king of all kings and the Son of God, He humbled himself
for the poor and the needy. We are all called to think like Jesus, to act like Jesus, and to love like Jesus.
Catholic Social Teaching is not just focused on the idea of helping those people who are in need, it
also focuses on considering and fulfilling the rights and justice of the weak and the unfortunate as
human beings that are considered as the most wonderful creatures that God has created.
According to one of the seven themes of the Catholic Social Teaching, which is Life and Dignity of
the Human Person, a person’s life will always be considered sacred and that one’s dignity is the
foundation of the moral vision for the society. Life is sacred so it should be really valued not just by
others but also it should start within oneself. One of the human rights of a person is for him to live his
life to his fullest. God gave people their lives as a sign of His true and eternal love for them, that He
wants them to experience the beauty and the joy of being a human living on earth, the marvelous planet
that God created. We are not just simple things, we are precious because we are God’s people. We
should promote peace and unity so that the conflicts and problems would be prevented in order to
achieve our rights as humans. Dignity, associated in the sense of life, is the right of a person that needs
to be valued and respected no matter what your age, gender, or social status in life is. We are all equal in
the perception of God, we are all children of God.
Another theme of the Catholic Social Teaching is the Rights and Responsibilities which is focused
on not just the human rights but also the responsibilities of the human in using these rights and in
applying it for others. It can only be successfully achieved if one would be responsible enough to use
wisely and to control effectively his own rights. A person has rights not just for himself but also for the
sake of others － to one another, to our families, and to the larger society.
One must speak of his rights of being able to live, to experience the process of development of
human being, from his birth up to the day before his death: to breath, to see, to touch, to smell, to hear,
to feel, to eat food, to have shelter, to take a bath, to treat illnesses and diseases with medical care, to
work, to rest, to sleep, to love. As the right of a person arises, his duties with it comes up as well. Apart
from the Social Teachings of the Catholic Church, the state has all the responsibility to take on or better
yet, to help the Church in the consideration of the rights of each member of the society, workers,
women, and children.
All in all, since CST has always been based through Jesus Christ, we always take into consideration
the lives of billions of people in the whole world because no matter how sinful we are, God has always
been forgiving us despite all of it. God values life and His children. God values me, you, and all of us
because He unconditionally loves us.
615 words

Source: http://www.usccb.org/beliefs-and-teachings/what-we-believe/catholic-social-teaching/rights-and-
responsibilities.cfm