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Roman Catholic Church is the largest Christian church in the Western world. The general Catholic view of society and politics derives from the writings of its great theologians St. Augustine and St. Thomas Aquinas. St. Augustine provided the first systematic Christian political theory in his book The City of God, in which he develops the idea of the The Two Cities (The City of Man or all worldly governments and The City of God or the eternal heavenly realm). St. Thomas Aquinas's Summa Theologica looks at politics through three levels of law: (1) divine law; (2) natural law; and (3) human law. Both Augustinian and Thomist political thought informs Catholic teaching on politics, society, economics, the family, international relations, and Christians' relations to the secular world.

A dominant theme in Catholic political thought is its universality, its claim to apply to all the world's peoples at all times in history. The term catholic means "universal" and means that the Christian church transcends nationalities, languages, and regions. Christians are united by the spirit of Christ, regardless of national, ethnic, or language difference. This idea of a catholic church contrasts with both pagan tribal religions and the Christian churches identified with a specific region or country (such as Greek Orthodox, Russian Orthodox, or the Church of England).

During the Middle Ages, Catholic political thought became closely associated with European monarchies (in France, Spain, England, etc.) through canon law. So, when republican political revolutions occurred in those countries, Catholic political theory was often rejected along with the monarchy. But the Catholic Church, primarily through papal encyclicals or political documents by the pope, applied Catholic teachings to modern politics. Pope Leo XIII, in the encyclical Inscrutabili (1878), affirmed the relevance of traditional Catholic political truth in the Modern democratic, industrial world. In the encyclical Libertas (1888), he established basic Catholic doctrine on the family, relations between church and state, and economics in the West. In these and other encyclicals, the pope affirmed the family as the basic unit of society, the sin of racism, the need for world peace, the morality of allowing religious pluralism, and the legitimacy of democracy. In 1931, Pope Pius XI's encyclical Quadragesimo anno advanced the need for social justice and social charity and that the government should promote the common good of the society, including ensuring the economic well being of all segments of society. In 1963, Pope John XXIII affirmed the Catholic doctrine of the dignity of human individuals, "for men are redeemed by the blood of Jesus Christ, they are by grace the children and friends of God and heirs of eternal glory" (Pacem in terris). The last pope of the 20th century, John Paul II, has written extensively on Catholic social and political thought. With the collapse of Communism in Russia and Eastern Europe, John Paul II has emphasized that neither socialism nor capitalism are ideal systems but should be subordinated to God's truth. In the United States of America, the Catholic bishops have published several pastoral letters on political matters from opposition to nuclear war and abortion to favoring social programs for the poor.

So Catholic social and political thought is an evolving, progressive doctrine that grows out of the traditional religious teachings of the church.

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