SAN DIEGO — The dignity of every human being, from conception to natural death, must be recognized and respected.
That basic concept lies at the heart of what is known as Catholic social teaching.
Through a new commission established by Bishop Michael Pham, the Diocese of San Diego has begun discerning ways to promote the tenets of Catholic social teaching and put them into action locally at the diocesan and parish levels.
The “Diocese of San Diego Commission on Integral Human Development: The Dignity of Life from Womb to Tomb” gathered for its inaugural meeting June 23 at the diocesan Pastoral Center. Moving forward, the plan is for monthly meetings via Zoom and quarterly meetings in person.
It is envisioned as a standing commission that will become a fixture in the diocese.
The commission has an executive steering committee consisting of Bishop Pham, Auxiliary Bishop Felipe Pulido, diocesan Chancellor Marioly Galván and diocesan CFO Shirley Pajanor. Its co-chairs are Deacon Bobby Ehnow, director of the diocesan Office for Life, Peace and Justice, and Appaswamy “Vino” Pajanor, CEO of Catholic Charities Diocese of San Diego.
The 19 commission members include priests, deacons, consecrated religious, and lay Catholics, among them several leaders at the diocesan Pastoral Center.
“I always like to say Catholic social teaching is one of the great gems of the Church that we don’t talk about very often,” said Deacon Ehnow, who is excited that the new commission will be able to rectify this situation.
Catholic social teaching is based on three core principles: human dignity, solidarity and subsidiarity. The latter is the principle that a higher-level community should not take over tasks that properly belong to a lower-level one, such as persons, families, or other intermediary groups. In Catholic social teaching, subsidiarity protects the dignity of persons, enabling people to be protagonists of their own growth.
From the core principles, the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) on its website derives “seven themes” – Life and Dignity of the Human Person; Call to Family, Community and Participation; Rights and Responsibilities; Option for the Poor and Vulnerable; The Dignity of Work and the Rights of Workers; Solidarity; and Care for God’s Creation. These will serve as a roadmap for the diocesan commission.
Deacon Ehnow said that the impetus for the new commission was the 135th anniversary of “Rerum Novarum” (On Capital and Labor), an encyclical written by Pope Leo XIII, which he described as “the foundational document for modern Catholic social teaching.”
Recently, Pope Leo XIV himself marked the anniversary with the publication of his first encyclical, “Magnifica Humanitas” (On Safeguarding the Human Person in the Time of Artificial Intelligence). The document was signed on May 15, exactly 135 years after the signing of “Rerum Novarum.”
Deacon Ehnow lamented that Catholic social teaching is often misunderstood as a “progressive agenda,” when it’s actually something that is “at the very heart of our faith, which is living the Gospel and treating every person with dignity and respect.”
He explained that Catholic social teaching asks us to live out “that Gospel message of loving every person the way Christ loved us when he was here and the way he continues to love us as the head of our Church.”
Vino Pajanor explained that the diocesan commission will employ a “synodal methodology,” with members engaging in dialogue to discern together the path forward.
He said that Bishop Pham has delineated an ongoing, three-step process of catechesis, formation and implementation. The successful implementation of some aspect of Catholic social teaching will not spell the end of the process or of the commission’s work, he said, explaining that the cycle of catechesis, formation and implementation will continue indefinitely.
Pajanor explained that the catechesis stage, where commission members seek to determine how to educate local Catholics about Catholic social teaching, is an essential point of embarkation.
“We cannot go (into) action directly, without getting our bearings,” he said.
Applying a different metaphor, he said, “We all need to have a common language. … The catechesis part will get us all into a same common understanding of what is it that the Church teachings are on integral human development, on human dignity, from the womb to the tomb.”
Pajanor acknowledged that getting from catechesis to implementation “is not going to happen overnight.”
“Bishop Pham does understand that this will take a long time for us,” he said, “but he wants this to be an ongoing process” and hopes “that this becomes almost the DNA … of our Local Church.”
Commission Members
The “Diocese of San Diego Commission on Integral Human Development: The Dignity of Life from Womb to Tomb” has 19 members:
-Dr. Mary Lyons, president emeritus of the University of San Diego
-Father Scott Santarosa, SJ, pastor of Our Lady of Guadalupe Parish, San Diego
-Father Ramiro Chan, CS, pastor of Our Lady of Mt. Carmel Parish, San Ysidro
-Dr. Christina Slentz, associate director for Creation Care in the Office for Life, Peace and Justice
-Deacon Jim Vargas, president and CEO of Father Joe’s Villages
-Leonardo Enrique Fonseca, diocesan social media manager
-Maria Valencia, associate director for Culture of Life in the Office for Life, Peace and Justice
-Kat Albrandt, parishioner at The Immaculata Parish
-Sister Terri Monroe, RSCJ, associate professor emeritus at the University of San Diego
-Sister Lourdes Reyes, of the Eudists of the 11th Hour
-Maricruz Flores Strauss, director of the diocesan Office for Youth and Young Adult Ministry
-Father Gary Sanders, OSA, of St. Augustine Monastery
-Father Brent Kruger, who will be pastor of St. Thérèse of Carmel Parish, effective July 1
-Father Bernardo Lara, who will be pastor of Our Lady of Angels Parish, effective July 1
-Father Luke Jauregui, pastor of St. Stephen Parish
-John Prust, director of the diocesan Office for Family Life and Spirituality
-Laura Martin-Spencer, director of pastoral formation at St. Francis Center
-Father Eddie Samaniego, SJ, director of the diocesan Office for the Permanent Diaconate
-Leticia Oseguera, superintendent of Catholic schools for the Diocese of San Diego.
