Catholic Social Teaching (CST) is a distinct set of principles and ideas ... the 1998 Official Catholic Directory published in Catholicism USA^, and data from the ...
C A T H O L I C SOCIAL T E A C H I N G : W H A T D O C A T H O L I C S KNOW, A N D W H A T D O T H E Y BELIEVE? Paul Sullins Catholic University of A m e r i c a
Most scholars believe anecdotally Social Teachings scientifically. veasure
(CST) is very
In this study I use two statistically
knowledge
Jsing instruments
and assent to CST among
and assent
representative Catholic
studied
national
surveys to
and
parishioners.
priests
higher
than
parishioners,
Younger priests
but much
higher
however, is higher than their level of
among
non-Catholics,
particularly
Option for the Poor. Assent increases with knowledge :he priests.
been
by the U.S. Bishops, focusing on poverty, I confirm that CST
is very low among
"priests. Assent among parishioners, md significantly
of the Church's
has never
based
)n CST themes articulated (.nowledge
that Catholics' knowledge
low, but the question
are more
knowledgeable
with regard
for the parishioners, about
among
knowledge, to the
but not for
CST, but show
lower
issent, than older priests. I suggest in conclusion that CST assent, and belief in general, s more
a product
of social context
and community
participation
than
of
direct
ndoctrination. I. Introduction C a t h o l i c Social Teaching ( C S T ) is a distinct set o f principles and ideas Dromulgated by a s e t o f c o r e magisterial d o c u m e n t s o f t h e C a t h o l i c C h u r c h Dver approximately t h e past century. In c o n t r a s t t o t h e C h u r c h ' s teachings o n sexual m o r a l i t y , w h i c h a r e w e l l k n o w n t o A m e r i c a n C a t h o l i c s b u t a c c e p t e d by Dniy a small m i n o r i t y o f t h e m . C a t h o l i c s in A m e r i c a a r e o f t e n t h o u g h t t o h o l d /lews
sympathetic t o C S T while
themselves.
F o r this
b e i n g largely i g n o r a n t
of the doctrines
reason, C S T is o f t e n c h a r a c t e r i z e d as t h e C a t h o l i c
Church's "best kept secret".' F o r t h e s a m e r e a s o n , m a n y have called f o r m o r e a n d b e t t e r t e a c h i n g regarding C S T , a n d a n u m b e r o f e f f o r t s have b e e n d e v o t e d t o
improving
: a t e c h e s i s in this a r e a . If o n l y f o r strategic r e a s o n s , s u c h an e m p h a s i s is e n t i r e l y ustifiable. R e l i g i o u s e d u c a t i o n f o c u s e d w h e r e s t u d e n t s a r e r e c e p t i v e is m o r e likely t o b e p r o d u c t i v e . F o r many C a t h o l i c s , C S T k n o w l e d g e also s e r v e s as a basis for c o m m o n e f f o r t s t o i m p r o v e A m e r i c a n society. M o r e o v e r , e f f o r t s t o SULLINS
243
p r o m o t e C S T o f t e n a l s o have w h a t m i g h t be called a r e s t o r a t i v e s u b t e x t . T o t h e e x t e n t t h a t w e l l - p u b l i c i z e d teachings a b o u t m o r a l s t a n c e s t h e y c a n n o t a c c e p t w e a k e n s t h e legitimacy o f t h e C h u r c h f o r liberal C a t h o l i c s , t h e p r o m u l g a t i o n o f C h u r c h t e a c h i n g w i t h w h i c h t h e y a r e likely t o be s y m p a t h e t i c may, it is t h o u g h t , help r e s t o r e
or
strengthen
the
C h u r c h ' s legitimacy. W h e t h e r
or
not
this
i n t e n t i o n is w e l l - f o u n d e d , it is c l e a r t h a t f o r m a n y t h e stakes r e g a r d i n g C S T knowledge
and
acceptance
are
much
higher
than
mere
catechetical
improvement. A s i m p o r t a n t as this d i s c u s s i o n is, it has b e e n i m p e d e d by a lack o f definite k n o w l e d g e r e g a r d i n g t h e e x t e n t t o w h i c h C a t h o l i c s actually d o k n o w a n d a c c e p t t h e d o c t r i n e s o f C S T . A s far as I k n o w , t h e r e has b e e n n o s y s t e m a t i c attempt t o measure the knowledge and acceptance a m o n g C a t h o l i c s of the d o c t r i n e s c o m p r i s i n g C S T . T h i s s t u d y a t t e m p t s t o a m e n d this d e f e c t . U s i n g official C h u r c h p u b l i c a t i o n s , I d e r i v e d i n s t r u m e n t s t o m e a s u r e b o t h k n o w l e d g e and
acceptance of
instrumentation,
CST. This
p r o c e s s , involving
is d e s c r i b e d in t h e " D a t a a n d
an e x t e n s i v e
exercise
M e t h o d s " section. I
in
then
a d m i n i s t e r e d t h e s e i n s t r u m e n t s t o national r a n d o m s a m p l e s o f C a t h o l i c p r i e s t s a n d p a r i s h i o n e r s . T h e results f o r e a c h o f t h e s e g r o u p s a r e p r e s e n t e d in t h e " A n a l y s i s " s e c t i o n . Finally, I discuss s o m e o f t h e i m p l i c a t i o n s o f t h e
findings
u n d e r " D i s c u s s i o n and C o n c l u s i o n . " II.
D a t a and Methods
D a t a f o r this s t u d y w e r e d e r i v e d f r o m s u r v e y s a d m i n i s t e r e d t o n a t i o n a l random
samples
of
Catholic
priests
and
parishioners
in
the
winter
of
2000/2001. This was part of a general assessment of the w o r k of the C a t h o l i c C a m p a i g n f o r H u m a n D e v e l o p m e n t , an a g e n c y o f t h e U n i t e d States C o n f e r e n c e of C a t h o l i c Bishops. T h e surveys w e r e
developed and administered
by a
r e s e a r c h t e a m at t h e Life C y c l e Institute o f t h e C a t h o l i c U n i v e r s i t y o f A m e r i c a . T h e level o f C C H D k n o w l e d g e a n d p a r t i c i p a t i o n w a s a n t i c i p a t e d t o b e small a m o n g p a r i s h i o n e r s , s o I c h o s e t o f o c u s o n t h e m o s t active a n d i n v o l v e d p a r i s h i o n e r s t o i m p r o v e t h e meaningfulness o f t h e results. I a c c o m p l i s h e d this by r e s t r i c t i n g o u r s a m p l e t o m e m b e r s o f
parish pastoral councils.This g r o u p
o f p a r i s h i o n e r s is a m o n g t h e m o s t active in e a c h p a r i s h . B e c a u s e p a s t o r a l c o u n c i l m e m b e r s a r e usually e l e c t e d , t h e y a r e a l s o r e p r e s e n t a t i v e o f t h e p a r i s h in meaningful w a y s . T h e n u m b e r o f p a r i s h i o n e r s p e r parish v a r i e s greatly by r e g i o n in t h e U n i t e d States, f r o m a high o f 8 , 0 8 7 p a r i s h i o n e r s p e r p a r i s h o n average f o r R e g i o n X I (Pacific R e g i o n ) t o a l o w o f 1289 p a r i s h i o n e r s p e r p a r i s h f o r R e g i o n I X ( C e n t r a l Plains). A
r a n d o m s a m p l e o f p a r i s h i o n e r s w i l l t h u s be b i a s e d
t o w a r d l a r g e r p a r i s h e s , a n d a r a n d o m s a m p l e o f p a r i s h e s w i l l be biased t o w a r d smaller
ones. To
counteract
these
potential
biases, I
used
the
known
d i s t r i b u t i o n o f p a r i s h e s t o d r a w a b a l a n c e d s a m p l e by r e g i o n s . U s i n g d a t a f r o m
244
C A T H O I TC SOCTAT SCTFNJCF RFVTFW
the
1998 O f f i c i a l C a t h o l i c D i r e c t o r y p u b l i s h e d in Catholicism
USA^, a n d d a t a
f r o m the 2000 Official C a t h o l i c D i r e c t o r y ^ I d r e w a r a n d o m sample of 750 C a t h o l i c p a r i s h e s in t h e U n i t e d States in t h e f o l l o w i n g m a n n e r . First, I assigned t o each of the t h i r t e e n regions of the C h u r c h a n u m b e r of sample parishes t o d r a w t h a t w a s e q u i v a l e n t t o t h e actual p r o p o r t i o n
o f U.S. parishes in t h a t
region. Second, I randomly
selected one-third
of the
dioceses f r o m each
r e g i o n . T h i r d , f r o m t h e s e d i o c e s e s I systematically s a m p l e d f r o m e a c h r e g i o n the
number
of parishes obtained
in step o n e . T h i s p r o c e d u r e , k n o w n
as
s a m p l i n g w i t h p r o b a b i l i t y p r o p o r t i o n a l t o size (PPS), e n s u r e d t h a t o u r s a m p l e r e p r e s e n t e d as a c c u r a t e l y as p o s s i b l e t h e t r u e d i s t r i b u t i o n b o t h o f p a r i s h i o n e r s a n d p a r i s h e s , as far as c o u l d be specified by r e g i o n . On
o r around
pastor's q u e s t i o n n a i r e
D e c e m b e r 8, 2 0 0 0 , I m a i l e d a p a c k e t c o n t a i n i n g a and twelve
parishioners' questionnaires to
the
800
s e l e c t e d p a r i s h e s . T h e packets w e r e a d d r e s s e d t o t h e parish pastor, as i n d i c a t e d by t h e 2 0 0 0 O f f i c i a l C a t h o l i c Directory"*. I a s k e d e a c h p a s t o r t o fill in t h e pastor's q u e s t i o n n a i r e a n d pass t h e p a r i s h i o n e r s ' q u e s t i o n n a i r e s o n t o
the
parish c o u n c i l f o r c o m p l e t i o n . T w e n t y - t w o o f t h e packets w e r e r e t u r n e d by t h e Postal S e r v i c e as u n d e l i v e r a b l e . In late J a n u a r y 2001
I mailed a
follow-up
q u e s t i o n n a i r e a n d a r e m i n d e r t o p a s t o r s w h o had n o t r e s p o n d e d t o t h e initial mailing. I r e c e i v e d 2 6 7 q u e s t i o n n a i r e s b a c k f r o m t h e priests a n d 8 4 5 f r o m t h e p a r i s h i o n e r s , giving us r e s p o n s e rates o f 3 4 % a n d 4 2 % r e s p e c t i v e l y (assuming that
nonresponding
priests
also
did
not
deliver
their
parishioner
q u e s t i o n n a i r e s ) . T h i s rate o f r e s p o n s e is c o m p a r a b l e t o similar s u r v e y s in this population, and standard
i n s p e c t i o n s revealed n o a p p a r e n t
bias. I believe,
h o w e v e r , t h a t r e s p o n s e may have b e e n l o w e r e d b e c a u s e t h e s u r v e y s w e r e m a i l e d o v e r t h e C h r i s t m a s holiday s e a s o n . T h e statistical m a r g i n o f e r r o r d u e t o s a m p l i n g is p l u s - o r - m i n u s 5 f o r t h e p r i e s t s and p l u s - o r - m i n u s 2.9 f o r
the
parishioners. A. Development In
of CST Knowledge
the
interest
of
Index
establishing
benchmarks
for
assessing
both
k n o w l e d g e a n d a c c e p t a n c e o f C S T , special c a r e w a s d e v o t e d t o o p e r a t i o n a l i z i n g t h e s e c o n c e p t s . A s a b o d y o f e x p l i c i t k n o w l e d g e , C S T f o r m s p a r t o f t h e larger c o r p u s o f C a t h o l i c d o c t r i n e a n d stands o v e r against alternative v i e w s o f h u m a n society. T h e
operational
crosscutting
contexts. Fortunately, the
challenge, t h e n , is t o core
distinguish
content
of
it
from
C S T is
these
uniquely
identified w i t h a fairly small set o f magisterial d o c u m e n t s a n d p r i n c i p l e s : d o c u m e n t s Rerum Novarum,
Quadragesima
the
Anno, and Centesimus Annus, and t h e
p r i n c i p l e s o f solidarity, subsidiarity, t h e rights o f l a b o r a n d t h e living w a g e . T h e s e f e w i t e m s f o r m an i r r e d u c i b l e m i n i m u m o f c o g n i t i v e c o n t e n t defining this b o d y o f t h o u g h t . T h o u g h m a n y w o u l d (rightly) w a n t t o a d d t o this list, n o n e w o u l d r e d u c e it. SULLINS
245
In o r d e r t o identify a n d distinguish C S T , r e s p o n d e n t s w e r e invited t o r e c o g n i z e s o m e o f t h e c o r e C S T i t e m s in t h e c o n t e x t o f o t h e r " d i s t r a c t e r " items. T h e s e items w e r e society o r from
other
derived from
c o m m o n American perceptions
areas o f C a t h o l i c t e a c h i n g . T h e r e s p o n d e n t s
of
were
p r e s e n t e d w i t h a s e t o f 10 o p t i o n s a n d a s k e d t o indicate w h i c h o n e s t h e y c o u l d r e c o g n i z e as b e i n g a s s o c i a t e d w i t h
CST. The
items, w i t h the
percentage
r e s p o n s e s o f t h e p r i e s t s a n d p a r i s h i o n e r s , a r e p r e s e n t e d in Table I. T h e C S T a s s o c i a t e d i t e m s a r e s h o w n in b o l d f a c e . TABLE I Items Recognized as Associated with C S T , C o m p a r i n g Pastors and
Parishioners
(In percent) Item (Official components of C S T are in grey)
Pastors
Parishioners
Difference
93
88
-5
30 81
35 26
+5 -55
90
81
-9
50
17 55 13 5
-33 -1 -47 -9
57
-34 + 10
A . T h e idea of racial equality B . T h e encyclical Fides et Ratio ("Faith and Reason") C . S u p p o r t for labor unions D. O p p o s i t i o n to the death penalty E . T h e encyclical Centesimus Annus ( " T h e H u n d r e d t h Year") F. S u p p o r t for c o m m u n i s m G . T h e idea of subsidiarity H . "preferential option for the wealthy" 1. T h e U.S. Bishops' pastoral letter " E c o n o m i c Justice for A l l " J. T h e teaching that "social drinking" is not a sin
56 60 14 91 8
18
T h e values o f t h e p e r c e n t a g e s in Table I may p r o v i d e valuable insight i n t o t h e v i e w s o f p r i e s t s a n d p a r i s h i o n e r s , b u t f o r t h e c u r r e n t analysis t h e y a r e n o t as i m p o r t a n t as t h e difference i t e m . T o validate t h e probability
that
between priests and parishioners o n each
i n s t r u m e n t , this set o f q u e s t i o n s m a k e s u s e o f
priests
are
much
better
educated about
C S T than
l a y p e r s o n s . Items C , E, G a n d I in Table I w e r e i n t e n d e d t o b e t h e
the are
correct
r e s p o n s e s , b e i n g u n i q u e l y a s s o c i a t e d w i t h C S T . T h e y a r e p r e s e n t e d in b o l d f a c e f o r easy i d e n t i f i c a t i o n . T h e r e m a i n i n g d i s t r a c t e r i t e m s r e p r e s e n t e i t h e r o t h e r facets o f C a t h o l i c t e a c h i n g (B, D ) , c o m m o n
cultural
values t h a t a r e
not
p a r t i c u l a r l y a s s o c i a t e d w i t h C S T ( A , F,J),or s i m p l y false ideas ( H ) . T h e a c c u r a c y o f t h e s e i t e m s , o f c o u r s e , can be c o n t e n d e d o n substantive g r o u n d s . H o w e v e r , t h e i r s t r e n g t h as an i n d i c a t o r o f C S T k n o w l e d g e is relative, n o t a b s o l u t e .
246
C A T H O T TC SOCTAT SCTFNJCF RFVTFW
If p r i e s t s have m o r e e x p l i c i t k n o w l e d g e o f C S T t h a n p a r i s h i o n e r s , t h e n , t o t h e e x t e n t t h a t this i n s t r u m e n t a c c u r a t e l y m e a s u r e s e x p l i c i t k n o w l e d g e o f C S T , it f o l l o w s t h a t o n all o f t h e g e n u i n e i t e m s , b u t n o n e o f t h e d i s t r a c t o r s , t h e priests w o u l d d e m o n s t r a t e m u c h higher k n o w l e d g e than the parishioners. A s is readily s e e n , s u c h a p a t t e r n is c l e a r l y e v i d e n t in t h e r e s p o n s e s . T h e r i g h t m o s t c o l u m n o f Table I s h o w s t h e d i f f e r e n c e b e t w e e n t h e p r i e s t s a n d p a r i s h i o n e r s . A l t h o u g h s o m e o f t h e d i s t r a c t o r s , s h o w n in regular print, a t t r a c t e d
large
m a j o r i t i e s o f b o t h p a s t o r s a n d p a r i s h i o n e r s , it is readily o b s e r v a b l e t h a t t h e s e items
did
not
differentiate
among the
groups
as did t h e
items
actually
a s s o c i a t e d w i t h C S T . T h e p r i e s t s a n d l a y p e r s o n s differ by o n l y 10 p o i n t s o r less o n all o f t h e d i s t r a c t o r i t e m s , a n d t h e r e is n o p a t t e r n t o t h e differences. T h e priests' percentages are higher than the laypersons for three distractors (A, D a n d H ) , l o w e r f o r t w o (B a n d J) a n d effectively equal f o r o n e (F). By c o n t r a s t , the smallest difference b e t w e e n the priests and laypersons o n the genuine items is 33 p o i n t s , w i t h t h e p r i e s t s s h o w i n g h i g h e r p e r c e n t a g e r e c o g n i t i o n in e v e r y case. T h i s c l e a r d i f f e r e n c e p r o v i d e s c o n f i d e n c e t h a t this
instrument
adequately captures the respondents' explicit knowledge of C S T . A c c o r d i n g l y , assigning a " I " f o r c o r r e c t identification ( o t h e r w i s e 0) o n each i t e m , I c o m b i n e d t h e r e s p o n s e s o n t h e f o u r g e n u i n e i t e m s f o r e a c h r e s p o n d e n t i n t o a " C S T K n o w l e d g e I n d e x " , w i t h values ranging f r o m 0 (no items
correctly
identified)
to
4
(all f o u r
items
correctly
identified). A n
e x p l o r a t o r y f a c t o r analysis o n t h e f o u r g e n u i n e i t e m s using s t a n d a r d defaults (principal c o m p o n e n t s analysis using t h e K a i s e r c r i t e r i o n , w i t h n u m b e r
of
f a c t o r s n o t specified) c o n f i r m e d this t h i n k i n g by e x t r a c t i n g e x a c t l y o n e factor, w i t h loadings a b o v e .50 o n e a c h i t e m . T h e i n t e r - i t e m reliability f o r t h e s e i t e m s , m e a s u r e d by C r o n b a c h ' s A l p h a at .44 f o r t h e l a y p e r s o n s a n d .50 f o r t h e p r i e s t s , w a s l o w by p s y c h o m e t r i c s t a n d a r d s . H o w e v e r , t h e p u r p o s e o f this scale w a s n o t t o m e a s u r e s e t t l e d t r a i t s b u t t o distinguish relative a w a r e n e s s o f a b o d y o f e x p l i c i t k n o w l e d g e . It s h o u l d be b o r n e in m i n d t h a t this i n d e x d o e s n o t give a very
precise absolute
indication
of
participants'
knowledge
of
CST. A n
e x a m i n a t i o n o f individual i t e m s is p r o v i d e d b e l o w in t h e D i s c u s s i o n s e c t i o n . B Deve/opment of CST Support
Index
O p e r a t i o n a l i z i n g s u p p o r t for, o r a c c e p t a n c e of, C S T i n d e p e n d e n t o f e x p l i c i t k n o w l e d g e p r e s e n t e d a d i f f e r e n t set o f challenges. H e r e it w a s c r u c i a l t o avoid t y i n g a t t i t u d e s o f s u p p o r t t o o c l o s e l y t o t h e p a r t i c i p a n t s '
explicit
k n o w l e d g e o f C S T , t h e r e b y building in a bias in f a v o r o f k n o w l e d g e . I t h e r e f o r e s o u g h t t o assess t h e r e s p o n d e n t s ' attitudes w i t h regard t o
broad themes
r e l a t e d t o p o v e r t y a n d s o c i a l justice t h a t w e r e in a c c o r d w i t h C S T . F o r this p u r p o s e I t u r n e d t o an official s t a t e m e n t o f t h e t h e m e s o f C S T . In 1999 t h e U.S. C a t h o l i c b i s h o p s p u b l i s h e d a brief o v e r v i e w o f C S T f o r t e a c h i n g p u r p o s e s called " S h a r i n g C a t h o l i c Social Teaching"^. T h i s d o c u m e n t set f o r t h 7 " k e y t h e m e s t h a t are at t h e h e a r t o f o u r C a t h o l i c s o c i a l t r a d i t i o n . "
SULLINS 247
T h e s e t h e m e s a r e : Life a n d D i g n i t y o f t h e
Human Person; Call to
Family,
C o m m u n i t y a n d P a r t i c i p a t i o n ; Rights a n d R e s p o n s i b i l i t i e s ; O p t i o n f o r t h e P o o r a n d V u l n e r a b l e ; T h e D i g n i t y o f W o r k a n d t h e Rights o f W o r k e r s ; S o l i d a r i t y ; a n d C a r e for G o d ' s C r e a t i o n . I devised questions operationalizing these 7 themes, focusing o n the t w o — O p t i o n Responsibilities—^that
are
f o r t h e P o o r a n d V u l n e r a b l e , a n d Rights a n d
most
clearly
pertinent
to
issues o f
poverty.
Q u e s t i o n s relating t h r e e t h e m e s — L i f e a n d D i g n i t y o f t h e H u m a n P e r s o n , C a r e for G o d ' s Creation—^were d r o p p e d during review because of objections that t h e y w e r e n o t r e l e v a n t t o t h e l a r g e r s t u d y in w h i c h I w a s engaged. Q u e s t i o n s relating t o
Solidarity w e r e
dropped
as b e i n g t o o
dependent
on
explicit
knowledge.
T h e f o u r r e m a i n i n g t h e m e s w e r e f o c u s e d o n issues relating
to
poverty. T h e s e t h e m e s and the associated questions are presented below. /. Option
for the Poor and
Vulnerable
A s h o r t d e s c r i p t i o n e l a b o r a t e d e a c h t h e m e . T h e d e s c r i p t i o n f o r this t h e m e r e a d : " A basic m o r a l t e s t is h o w o u r m o s t v u l n e r a b l e m e m b e r s a r e faring. In a s o c i e t y m a r r e d by d e e p e n i n g d i v i s i o n s b e t w e e n r i c h a n d p o o r , o u r tradition...instructs
us t o p u t t h e n e e d s o f t h e p o o r a n d v u l n e r a b l e first."
T h e r e l e v a n t c o n c e p t s o f this d e s c r i p t i o n a r e a c r i t i q u e o f e c o n o m i c inequality a n d t h e n o t i o n
growing
o f p u t t i n g t h e p o o r first. I s o u g h t
to
d e t e r m i n e i d e n t i f i c a t i o n w i t h t h e s e ideas m o s t d i r e c t l y t h r o u g h t w o i t e m s :
C i r c l e the n u m b e r for the response that best fits your present thinking. Item
Strongly Agree
Agree
Neutral or Uncertain
E c o n o m i c decisions that increase poverty are i m m o r a l . 5 4 3
Disagree
Strongly Disagree
2
1
2
1
Differences in i n c o m e in A m e r i c a are t o o large. 5
4
3
T h e first of these was replicated f r o m the C a t h o l i c Pluralism Project, the
second from
the
National Opinion
Research C e n t e r ' s G e n e r a l Social
S u r v e y ( G S S ) , p r o v i d i n g c o m p a r i s o n s o f r e s p o n s e s w i t h t h o s e o f all C a t h o l i c s a n d w i t h t h e U.S. p o p u l a t i o n . 2. Rights and
Responsibilities
T h i s t h e m e ' s d e s c r i p t i o n reads in part, " E v e r y p e r s o n has a...right t o t h o s e things r e q u i r e d f o r h u m a n d e c e n c y . C o r r e s p o n d i n g t o t h e s e rights a r e d u t i e s a n d r e s p o n s i b i l i t i e s t o o n e a n o t h e r , t o o u r families, a n d t o t h e
24«
C A T H O T TC SOCTAT SCTFWCF RFVTFW
larger
society." T o g e t a t t h e c o n c e p t o f social r e s p o n s i b i l i t y o r o b l i g a t i o n t o t h o s e in poverty, I asked t h e following question: C i r c l e the n u m b e r that best represents your opinion. If s o m e o n e is in poverty it is his o r her own responsibilty
1 2
3
4
5
6
7
If s o m e o n e is in poverty it is society's responsibility
I also included the following i t e m as related t o the s p e c t r u m of personal t o social responsibility for poverty. This replicated an i t e m f r o m the G S S . Circle the n u m b e r for the response that best fits your present thinking. Item
Strongly
Agree
Agree
Neutral o r
Disagree
Uncertain
Strongly Disagree
O n e reason why there are people in poverty in this country is the lack of effort by those in poverty themselves 5
4
3
2
1
3. T h e Dignity ofWorIc and t h e Rigtits ofWorlcers T h e d e s c r i p t i o n o f this t h e m e r e a d in p a r t : " W o r k is m o r e t h a n a w a y t o m a k e a living.. .If t h e dignity o f w o r k is t o b e p r o t e c t e d , t h e n t h e basic rights o f w o r k e r s m u s t b e r e s p e c t e d : t h e right t o p r o d u c t i v e w o r k , t o d e c e n t a n d fair wages, t o organize and join u n i o n s . . . . T h i s c o n c e p t has b e e n e l a b o r a t e d in a l o n g h i s t o r y o f t h e idea o f t h e living w a g e . T o d e t e r m i n e a t t i t u d e s c o n s i s t e n t w i t h this idea I a s k e d :
Circle the n u m b e r for the response that best fits your present thinking. Item
Strongly
Agree
Agree
Neutral o r
Disagree
Uncertain
Strongly Disagree
Personal i n c o m e should not be determined solely by one's work. Rather, everybody should get what he/she needs t o provide a decent life. 5 3. Call to Family, Community, and
4
3
2
1
Participation
T h e d e s c r i p t i o n f o r this t h e m e reads in p a r t , " W e believe p e o p l e have a right a n d a d u t y t o p a r t i c i p a t e in society, s e e k i n g t o g e t h e r t h e c o m m o n g o o d SULLINS 249
a n d w e l l - b e i n g o f all, especially t h e p o o r a n d v u l n e r a b l e . "
F o r this c o n c e p t I
p o s e d t h e f o l l o w i n g s e m a n t i c differentials: C i r c l e the n u m b e r that best represents your opinion: A wealthy person feels
1 2
3
4
5
6
7
A wealthy person is
obligated to help those
free to help o r not
in poverty.
help those in poverty as he/she chooses.
A l t h o u g h t h e y a r e b a s e d o n a s u m m a r y f r o m an official s o u r c e , s o m e i m p o r t a n t a n d r e l e v a n t e l e m e n t s o f C S T may n o t be c o v e r e d by t h e t h e m e s o u t l i n e d a b o v e . T h e q u e s t i o n s I d e v i s e d , m o r e o v e r , can o n l y at b e s t a p p r o x i m a t e t h e r i c h n e s s a n d d i v e r s i t y o f o p i n i o n s c o m p l i a n t w i t h o r i n f l u e n c e d by this b o d y of thought.
It
is a l s o c l e a r t h a t s o m e o f t h e t h e m e s , a n d t h e r e f o r e
associated questions, overlap. N o n e t h e l e s s , I expected that together
the
these
q u e s t i o n s w o u l d r e f l e c t o p i n i o n a b o u t C S T a c c u r a t e l y e n o u g h t o meaningfully assess a n d c o m p a r e k n o w l e d g e a n d / o r a c c e p t a n c e o f its m a j o r t h e m e s . P r e t e s t results r e v e a l e d t h a t t h e i t e m , " O n e r e a s o n w h y t h e r e
are
p e o p l e in p o v e r t y in this c o u n t r y is t h e lack o f e f f o r t by t h o s e in p o v e r t y t h e m s e l v e s " , w h i c h was part of a larger series of items beginning w i t h " O n e r e a s o n w h y . . . " , w a s n o t useful f o r scaling a p a r t f r o m t h e o t h e r i t e m s in t h e s e r i e s . S i n c e I did n o t have s p a c e f o r t h e e n t i r e s e r i e s , this i t e m w a s d r o p p e d f r o m i n c l u s i o n in an i n d e x . TABLE 2 C S T S u p p o r t index Items, C o m p a r i n g Pastors and Parishioners (In percent) Percent responding " A g r e e " or "Strongly A g r e e " H o w m u c h d o you agree with the following statements? Pastors
A . T h e idea of racial equality B. T h e encyclical Fides et ("Faith and Reason") communism
H . "preferential option for the wealthy" •Source: GSS 1996
70 (74
Difference
CPP)
Ratio
D. O p p o s i t i o n to the death penalty F. S u p p o r t for
88
Parishioners
* * Source: GSS 1987.
2 S 0 C A T H O L I C SOCTAT SCTF^srCF RFVTFW
82
67
80
51
59
43
63
43
67* 34**
T h e r e m a i n i n g five items w e r e c o m b i n e d t o f o r m a " C S T S u p p o r t I n d e x " . T h i s c o u l d just as a c c u r a t e l y be c o n s i d e r e d an i n d e x o f v i e w s
on
p o v e r t y , since all t h e i t e m s deal w i t h s o m e a s p e c t o f e c o n o m i c justice. T h i s f o c u s , h o w e v e r , reflects an e m p h a s i s o n
poverty
in t h e
bishops' teaching
itself;views o n p o v e r t y , in o t h e r w o r d s , are g o o d i n d i c a t o r s o f s u p p o r t f o r C S T , as i n t e r p r e t e d o r p r o m u l g a t e d by t h e U.S. b i s h o p s . T h u s I r e t a i n e d t h e n a m e " C S T S u p p o r t Index", while recognizing that elements of C S T not related t o p o v e r t y a r e n o t r e p r e s e n t e d directly. C o m p a r a t i v e r e s p o n s e s f o r e a c h i t e m are p r e s e n t e d b e l o w in Table 2. A r e s p o n s e indicating any level o f a g r e e m e n t w i t h C S T o n e a c h i t e m w a s s c o r e d as " I".
T h e s e s c o r e s w e r e t h e n aggregated t o
f o r m a scale ranging f r o m 0 ( N o s u p p o r t ) t o 5 (Full s u p p o r t ) .
A s with the
k n o w l e d g e i n d e x , i n t e r - i t e m reliability w a s l o w ( A l p h a w a s .50 in t h e lay s a m p l e a n d .58 a m o n g t h e p r i e s t s ) , b u t f a c t o r analysis c o n f i r m e d t h e u n i d i m e n s i o n a l i t y o f t h e scale i t e m s . Since t h e i t e m s w e r e d e s i g n e d t o m e a s u r e s e p a r a t e t h e m e s , it is n o t s u r p r i s i n g t h a t t h e i r c o m m o n v a r i a n c e is subject t o an unusually large a m o u n t o f " n o i s e " . T h i s scale, as w i t h t h e k n o w l e d g e i n d e x , is a d e q u a t e f o r relative c o m p a r i s o n s , b u t t o o m u c h w e i g h t s h o u l d n o t be p l a c e d o n it as a measure of absolute support for C S T .
F o r this p u r p o s e , I p r o v i d e an analysis
o f individual i t e m s in t h e n e x t s e c t i o n .
Ill: Discussion A. C S T Knowledge A s a l r e a d y m e n t i o n e d , all f o u r o f t h e C S T - a s s o c i a t e d i t e m s o n
the
k n o w l e d g e i n d e x ( s h o w n in Table I), but n o n e o f t h e six d i s t r a c t e r s , had m u c h higher percentage response f r o m pastors than f r o m parishioners. W h i l e over 8 0 % of the priests recognized that s u p p o r t for labor unions was associated w i t h C S T , less t h a n a t h i r d o f t h e p a r i s h i o n e r s d i d s o . W h i l e a large m a j o r i t y o f t h e p a s t o r s a l s o c o r r e c t l y identified t h e b i s h o p s ' p a s t o r a l " E c o n o m i c Justice f o r A l l " , less t h a n t w o - t h i r d s r e c o g n i z e d t h e idea o f subsidiarity, a n d o n l y a bare m a j o r i t y c o r r e c t l y identified t h e e n c y c l i c a l ''Centesimus
Annus'\
However, only
a fifth o f t h e l a y p e r s o n s r e c o g n i z e d t h a t e i t h e r o f t h e s e l a t t e r t w o i t e m s w a s a s s o c i a t e d w i t h C S T . T w o o b s e r v a t i o n s s u m m a r i z e t h e s e findings: knowledge
is m o d e r a t e l y
low
I) C S T
in s o m e areas a m o n g p a s t o r s ; a n d 2) C S T
k n o w l e d g e is e x t r e m e l y l o w in all areas a m o n g l a y p e r s o n s . B. C S T Support T h e p r i e s t s also s h o w e d s t r o n g e r s u p p o r t f o r C S T t h a n t h e l a y p e r s o n s , b u t t h e d i f f e r e n c e w a s n o t as great as w i t h C S T k n o w l e d g e . Table 2 c o m p a r e s t h e p r i e s t s ' and p a r i s h i o n e r s ' r e s p o n s e s o n C S T s u p p o r t . Items in t h e table are presented
in
descending
order
of
percent
agreement.
The
pastors
d e m o n s t r a t e d s t r o n g i d e n t i f i c a t i o n w i t h all o f t h e C S T p r i n c i p l e s ; a m a j o r i t y o f t h e m w e r e in c o n f o r m i t y w i t h e v e r y i t e m in t h e t a b l e . P a r i s h i o n e r s u p p o r t w a s
SULLINS
251
generally lower, although a majority of parishioners agreed w i t h three of the five
items. M o r e than two-thirds
of both groups agreed w i t h the
statement
" E c o n o m i c decisions that increase poverty are i m m o r a l " . T h e notation
"74
C P P " , l o c a t e d in t h e first r o w o f t h e c o l u m n labeled " P a r i s h i o n e r s " , i n d i c a t e s t h a t 7 4 % o f t h e r e s p o n d e n t s t o a 1995 s u r v e y a d m i n i s t e r e d by t h e C a t h o l i c P l u r a l i s m Project,^ a l s o a g r e e d w i t h this s t a t e m e n t . T h a t survey, p e r f o r m e d by a professional polling company, was based o n a r a n d o m t e l e p h o n e survey of U.S. C a t h o l i c s 18 y e a r s o f age a n d o l d e r . T h e similarity o f t h e i r
findings
with
o u r s c o n f i r m s t h e g e n e r a l a c c u r a c y o f o u r p a r i s h i o n e r results. M o r e t h a n t w o t h i r d s o f b o t h p r i e s t s a n d p a r i s h i o n e r s a l s o a g r e e d t h a t d i f f e r e n c e s in i n c o m e in A m e r i c a are t o o large. B o t h c l e r i c a l a n d lay C a t h o l i c s , t h e n , d e m o n s t r a t e s t r o n g s u p p o r t f o r the general idea of
the option for the p o o r and vulnerable. This does not
n e c e s s a r i l y r e p r e s e n t t h e influence o f C S T , h o w e v e r . A s t h e r i g h t m o s t c o l u m n o f Table 2 i n d i c a t e s , t h e
percentage of parishioners agreeing that
income
inequality in A m e r i c a is t o o large w a s n o different t h a n t h a t o f A m e r i c a n s in g e n e r a l o n this q u e s t i o n .
R e g a r d l e s s o f t h e influence o f C S T o r t h e C h u r c h ,
t h e n , t h e r e a p p e a r s t o be a g e n e r a l a g r e e m e n t a m o n g A m e r i c a n s t h a t inequality should be reduced. O n t h e o t h e r h a n d , t h e p a r i s h i o n e r s s u p p o r t e d t h e i d e a o f t h e living w a g e s o m e w h a t m o r e s t r o n g l y t h a n d i d A m e r i c a n s in g e n e r a l , a l t h o u g h still less s t r o n g l y t h a n d i d t h e p r i e s t s . Less t h a n half (43%) o f t h e p a r i s h i o n e r s a g r e e d t h a t e v e r y b o d y s h o u l d get w h a t h e / s h e n e e d s t o p r o v i d e a d e c e n t life t o h i s / h e r family, b u t
only
a third
(34%)
o f A m e r i c a n s in g e n e r a l a g r e e d w i t h
this
s t a t e m e n t . A g r e e m e n t w i t h t h e i d e a t h a t p o v e r t y is s o c i e t y ' s r e s p o n s i b i l i t y , n o t just t h e
responsibility
of the
poor, s h o w e d the same pattern. Thus, while
C a t h o l i c p a r i s h i o n e r s a r e n o m o r e ( o r less) c o n c e r n e d a b o u t p o v e r t y
than
n o n - C a t h o l i c A m e r i c a n s , t h e y a r e m o r e likely, in a c c o r d w i t h C S T , t o s e e it as a p r o b l e m o f c o m m u n i t y r a t h e r t h a n individual failing. T h e individual i t e m r e s p o n s e s i n d i c a t e t h a t p a r i s h i o n e r s ' s u p p o r t f o r C S T is s o m e w h a t h i g h e r t h a n t h e i r level o f k n o w l e d g e . W h i l e t h e p e r c e n t a g e o f t h e l a y p e r s o n s w h o c o r r e c t l y identified t h e C S T k n o w l e d g e i t e m s r a n g e d f r o m 3 3 % t o 5 5 % , t h e p e r c e n t a g e indicating a g r e e m e n t w i t h t h e s u p p o r t i t e m s r a n g e d f r o m 4 3 % t o 7 0 % . B y c o n t r a s t , t h e range o f t h e p r i e s t s ' r e s p o n s e s o n the knowledge i t e m s — 5 0 % t o 9 1 % — i s much m o r e similar t o that of
the
s u p p o r t i t e m s , i.e., f r o m 5 9 % t o 8 8 % . L a y p e r s o n s , t h e n , may n o t k n o w e x a c t l y w h a t t h e C h u r c h ' s s o c i a l t e a c h i n g is, b u t t h e y a r e p r e d i s p o s e d t o be in f a v o r o f it. A n e x a m i n a t i o n o f t h e i n t e r - i t e m scale r e s p o n s e s s h o w s t h e s e results m o r e clearly. C . Knowledge related
to
Support
C o m p a r i s o n s o f s c o r e s o n t h e C S T K n o w l e d g e Index c o n f i r m s t h a t p r i e s t s g e n e r a l l y have a m u c h g r e a t e r k n o w l e d g e o f C S T t h a n l a y p e r s o n s .
252
C A T H O L I C S O C L \ L SCIENCE REVIEW
Figure I p o r t r a y s t l i e p r o p o r t i o n o f c o r r e c t r e s p o n s e s f o r t h e s e t w o g r o u p s o n t h e l
