321 RADICAL INDIVIDUALIST

YOUCAT Lesson 321

YOUCAT the catechism for Catholic youth

Chapter Two – Human Community

321  Can a Christian be a radical individualist?

No, a Christian can never be a radical individualist, because man is by nature designed for fellowship.  [1877-1880, 1890-1891]

Mehmet Ali Agca, right,  who shot John Paul II in 1981 later laid flowers Christmas 2014 on the saint's tomb in St. Peter's Basilica. …321

Every person has a mother and a father; he receives help from others and is obliged to help others and to develop his talents for the benefit of all.  Since man is God’s “image”, in a certain way he reflects God, who in his depths is not alone but triune (and thus life, love, dialogue, and exchange).  Finally, love is the central commandment for all Christians; through it we profoundly belong together and are fundamentally dependent on one another: “You shall love your neighbor as yourself” (Matthew 22:39).

“The greatest gift that man can have this side of heaven is to be able to get along well with the people with whom he lives.”  Bl. Egidio of Assissi (?-1262, one of the closest companions of St. Francis of Assissi)

“Even if you are not afraid to fall alone, how do you suppose you will rise up alone?  Consider: two together can accomplish more than one alone.”  St. John of the Cross (1542-1591)

1877-1880, 1890-1891

CHAPTER TWO
THE HUMAN COMMUNITY

1877 The vocation of humanity is to show forth the image of God and to be transformed into the image of the Father's only Son. This vocation takes a personal form since each of us is called to enter into the divine beatitude; it also concerns the human community as a whole. –Catechism of the Catholic Church, Second Edition

I. THE COMMUNAL CHARACTER OF THE HUMAN VOCATION

1878 All men are called to the same end: God himself. There is a certain resemblance between the unity of the divine persons and the fraternity that men are to establish among themselves in truth and love.( Compare Gaudium et Spes 24 § 3.)¹ Love of neighbor is inseparable from love for God. –CCC

1879 The human person needs to live in society. Society is not for him an extraneous addition but a requirement of his nature. Through the exchange with others, mutual service and dialogue with his brethren, man develops his potential; he thus responds to his vocation.( Compare Gaudium et Spes 25 § 1.)² –CCC

1880 A society is a group of persons bound together organically by a principle of unity that goes beyond each one of them. As an assembly that is at once visible and spiritual, a society endures through time: it gathers up the past and prepares for the future. By means of society, each man is established as an "heir" and receives certain "talents" that enrich his identity and whose fruits he must develop.⁽ Compare Luke 19:13,15.⁾He rightly owes loyalty to the communities of which he is part and respect to those in authority who have charge of the common good. --CCC