Integral Human Development: Challenges to Sustainability and Democracy
Ebook
Pope Paul VI's notion of "integral human development," which was endorsed by his successors including Pope Francis, broke with the modern project of purely economic and technological development, resulting in an original understanding of development. Like a conventional notion of development, this theoretical construct favors economic growth, technological innovation, and the implementation of social programs. However, development is not just a socioeconomic and political issue, let alone a technical one; it raises, fundamentally, theological questions and points to important ethical challenges. Hence, integral human development is a vocation at which all personal, social, and political activity must be directed. As such, it is not a social but an anthropological program. Far from being a secular development theory, the notion of "integral human development" emphasizes the religious goal of reconciling humanity and God through the creation of a human family over and above material social and economic issues. Sustained by global principle and shaped by different cultural views, this book brings forth the uniqueness of this approach to development, examines its contribution to human welfare, and anticipates the resistances it may face.
"The authors in this valuable book contribute to the advancement
of Catholic social thought on sustainable development from many
countries in all the continents of our world. They propose new ways
to address urgent global environmental and political challenges,
building on Pope Francis's challenge to accept the fact that we
share a common home on the earth."
--David Hollenbach, SJ, Georgetown University
"By conceptualizing human development beyond its material aspect to
include the spiritual, social, cultural, and political aspects,
this book restores to the human being all his dignity and puts him
on the path of shared happiness. This book speaks therefore to
theologians as well as to economists and all social scientists
interested in the multidimensional nature of human
flourishing."
--Arsene Brice, Jesuit University, Cote d'Ivoire
"This book is a game-changer for Catholic social ideals such as
personal dignity, the common good, and integral development. And it
confronts two big questions facing political activism everywhere:
How can we get from high-minded ideals and sound-bytes to practical
action that will make a difference? And what action can be
effective in our fragmented global environment, where no one body
has moral command, legal authority, or enforcement power? We have
Azetsop's social science expertise and his religiously inspired
vision of human solidarity to thank for this unique gathering of
creative experts. Their exchanges are a wellspring of new and
better strategies toward economic and ecological justice."
--Lisa Sowle Cahill, Boston College
- Title: Integral Human Development: Challenges to Sustainability and Democracy
- Author: Jacquineau Azétsop
- Publisher: Pickwick Publications
- Print Publication Date: 2019
- Logos Release Date: 2020
- Language: English
- Resources: 1
- Format: Digital › Ebook
- ISBNs: 9781532691676, 9781532691652, 9781532691669, 153269167X, 1532691653, 1532691661
- Resource ID: LLS:9781532691676
- Resource Type: Monograph
- Metadata Last Updated: 2022-12-22T06:06:25Z
Jacquineau Azétsop, SJ, is the Dean of the Faculty of Social Sciences at the Pontifical Gregorian University. He has authored or coauthored a number of academic articles, and his books include Structural Violence, Population Health and Health Equity (2010) and HIV and AIDS in Africa (2016).