To the Authorities and Citizens of Salvador from Bahia (6 July 1980)(

On 6 July 1980 the Holy Father addressed the Authorities and Citizens of Salvador from Bahia, at the Baia de Todos los Santos, observing in the city “the exhilarating picture of man's strength and creative and constructive capacity,” while warning against “the damage that the self-sufficiency of a culture and a technique closed to the transcendent has brought to man, the reduction of man to a mere instrument of production.”

Dear brothers and sisters!

1. Having arrived in this city of yours which overlooks, stupendously, the bay of Todos los Santos, I have the immense joy of contemplating, in this square, this assembly of yours, so numerous.

I greet your Cardinal Archbishop Avelar Brandao Vilela, his coadjutor Archbishop, his auxiliary Bishop, their closest collaborators. I greet the state and municipal authorities. I greet the priests, men and women religious present here. I greet all this crowd, in which I see very dear children and brothers. I look for your faces one by one, I shake your hands and I hug you all. In the Church we are not an amorphous and anonymous mass. We are not impersonal numbers and unknown to each other. We are God's People. We are loved one by one by the Father, in the Son, through the Holy Spirit. We are people capable of responding to the call of the eternal love of this God, who has always known us, and has predestined us to be conformed to the image of his Son, who has called, justified and glorified us (cf. Rom 8.30);

I greet you, People of God who are in Salvador da Bahia; I greet this Church, eternally loved by the Lord, with the same words of Saint Paul, which the liturgy has made his own: "The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, the love of God the Father and the communion of the Holy Spirit be with you all" ( see 2 Cor 13:13)!

2. This meeting is dedicated to the "builders of today's pluralistic society", who have come to this meeting in a special capacity, as an emblem of the reality extraordinarily rich in human, intellectual and social forces, which Brazil represents in the world. I therefore greet you in a special way, brothers and sisters who make the building up of society your ideal, your honor, and also your daily toil.

Every man is the builder of the society in which he lives. The Second Vatican Ecumenical Council highlighted this: "The laity - he said - have to assume the establishment of the temporal order as their own task and, in it, guided by the light of the Gospel and by the thought of the Church and moved by Christian charity , operate directly and in a concrete way; as citizens to cooperate with other citizens according to the specific competence and under one's own responsibility; seek everywhere and in all things the justice of the kingdom of God" ( Apostolicam Actuositatem , 7).

In all of you I see the Brazilian builders of today and tomorrow. If Brazil has reached the threshold of the 21st century as a nation full of promise, it has happened thanks to the effort of groups and individuals who, by accepting the diversity inherent in this immense land, have sought to improve themselves, to access the well-being due to themselves and to their families, to their fellow citizens: and in this way they have contributed to the progressive construction of the community, of the city, of the nation. In the same way you are called to build the future of your country: a future of peace, prosperity and concord which will only be ensured when all citizens - each according to their responsibilities -

In vigorously emphasizing this reality, I address each and every one of you, present and distant: workers and industrialists, professionals and students, economists and artists, men of science and technology, artisans and journalists, politicians and farmers, inhabitants of megacities as well as small towns. You are all, in a certain way and to a certain extent, the builders of today's pluralistic society!

The word alone already expresses all the complexity and richness of the modern world, in its dynamism, in its vitality, in its continuous ascent towards a higher level. My congratulations to you, men and women who build the world of today and tomorrow!

3. But where is the world going? In which direction is it facing? I am not speaking to you here as an economist or a sociologist, but by virtue of the mandate, of the mission of universal pastor of that Church which my unforgettable predecessor Paul VI defined as an "expert in humanity".

If the exhilarating picture of man's strength and creative and constructive capacity that today's society presents arouses a great deal of impression and wonder in us, no less impressive is the picture of the alienation to which society is often reduced. On my first visit to your continent, I felt the need to say to the Latin American Bishops gathered in Puebla: "Perhaps one of the most visible weaknesses of current civilization consists in the inadequate vision of man. Ours is undoubtedly the age in which much has been written and spoken about man, the age of humanisms and anthropocentrism. However, paradoxically, it is also the age of man's deepest anxieties about his own identity and destiny, of man's relegation to previously unsuspected levels, Allocutio ad III Coetum Generalem Episcoporum Americae Latinae , I, 9, die 28 ian. 1979: Teachings of John Paul II , II [1979] 198).

It is not necessary to repeat, because everyone knows, the damage that the self-sufficiency of a culture and a technique closed to the transcendent has brought to man, the reduction of man to a mere instrument of production, a victim of preconceived ideologies or of cold logic of economic laws, maneuvered for utilitarian and partisan ends, which have ignored and ignore the true good of man.

The very word "pluralism" carries with it a danger. In a society that likes to define itself as "pluralistic" there certainly exists a diversity of beliefs, ideologies, philosophical ideas: but acknowledging this plurality certainly does not dispense me - nor does it dispense any Christian who adheres to the Gospel - from affirming the necessary basis, the principles indisputable that must support any action aimed at building a society that must respond to man's needs, both at the level of material goods as well as spiritual and religious goods, a society founded on a system of values ​​that keep it safe from manipulation driven by individual or collective selfishness.

4. Aware of the universal mission which has led me among you in these days, I have the duty to proclaim God's word: "Unless the Lord builds the house, the builders labor in vain" (Ps 126:1 )!

This is the answer that the Church must give especially today: society cannot be built without God, without God's help. That would be a contradiction. God is the guarantee of a society on a human scale: above all because he has impressed the supreme nobility of his image and likeness (cf. Gen 1:26ff) in the depths of man; and then because Christ came to rebuild this image, disfigured by sin, and, as "redeemer of man" brought him back to the irrepressible dignity of his primitive origin. External structures - communities and international bodies, states, cities, the activities of individual men - must highlight this reality, give it the necessary space; otherwise they crumble, or are reduced to a soulless facade.

The Church, founded by Christ, shows man today the path he must follow to build the earthly city, which is the prelude - although not free from contradictions - of the heavenly city. The Church indicates the way to build society in function of man, with respect for man. Her task is to insert the leaven of the Gospel into all fields of human activity. It is in Christ that the Church is "expert in humanity".

In reviewing the history of your homeland, I cannot fail to observe that the Church, carrying out her mission in past centuries, has contributed to making this same history, to determining the values ​​which constitute the cultural heritage of the Brazilian people.

The Church is so tied to your people that to eliminate her would be to mutilate the socio-cultural heritage of the people themselves. For this reason the Church must continue to collaborate in building up your society, knowing how to recognize and animate the aspirations for justice and peace which she finds in individuals and in the people, in their wisdom and in their promotion efforts. On this point the Church wants to respect the functions attributed to public men. You don't pretend to meddle in politics, you don't aspire to participate in the management of temporal problems. Her specific contribution will be to strengthen the spiritual and moral foundations of society, doing everything possible so that each and every activity in the field of the common good develops in harmony and coherence with the guidelines and requirements of human and Christian ethics.

5. Although this service has concrete reality as its object, the concrete task carried out together, it is above all a service of formation of consciences: to proclaim the moral law and its demands, to denounce errors and attacks on the moral law and on the dignity of 'man on which it is based, clarify, convince.

This is what I observed in the aforementioned speech in Puebla: “Particular attention must be paid to the formation of a social conscience at all levels and in all sectors. When injustices increase and the distance between poor and rich grows painfully, social doctrine, in a creative form and open to the vast fields of the Church's presence, must be a precious instrument of formation and action" (John Paul II, Allocutio ad III Coetum Generalem Episcoporum Americae Latinae , I, 9, die 28 Jan. 1979: Teachings of John Paul II , II [1979] 208-209).

In her social doctrine, the Church does not propose a concrete political or economic model, but points the way, presents principles. And she does it in function of her evangelizing mission, in function of the evangelical message which has as its objective man in his eschatological dimension, but also in the concrete context of his historical, contemporary situation. You do so because you believe in the dignity of man, created in the image of God: a dignity that is intrinsic to every man, every woman, every child, whatever place he occupies in society.

Every man has the right to expect society to respect his human dignity and allow him to lead a life in conformity with this dignity. In the speech I gave before the Organization of American States (OEA), on October 7 last year, I proposed man as the only criterion that gives meaning and direction to all the efforts of those responsible for the good common, from the simple citizen to those invested with power.

I proposed concrete man as a criterion with these words: "When we speak of the right to life, to physical and moral integrity, to food, to a home, to education, to health care, to work, to responsible participation in life of the nation, we speak of the human person. It is this human person who often finds himself threatened and hungry, without a home and without a decent job, without access to the cultural heritage of his people or of humanity and without a voice to make his anguish heard. It is necessary to give a new impetus to the great cause of integral development and those who, in one way or another, are already enjoying these goods must do so; and who must place themselves at the service of all those - and they are so numerous on your continent! - who are deprived of these same assets in a sometimes dramatic way!Allocutio ad Legatos Consilii Nationum Americanarum (OEA) habita , 5, die 6 oct. 1979: Teachings of John Paul II , II,2 [1979] 665).

6. Placing man at the center of all social activity, therefore, means feeling concerned about all that is injustice, because it offends his dignity. Adopting man as a criterion means committing oneself to the transformation of every unjust situation and reality, to make them elements of a just society.

This was the message I addressed to the authorities of this country: this is the message I presented to the workers of São Paulo. This is the message that I also present to you today, to you builders of society, who are listening to me here in São Salvador da Bahia.

Every society, if it does not want to be destroyed from within, must establish a just social order. This call is not a justification of the class struggle - because the class struggle is doomed to sterility and destruction - but it is a call for the noble struggle for social justice in the whole society.

All of you, who call yourselves the builders of society, hold a certain power in your hands, due to your social position, your situations and your activities. Use it in the service of social justice. Reject reasoning inspired by the collective selfishness of a group or class, or based on the motivation of unilateral material profit. Reject violence as a means of solving society's problems, because violence is against life, it destroys man. Put your power, whether political, economic or cultural, at the service of solidarity which extends to all men, but above all to those who need it most, and whose rights are often violated. Stand beside the poor, consistent with the teaching of the Church,

"Blessed are the poor in spirit" (Mt 5:3). Blessed are those who know how to preserve their human dignity in privation; but blessed are also those who do not allow themselves to be possessed by their possessions, who do not allow their sense of social justice to be stifled by attachment to what they possess. Truly blessed are the poor in spirit!

7. In offering you this message of justice and love, the Church is faithful to her mission and is aware that she is serving the good of society. The Church does not consider her to enter into political activities, but she knows she is at the service of the good of humanity. The Church does not fight against power, but proclaims that it is for the good of society and for the safeguarding of its sovereignty that power is necessary; and that only this justifies it. The Church is convinced that it is her right and her duty to promote a social pastoral care, that is to exercise an influence, with the means that are proper to her, so that the life of society becomes more just, with the unanimous, decisive but always peaceful action of all citizens.

I therefore address all those who in the various sectors of society are the builders of it: my word reaches them, the word of the Church, here in Salvador and in every other part of Brazil.

To you, above all, who have particular responsibilities for your position and power as Christians.

I would like to remind you, political leaders and militants, that the political act par excellence is to be consistent with a moral vocation and faithful to an ethical conscience which, beyond personal or group interests, aims at the totality of the common good of all the citizens.

To you, educators, who have the task of explaining to young people, in dialogue with them, the values ​​that will in turn make them builders of society, I ask that you set up your activity on solid foundations and inculcate in young people a sense of the dignity of human person.

To you, employers, merchants and industrialists, my exhortation to include man in the first place in your plans and projects: this man who, with his work and the product of his hands and his intelligence, is the builder of the society, first of his family and then of the wider community. Do not forget that every man has the right to work, not only in urban areas and industrial centers, but also in rural areas.

I have a duty to remind you, men of science, you, technicians: ethics always have primacy over technology, and man over things.

To you workers, I must say: the construction of society is not the exclusive task of those who control the economy, industry or agriculture. It is also with your sweat that you build society, for your children and for the future. If you have the right to express your opinion on economic and industrial activity, you also have the duty to orient it according to the demands of the moral law, which is justice, dignity and love.

To you, communication specialists, my request: do not chain the soul of the masses with the power at your disposal, filtering information, exclusively promoting the society of abundance, accessible to just a minority. On the contrary, become the spokesmen of his dignity. Be instruments of justice, truth and love. To defend what is human means to allow man access to the full truth.

8. Yes, brothers and sisters, building society is above all becoming aware, not in the exclusive sense of becoming aware of the results of a certain analysis of the situation and of society's ills, but in the full meaning of the word, that is, forming one's own conscience according to the demands of God's law, of Christ's message on man, of the ethical dimension of every human activity.

Building society means committing oneself, putting oneself on the side of conscience, of the principles of justice, fraternity and love, against the logic of selfishness which kills solidarity, and of hatred which destroys.

Building society means going beyond borders, divisions, oppositions, to work together.

Man has within himself the ability to open up to others. And Christ challenges us: "Who is my neighbor?". No lasting and truly human work is possible if it is not done by everyone, with the collaboration of all the living forces of society, in mutual exchange between all men and women, without distinction of social position or economic situation.

Lastly, building society means continually converting, reviewing one's own attitudes, in order to discover sterile preconceptions and one's mistakes, in order to be able to open oneself to the imperatives of a conscience formed in the light of the dignity of every human person, as it has been revealed and confirmed by Jesus Christ. It is opening one's heart and spirit so that justice, love and respect for the dignity and destiny of man penetrate thought and inspire action.

9. For the construction of a world on a human scale, the Church, "expert in humanity", offers its collaboration. But she also asks for yours: full, sincere, generous, without second intentions.

It depends on each and every one of you that Brazil's future is a future of peace, that Brazilian society is a coexistence in justice. I believe that the time has come when every man and woman of this immense country must make a resolution and resolutely commit the riches of his talent and conscience to give the life of the nation a basis which must guarantee a development of realities and social structures in justice. Anyone who reflects on the reality of Latin America, as it presents itself today, agrees with the affirmation that the realization of justice in this continent faces a precise dilemma: either it is achieved through profound and courageous reforms, according to principles that express the primacy of human dignity, or it is achieved - but without a lasting result and without benefit for man, of this I am convinced - with the force of violence. Each of you must feel challenged by this dilemma. Each of you must make the choice of him in this historical moment.

Brothers and sisters. My friends! Don't be afraid to look ahead, to walk forward, to the year 2000! A new world must arise, in the name of God and of man! Don't back down! The Church expects a lot from you. “Do you want, together with me, to build the world, elevate it, make it better and more worthy of you and your brothers, who are my brothers?”. Do not frustrate the expectation of Christ!

Do not disappoint the hopes of your contemporary man!

In this enormous but stupendous effort, you know that the Pope is with you, prays for you, carries you in his heart and, in the name of Christ, blesses you.

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