Pope Francis as Moral Leader describes and analyzes the contribution of Pope Francis as an ethicist, a practitioner of discernment, a skilled communicator, and a strong advocate for social justice on the global stage. It highlights Francis's leadership qualities and the ethical achievements of his papacy as he appeals to ethical values and proposes teachings and practices that embody mercy and justice for the church and world.Endorsements"Less than a week into his papacy, Francis revealed a great deal about the priorities, strategies, and style that characterizes the leadership he would exercise throughout his subsequent years in office…. While space does not allow comprehensive coverage of every imaginable item of relevance, my wager is that the reader will emerge with a solid appreciation for the major approaches and most important achievements of Francis relating to his moral leadership."—from the introduction"Massaro provides a compelling assessment of Pope Francis's legacy for the Christian moral life and an illuminating framework for the discernment and collaboration necessary to advance justice and peace."—Marcus Mescher, associate professor of Christian ethics, Xavier University"Pope Francis as Moral Leader is an excellent contribution to Massaro's ongoing analysis of the contributions of Pope Francis to Catholic social teaching. The book notes that while Francis's teachings have strong undercurrents of spirituality, pastoral sensitivity, and a devotional tone, the major element of his style of leadership is most strongly revealed through servant leadership, humility, and vulnerability. It presents a different and helpful way of understanding the pope's many unique moral insights."—Thomas A. Shannon, professor emeritus, Worcester Polytechnic InstituteThomas Massaro, SJ, is professor of moral theology at Fordham University. A Jesuit priest of the USA East Province, he served as professor of moral theology at Weston Jesuit School of Theology in Cambridge, Massachusetts, at Boston College, and at Jesuit School of Theology of Santa Clara University, where he also served as dean. Father Massaro holds a doctorate in Christian social ethics from Emory University. His nine books and over one hundred published articles treat Catholic social teaching and its recommendations for public policies oriented to social justice, peace, worker rights, and poverty alleviation.†

This book offers a thorough and accessible analysis of Catholic teaching on war and warmaking from its earliest stages to the present. Moral theologians Thomas Massaro and Thomas A. Shannon begin with a survey of the teachings on war in various religions and denominations and then trace the development of Just War theory and application, review the perspective of several Catholic bishops, comment on the bishops'' pastoral letter The Challenge of Peace, address contemporary developments in light of 9-11 and the United States war with Iraq, and conclude with theological reflections. Complete with recommended readings, Catholic Perspectives on Peace and War offers an informative and thoughtful moral analysis that helps readers navigate the rapidly changing terrain of war, warmaking, and peace initiatives.

This book introduces readers to Catholic social teaching, the Church’s long tradition of reflection on the meaning of social justice and how to enact it. The Church derives its faith-based principles for promoting justice and peace from rich sources in scripture, theology, reason, and human experience. These teachings, as contained in papal encyclicals and documents from global gatherings of bishops, have inspired broad efforts to advocate for so many important goals—including human rights, the common good, equitable international development, disarmament, healthy family life, and labor justice.Readers will be led step-by-step to a deeper understanding of the demands of social justice in the world today. They will also examine the building blocks of Catholic social teaching, including its key themes, sources, and methods for clarifying values and reaching firm conclusions, always in ways appropriate to pluralistic modern societies. Along the way, readers will encounter great heroes of social change and prophets of peace and justice. This new fourth edition includes expanded coverage of such topics as global migration and climate change, new case studies applying ethical principles to currently pressing social issues, and the major social teaching of Pope Francis.The book culminates with a description of the social justice advocacy of Pope Francis who has renewed Catholic social teaching in many distinctive ways. He has provided new resources that empower the church to navigate the many crises facing the world today. These include the refugee and environmental crises, profound challenges to family life and economic justice, and the desperate need for more effective diplomacy and global peacebuilding. A number of helpful resources contained in this volume, including eight tables, discussion questions, topics for further study, and an annotated list of print and web resources on Catholic social teaching, make this volume a perfect text for college-level courses on social justice.

Pope Francis as Moral Leader describes and analyzes the contribution of Pope Francis as an ethicist, a practitioner of discernment, a skilled communicator, and a strong advocate for social justice on the global stage. It highlights Francis's leadership qualities and the ethical achievements of his papacy as he appeals to ethical values and proposes teachings and practices that embody mercy and justice for the church and world.Endorsements"Less than a week into his papacy, Francis revealed a great deal about the priorities, strategies, and style that characterizes the leadership he would exercise throughout his subsequent years in office…. While space does not allow comprehensive coverage of every imaginable item of relevance, my wager is that the reader will emerge with a solid appreciation for the major approaches and most important achievements of Francis relating to his moral leadership."—from the introduction"Massaro provides a compelling assessment of Pope Francis's legacy for the Christian moral life and an illuminating framework for the discernment and collaboration necessary to advance justice and peace."—Marcus Mescher, associate professor of Christian ethics, Xavier University"Pope Francis as Moral Leader is an excellent contribution to Massaro's ongoing analysis of the contributions of Pope Francis to Catholic social teaching. The book notes that while Francis's teachings have strong undercurrents of spirituality, pastoral sensitivity, and a devotional tone, the major element of his style of leadership is most strongly revealed through servant leadership, humility, and vulnerability. It presents a different and helpful way of understanding the pope's many unique moral insights."—Thomas A. Shannon, professor emeritus, Worcester Polytechnic InstituteThomas Massaro, SJ, is professor of moral theology at Fordham University. A Jesuit priest of the USA East Province, he served as professor of moral theology at Weston Jesuit School of Theology in Cambridge, Massachusetts, at Boston College, and at Jesuit School of Theology of Santa Clara University, where he also served as dean. Father Massaro holds a doctorate in Christian social ethics from Emory University. His nine books and over one hundred published articles treat Catholic social teaching and its recommendations for public policies oriented to social justice, peace, worker rights, and poverty alleviation.†

This book offers a thorough and accessible analysis of Catholic teaching on war and warmaking from its earliest stages to the present. Moral theologians Thomas Massaro and Thomas A. Shannon begin with a survey of the teachings on war in various religions and denominations and then trace the development of Just War theory and application, review the perspective of several Catholic bishops, comment on the bishops'' pastoral letter The Challenge of Peace, address contemporary developments in light of 9-11 and the United States war with Iraq, and conclude with theological reflections. Complete with recommended readings, Catholic Perspectives on Peace and War offers an informative and thoughtful moral analysis that helps readers navigate the rapidly changing terrain of war, warmaking, and peace initiatives.

This book introduces readers to Catholic social teaching, the Church’s long tradition of reflection on the meaning of social justice and how to enact it. The Church derives its faith-based principles for promoting justice and peace from rich sources in scripture, theology, reason, and human experience. These teachings, as contained in papal encyclicals and documents from global gatherings of bishops, have inspired broad efforts to advocate for so many important goals—including human rights, the common good, equitable international development, disarmament, healthy family life, and labor justice.Readers will be led step-by-step to a deeper understanding of the demands of social justice in the world today. They will also examine the building blocks of Catholic social teaching, including its key themes, sources, and methods for clarifying values and reaching firm conclusions, always in ways appropriate to pluralistic modern societies. Along the way, readers will encounter great heroes of social change and prophets of peace and justice. This new fourth edition includes expanded coverage of such topics as global migration and climate change, new case studies applying ethical principles to currently pressing social issues, and the major social teaching of Pope Francis.The book culminates with a description of the social justice advocacy of Pope Francis who has renewed Catholic social teaching in many distinctive ways. He has provided new resources that empower the church to navigate the many crises facing the world today. These include the refugee and environmental crises, profound challenges to family life and economic justice, and the desperate need for more effective diplomacy and global peacebuilding. A number of helpful resources contained in this volume, including eight tables, discussion questions, topics for further study, and an annotated list of print and web resources on Catholic social teaching, make this volume a perfect text for college-level courses on social justice.