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Friday, June 27, 2025Faith

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It is fitting that we commemorate our founding vision with family and community celebrations. I hope that our celebrations also acknowledge God.

Archbishop Richard G.
Henning

In the Catholic tradition, moral theology speaks of the principle of subsidiarity. This principle reminds that large institutions and governing bodies should not overwhelm or dominate smaller institutions. It recognizes the innate dignity of all persons and their right and responsibility to contribute to the common and good. It also recognizes the reality of human sin and the temptation for those with authority to use that authority for self-interested purposes.
Within the structure of the Church, this principle finds expression in the relationship between parishes, dioceses, religious communities, Church institutions, and the Holy See. While the Holy Father exercises the supreme authority in the Church, he does not make the day-to-day decisions of these many other smaller entities of the Church. Each of them, in their way, are the Church. Catholic teaching also recognizes the foundational role of the "domestic church," the family, and the duty of every disciple to make their own contribution to the Body of Christ. It is in this way that Catholic teaching strives to honor the dignity of each member of the body and to draw all into the mission of the Gospel.

In my ministry as archbishop, I must respect and indeed trust the role of parents, educators, and parish clergy as they exercise the authority proper to them in their sphere. While it is common to describe the Catholic Church as hierarchical, the word does not do justice to the fullness of the Church's identity as an organic entity, a family of faith, a communion of love.
As part of Catholic social teaching, the Church promotes the principle of subsidiarity across society in general. Such advocacy in our own society and internationally places family life, the common good, and what Pope Francis called "human ecology" at the center of our concern. Leadership at every level have a contribution to make but no one claims total authority. Only God exercises such authority and, with God, authority is without self-interest -- it is love itself.
While the signatories of the Declaration of Independence knew little of Catholic teaching, they did understand this truth of human dignity and divine sovereignty: "We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty, and the pursuit of Happiness." Human dignity is not conferred by leaders or legislation -- it is first and foremost the gift of a loving Creator. The founders also understood that human beings will be tempted to abuse authority and so they sought to embody a "balance of powers" and fundamental rights in the Constitution. It is important to note that they did not just fear the tyranny of a king. They feared the tyranny of the many over the few, the tyranny of fickle public opinion, and above all, the tyranny of those who would rule by decree rather than law.
Their vision was imperfectly lived in that age and in our own. Nonetheless, generations of Americans have worked and sacrificed to see human dignity recognized and respected for every person. Our own generation, also imperfect, has inherited that sacred duty.
It is fitting that we commemorate our founding vision with family and community celebrations. I hope that our celebrations also acknowledge God. It is right to give thanks to God for the gift of liberty and for those who have extended, defended, and preserved it. It is right to pray for the peace and prosperity of our nation and to join in the prayer of Abraham Lincoln "that this nation, under God, shall have a new birth of freedom -- and that government of the people, by the people, for the people, shall not perish from the earth."

- Archbishop Richard G. Henning is the Archbishop of Boston