Seven Weeks of Easter, Seven Themes of Catholic Social Teaching
“In the light of Easter, let us allow ourselves to be amazed by Christ! Let us allow our hearts to be transformed by his immense love for us!"
Pope Leo XIV
Urbi et Orbi, Easter Sunday 2026
During the seven weeks of the Easter season, join in learning about the seven themes of Catholic Social Teaching, which offer wisdom about building a just society and living lives of holiness amidst the challenges of the modern world.
Bulletin inserts for each week are available for download below.
Week 1 - Life and Dignity of the Human Person
As the church celebrates the resurrection of Christ in the Easter season, we are reminded of the words of Jesus: “I came so that they might have life and have it more abundantly” (Jn. 10:10). God’s love for each person is a fundamental teaching of the Church, and our response to this love is how our Christianity is lived out in the world today.
The Catholic Church proclaims that human life is sacred from conception to natural death, and that the dignity of the human person is the foundation of a moral vision for society. This belief is the foundation of all the principles of our social teaching. The Church works to ensure all people can live in circumstances befitting their human dignity.
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Week 2 - Solidarity
In his Urbi et Orbi message on Easter Sunday, Pope Leo XIV reflected that “Christ’s resurrection is the beginning of a new humanity… where all recognize one another as brothers and sisters, children of the same Father who is Love, Life, and Light.” This Easter season, the Holy Father encourages us to not become indifferent to violence, war, and the suffering of our brothers and sisters, but rather to “make heard the cry for peace that springs from our hearts!"
The Church teaches that we are one human family whatever our national, racial, ethnic, economic, and ideological differences. Loving our neighbor has global dimensions in a shrinking world. At the core of the virtue of solidarity is the pursuit of justice and peace. Our love for all our sisters and brothers calls us to promote peace in a world surrounded by violence and conflict.
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Week 3 - Call to Family, Community, and Participation
At the Easter vigil, we both celebrate baptism of new members of the Body of Christ and remember our own baptisms. In Baptism, we receive a “vocation to holiness,” which is “intimately connected” to our membership in the “Communion of Saints,” which strives to make present the “Kingdom of God in history.”
The Church teaches that how we organize our society—in economics and politics, in law and policy—directly affects human dignity and the capacity of individuals to grow in community. The human person is both sacred and social and all people have a right and duty to participate in society.
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Week 4 - Rights and Responsibilities
In the Easter season, we celebrate all we have received in Christ’s self-gift. The Good News should overflow into our lives and move us to mission in the world. Our participation in the communion of saints comes with the important recognition of all that God offers us and the responsibility to be strong witnesses of God’s presence in the world.
The Catholic tradition teaches that human dignity can be protected and a healthy community can be achieved only if human rights are protected and responsibilities are met. Every person has a fundamental right to life and a responsibility to speak out when systems and situations do not uphold the fullness of our inherent human dignity.
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Week 5 - Option for the Poor and Vulnerable
The Resurrected Christ reveals himself in the poor and vulnerable of our society. As Servant of God Dorothy Day says, “How do we know we indeed have faith? Because we have seen His hands and His feet in the poor around us. He has shown Himself to us in them.” Our faith instructs us to put the needs of the poor and vulnerable first, and in doing so we put Christ first in our lives.
Our faith teaches that a basic moral test is how our most vulnerable members are faring. In a society marred by deepening divisions between rich and poor, our tradition recalls the story of the Last Judgment (Mt 25:31-46) and instructs us to put the needs of the poor and vulnerable first.
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Week 6 - The Dignity of Work and the Rights of Workers
Work is more than a way to make a living; it is a form of continuing participation in God’s creation. The spring season and Easter allow us to experience awe and wonder at God’s creation and remind us how God’s creation relates to our concern for the dignity of work and the rights of workers.
The Church teaches that the economy must serve people, not the other way around. If the dignity of work is to be protected, then the basic rights of workers must be respected--the right to productive work, decent and fair wages, the organization and joining of unions, private property, and to economic initiative.
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Week 7 - Care for God's Creation
As we conclude the Easter season, we experience the beauty of God’s creation in the blooming flowers and warm weather, basking in the new life that Christ gives us in his resurrection.
We show our respect for the Creator by our stewardship of creation. We are called to protect people and the planet, living our faith in relationship with all of God’s creation. This environmental challenge has fundamental moral and ethical dimensions that cannot be ignored.