Catechism of the Catholic Church — paragraphs 2401

2401 You shall not steal. 2401 The seventh commandment forbids unjustly taking or keeping the goods of one's neighbor and wronging him in any…
2402 In the beginning God entrusted the earth and its resources to the common stewardship of mankind to take care of them, master them by labor,…
2403 The right to private property , acquired or received in a just way, does not do away with the original gift of the earth to the whole of…
2404 "In his use of things man should regard the external goods he legitimately owns not merely as exclusive to himself but common to others…
2405 Goods of production - material or immaterial - such as land, factories, practical or artistic skills, oblige their possessors to employ…
2406 Political authority has the right and duty to regulate the legitimate exercise of the right to ownership for the sake of the common good.
2407 In economic matters, respect for human dignity requires the practice of the virtue of temperance , so as to moderate attachment to this…
2408 The seventh commandment forbids theft , that is, usurping another's property against the reasonable will of the owner. There is no theft if…
2409 Even if it does not contradict the provisions of civil law, any form of unjustly taking and keeping the property of others is against the…
2410 Promises must be kept and contracts strictly observed to the extent that the commitments made in them are morally just. A significant part…
2411 Contracts are subject to commutative justice which regulates exchanges between persons and between institutions in accordance with a strict…
2412 In virtue of commutative justice, reparation for injustice committed requires the restitution of stolen goods to their owner: Jesus blesses…
2413 Games of chance (card games, etc.) or wagers are not in themselves contrary to justice. They become morally unacceptable when they deprive…
2414 The seventh commandment forbids acts or enterprises that for any reason - selfish or ideological, commercial, or totalitarian - lead to the…
2415 The seventh commandment enjoins respect for the integrity of creation. Animals, like plants and inanimate beings, are by nature destined…
2416 Animals are God's creatures. He surrounds them with his providential care. By their mere existence they bless him and give him glory. Thus…
2417 God entrusted animals to the stewardship of those whom he created in his own image. Hence it is legitimate to use animals for food and…
2418 It is contrary to human dignity to cause animals to suffer or die needlessly. It is likewise unworthy to spend money on them that should as…
2419 "Christian revelation . . . promotes deeper understanding of the laws of social living." The Church receives from the Gospel the full…
2420 The Church makes a moral judgment about economic and social matters, "when the fundamental rights of the person or the salvation of souls…
2421 The social doctrine of the Church developed in the nineteenth century when the Gospel encountered modern industrial society with its new…
2422 The Church's social teaching comprises a body of doctrine, which is articulated as the Church interprets events in the course of history,…
2423 The Church's social teaching proposes principles for reflection; it provides criteria for judgment; it gives guidelines for action: Any…
2424 A theory that makes profit the exclusive norm and ultimate end of economic activity is morally unacceptable. The disordered desire for…
2425 The Church has rejected the totalitarian and atheistic ideologies associated in modem times with "communism" or "socialism." She has…
2426 The development of economic activity and growth in production are meant to provide for the needs of human beings. Economic life is not…
2427 Human work proceeds directly from persons created in the image of God and called to prolong the work of creation by subduing the earth,…
2428 In work, the person exercises and fulfills in part the potential inscribed in his nature. The primordial value of labor stems from man…
2429 Everyone has the right of economic initiative ; everyone should make legitimate use of his talents to contribute to the abundance that will…
2430 Economic life brings into play different interests, often opposed to one another. This explains why the conflicts that characterize it…
2431 The responsibility of the state . "Economic activity, especially the activity of a market economy, cannot be conducted in an institutional,…
2432 Those responsible for business enterprises are responsible to society for the economic and ecological effects of their operations. They…
2433 Access to employment and to professions must be open to all without unjust discrimination: men and women, healthy and disabled, natives and…
2434 A just wage is the legitimate fruit of work. To refuse or withhold it can be a grave injustice. In determining fair pay both the needs and…
2435 Recourse to a strike is morally legitimate when it cannot be avoided, or at least when it is necessary to obtain a proportionate benefit.…
2436 It is unjust not to pay the social security contributions required by legitimate authority. Unemployment almost always wounds its victim's…
2437 On the international level, inequality of resources and economic capability is such that it creates a real "gap" between nations. On the…
2438 Various causes of a religious, political, economic, and financial nature today give "the social question a worldwide dimension." There must…
2439 Rich nations have a grave moral responsibility toward those which are unable to ensure the means of their development by themselves or have…
2440 Direct aid is an appropriate response to immediate, extraordinary needs caused by natural catastrophes, epidemics, and the like. But it…
2441 An increased sense of God and increased self-awareness are fundamental to any full development of human society . This development…
2442 It is not the role of the Pastors of the Church to intervene directly in the political structuring and organization of social life. This…
2443 God blesses those who come to the aid of the poor and rebukes those who turn away from them: "Give to him who begs from you, do not refuse…
2444 "The Church's love for the poor . . . is a part of her constant tradition." This love is inspired by the Gospel of the Beatitudes, of the…
2445 Love for the poor is incompatible with immoderate love of riches or their selfish use: Come now, you rich, weep and howl for the miseries…
2446 St. John Chrysostom vigorously recalls this: "Not to enable the poor to share in our goods is to steal from them and deprive them of life.…
2447 The works of mercy are charitable actions by which we come to the aid of our neighbor in his spiritual and bodily necessities. Instructing,…
2448 "In its various forms - material deprivation, unjust oppression, physical and psychological illness and death - human misery is the obvious…
2449 Beginning with the Old Testament, all kinds of juridical measures (the jubilee year of forgiveness of debts, prohibition of loans at…
2450 "You shall not steal" ( Ex 20:15; Deut 5:19). "Neither thieves, nor the greedy . . ., nor robbers will inherit the kingdom of God" ( 1 Cor…
2451 The seventh commandment enjoins the practice of justice and charity in the administration of earthly goods and the fruits of men's labor.
2452 The goods of creation are destined for the entire human race. The right to private property does not abolish the universal destination of…
2453 The seventh commandment forbids theft. Theft is the usurpation of another's goods against the reasonable will of the owner.
2454 Every manner of taking and using another's property unjustly is contrary to the seventh commandment. The injustice committed requires…
2455 The moral law forbids acts which, for commercial or totalitarian purposes, lead to the enslavement of human beings, or to their being…
2456 The dominion granted by the Creator over the mineral, vegetable, and animal resources of the universe cannot be separated from respect for…
2457 Animals are entrusted to man's stewardship; he must show them kindness. They may be used to serve the just satisfaction of man's needs.
2458 The Church makes a judgment about economic and social matters when the fundamental rights of the person or the salvation of souls requires…
2459 Man is himself the author, center, and goal of all economic and social life. The decisive point of the social question is that goods…
2460 The primordial value of labor stems from man himself, its author and beneficiary. By means of his labor man participates in the work of…
2461 True development concerns the whole man. It is concerned with increasing each person's ability to respond to his vocation and hence to…
2462 Giving alms to the poor is a witness to fraternal charity: it is also a work of justice pleasing to God.
2463 How can we not recognize Lazarus, the hungry beggar in the parable (cf. Lk 17:19-31), in the multitude of human beings without bread, a…
2464 You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor. It was said to the men of old, "You shall not swear falsely, but shall perform to…
2465 The Old Testament attests that God is the source of all truth . His Word is truth. His Law is truth. His "faithfulness endures to all…
2466 In Jesus Christ, the whole of God's truth has been made manifest. "Full of grace and truth," he came as the "light of the world," he is the…
2467 Man tends by nature toward the truth. He is obliged to honor and bear witness to it: "It is in accordance with their dignity that all men,…
2468 Truth as uprightness in human action and speech is called truthfulness , sincerity, or candor. Truth or truthfulness is the virtue which…
2469 "Men could not live with one another if there were not mutual confidence that they were being truthful to one another." The virtue of truth…
2470 The disciple of Christ consents to "live in the truth," that is, in the simplicity of a life in conformity with the Lord's example, abiding…
2471 Before Pilate, Christ proclaims that he "has come into the world, to bear witness to the truth." The Christian is not to "be ashamed then…
2472 The duty of Christians to take part in the life of the Church impels them to act as witnesses of the Gospel and of the obligations that…
2473 Martyrdom is the supreme witness given to the truth of the faith: it means bearing witness even unto death. The martyr bears witness to…
2474 The Church has painstakingly collected the records of those who persevered to the end in witnessing to their faith. These are the acts of…
2475 Christ's disciples have "put on the new man, created after the likeness of God in true righteousness and holiness." By "putting away…
2476 False witness and perjury . When it is made publicly, a statement contrary to the truth takes on a particular gravity. In court it becomes…
2477 Respect for the reputation of persons forbids every attitude and word likely to cause them unjust injury. He becomes guilty: - of rash…
2478 To avoid rash judgment, everyone should be careful to interpret insofar as possible his neighbor's thoughts, words, and deeds in a…
2479 Detraction and calumny destroy the reputation and honor of one's neighbor . Honor is the social witness given to human dignity, and…
2480 Every word or attitude is forbidden which by flattery, adulation, or complaisance encourages and confirms another in malicious acts and…
2481 Boasting or bragging is an offense against truth. So is irony aimed at disparaging someone by maliciously caricaturing some aspect of his…
2482 "A lie consists in speaking a falsehood with the intention of deceiving." The Lord denounces lying as the work of the devil: "You are of…
2483 Lying is the most direct offense against the truth. To lie is to speak or act against the truth in order to lead someone into error. By…
2484 The gravity of a lie is measured against the nature of the truth it deforms, the circumstances, the intentions of the one who lies, and the…
2485 By its very nature, lying is to be condemned. It is a profanation of speech, whereas the purpose of speech is to communicate known truth to…
2486 Since it violates the virtue of truthfulness, a lie does real violence to another. It affects his ability to know, which is a condition of…
2487 Every offense committed against justice and truth entails the duty of reparation , even if its author has been forgiven. When it is…
2488 The right to the communication of the truth is not unconditional. Everyone must conform his life to the Gospel precept of fraternal love.…
2489 Charity and respect for the truth should dictate the response to every request for information or communication . The good and safety of…
2490 The secret of the sacrament of reconciliation is sacred, and cannot be violated under any pretext. "The sacramental seal is inviolable;…
2491 Professional secrets - for example, those of political office holders, soldiers, physicians, and lawyers - or confidential information…
2492 Everyone should observe an appropriate reserve concerning persons' private lives. Those in charge of communications should maintain a fair…
2493 Within modern society the communications media play a major role in information, cultural promotion, and formation. This role is…
2494 The information provided by the media is at the service of the common good. Society has a right to information based on truth, freedom,…
2495 "It is necessary that all members of society meet the demands of justice and charity in this domain. They should help, through the means of…
2496 The means of social communication (especially the mass media) can give rise to a certain passivity among users, making them less than…
2497 By the very nature of their profession, journalists have an obligation to serve the truth and not offend against charity in disseminating…
2498 " Civil authorities have particular responsibilities in this field because of the common good. . . . It is for the civil authority . . . to…
2499 Moral judgment must condemn the plague of totalitarian states which systematically falsify the truth, exercise political control of opinion…
2500 The practice of goodness is accompanied by spontaneous spiritual joy and moral beauty. Likewise, truth carries with it the joy and splendor…

Paragraphs 2401–2500