CST addresses issues of social justice, human rights, and ethical living from a Catholic perspective, which is all based in scripture and comes from a range of magisterium (official teaching authority of the church) documents. This book provides an overview of CST, so is a great starting point for any teacher who wishes to enhance their curriculum with these religious teachings. This book presents outlines of both recent and historic key documents, such as the main papal encyclicals (letters to Catholics from the Pope). It can be used directly as a reading resource in the classroom or as a source for teachers to enhance their subject knowledge when planning to introduce students to CST as a religious teaching.

In Catholic tradition, popes write encyclicals (letters) to address concerns of the day. These are based on scripture and become part of magisterium teachings which Catholics use to inform their conscience. RE teachers can of course use these as ‘religious teachings’. This encyclical is often cited as the first example of CST in which the Pope addresses the conditions of labour, workers' rights, and social justice, written in the rapidly changing industrial society of the late-19th century. Pope Leo emphasises the inherent dignity of every individual as a creation of God, condemns the exploitation of workers and asserts that both employers and workers have a duty to recognise and respect each other's humanity. He goes on to discuss the role of the state, promotes the idea of solidarity, introduces the principle of subsidiarity, which suggests that social and economic issues should be addressed at the most local level possible, allowing individuals and communities to take charge of their own affairs. He also calls on the Catholic Church to play a role in addressing social issues and advocating for the rights and dignity of workers. RE teachers could plan to use this after their students have studied the Industrial Revolution in History, so that they have the prior knowledge to promote deeper engagement. Teachers could give students a short extract (for example paragraph 20) and challenge them to pick out CST themes and what this could mean for Catholics today in how they live their lives (for example in relation to fair pay and conditions). Many of the topics with the GCSE theme human rights and social justice can be found within this encyclical. 

In this encyclical, there is a comprehensive examination of contemporary social and economic challenges, offering a Catholic perspective on how to address them in a way that upholds human dignity, promotes justice, and encourages responsible stewardship of the Earth's resources. It's a call to integrate charity and truth into all aspects of human life and to work together for the common good of all people. Teachers could give students paragraph 62, which is specifically related to the dignity of migrants and calls governments to work together; and then paragraph 79 which calls for Catholics to turn to God in prayer. Teachers could pose the question, ‘Which strategy is more likely to help people who suffer as a result of human trafficking?’ and then plan answers from different worldviews, for example, that of a Christian, an atheist and a person suffering its direct effects. 

CST is based on the belief that every human has inherent dignity and therefore should be treated as such. From this come the principal ideas that the poor and marginalised should be protected and all Catholics should work to uphold their rights and opportunities. CAFOD (the Catholic Agency for Overseas Development) is a global charity with a long-term vision to end poverty and achieve global justice, ‘so that every woman, man and child can live a full and dignified life’. Although there is not one official list of principles, CAFOD’s list is probably the easiest for teachers to use. Its website is excellent for teachers as it offers a variety of free useful resources such as videos, assembly plans, posters, fact sheets and card games. There are videos on each of the CST principles, which offer explanation and historical context in appropriate language for students. Teachers can also contact CAFOD to request a visit from a volunteer to run sessions on themes relating to social justice (for example, water emergencies).