Social teachings of the West Christian traditions - concept of potential and program of necessity

Abstract

The article analyses the present day views of the Catholic and Protestant Churches on society and different spheres of its life, key notions and categories of social documents of these Churches. Appendices to the article contain the following interviews: - with His Excellency Archbishop Antonio Mennini Apostolic Nuncio to the Russian Federation on the subject: Social Catholicism: theory and practice of the present day(Appendix 1); - with General secretary of the Catholic bishops Conference, priest of the Catholic Church Igor Kovalevsky on the subject: Social teaching of the Catholic Church as an answer on the part of the Church to the challenges of the time (Appendix 2); - with leaders of Consultative Council of heads of Protestant Churches of Russia, head of the Russian United Council of the Evangelic belief Christians, bishop Sergei Vasilievich Rykhovsky; First Deputy of the supervisory bishop of the Russian Church of the Evangelic belief Christians, bishop Pavel Anatolievich Baak, Chairman of the Council of the Evangelic Christians- Baptists, bishop Yuri Kirilovich Sipko on the subject: Social position of protestants - answer of the community to the challenge of time (Appendix 3); - with the President of General synod of the Evangelical Lutheran Church of the Confession of Augsburg Vladimir Sergeevich Pudov on the subject: State and society are called upon to serve each other (Appendix 4).