Charity in Truth

Benedict XVI is the Pope's encyclical on social justice. He emphasizes truth and charity as the fundamental principles of justice and calls for integral human development with a focus on the spiritual dimension. He holds that human flourishing comes when there is a generosity and "gratuitousness" among citizens and nations that goes beyond economic and political systems. "Charity" is necessary for "justice" to be "justice".

Benedict also argues that technology must not be seen as automatically providing solutions to problems, without the need for morality. Nor must man seek to avoid responsibility for overcoming social problems by rejecting technological development as inevitably evil. Benedict insists that man must be humble yet confident that he can, through faith and reason, make true progress in human development.