An Apologetical Explanation of the

Common Good

What is the “common good”?

We who are strong ought to bear with the failings of the weak, and not to please ourselves; let each of us please his neighbor for his good, to edify him.  (Rom 15:1-2)

Let no one seek his own good, but the good of his neighbor.  (1 Cor 10:24)

To each is given the manifestation of the Spirit for the common good.  (1 Cor 12:7)

Thus says the Lord: / “Keep justice, and do righteousness, / for soon my salvation will come, / and my deliverance be revealed. / Blessed is the man who does this, / and the son of man who holds it fast.”  (Is 56:1-2)

The common good refers to those conditions of society by which every human person may become most fully and readily developed as human persons.

The human person is a social being; by nature we live in society, participate in social groups, and possess a certain interdependence in social relationships with others that benefits the personal development of everyone–including ourselves–and helps to meet everyone’s practical needs.  It is just as natural that we ought to be concerned for what is called the common good, which is “the sum of those conditions of social life which allow social groups and their individual members relatively thorough and ready access to their own fulfillment” (GS 26).  St. Paul referred to the common good when he called for the Corinthians to use their spiritual gifts for the good of all (cf. 1 Cor 12:7).  We must seek the common good with all due prudence and only by way of sound moral decisions.  There is a common good to be seen in each level of society, from within a family to harmony among nations, and in the case of civic society it is the responsibility of civic authorities to ensure that the common good is given priority in public policy.  (Cf. CCC 1905-1906, 1910-1911, 1921)

Concern for the common good entails several indispensable elements.  The basic human rights of every person must be respected, including his or her freedom of conscience, religion, privacy, and pursuit of vocation.  Every person must have opportunities for sound personal development, including not only the basic physical necessities of life (e.g., food, shelter, and clothing) but also things such as access to education, health care, and other fundamental goods.  The common good also needs peace and security because only with these prerequisites can justice be served.  (Cf. CCC 1907-1909, 1912)

The Catechism addresses this question in paragraphs 1924-1925.

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