Spain

HOAC Summer Courses: Social Reconstruction after the Pandemic

Under the title "Decent Work and Social Friendship in the Post-Covida Era", the Catholic Action Workers' Brotherhood (HOAC) held a new edition of its Summer Courses from July 12 to 17, a space for reflection, deepening and dialogue which, for the first time, were held entirely online and were attended by nearly 300 people, including activists and sympathizers.

Maria José Atienza-July 16, 2021-Reading time: 2 minutes
worker

Photo: Jeriden Villegas / Unsplash

This year, the course focused on the analysis of the consequences of the pandemic we are suffering and the challenges this situation poses for society and for the Church, as well as the way to follow paths of fraternity and the search for justice, especially in the world of workers and labor. 

Each presentation, from their different perspectives, has tried to underline the fact that the onset of the COVID-19, which is still being harshly felt, has worsened the situation in the world of work, hitting much harder those workers with the worst jobs and situations of precariousness and vulnerability. 

As highlighted by HOAC in the final note of these courses, the conferences have been developed as follows: 

The day of reflection for the councillors and animators of the faithThe presentation was held on July 12, with the lecture Cultivating a spirituality of care by José García Caro, HOAC's Seville HOAC consiliary, from the theological key of care and in the proposal of Pope Francis for "the Holy Spirit to teach us to see the world with the eyes of God and to care for our brothers and sisters with the gentleness of his heart", urges us to an inner change and to heal "all the basic relationships of the human being" and our relationship with the planet. 

The in-depth study and dialogue days Challenges and hopes for the world of work in the post-covid era, The event will take place from July 13 to 15 with presentations by Sebastián Mora, professor of Ethics at the Pontifical University of Comillas. Jordi Mir-García, doctor of Humanities at the Autonomous University of Barcelona and María José "Coqui" Rodríguez, president of the HOAC of Granada. In addition, there was a round table of experiences of activists in accompaniment of workers in labor conflicts; with victims of occupational accidents; and migrants. 

Sebastián Mora highlighted some of the elements that the pandemic has left us, such as the need to rethink flexibility as a synonym of precariousness; the revaluation of essential jobs, which as a society we have recognized during this crisis, and the experience that we need social coverage in the face of systemic risks. Mora asked HOAC to continue on the path of prophetic denunciation that integrates an economy of care and the need to resume the debate on working time together with the debate on universal basic income.

For his part, Jordi Mir-García wanted to focus on the lessons that the pandemic has brought us to contribute to build a world with greater social justice. An idea shared by Maria José "Coqui" Rodríguez, president of the HOAC of Granada, who urged the search for new lifestyles through the path of fraternal encounter and communion, practicing solidarity and social friendship.

From what has been heard and discussed during these days of deepening and dialogue, among so much shared wealth, emerges:

  • A call to HOAC and the entire Church to echo the vulnerability of the in which the most impoverished sectors of the working-class world.
  • The need for building bridges between labor organizations who yearn for a utopia of fraternity and justicefrom the particular to the most universal.
  • Cultivate political charity and bring to life the principles of the Social Doctrine of the Church. (DSI) to promote institutions to ensure the common good and care for Creation.

The courses will end on Saturday, July 17, with the days of prayer with an intervention on The mystique that sustains us in the Rovirosa proposal which will allow us to discern this approach in our life and in our commitments.

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