525. Media

525. How is one to use the means of social communication? 2493-2499 2512 The information provided by the media must be at the service of the common good. Its content must be true and – within the limits of justice and charity – also complete. Furthermore, information must be communicated honestly and properly with scrupulous respect for moral laws and the legitimate rights and dignity of the person.

524. Secrets

524. What is required by the eighth commandment? 2488-2492 2510-2511 The eighth commandment requires respect for the truth accompanied by the discretion of charity in the field of communication and the imparting of information, where the personal and common good, the protection of privacy and the danger of scandal must all be taken into account; in respecting professional secrets which must be kept, save in exceptional cases for grave and proportionate reasons; and also in respecting confidences given under the seal of secrecy.

523. False

523. What is forbidden by the eighth commandment? 2475-2487 2507-2509 The eighth commandment forbids: false witness, perjury, and lying, the gravity of which is measured by the truth it deforms, the circumstances, the intentions of the one who lies, and the harm suffered by its victims; rash judgment, slander, defamation and calumny which diminish or destroy the good reputation and honor to which every person has a right; flattery, adulation, or complaisance, especially if directed to serious sins or toward the achievement of illicit advantages. A sin committed against truth demands reparation if it has caused harm to others.

522. Martyrdom

522. How does one bear witness to the truth? 2471-2474 2505-2506 A Christian must bear witness to the truth of the Gospel in every field of his activity, both public and private, and also if necessary, with the sacrifice of his very life. Martyrdom is the supreme witness given to the truth of the faith.

521. Truth

THE EIGHTH COMMANDMENT: YOU SHALL NOT BEAR FALSE WITNESS AGAINST YOUR NEIGHBOR 521. What is one’s duty toward the truth? 2464-2470 2504 Every person is called to sincerity and truthfulness in acting and speaking. Everyone has the duty to seek the truth, to adhere to it and to order one’s whole life in accordance with its demands. In Jesus Christ the whole of God’s truth has been made manifest. He is “the truth”. Those who follow him live in the Spirit of truth and guard against duplicity, dissimulation, and hypocrisy.

520. Poor

520. By what is love for the poor inspired? 2443-2449 2462-2463 Love for the poor is inspired by the Gospel of the Beatitudes and by the example of Jesus in his constant concern for the poor. Jesus said, “Whatever you have done to the least of my brethren, you have done to me” (Matthew 25:40). Love for the poor shows itself through the struggle against material poverty and also against the many forms of cultural, moral, and religious poverty. The spiritual and corporal works of mercy and the many charitable institutions formed throughout the centuries are a concrete witness to the preferential love for the poor which characterizes the disciples of Jesus.

519. Witness

519. In what way do Christians participate in political and social life? 2442 The lay faithful take part directly in political and social life by animating temporal realities with a Christian spirit and collaborating with all as authentic witnesses of the Gospel and agents of peace and justice.