"The Human Person and Human Rights" / Religious Liberty

As per Chapter 3 of the Compendium of the Social Doctrine of the Church,

• “The Church sees in men and women, in every person, the living image of God
  
  “The whole of the Church's social doctrine …develops from the principle that affirms the inviolable dignity of the human person….
  
  “This marvellous vision of man's creation by God is inseparable from the tragic appearance of original sin ....The consequences of sin, insofar as it is an act of separation from God, are alienation, that is, the separation of man not only
  from God but also
  from himself,
  from other men and
  from the world around him....
  
  “The ultimate source of human rights is not found in the mere will of human beings, in the reality of the State, in public powers, but in man himself & in God his Creator.... Pope John Paul II has drawn up a list…in the Encyclical Centesimus Annus:
  'the right to life…;
  the right to live in a united family & in a moral environment conducive to the growth of the child's personality;
  the right to develop one's intelligence & freedom in seeking & knowing the truth;
  the right to share in the work which makes wise use of the earth's material resources, & to derive from that work the means to support oneself and one's dependents; &
  the right freely to establish a family, to have and to rear children through the responsible exercise of one's sexuality [Note: This does NOT mean that there is a “right” to have a child; NO ONE (including husbands & wives) has a “right” to use illegitimate means to have children.]
  In a certain sense, the source and synthesis of these rights is religious freedom, understood as the right to live in the truth of one's faith and in conformity with one's transcendent dignity as a person"

As per Pennsylvania's bishops,

• "The assault by the federal government on constitutionally guaranteed religious liberty continues. Our concern and alarm flows from a mandate of the Department of Health and
  Human Services (HHS) which punishes the Church for its firmly held beliefs and consistent teaching. This mandate – published in the federal register without change, despite claims of 'accommodations' – would force Catholic employers to pay for abortion-causing drugs,
  sterilization and contraception....This is primarily about religious liberty and our First Amendment rights to the free exercise of our religion. Make no mistake about it – this government mandate is a step which will inevitably lead to other mandates that continue to strike at the heart of our Faith and the constitutional liberties....We did not pick this fight, but neither will we run from it....send a message to your legislators in support of conscience rights....we, the Bishops of Pennsylvania, request that all Catholics dedicate the regular Lenten Friday practice of prayer and abstinence as well as the additional practice of fasting on Friday, March 30, to the preservation of religious liberty."

The Compendium of the Social Doctrine of the Church
Part One
Chapter 1, God's Plan of Love for Humanity
Chapter 2, The Church's Mission & Social Doctrine
Chapter 3, The Human Person and Human Rights
Chapter 4, Principles of the Church's Social Doctrine

Part Two
Chapter 5, The Family, the Vital Cell of Society
Chapter 6, Human Work
Chapter 7, Economic Life
Chapter 8, Political Community
Chapter 9, The International Community
Chapter 10, Safeguarding the Environment
Chapter 11, The Promotion of Peace

Part Three
Chapter 12, Social Doctrine & Ecclesial Action

Conclusion, For a Civilization of Love