UNIT 4:

Subjects of social Teaching and ways for practice

0 Introduction and Literaturereferences

0.1 Introduction

Each person in a determined area (country) or in a determined group (tribe) is a regular member of the society. On the one hand he is member of this society, which has influence for his way of life, on the other hand he acts himself. Society means normally in the rule the living together of people in a country, nowadays more and more in the whole world. The nature of this society has to be discussed. Today there are great changes. We are talking about the informationsociety, which takes the place of the industrysociety, which was characterized by natural science and technology. Computer and internet are symbols of this social system. But this system has passed the peak as well, and we are on the way to a new society, with the highest meaning in human relationship.

Of course this cannot be analyzed step by step. We have to do an analyze of the existing society, although we know it is changing continually. The question about the basic values of a society is always very important. Each form of society has to be asked for its human dignity, about its support of human rights or the reduction of these.

A society has many fields. Here the fields of family, economy and state are discussed. Today we know also, that the amusement society has a great importance. This would be worth an own examination. Here will be noticed as well, that leisure time really is no time without any work at all, but there is e.g. much more time to spend with the family and the society. This done work, shall it be included in a system of economic assessment of work? This has to be discussed at another place.

The social field of the society also has got a growing meaning for the welfare state. It seems we have reached the limit for financings in the meantime, because there is talked about the coherence with the increase in the percentage of old people of our society. There should be no fundamental problem, which can't be resolved, because of the permanent growth of wealth in the society, it is only the problem of justice about distribution, which gets importance more and more. The educationsociety has to be named here as well. Education is decisive for the future of a person.

More justice for educationchances is still not guaranteed, so the justice about distribution won't be handled correctly. Moreover education is part of the future of a nation; so they say, we need a rate of university entrance qualification of 40% each year, but we have only 27%, here Bavaria tales the last place with 20%, Hessen is with 30% at a good place. But a education system cannot be assessed only by this rate.

All this can be only passed in other coherences and not detailled, anaway, so important it is. The selected fields are basic fields of thinking about. A society cannot exist at all without the families, without income, based on a running economy, and without a guaranteed peaceorder by the state.

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1. The society

1.0 Introduction and literature

1.0.1 Questions to think about

How would you describe our society in some words?

1.0.2 Introduction

The sociology as a science of the society is a relatively young science. Real it was formed in the 19. century and deals with the liberation of human out of the existing power structures. One of the most important persons was Karl Marx. In the discussion after World War II, which began in the sixties of the 20^th century, mainly two theories became a greater meaning. Acting for them there are the two names Niklas Luhmann and Jürgen Habermas.

Niklas Luhmann (1927-1998) developed a systemstheory. He shows the society as a system. This theory is an analysis, a description of the society in one term. The main characteristic of modern societies is their complexity. Human lives in an abudance of possibilities, these have to be reduced to concepts which can be understand. Otherwise human has no chance to understand the society. This is tried by developing a system with functions and structures. What is a system? A system is e.g. a washing machine as well. It consists of technical devices, like tube, drum, engine, pump. All these don't run alone, therefore all single actions have to be combined, this is done by the steering. This regulates the process. This is also the purpose of this system.

This is valid also in social systems. It consists of elements, which communicate with each others, by this is formed a system in organizationen and finally also in the society. The difference to machine systems is primarily, they don't have a purpose, like to wash, but they are formed for giving meaning. A social system always has to have an idea, this finally runs the communication of the system, e.g. a club. The single persons don't belong to the club completely, but only as one part to run the system. In a football club this are only the persons who have to do something with those who act. The largest of all social systems is the society. There communicate in a real definite structure, many small and big parts of a social system and people (fundamental assignment, also with sub-orders). It is a high subtly differentiated system in the end, but very susceptible to interference by this, particularly if the social communication doesn't work any more. E.g. election are a possibility, to reduce the complex relationship of control of the society by the state and the politics. This is the opinion of the society by the „clearing up“ (it presupposes a clearing up of citizens). Cleared up societies act rational according to this theory (useful).

In opposite to this says Jürgen Habermas (* 1929), that the sociology has the clears up the society first. It has a critical function. Therefore he develops a critical theory of society. In the end every society is infiltrated by ideologies. He calls it interestformed ideas. If there is talked about "Prosperity for all“, has to be discussed, whoever says it, if e.g. finally the protection of the existing possession is discussed, this has to be handled very critically. The citizens have to realize such ideologies and to clear them up. They have to take part in the process of clearing up. As an objective is told about a society which isn't afraid of any communication. He wants a democratic and sensible society of democratic and emancipated (cleared up) citizens. Looking to this target the existing conditions have to be discussed again and again, and they have to be changed, if possible. This theory is less a system theory but a theory of action.

The Roman Catholic Social Teaching is, seen by this course, more a sum of action oriented approaches (a open system of sentences by Wallraf). It doesn't want to describe conditions only, but to change them with the objetive in the view. Then a system theory then can be very helpful for analysing the conditions. In the three step "Notice - Judge - Act" it sharps the noticing, critical action scales about the situations are judged, and with the actions the painful way of realization has started. This shall be shown in important subsystems of our society.

1.0.2 Literature

Beck, Risikogesellschaft, auf dem Weg in eine andere Moderne, Frankfurt (9) 1992

Breit, G., Massing, P., Hg., Bürgergesellschaft – Zivilgesellschaft – Dritter Sektor, Schwalbach/Ts. 2000

Habermas, Theorie kommunikativen Handelns, Bd.1 und 2, Frankfurt 1981

Häußermann, H. Siebel, W., Neue Urbanität, Frankfurt 1987

Luhmann, N. Die Gesellschaft der Gesellschaft, Bd. 1 und 2 Frankfurt 1998

Schäfers, B., Gesellschaftlicher Wandel in Deutschland, Stuttgart (6) 1995

Schäfers, B., Grundbegriffe der Soziologie, Opladen (5) 1998

Schulze, G. Die Erlebnisgesellschaft, Frankfurt ²1992

Treibel, A., Einführung in soziologische Theorien der Gegenwart (5) Opladen 2000
Dieses Buch bietet eine gute Einführung in die verschiedenen theoretischen Ansätze der Soziologie

1.0.3 Internet

Deutsche Gesellschaft für Soziologie

http://www.dgs2002.de/Themenpapier.htm

Gesellschaftstypen

http://www.teleunterricht.de/teleunterricht2/Materialien/Sozialkunde/Gesellschaftswandel.PDF

Habermas, Jürgen

http://www.dhm.de/lemo/html/biografien/HabermasJuergen/

http://www.suhrkamp.de/autoren/habermas/texte/habermas_start.htm

Linkliste Gemeinschaftskunde

http://sform.bildung.hessen.de/gymnasium/skii/verweisegmk/#Gesellschaft

Luhmann, Niklas

http://www.suhrkamp.de/autoren/luhmann/luhmann.htm

Zivilgesellschaft

http://mailbox.univie.ac.at/haimo.l.handl/zivilg/zivilg.htm

1.1 What is a society?

1.1.1 About the concept

Society is a basic principle of the sociology, however, this one isn't formulated obviously. In the widest meaning it is temporal lasting community of living things, here humans. A human society is a temporal and spatial (or also social) limited number of persons. The people in a society are correlated. Their living together is generally regulated by norms and laws. This society is a social thing with structures and organization forms for living together. That means, that all people who live at a particular time in a country, form the society of this country. They correlate, they have to rely on each other. So the parents take care for their children, the children for getting older parents, there are protectionsystems, religion, state organizations. There also are structures, e.g. those ones of the state or the economy. There are quite definite sequences, like definite life events, so e.g. a marriage. Generally binding norms, laws and ordinary rules organize the living together. Without these a conflict free living together wouldn't be possible.

Well, not only the single ones are part of a society, but also the structures formed by them, so the family, the economy and the state, the leisure time and the social area, but also the religious communities. Society is a wide concept, which contains all people and the culture of living together, formed by them. This culture is a creation of human, it needs the permanent care, to be able to exist in the society. The society is the house for all people, where all have to be able to enjoy their life.

The ethical foundations laws of the society are liberty and solidarity. The single person shall be able to enjoy his life in human dignity. However, he also is part of the society and responsible for these, he has to support and to take on responsibility in solidarity. However, the social justice also is part of this, which takes care for this, that the tensions don't get too big in a society.

The society is a large group of people. It distinguishes, so some sociologists, of the small group (primarily of the primary group's family), which is also called community, through this, that it is not so homogeneous like it (uniform), and is not based so strongly on confidence and spiritual attachement.

In a critical society theory are the targets of a society these people, who cooperate equally without any fear. This theory demands, that even today its thought about the possibility, to optimize the conditions in view of the objective. In our days, such a critical theory of a worldsociety, has to include the sphere of the society into the environment and into the future societies. Christians try to realize a fair society according to the Empire of God and work with a the critical principle of social justice, liberty and solidarity.

1.1.2 Our world urbanizes

1.1.2.1 The process of the urbanization

We live worldwide in a epoch of the urbanization. In our country this can be noticed primarily in the accumulations around large towns in the town regions. But the country areas are also included by this trend fully. The whole society is characterized by the awareness of life of the urbanization. The speed of the urbanization is shown by the rate of increase of the municipal population; this means urbaniszation as a process. The rate of urbanisization describes the even existing urbanization of a country. This is the quantitative component.

Urbanization means qualitatively the distribution an industrial and municipal life-form in former rural areas. This is the social aspect, connected with a transfer of workers of the farming (primary sector) into the commercial production (secondary sector) and the services (tertiary sector). This leads to higher specialization of the workers and to a strong spatial compression of the population. Dynamically future-oriented towns will develop primarily in the tertiary sector.

The reasons for the urbanization are various, so their consequences. They have to be discussed variously form continent to continent. They are the results of population growth and restructuring of the economy to industrial production and service, of reduction of the meaning of farming as an important field for the acquisition of the cost of living. The urbaniszationprocess is nearly finished quantitatively in the cities years before, in the rural areas it still continues. But it seems, that in our days a new push begins also in the cities. The qualitative urbanisizationprocess runs primarily in the city, here there is a great influence to other areas. In the compression zones of the cities there are forerunner centers for the qualitative urbanization. This shall become discussed briefly in the following.

1.1.2.2 Elements of an urbanized culture

Elements of an urbane culture shall be represented among two regards here in the advisable brevity. On the one hand there is the real structure (e.g. in buildings) and the intellectual, social structures, presenting e.g. social customs. This refers to a whole society or often goes beyond these more and more, too.

On the other hand there is the other culture, the way of life presented as the personal lifestyle of a single person. Human takes cultural models here, but forms them himself with various intensity as well.

Both views of culture refer to each other and cannot exist independently of each other, yes, they need each other.

Towns have a structure.

The city or downtown represents the place of the identification. It is center of the town in more views. The people of the city have mostly an emotional relation to downtown. Downtown shows the last developments, the most various services are concentrated, it is pleasure center, the stage of social groups, it does cultural supply and is finally the home for many homeless. There the gathered "flotsam and jetsam" of the society, however, they want to replace them from there.

As a rule, the suburb has been formed during the industrialization. It is predominantly a district with various qualities, starting with the villas down to the so-called tenement houses. There was also the location for factories. As a rule, these suburbs have their own district centers. It the moment the rents often increase rapidly and replace conventional residents, one more time by the change from a rented apartement to owner-occupied apartement.

Häußermann, in opposite to this, talks about the town, divided into three parts

· as high polish town

· as normal living area and place of work

· place for the marginalizated

(H. Häußermann, W. Siebel, Neue Urbanität (Frankfurt 1987).

The city is characterized by special challenges, which include advantages and disadvantages, sometimes various per section of the population. So the city is place of culture, science, health welfare, a completely developed traffic system, a high quality of life is available in many cases. You can enjoy your life, when the conditions are okay, but there are also areas, where the environment is loaded very much.

Adverse is the various quality of housing for large families in the last years, because of the growing housing shortage, caused primarily by higher standards, as more square meters per one person. By move to the cities increase e.g. in Frankfurt the average pegs per square meter. The accumulation of people can cause hectic rush and stress. The air is loaded very high. The traffic noise, the crime and the by this caused the uncertainty on the streets, particularly in the darkness, are big problems.

A structure principle of the urbane society is high "functional distinction". The society splits itself up constantly in new share systems. Human as a person is nearly out of the independent share systems (State, economy, science...). Traditional world ideologies dissolve. The urbane society has multiplied the life outlines. Life planing for the single person is no more possible by only one enviroment. There are many values.

Old culture is resolved. The market principle crossways shoves itself into all levels, it is successful not only in the econmy, but also in the society. The individuals are taken out from their social protection at a comparatively high economic standard, morals are consumed, the market principle is valid in all areas. Our society is economic through and through, the churches already are given up almostly, now the sociology talkes about the family.

The consequences of this development is a process of individualization. This is an extensive release from the present role expectations up to the dissolving of the family. This makes more free at the moment, however, basicly it is a process of individualization, which makes the single person more available economically. It leads to great uncertainties in the end, too. One of the great problems of our society is the individualization. At the same time this runs at the expense of solidarity. Institutions which are important for the working of a society are discussed. The marriage and primarily the family come under pressure here; in the private area the solidarity is still more important than in the society. Even new solidarities form themselves such as citizens' action groups.

Examinations have shown, that the personal liberty wins a greater meaning more and more, opposite the idea of equality. A scientist (Zulehner) therefore talks about modern human as a „Liberty artist“. In principle, the liberty has to be affirmed, however, it has to respect the rights of the next one.

The municipal conventional bourgeoisie has passed away. Economic interests, which can be nearly not influenced by the politics, get more and more a greater meaning. The real decisions for the urban development are done in the economic power centers of Europe. This corresponds to the idea of consumption, as innerest core of the urbane lifestyle. „Urbanity became a category of the behavior and the emotional condition. It creates itself most purely in the consumption. Corresponding to this, the planning of urbane areas is mostly identical with the production of consumption worlds, may be the pedestrian precinct, the shoppingcenter and leisure time center or the hotel lobby. The ,dernier cri’ are the arcades, postmodernly decorated and lockable ... These productions make urbanity like an island, as a generally limited phenomenon: Socially restricted to the middle class with money to spend, temporal to opening-and business hours, located on some municipal Bijous, their gleam is bought with the desolation of the decentralized locations (Häußermann)“. Commercialization of all social areas, including the families, is an imoportant part of urbanization. Values have to be measured in money.

The lifestyle, which was connected with this form of urbanity mostly (was?), is the so-named „Yuppy“ (young urban professional). Mostly he has no family, looks for his career and cerates primarily something like passers-by and surfing-mentality, who never commits himself to anyone or anything and rides on every wave. For him this municipal interior is a stage of the self-portrayal.

1.1.2.3 The fun society

Besides this a process of segmentation of our society is build up, this has to be called a fun society (Schulze). Various milieus come into being. Milieus are lifestyles, run by special groups. It starts with preference for definite music and art, the way of clothing, the apartment facilities and up to running their free time.

Traditional Milieus are:

The Withclassmilieu: As a rule here they are persons with a university education with high income. Excellent apartment style is accompanied by corresponding cultural needs for museums, theaters, concert and opera. The clothing is stylish and runs moderat to haute couture. As a rule cars have to represent, so-called noblecars.

The harmonymilieu: Here is the lower or middle bourgeoisie, up to the area of the work force, the middle and ordinary income levels. Apartment equipment is that what you call solid and pure. This is also valid for clothing. Organizations, brass-band music and public festival are part of this milieu. They need their car mostly only for driving.

The integrationsmilieu: The integrationsmilieu is the integration of both. Art and kitsch are consistent, to say it shortly. It isn't easy to find a border to the other two ones. However, it has a more adaptation character, or the people live more freely against pre-conditions. It shouldn't be listed especially because it is a mixture. You find it predominantly in the middle classes area.

What is said here, is only a description, no scoring, because scoring had to prove, that one point of view would be better objectively. However, this always happens then, when one milieu calls itself absolute. Then there standards are fixed, all the others have to try to get. Whoever doesn't love Beethoven but brass-band music, well, this one is uncultivated. Such verdicts have to be handled very carefully.

Since the end of the sixties two new kinds of milieu develop.

· The self-realizationmilieu: The self-realizationmilieu, as a part of the withclassmilieu, runs a very individual lifestyle, jacket and jeans are typical clothing, the cabaret scene and the street coffee are included. This environment makes very strongly the trends in the society. Blue jeans and double-breasted suit are typical clothing of the men. The trend meanwhile goes more to the noble black suit. In this milieu the personal liberty has the highest priority. Here often are the individualists as well.

· The entertainmentmilieu: The entertainmentmilieu splits off from the harmonymilieu, they are often the losers of the modern society. The loud Disko is their home. Resounding music surrounds them.

In a city also has to be listed the still growing number of marginalizated, who were unhitched by a fun oriented society. They have formed also a milieu, from which they are tried to keep out again and again, to this milieu belong e.g. the homeless persons, their number is still growing (1997). These are called the modernization losers.

On the other hand the town works levelling again and again. The individual as the real reality becomes more and more unrecognizable concrete, because it becomes conformed more and more. The conformity of the urbane is primarily a conformity to the dictation of the fashion, the trend, the economic necessities.

The society turns an a fun society „I want to have fun as fast as possible, costs are no problem". This characterizes the nature of our society. Enjoying the life becomes the main principle of life (G. Schulze, Die Erlebnisgesellschaft, Frankfurt ²1992). So the more than 70 year old fellow has to try one more time Bungee Jumping, and when the summer-vacation wasn't spent in Italy or even farer away, it was nothing. To this orientation many are not able to follow. They have not enough money for this or not the health either.

Our society urbanizes. There the society finds the lifestyle. To this belong individualization, commercialization and fun orientation. The worry about the personal liberty gains weight, removes solidarity.

With these statements the change in our society is mentioned. Old and new attitudes form new coherences and milieus of the same lifestyle. However, this development also has its quantitative (measuring) bases, which will be handled in the following, but both fields cannot be devided exactly.

September 11^th, 2001 with its attacks on the World-Trade-Center in New York brought a serious uncertainty. The longer-term trends cannot be seen yet. The trust in the present naturalness is shaken, this also concerns primarily the economy.

1.1.3 Our society and its permanent changing structure

1.1.3.1 The statistic strucure of our society

The Federal Republic with the old and new federal states had 1993 more than 81 million inhabitants. It is part of the medium-sized nations of the world with that. The Federal Republic has the largest population in Europe after Russia. The density of population with 228 inhabitants per square kilometer is relatively high, the fourth highest in Europe. Of the city states Berlin is populated most densely with 3909 per km² and of the area states Nordrhein-Westfalen with 562 inhabitants per km². The lowest density of population has the federal state Mecklenburg-Vorpommern with 80.

The inhabitants distribute on nearly 39.5 million men and 41.8 women. The surplus of women explains itself by the loss at men by the World War II and the generally longer life expectancy of women. As a rule at the births (798 447) the male children have the easily higher installment. In the year 1993 have died 897.270, 98.823 more than were born. Such negative balances exist since the middle of the seventies yet.

1.1.3.2 The population statistics

The population develops upward relatively continuously with approx. 68 million since 1950, except brfore the years of the stagnation and the slight fall of 1972 (Recruitment stop for foreign workers until 1988). A 150-year development continues in Germany with that. 1946 we had 46 million inhabitants, then were added about 8 million refugees and exiles, the further increase till approximately 1972 is caused with high excesses of births over deaths. The foreign workers and their families came to this. With the collapse of the socialism a new immigration wave started after 1988, among them many emigrants of German origins out of the Eastern European states.

Sometimes the years of the sixties with a high birth rate are described the generation put at a disadvantage. It was talked about the „Birth mountain“, about the „Pupil mountain“, about the „Student mountain“, about the „Mountain of the unemployed and home-seekers“ and then one more time about the „Pensioner mountain“. May be our society has some problems to conform to these actually foreseeable situations. So we are already at the topic of the age distribution of our society, too.

1.1.3.3 The age structure

A relatively normal age distribution you can represented like a pyramid. Many births form a wide base, the year numbers reduce then in the course of the years, finally they end at the top.

Well, a normal age distribution of the population always is like a pyramid, below many young people, less old above. At present it looks more like a windswept weather spruce, below only some ones, then some bulges, the largest around the 60. Within 50 years it will look like a mushroom below some, above very much. This cannot function for an even longer time any more. A population, which consists of old and very old ones only, loses innovation strength, loses essential elements of the educational system, loses economic power.

Without any immigration Germany would have within 50 years only 58 million inhabitants; 40 per cent in the age between 60 and 100 years of this after all. In the middle of the 21^st century - without any immigration - in Germany the number of people between 20 and 60 years will be reduced from 46 to 27 Millionen: a minus of almost 20 million. If we want to balances this out, we need each year a net immigration (what stays after migration) of around 400.000 persons.

1.1.3.4 The structure of income and possession

Let's have a look to the distribution of income in Germany, as it was in 1995: The money gathers at the highest level. From the net income gets 1/5 almost 40 per cent, while the poorest fifth doesn't even come on to 10 per cent yet. However, this represents also by way of a hint, how wealth occurs increasingly in Germany. In the upper levels the money is collected. In the year 1993 owned 1,5 million households 31,7 per cent of the complete net property. In this field you find independent businessmen only and such ones who don't have do work any more.

The state has contributed very much to this distribution of income, as the „The development of taxes 1960 to 1994“ shows. Here gets clear, how the income tax and the wage tax have developed variously. The income millionaires payed 48,5 per cent taxes in the year 1983 on average yet. In the year 1986 the rate was 46,6 per cent and 1989 was only 40 per cent. Today it will be even less. Perhaps this will be better a little after the tax reform, we have to wait, but till now (2002), it doesn't look like this.

This distinction becomes strengthened one more time by the high and primarily permanent unemployment. The level is still at about 4 million. The permanent growing base of unemployment can't be reduced at all. A new solid injustice for chances causes here.

The private property, the interest-bearing money property and real estates without building- and consumption debts, was in Germany 1998, as the income and consumption sample survey shows, at about 8.2 trillions DM. The property situation was different in the old and the new federal states. The average private property in each West German household was about 254.000 DM. In the new federal states about 88.000 DM (nearly 35% only).

Behind these average sum there is a considerable dissimilar distribution of property. 1998 about 42% of the private property in the former Federal Republic was in the possession of the richest 10% households, while the lower 50% of the households owned only 4,5% of the property. The highest tenth had in the average a property of around 1.100.000 DM.

In opposite to this the lower half had an average property of 22.000 DM. In the "new states" the dissimilarity of the distribution of property was even higher. The richest 10% of the households owned in the average around 422.000 DM and so nearly 48% of the total property. The lower half of the households owned only 4,5 % of the total property, the same as in the former Federal Republic, with an average income per household of about 8.000 DM. The dissimilarity of the distribution of property causes to a considerable part on a dissimilarity of the income distribution. The saving accounts depends on the income, besides the inheritances and increase in value, the main source for property for the whole life.

There are on the one hand:

· Income millionaires 1992: 25.275, Growth annual 10%.

And on the other hand:

· The rising of the welfare aid. Persons receiving supplementary benefit (only help to the cost of living) around 918.000 (old federal states) 1973 up to 2,7 Millionen 1996 (among them 23,6% Non-Germans).

10 per cent of the inhabitants of our country lives below the poverty line, which was defined by the European Union, that means less than 50 per cent of the average per head income for the head of the family. After 1973 the number of the persons receiving supplementary benefit (only help to the cost of living) increased up to this day around more than the quadruple. 1991 was this number higher than 3 Millionen. These are the people who have got welfare aid for the cost of living at least once a year.

As result you can be said: in our society there runs a massiv moving to the rich ones.

1.1.3.5 Social stratification of the Westgerman population in the eighties

In our country it is more and more usual to see the society in levels, because there are obviously differences. This leveltheory was reported primarily by the sociologist Geiger in the year 1949. There are absolutely differences between the different levels in this model, but there is no class struggle. He sees primarily a property-owning bourgeoisie, the middle classes and the work force. Schelsky (Sociologist 1912-1984) completed this. He talked about the fact, that the working classes have climbed upwards, but the property-owning bourgeoisie had climbed downwards. A middle classes society is developing, where the different levels are limited no longer so strongly, all meet in the end in a wide field as middle classes.

However, this model didn't become reality. Since the end of the seventies the differences become clearer again, more and more. A continuous redistribution is running from below upwards. Some talk about a 2/3 society, Gesellschaft, correctly is to say to, that about 20% are cut from social development, with growing trend. However, this intensifies the tensions again.

A modified layer model is represented of sociologists today. At this is emphasized, that the levels cannot be seperated from each other clearly, and the limits are permeable for both groups and single ones in both directions. Rainer Geißler (Die Sozialstruktur Deutschlands 1992) represents this (in continuing a model of Dahrendorf) as a society house. This concerns the eighties. The edge levels should have grown on at least 10% in the meantime.

The undermost cellar form the edge levels, the ostracized, like they were described before. They may be more than 10% in the meantime.

The foreigners form an extension, parts of them are living in the undermost cellar. The most of them are living even in an upper cellar, with their unskilled and semi-skilled workers. Through the middle of this group the poverty line runs in our society.

The walls and celings are adjustable and permeable. The groups are no more seperated so clearly than before, unless the edgegroups. There are ways upwards and downwards. This is called the vertical or social mobility, the last word is exacter, because it includes a change of the segment of a level. The vertical mobility altogether increases.

The promotion chances have improved up to the eighties, less climbed downwards than upwards. This has stagnated in the meantime or is even turned around, primarily by the unemployment and the early begin of pension. Up to at the beginning of the seventies the short distance mobility was normal, they climbed one level upwards. Then showed an examination from years 1930-1949, that the long distance mobility increased about several generations. Every 5^th one climbed upwards into the next level, every 10^th two levels, and each 50^th three levels. Climbing downwards of three levels threatened only each 100^th. This has increased by the educational reform one more time. The open education levels gain in importance against the untill now closed possession levels, but not against the big business, which still belongs to the power elite.

However, nevertheless the lower class was increased the value socially e.g. by the reduction of rates under the welfare aid and the increase of the incomes totally, the continued payment of wages if somebody is sick, the improvement of the pension. There are trends in the meantime, to take back some of these things. The promotion chances of worker children are still restricted. More than 60% of the children from worker families become worker again. The former lower class was replaced predominantly by foreigners.

The so-named powerelite is run by 1% of the society. They are the managers in economy and politics. In earlier times they came from the nobility. This has formed its position at longest of the armed forces. Climbing upwards to the upper threethousand dominates the upper and the middle class. The other levels have nearly no chance. To get into this elite, you have to have school-leaving exam and university entrance qualification and if possible a completed study. For women is this climbing upwards even harder than for children of the lowest level. Special chances have the jurists.

As a rule the working time at the top is 70 week hours. 75% of the leading businessmen and 20% of the leading politicians said they have 1987 an annual income of more than 200 000 DM.

1.1.4 About the civilian middle class society

1.1.4.1 The conception of the civilian society

The concept of the civilian society was formed in the sixties in the USA. Primarily it played a role at the civil rights movements in the former states of the Eastern bloc. They wanted to democratize the society at the basis of high participation in all social actions. Essential aspects of the democratization are the protection of the private life against encroachments of the state, control of state power, gathering of democratic elites for state decisions, the forming of publicity, the democratization at the local level and the development of a culture of the handling conflicts.

Important basic agreement are the norms of non-violence, tolerance and fairness.

To a civilian society belong citizens' action groups, neighborhood organizations, associations, organized groups and many civilian combinings, they give the citizen society a structure, which make capable of acting these cooperations socially.

1.1.4.2 The civilian society as ideal?

Civilian society (or citizen society) is described as a special form of political culture. Different powers of state, market, civil public and privat life act balanced to each other. This balance corresponds to the ideal idea of democratic, to a citizen society, which discusses socially and act together.

Nations, regions and communes are different by realizing this ideal. The old democracies of Europe have continued further, than the nations with relative young democracies or many East European nations.

One of the most essential differences is, whether a nation has a state culture or a social culture. In an extensive state culture everything is an action of the state. In a citizen culture the non-state society is involved in this or runs many things independently. A balanced relationship between both has to be formed, so no one dominates. It is important at all in many nations, that there are civilian initiatives besides the state.

However, you have to look for, that the most powerful don't put through their own interests, and the social justice is guaranteed.

1.1.4.3 Further development where to?

Our society today is called unstructured rag rug. A clear model cannot be recognized. Briefly, it is described as follows: Economically we live in this postfordism. Ford asked, how he can use the workplace the most rational, postfordism asks how the workplace can be rationalized away. After 1970 the information technology dominates. The social differences grow, the social mobility is very large. The family exists as a rest family, phase of life partners and single parents. In the economy dominates the tertiary sector (service). PC and internet are important technically, as well as primarily biotechnology. This society is called information society. Where does this go, however? Will it be a society which decides, who will own the intellectual and biological resources of the future? The fight for this has already started. However, we want to discuss the targets of the society and its actions, which are the consequences.

1.2 Targets of the society

The second Vatican council explains this topic intensively, in the pastoral constitution „Gaudium et spes“:

The mutual dependence of human person and human society

25. Man's social nature makes it evident that the progress of the human person and the advance of society itself hinge on one another. For the beginning, the subject and the goal of all social institutions is and must be the human person which for its part and by its very nature stands completely in need of social life.(3) Since this social life is not something added on to man, through his dealings with others, through reciprocal duties, and through fraternal dialogue he develops all his gifts and is able to rise to his destiny.

Among those social ties which man needs for his development some, like the family and political community, relate with greater immediacy to his innermost nature; others originate rather from his free decision. In our era, for various reasons, reciprocal ties and mutual dependence increase day by day and give rise to a variety of associations and organizations, both public and private. This development, which is called socialization, while certainly not without its dangers, brings with it many advantages with respect to consolidating and increasing the qualities of the human person, and safeguarding his rights.(4)

But if by this social life the human person is greatly aided in responding to his destiny, even in ist religious dimensions, it cannot be denied that men are often diverted from doing good and spurred toward and by the social circumstances in which they live and are immersed from their birth. To be sure the disturbances which so frequently occur in the social order result in part from the natural tensions of economic, political and social forms. But at a deeper level they flow from man's pride and selfishness, which contaminate even the social sphere. When the structure of affairs is flawed by the consequences of sin, man, already born with a bent toward evil, finds there new inducements to sin, which cannot be overcome without strenuous efforts and the assistance of grace.

The support of the public welfare

26. Every day human interdependence grows more tightly drawn and spreads by degrees over the whole world. As a result the common good, that 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, today takes on an increasingly universal complexion and consequently involves rights and duties with respect to the whole human race. Every social group must take account of the needs and legitimate aspirations of other groups, and even of the general welfare of the entire human family.(5)

At the same time, however, there is a growing awareness of the exalted dignity proper to the human person, since he stands above all things, and his rights and duties are universal and inviolable. Therefore, there must be made available to all men everything necessary for leading a life truly human, such as food, clothing, and shelter; the right to choose a state of life freely and to found a family, the right to education, to employment, to a good reputation, to respect, to appropriate information, to activity in accord with the upright norm of one's own conscience, to protection of privacy and rightful freedom. even in matters religious.

Hence, the social order and its development must invariably work to the benefit of the human person if the disposition of affairs is to be subordinate to the personal realm and not contrariwise, as the Lord indicated when He said that the Sabbath was made for man, and not man for the Sabbath.(6)

This social order requires constant improvement It must be founded on truth, built on justice and animated by love; in freedom it should grow every day toward a more humane balance.(7) An improvement in attitudes and abundant changes in society will have to take place if these objectives are to be gained.

God's Spirit, Who with a marvelous providence directs the unfolding of time and renews the face of the earth, is not absent from this development. The ferment of the Gospel too has aroused and continues to arouse in man's heart the irresistible requirements of his dignity.

The respect for the human person

27. Coming down to practical and particularly urgent consequences, this council lays stress on reverence for man; everyone must consider his every neighbor without exception as another self, taking into account first of all His life and the means necessary to living it with dignity,(8) so as not to imitate the rich man who had no concern for the poor man Lazarus.(9)

In our times a special obligation binds us to make ourselves the neighbor of every person without exception. and of actively helping him when he comes across our path, whether he be an old person abandoned by all, a foreign laborer unjustly looked down upon, a refugee, a child born of an unlawful union and wrongly suffering for a sin he did not commit, or a hungry person who disturbs our conscience by recalling the voice of the Lord, "As long as you did it for one of these the least of my brethren, you did it for me" (Matt. 25:40).

Furthermore, whatever is opposed to life itself, such as any type of murder, genocide, abortion, euthanasia or wilful self-destruction, whatever violates the integrity of the human person, such as mutilation, torments inflicted on body or mind, attempts to coerce the will itself; whatever insults human dignity, such as subhuman living conditions, arbitrary imprisonment, deportation, slavery, prostitution, the selling of women and children; as well as disgraceful working conditions, where men are treated as mere tools for profit, rather than as free and responsible persons; all these things and others of their like are infamies indeed. They poison human society, but they do more harm to those who practice them than those who suffer from the injury. Moreover, they are supreme dishonor to the Creator.

The respect and the lovein opposite the opponent

28. Respect and love ought to be extended also to those who think or act differently than we do in social, political and even religious matters. In fact, the more deeply we come to understand their ways of thinking through such courtesy and love, the more easily will we be able to enter into dialogue with them.

This love and good will, to be sure, must in no way render us indifferent to truth and goodness. Indeed love itself impels the disciples of Christ to speak the saving truth to all men. But it is necessary to distinguish between error, which always merits repudiation, and the person in error, who never loses the dignity of being a person even when he is flawed by false or inadequate religious notions.(10) God alone is the judge and searcher of hearts, for that reason He forbids us to make judgments about the internal guilt of anyone.(11)

The teaching of Christ even requires that we forgive injuries,(12) and extends the law of love to include every enemy, according to the command of the New Law: "You have heard that it was said: Thou shalt love thy neighbor and hate thy enemy. But I say to you: love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, and pray for those who persecute and calumniate you" (Matt. S:43-44).

The essential equality of all people and the social justice

29. Since all men possess a rational soul and are created in God's likeness, since they have the same nature and origin, have been redeemed by Christ and enjoy the same divine calling and destiny, the basic equality of all must receive increasingly greater recognition. True, all men are not alike from the point of view of varying physical power and the diversity of intellectual and moral resources. Nevertheless, with respect to the fundamental rights of the person, every type of discrimination, whether social or cultural, whether based on sex, race, color, social condition, language or religion, is to be overcome and eradicated as contrary to God's intent. For in truth it must still be regretted that fundamental personal rights are still not being universally honored. Such is the case of a woman who is denied the right to choose a husband freely, to embrace a state of life or to acquire an education or cultural benefits equal to those recognized for men.

Therefore, although rightful differences exist between men, the equal dignity of persons demands that a more humane and just condition of life be brought about. For excessive economic and social differences between the members of the one human family or population groups cause scandal, and militate against social justice, equity, the dignity of the human person, as well as social and international peace.

Human institutions, both private and public, must labor to minister to the dignity and purpose of man. At the same time let them put up a stubborn fight against any kind of slavery, whether social or political, and safeguard the basic rights of man under every political system. Indeed human institutions themselves must be accommodated by degrees to the highest of all realities, spiritual ones, even though meanwhile, a long enough time will be required before they arrive at the desired goal.

53. Man comes to a true and full humanity only through culture, that is through the cultivation of the goods and values of nature. Wherever human life is involved, therefore, nature and culture are quite intimately connected one with the other. The word "culture" in its general sense indicates everything whereby man develops and perfects his many bodily and spiritual qualities; he strives by his knowledge and his labor, to bring the world itself under his control. He renders social life more human both in the family and the civic community, through improvement of customs and institutions. Throughout the course of time he expresses, communicates and conserves in his works, great spiritual experiences and desires, that they might be of advantage to the progress of many, even of the whole human family.

Human as creator of the culture

55. From day to day, in every group or nation, there is an increase in the number of men and women who are conscious that they themselves are the authors and the artisans of the culture of their community. Throughout the whole world there is a mounting increase in the sense of autonomy as well as of responsibility. This is of paramount importance for the spiritual and moral maturity of the human race. This becomes more clear if we consider the unification of the world and the duty which is imposed upon us, that we build a better world based upon truth and justice. Thus we are witnesses of the birth of a new humanism, one in which man is defined first of all by this responsibility to his brothers and to history.

Objectives of such a society is the extensive human dignity, in liberty and solidarity, social justice and future ability. This has to be build up in a culture of the extensive peace.

1.3 Coorpation on a human society

All are invited, to preserve the house of society made by human, if it serves a culture of peace, and to form it humanely further. Here means work everything, what preserves and serves human conditions in our world or makes them possible, that each single person is able to live in a human society in respect and dignity. This is culture in the original meaning of the word (agricultura=Agriculture).

So work becomes a cultural creation. Human builds together with others a humane society. His life, his handling the other ones, his handling the creation make his lifestyle. Basicly this lifestyle should be characterized by liberty and solidarity in the heart.

To live someones lifestyle and to interchange it can form a little cultureroom of the same lifestyles e.g. in the group of an association, a milieu (place with parallel lifestyles). Here, in these little milieus, culture can be formed. Well, the single person is not at all at mercy of the society powerlessly. He starts to join in forming. The African proverb is valid here: If many ordinary people do many small steps at many places, they are able to change the world.

If it links with others to a network of lifestyle of liberty and solidarity, this lifestyle then can spread by networked lifestyles in the society and it is able to influence its culture. It's about a humane life for all in a humane culture. The word of social justice also is part of this, which has found a wide distribution within the last years, just by engaged groups in the society. We have to think about the campaign for remission of debts. Or let's talk about the concept of sustainability, which was almost unknown some years ago. It disseminated by the networks.

In the supraregional combinings, which become necessary more and more, because of the society fields growing greater and greater, also the influence on the society itself increases, so to greater social structures. Whoever wants to act here permanently, will find a way. If many take this way, it will be successful.

The conversation about the value of a society, about its bases are extremely important. They have to be worked out again and again in the dialog with each others, and have to be fixed and continued. To all new challenges has to be reacted by a social dialog. Only by this way a lasting humane, free and at the same time solidary society can be preserved.

Social fields shall be listed in the following now. Certainly there are more than these, than which are represented here. But it is really useful, to discuss the main fields, as there are family, economy and state.

1.4 Questions about chapter 1 „The society"

1.4.1 Questions about 1.1 „What is a society“

1. What do you understand about society?

2. Describe the urbanization of the society briefly!

3. Name the milieus of the fun-generation!

4. Which milieu should be completed?

5. Where do you see elements about the description of our society?

1.4.2 Questions about 1.2 Targets of the society

1. What is the basis of each society?

2. Is human able to develop himself without any society?

3. What do you think about public welfare?

4. What way those shall be handled, who think differently than we do?

5. How is the fundamental equality justifid of all people and the social justice?

6. What do you think about the idea of social justice, also about the possibility to realize it?

1.4.3 Cooperation on a human society

1. What way lifestyle, milieu and culture are joined?

2. Is there any chance, that groups involve themselves in forming the lifestyle?

3. Draw up a conversation concept for a group about a fundamental question of our social living together.

4. Try to integrate these into a network!

5. How could you produce public for your request?

2. Families are changing

2.0 Introduction and literature

2.0.1 Question to think about

What is your opinion about the greatest challenge for the family today?

2.0.2 Introduction

1972 a book was published by Horst-Eberhard Richter with the title "Patient family". Even if the contents primarily discusses the therapy of marriages and families, this title could be symptomatic for the family. Did the patient die in the meantime? Reimer Gronemeyer finds out 1992: „This social form will collapse with the end of the modern age“. His opinion is, there will be family similar things, but the postmodern family is a "misleading packaging" as concept, a "checked dog“ (R. Gronemeyer, Ohne Seele, ohne Liebe, ohne Haß, Düsseldorf 1992, S. 39).

May be you won't agree totally to this statement, but you have to see, that the family is running a great considerable change process, and has to carry serious burdenings. „Changing family“ could be the title of the history of family. Social changes have left far-reaching signs at the institution of the family again and again, too.

Family is still a wanted institution. The people want to live with their family. The family is inalienable and without any alternative. However, it's a subject in change. First the historical development of the family shall be analyzed as a first step "Notice" and its present condition, after this by "Judge", we will look for the assessment of the situation of the family, and finally "Act", we want to discuss the steps for the improvement of the situation of the family.

2.0.3 Literature and internet

2.0.3.1 Literature

Baltes P.B. u.a. Hg., Zukunft des Alterns und gesellschaftliche Entwicklung, Berlin 1992

Bundesministerium für Familie und Senioren, Fünfter Familienbericht, Bonn 1994

Cleven, M., Lebensräume – Familienträume, Manuskript Dez. Erwachsenenarbeit Bischöfl. Ordinariat Limburg 1999

Deutsche Bischofskonferenz in "Ehe und Familie -in guter Gesellschaft", Die deutschen Bischöfe 61, Hrsg. Sekretariat der Deutschen Bischofskonferenz Bonn 1999

Gronemeyer R., Ohne Seele, ohne Liebe, ohne Hass, Düsseldorf 1992

Internationales Jahr der Familie, Familienreport 1994, Bonn 1994 (umfangreiche Literaturangaben)

Johannes Paul II., Brief an die Familien. 1994 (Verlautbarungen des Apostolischen Stuhls 112,

Nave-Herz R., Markefka M. Hg, Handbuch der Familien- und Jugendforschung, Bd.1, Neuwied 1989

Segalen M., Die Familie, Frankfurt 1990

2.0.3.2 Internet

Hinweis auf das Bundesministerin für Familie, Senioren, Frauen und Jugend
< http://www.bundesregierung.de/frameset/index.jsp >

5. Familienbericht der Bundesregierung 1994
<http://www.bmfsfj.de/top/liste/Politikbereiche/Familie/Publikationen/ix4781_bestell.htm?view=listFrameset&Thema=79&script >
6. Familienbericht der Bundesregierung (Spezialbericht über Familien ausländischer Herkunft) Bonn 2000
<http://www.bmfsfj.de/top/liste/Politikbereiche/Familie/Publikationen/ix4781_bestell.htm?view=listFrameset&Thema=79&script >

Grundlagenprogramm des Familienbundes der Deutschen Katholiken
< http://www.familienbund.org >

KAB: Familien- und Erwerbsarbeit gleichwertig, KAB-Pressemitteilung 2002
< http://www.kab.de > unter Pressemitteilungen

Beste Sammlung von Texten der Soziallehre
http://www.helmut-zenz.de/links53.htm

Grundlagentext zur Christlichen Gesellschaftslehre
http://home.t-online.de/home/overkott/sozial.htm ???

http://www.ruf.uni-freiburg.de/theologie/forsch/sozenzy.htm
Texte der Enzykliken

2.1 Historical development of the family and its condition today - Notice

2.1.1 The formation of the family up to the middle eastern family

Here shall be handled the forming of the family in the early days of mankind only by some words. The matriarchate was the organization form for the family for thousands of years, the men lived more at the edge, there was no important meaning of them for the further existence of the great group except the fathering. Runnig the family was the job of the women. They were the middle of all actions. With their hunting the men contributed only little for the food of the group. Their part grew in the transition to the agriculture, also in the outside area. The women remained obtained inside, running the household and bringing up the children, but the outside area become more and more meaning and so the part of the men. The outside area became the public area of the domain of men. The matriarchate changed to patriarchy, a phenomenon, we notice everywhere in the Mediterranean after the second millennium BC.

The meaning foundation in the divinities also was female in the matriarchal structures, think about the mother divinities. Suddenly the leading divinities became male. This happens simultaneously with the transition of power in the society. At this there also are mixed situations and almost societies based on partnership, such as the old Egyptian.

2.1.2 The biblical family

Into this arising patriarchal structure belongs the forming of the people of Israel, belongs the middle Eastern family of the biblical age. There isn't only the concept "family" in the Bible at all, the concept is Roman. The "tent" and the "house" are the corresponding concepts. We know the extended families of the patriarches out of the bible with up to four women or women and concubines, children and grandchildren; a family form like it corresponds to nomads and half nomads, where the members get a complete protection by the association.

Here the type of the family: the man Abraham, who fearly procused his wife with the Pharao, and Jakob, who deceives his brother about his right of primogeniture and who has four women at the end. One of these steals the house shrine of the parents and and even lies like mad. God knows this, but nevertheless he gives them his blessing. They become the tribe parents of Israel, the selected people.

Noemi, the mother of Ruth is single parent, she brings later, more than problematicly, the daughter-in-law Ruth to the "Löser" Boaz (the Löser has the duty by the law, to marry the wife of a deceased relative, if he isn't married yet). Ruth becomes the tribe mother of Jesus. All of them are blessed by God, therefore no parade families according to church announcements at all.

The family of Jesus isn't without questions either. Was he an only child? What about the relation of Josef to Maria, what about brothers and sisters of Jesus? Or was it also a great family or did exist real brothers and sisters, as some exegetes want to know - against the tradition?

The statements of Jesus are not always very friendly about family. His family wanted to call him back. But he asks, whoever is his family? „Everybody who does the will of God“. We know the third chapter with Markus. With Jesus the Empire of God has arrived, this becomes the decisive criterion of the human living together. The commandment of the love of God, selflove and charity becomes the basis of any excellent human relation and so also of the family. Human relations get a new dimension by him. He was kinder to the marriage, primarily to the women, whom he gave a principle new position, because their situation around the discussion of the letter of divorce, which could be issued by the husband one-sided. Whoever moans about this indissoluble marriage, may not forget this background. The marriage with one partner was natural in Israel in the time of Jesu, if possible also with various women - one after the other.

2.1.3 The family in the ancient world

The Greek didn't know the concept of the family either at all. The house was the basis of the living together; the area of the mother was there. The man didn't seek joy and conversation there, but by boys and hetairas. A court speaker explained in the 4^th century before Christ: „We have the prostitutes for the joy, the lover for the care of our daily body needs, the wives however, that they give us lawful children and that they run the house correctly.“

The strict Jews in the diaspora, but also the Romans with their stricter family morals, couldn't understand this situation of marriage and family. Basis of the Romans was the monogamy and an extended family with its serious meaning of „pater familias“ (Father of a family), but the woman plays her part here as well. Family comes from „famulus“ = Servant. Family meant originally the complete domestic shaft in a bigger estate, later then all fellow tenants, under the management of the patriarch (the ruling father). Surely this wasn't a germ cell of the society. Slaves could get married freely only restricted, they could nearly never found families. Ancient cities like Korinth had slaves as residents up to 70%, the poor ones with their mostly restricted rights not counted at all.

About these extended families is talken, when Paulus baptizes a whole "house" like he did in Philippi. About these extended families is also talken, when the Church Fathers speak of the family as house church and house shrine. Whether they have meant the nuclear family of our days, is very doubtful and many warn, this would be an overtaxing of the family of today, as official church texts tends to do. To describe a family as house shrine, for this the differences are too big anyway.

2.1.4 The family in the middle age

The rural extended family dominated in the Middle Ages, the court staff also was part of this one. This variously formed itself again, when there were areas, where portion of the inheritance were distributed to the children, as the Franken did, or the complete farms were given to the sons. The citizens of upcoming towns were formed by craftsman and merchants primarily. Here there was one unity for livingarea and workroom, this always applied to the women, too. There was no kind of job sharing, according to the family of the modern age between inside area for the woman and outside area for the man. The enslaved were limited solidly in their rights, also regarding marriage and family. They lived more at the edge of such institutions. Their number wasn't low in the Middle Ages. The Christianity also hasn't granted slaves the free family foundation right up to the modern times.

2.1.5. The image of the family in modern times

The traditional image of the family today is formed by the developments of the industry age. As a rule, it is a living together of two generations, one is a the married couple, the other one are the children. The man in his part allocation is responsible for the outside area, the woman for the inside area. Income oriented work is the part of the man, household and education is the part of the woman. So should be the conventional ideal. The reality very often looked differently.

In the sociology life cycle for such a family was described by six to eight phases. Development phase, primary socialization, family with children required to attend school, adolescence phase, contractionsphase (the nest is empty) and age phase arelisted (G. Scheller, in Nave-Herz/Markefka, Handbuch der Familien- und Jugendforschung, Bd. 1 Familienforschung S 151-175). However, the family biographies become more complexly. The life expectancy of the people increases.

Obviously the family, formed by the industry age and the enlightenment, seems to find an end. Basicly it was demanded by the industrial society a division into production (waged work) and reproduction (father and bring up the children), outside and inside, in technical rationality and human emotionality, in men and women. The man has to go out into the "histole live". There rule competition, fights, hardness, ability to assert, technology and politics. Over the house reigns the "modest housewife“. The emotional compensation should be made here, children should be educated for the working world, the law of love should reign here. This was made clearly by a great influential German daily newspaper once again: „There is competition in the economy, solidarity is for the family“.

In this concept the family was the buffer between the single ones and the society, family was the lubricant, which makes the life in the society tolerable. „There wouldn't have been any industrialization without the family“ (Gronemeyer).

Even in the last century the work situation of women and men was extremely hostile for the family, they worked 18-20 hours daily. They couldn't get apartments, the number of the illegitimate children was large. A bed or a sofa was given to relatives in town apartments, beds were also rented out by the hour to "sleepers". All this wasn't beneficial to family life. The workers were forced to "wild marriages" very often (M. Segalen, Die Familie, Frankfurt 1990, S. 171). It couldn't be talked about a nice and intact familian world.

But this concept was subject of changes as well. Until the twenties of the last century around ten children were reality in the families, later the three child family was the ideal, today usually there is only one child, on average exactly 1,3.

2.1.6 The disappereance of the family model of modern times

The decisive causes for the disappearance of the modern family concept are seen in the total economyzing of the society. No area of life seems to be excepted from this. It has to be added, that family is no place of "life safeguarding", yes, it couldn't be that any more. Without any social system of safety the family couldn't survive any more. More and more functions are taken away from the family, starting with the education up to the supply of the old ones, tasks the family isn't able to do at all. To run this system, seriously based on the division of works, it needs another form of education, than the family can give as a rule.

2.1.7 Development trends of the European family

2.1.7.1 The structure of the parts in the families have changed

In the modern family household, as a rule, there live together mother, father and their legal children zusammen (zum Kapitel siehe R. Nave-Herz, M. Markefka). The marriage biographies became complexer by the prolongation of the life and the change of the partnership behavior. The basic constellation, named before, is added by many other combinations, as there are living together with parents, other relatives, children from the first marriage, the leaving of one parent, to list only some. Children are, despite many independences, in the end much longer dependent on the parents by education and studies. So the family becomes a subtly differentiated relationship network with various marriage biographies.

2.1.7.2 Change of relationship between wife and husband

Not at all the marriages were stabler in earlier times than today. Many remarriages were normal, because definitely the mortality of women was very high in the childbed. The marriage had to have many children because often only few children survived the first years of life. By the prolongation of the life expectancy, primarily of the women, the number of the remarriages has declined, there is no more economic and social necessity either like before.

The choice of partner has changed decidedly. There always has been alone definite marriage choice of partner, but poorer levels could get married, even if the parents didn't live any more or the children were servants in other areas. Primarily in the rurally level the choice of the partners was done by the whole family, mostly by the parents. Emotions played a more minor role at this. Today, it isn't sure but more probable than in earlier times, that a marriage is a love-match. The total gains meaning, also the sexual "suit one another“.

As a rule, historical marriages were indicated by a considerable power grade between man and woman. This is valid particularly of the marriages in the industrial modern age. This has changed itself solidly. It is almost natural today, that a woman also has a qualified education and also wants to do her learned profession. It's part of this, that she also wants to have a corresponding disposal law about the self earned money. The longer life expectancy also makes a work more probable, because the woman wants to be integrated again into the professional life, when the kids become adults. If women get 80 years old in average (with strongly growing trend), the primary education phase is completed then with 10-12 years, the nest gets approximately free after 20 years. What does a woman in the remaining largest part of her life? However, this is thus obliged that usually the man has climbed his career ladder and can't be catched up. Here has to be looked for resolvings.

Women are widowed longer because there higher life expectancy. The widow's pension is very often no solid basic living condition. The own pension of many old women is not very high either, by only some years of work . Poverty in the age is female usually. In the meantime many actions for release here were done. The woman is challenged to enter the professional life. If the women do this even in the education phase, there is a considerable additional load to them, because the husbands hardly help at the distribution of tasks in bringing up the children and running the household, when the women are running their jobs, too. Within the last decades the demand for female workers is increased by the economy, only in recession phases is talked about „Persons with two incomes“. However, women know in the meantime, too, that professional work is a right for them.

2.1.7.4 Change of the forming of marriage and family

The marriage ceremony is now later, compared with the past. This also applies primarily to women who have studied a profession. The marriage and the age for starting a family is higher with the professional qualification of the women. After mostly several years of living together the expectation of the 1^st child is often the decision to the marriage ceremony. There is only one decisive reason to run the marriage ceremony in opposite to the past, this is the expectation or the desire for a child. Other reasons play almost no more a role. This also explains the strong increase of the illegitimate partnerships. These aren't understood as competition to the marriage, but there is predominantly a "Child oriented marriage foundation" (Nave-Herz).

2.1.7.5 The relationship parents - kids has changed

Altogether the education style has changed itself to an education based on partnership. The old conflict between father and son nearly doesn't exist any more. Children have to do decisions, when they are younger. Partly, the so-called negotiation strategy starts already in the small child phase. Reason arguments are discussed. The parents try to meet their grown-up children more as friends than as authorities. The meaning of the parents in the opinion of the youths is still very high (about 3,5 from possible 4,0), with a certain preference of the mother. Corporal punishment isn't abolished definitely till now, but this might be only a question of time. The violence potential from the families and also from the society disappears with that. Unfortunately, the propensity to violence is still too high in the families, also to the partners - primarily started by the men. Family is often the place, too, to reduce stress, however, also to arise stress.

Studying by con-life and cooperations gives way to an early outdoor education, which runs many years. This can last for almost 25 and more years, starting in the nursery school up to the university. There is warned about a too early pedagogical form of childhood, an integral education has to be ensured. The youths feel themselves earlier independent, but they depend on their parents fundamentally longer, primarily financial. The moan of parents: „It would be nice the kids have a complete education, when we become retired“ is not only a joke, but very often reality. Children demand opposite to the past as natural a clear choice of occupation, and nevertheless they can reckon with the support by the parents in the time of education. The conceptions of the world of parents and children are often very different. This concerns not only the religious but also the political and social area.

2.1.7.6 On the way to the four-generation-family

The marriages last despite a high divorce quota longer in average, because the average life expectancy of the people, primarily of the women, has doubled in the last one hundred years. This gives the people very often the chance to see the fourth generation, too, what was an exception in the past. The children nearly have no chance to become acquainted with side relatives (brothers and sisters), but for this four grandparents, eight great-grandparents and perhaps soon also the 5^th generation. This situation as an extended family didn't exist in the history at all. 75% of the 65-year old ones are grandparents and 50% for the same age-group are great-grandparents (P.B. Baltes u.a. Hg., Zukunft des Alterns und gesellschaftliche Entwicklung, Berlin 1992, S. 475). The generationen have many contacts, even if they don't live in the same town. The family has become narrower horizontally, but vertically very wider. By this the challenges of the working generation are much greater.

The older generation has to support the education of the children. A job is often impossible for the woman, when the grandparents do not run an essential part of watching the children and their education. At illness of children or family members they stand in naturally. Also the financial engagement into the grandchildren, as a rule, is very big.

The number of the old members in need of care and attention increases. This often meets once the wives first, because they are younger than the men usually, and have a higher life expectancy. If they get in need of care and attention themselves, they are dependent on the daughters. More than 70% of all persons in need of care are handled in the family with great commitment. The family is the largest nursing home of the society.

So the horizontal prolongation of the family biography brings additional family tasks. The contract for three generations gives way to the contract for four generations, the resilient children always get numerically less opposite the older people.

2.1.8 Economic loading of the family

It is an expensive business to have children, so to say. The necessary investments are very high. Families with more children lose seriously income with regard to singles and couples without children.

The share in the gross national product of the society, which is produced by the family in the hidden, can't be noticed in official calculations. The family is primarily interesting as consumer.

1986 was calculated, that married couple between 25-35 years had a net income of about 3400,00 DM per month, families with one child only 2770,00 DM, you have to notice the increasing necessary expenditure for the child. The family income falls one more time by the second child. Families in the age of 35 - 45 years (based on the late marriage of women), who have two children have a monthly average income of about 3380,00 DM, for married couples without children 4051,00 DM. The expenditures for one minor child is in average about 60% of the expenditures for one adult. So the per head incomes for families with children is reduced one more time. The married couple with children is left approximately 2400,00 DM. Fundamentally more problematic is the situation of the single parents; very often starts here the way into poverty. These data aren't just motivating for the foundation of a family (Nave-Herz u.a., S. 249). Even the Federal Constitutional Court gave it's opinion to this, by the fact not to pay tax on the subsistence level. Changes of laws of the last time haven't brought any fundamental change either.

The gainful employment of women with one child younger than 10 years in the EU is about 52 % (1990), in the Federal Republic of Germany about 44%. The double load of the women by profession and education (incl. household) is big. The highest German court has recognized the equivalence of housekeeping and gainful employment in the marriage by the verdict of February 5^th, 2002. The verdict of Karlsruhe takes up the cudgels for all women, who want to get a independent income in the society.

The child allowance is handled since January 2002 as follows: 154 Euro per month for the first to the third child, 179 Euro per month: for each other child. Which child is the first, second, third or other child, is orientated to the date of birth.

Child benefit is orientated to the income situation (parttime job limit is 30 hours per week): maximum rate 460 Euros per month for one year or 307 Euro for two years (Stand 2001).

Definite family situations, gainful employment situation and education status are still a high poverty risk.

"Families with children in welfare aid

It's remarkable primarily, that 56% of those children who get welfare aid, live in households of single parents and only 44% in other family constellations (look table II.3). German children with welfare aid there are even 64% in households of single parents with regard to 36% in other households. There is a difference between German and foreign children: Foreign children live 70 % in two parents families and only 30 % with single parents. Families with children have in Germany a higher welfare aid quota (6,1%) than all households (4%). This is primarily based on the high quota of single parents (18.4%), with regard to the two parents families (2,6 %). The welfare aid increases clearly in two parents families whenthere are more than two children (5,4%). (5^th family report)"

The 5^th family report talks here about the humane fortune of a society. Very often is said, children are a deational value for the family and can't be compensated with money. That's right. On the other hand children are the humane fortune for a society, however, the society isn't able to exist without them. On average the annual expenditures for two middle-aged children amount to nearly 17.000,00 DM (1994). The support of the parents has to be added, calculated with 23,00 DM per hour, altogether nearly 40 000 DM for two children per year (Minimal calculation). The forming of values by the families is much higher than the families get back from the society. The careful valuation of the performances of families is about 15 000 000 000 000 DM (1990), what they get back with representable (reproducible) fortune is about 7 000 000 000 000 DM.

Around the turn of the century 1900 the thesis was taken by the the national economy, nobody needs to invest in the nature and in the growing again of work power, this would run by itself. Obviously this doesn't run so completely by itself, however. The families take an incalculable contribution into the humane fortune of a society by education, this needs in laws of justice recognition by the society as well. The financial compensation by taxes is financed by themselves with about 32% (1994).

There is a serious inadequate provision in the living-room, primelary for low-income families, young families, incomplete families and families of foreign employees. Nearly all families with more children have this problem in regions of the big cities. In the social and economy word of the churches is said about the topic poverty:

"68...One of the worst consequences of poverty is the loss of the own apartment, more and more people in Germany are affected by this, among them more and more families with children, single parents, women and youths..."

It is often very hard for families with more children to find suitable living-room.

2.1.9 The break up of individual and social values

A special challenge of the family is the situation of the variuos values in our society. Let's stay in the field of individual values. End of the sixties there was to be seen a change from heteronomy to self-determination. At the place of fulfillment of one's duty came self-realization, at the place of obedience came responsibility. This is put through in the meantime in our society mostly by all generations. There is no way back. Based on the biblical liberty the family becomes a place, where the liberty of each person is able to be developed. Running emancipation - coming from the antiquity „to give from the hand of the father“ - familiy is announced as well. This concerns not only the woman, the education is an emancipation process, even if sometimes the results aren't very good.

However, the examinations tell us that human, as an individual, also estimantes very high tolerance and help for the neighbour. This value, it contains solidarity in the end, is to judge by the family at the same level as the liberty. Charity and the love of the own person have the meaning of equal rank in the commandment. The love of the own person becomes the standard of charity.

However, in the meantime there is one only one value in the society: Money, how a sociologist has said it abbreviatedly. We run a social process of complete economyzing of all areas of life. This also includes the family. The family gets into tensions between social and individual values. Which ones are obligatory in the end? In this cognitive stress the individual values in the life fall by the wayside more and more. Many must help here, that our society gets of the two values liberty and solidarity as well, when it shall not break up by the egoism; otherwise these values will be privatized and decline in the end. A newspaper recently emphasized, there is competition in the society, in the family there is solidarity and love. This thinking seems to be common property and overtax the families.

There are other points: families and social values are getting into trouble. At this the value of family also declines possibly. Family needs stability. If you move three times, when your children are visiting school, that means big problems. Churchly we know, that here is the decisive problem of going away from the church. The third attempt, to integrate with a family in a municipality, ceases mostly. Our society needs flexibility; look to the reproaches once, the unemployed have to listen to, if they don't want to follow the jobs through whole Germany. However, families need stability. Who does fall by the wayside more and more?

2.1.10 Statements of the conference of German bishops

Summarizing the German conference of bishops writes in "Ehe und Familie -
in guter Gesellschaft" 1999 (The German bishops 61)

"2.3 Families are put at a disadvantage many times

Finally economic and social discriminations make the life more difficult for families. In the economic field the family is burdened by higher expenditure for the supply and education of the children, by lower income, caused on lower acquisition participation, restricted possibilities of wealth formation caused on the clearly low per-head income and finally by a lower pension. The latter is unjust in a special way, because the families do their part to the generationsagreement by taking care for the next generation, which makes possible the pension payments in future. Missing considerations in many facilities and social areas about the needs of families have to be added. For the weekday of families it's also aggravating, that more and more people don't know anything about children and their needs."

2.2 The importance of family - Judge

2.2.1 About the concept of family

Ususally it's talked about "marriage" and "family" in one word. This is settled also by our constitution: „Marriage and family stand under the special protection of the state order (GG 6,1).“ The marriage has in our state with regard to all similar communities a „most-favored clause“. The constitution understands family as a modern nuclear family with parents and children. But it's legal as well, for the children, to give these rights to single parents or relationships, which are similar to marriage, but may the special privilege of the marriage be touched?

Besides the nuclear family there are today also multiform situation of family. Single parents, children who take care for their parents, grandparents and grandsons, families with parents couples in illegitimate community, only to list some of them.

In the nuclear family the church differentiates one more time. First there are the remarriages. If they are widows, a church marriage ceremony is possible surely, if they come from failed marriages, the church then has difficulties. Then there are the step-parents families (child with a not physical and physical parents) and the continuing family (Patchworkfamily), this consists of parts of past families and new children (my/your/our children). Such families base on the high divorce quota (1991: 30%; 50 % from these without children). Obviously the most of these get married again, however, and found a new family as well. At the civil wedding ceremonies 1991 were involved about 25% divorced persons. At this, however, the average age of the re-married women has to be noticed at with 37.9 years (Old Federal Republic).

Among all in the age of 35 - 40 years (1991) there were 65,4% married couples with children, 13,8% Singles 10,4% married couples without children 5,4% widowed, divorced, married - separated living and 5% single parents.

Marriage and family in the modern form, also are called normal family, better an approved form of family (The marriage is in the social letter of the Protestant and Roman Catholic church an approved fundament of a family). 80% of the children grow up here.

You could devine family as a primary solidarity community, with two generations at least. There are three elements in this definition:

· Generation relations as a rule descend from parents-children, but also other ways of living together

· Institutional protection, as a rule also common marriage

· At this a generation needs support usually (Children and person in need of care).

The living together in two generations will exist furthermore, too. This is very important for socialization of the human person, but also necessary to handle the relations to the society. There is only the question, what way the family has to develop further. A way back to the family of the industrial age is impossible.

The family of the future will have more pluralistic family biographies than in earlier times, the generations association will increase to four (and five) generations, variously intensive. Chances of inside and outside conditions of families are needed, to be able to handle the challenges of the future so. There will be no survive of the society without family.

2.2.2 Necessity of family in the society

The second Vatican council says about the family in Gaudium et spes:

52: ..... Thus the family, in which the various generations come together and help one another grow wiser and harmonize personal rights with the other requirements of social life, is the foundation of society.....

The synod talks more about the family in its decision „Ehe und Familie“. It emphasizes, that there aren't any social institutions, which do such a high support to the children. „The relationships, which are practiced and formed here, are an essential prerequisite, thathuman can exist in our fast-moving and conflict rich society.“

However, family will remain this institution, where primary socialization is done in our society. Without these society cannot survive at all. The reproduction and primary socialization is the inalienable task of the family (Creation of humane values). This is the meaning of the family for the society. In this area the economic prerequisites of the family have to be improved essentially. This concerns primarily also the women in the family and their perspectives in supply of life, professions and retirement insurance.

It is still one of the desirable things for each person, because he finds here human support and security. Besides health is in our society still the family one of the most desirable things.

Here it is necessary to discuss, what way the work in the families can be made to an economically relevant work. Just in our time with the reduced workplaces, this becomes a very important topic. Corresponding models exist already since years. Social evaluation of work is done fundamentally with money. Therefore family work is underestimated this way, even there is no adequately positive influence on the pension either.

71) Statistical surveys show that the standard of living of a family with two children is considerably lower than that of a childless couple. On average, all forms of consideration of the family by the state do not even cover the immediate expenses of children, quite apart from the loss of shared income if only one parent goes out to work. Having several children today means risking poverty. There are also other disadvantages that weigh even heavier on young families. When seeking accommodation suitable for children they find - if they can afford the rent at all - that childless tenants are preferred. Families with several children are at an even greater disadvantage here. They are worse off on the labour market and they are less flexible in terms of mobility and time. The continuing loss of time together (through working on Sundays or in shifts) also hits families. They suffer when the breadwinner loses his or her job or falls deeply into debt. Industry, the government and social services often react with indifference to this responsibility of parents, i.e. they treat parents and childless people equally. The result is a structural disadvantaging of families. Germany has one the lowest birthrates and highest percentages of one-person households in Europe.

(Word of the council of the Protestant church in Germany and the German conference of bishops about the economic and social situation in Germany 1997)

2.3. Act for the family

2.3.1 Statements of the conference of German bishops

The German conference of bishops calls the families to start the initiative first, in "Ehe und Familie in guter Gesellschaft" (The German bishops 61, Bonn 1999)

3.1 Families have to take the initiative

Primarily the married couples and families are called to become activ before all the others: “The families themselves have to show commitment first, that the rights and duties of the families are not only supported and defended positively, and not are interfered by laws and institutions of the state. In this meaning the families shall become conscious more and more, that they have to take the initiative first in the area of the so-called 'family-policy'.” So pope Johannes Paul II has particularly asked the families in the apostolic letter “Familiaris consortio”, to do their social task, also by acting politically. Families have various possibilities, bringing in their interests. Besides responsible sociopolitical engagement of single members of the family in state, church and society, this can be done particularly by common actions in combinings of married couples and families. In family groups, -circles and -associations families can discuss, strengthen and support themselves, and make progress with common projects for tehmselves and other families. The family associations play an important part, representing the political interests of the families, because families act politically based on their own experience.

By the self-initiative of families is handled sociopolitical engagement, help and standing up for others. It is important, that the self-initiative is challenged, supported and bundled in municipalities by married couples and families ".

The politics has to show more commitment to family supporting politics than now.

"3.2 The politics has to protect those conditions for marriage and family, which are just and beneficial.

Marriage and family have a fundamental meaning for the unfolding of the single person as for the future of our society. Therefore the constitution puts the state order marriage and family under its special protection in art. 6. It confirms so the unique position, the marriage has to have by the state law, with regard to other long-term relationships. This special position is no privilege of the marriage and no discrimination of other life-forms, but it is an expression of the special character and the special performances of marriage, in its coherence with family. Therefore has to be sticked absolutely to the special protection of marriage and family at, as the constitution confirms, caused on public welfare and justice. Protection and support of marriage and family in the political room founds on an intellectual basis. To present, to arrange and to keep these is the prerequisite of all further actions.

By this way the economic, social and legal basic conditions have to support marriage and family then.They have to ensure that fair conditions protect the life in marriage and family and the living together of the generations. Three basic guidelines arise from this:

- Various areas of our society contribute to the receipt and to the development of our society by their various performances. Politics must pay attention to this in the interest of the complete society, that these various contributions find possibilities for their unfolding, and are judged justly. In our society is the danger of "family oblivion": the danger to forget, how important the family has been for becoming human and with that for the social life; the danger not to see clearly what conditions families need for their life. By this result various “structural inconsideratenesses”, which are burdening and endangering families and are preventing family foundations. They harm the complete society with that. Therefore a clear accent moving of the politics has to be demanded. It has to give the same attention to the conditions of life of families, such as the location conditions of the economy.

- Families may not be put at a disadvantage with regard to people without children. The basic conditions have to be arranged at least so, that a society doesn't impose burdens on families, it doesn't expect for other ones. Beyond this is to be looked for a just, proportionated balance of the economic loads, the families accept by the supply and education of children.

- Finally the families, which are particularly put at a disadvantage, require a special economic or social support, too. There are need situations, such as sudden illness, physical or emotional overtaxing of parents, or overindebtedness, which make necessary help from outside. These services are important, that loading situations of families don't reduce durably the life- and unfolding possibilities of their children.

The consequences and measures, which arise from this, are represented more in the social word of the churches “For a future in solidarity and justice”. It makes clear, that taking care for marriage and family is a cross-office job. It touches many various areas of the politics. Here shall be emphasized:

- Families need a sufficient financial protection, that they are able to handle the increased effort, causing on running the children. “Poverty caused on children” is a phenomenon, that shows by a glaring way, how difficult it can be, also in our country, to decide for several children. Many families accept considerable economic and social disadvantages for their children even now. The state has to guarantee the constitutionally advisable exemption of the subsistence level of families with regard to tax loads, and beyond this support according to the requirements has to be done by the way of child benefit. The performances have to have such a height, that children never can be the reason for poverty, and that no family needs any welfare aid as the consequence of having children - also not in the lower income levels. Furthermore has to be guaranteed, that children don't have to grow up with special discriminations or are impaired in their possibilities for development. It has to be taken into account that the economic situation of families is influenced by decisions at all political levels. Reliefs and loadings of families have to come to an agreement with the different municipal, regional and federal levels in such a way, that they are not contradictory for families or even put them at a disadvantage.

- Families protect themselves their basic living conditions by waged work; at the same time it is an essential part of the life prospect of men and women. Families are concerned, up to the inner relations, by the working conditions, and even more by unemployment and its consequences. Family just waged work is turned towards the aim, to take family and waged work into harmony of familian interests and needs. The wish consists in some families, that both parents want to be employed at the same time with the education phase of their children; in other families stops one of them the gainful employment - most limited for a special time, during the first education phase, till the child comes to the nursery school or to the school. Very often there is no alternative to the gainful employment of father and mother to ensure the family income. However, basic conditions have to make sure that for families there is a real choice. To this belongs today, besides the often missing ideational esteem of the education performance of parents, the higher financial recognition, that makes it easier for the fathers and mothers to reduce their gainful employment. Furthermore an offer for children all-day institutions is required, its size and quality has to appropriate the needs of the children and the requirements of the parents. Working times which make it possible to agree on gainful employment and family work are finally necessary. Offers for part-time jobs are particularly important, also for qualified ones.

- The apartment, the place of residence and the infrastructure have a fundamental meaning for families. Only adequate living conditions offer a frame in which family life can develop. Apartements have to be payable for families; the housing benefit, the living property support, the social house building and the renting laws have to be aligned with the needs of families. Families may be supported directly by hereditary leasehold. Aim has to be a kind of housing building, which promotes self-help, neighborly help and the living together in community.

The church also has to act, therefore e.g. the parishes have to support the families by a special way.

"3.3 The parish shall be a place for married couples and families

The church tries to support marriage and family by different ways. Basic is, not to see the persons only as unmistakable individuals, but also as persons, who have relations with other ones and who live in families usually: They are man, woman, parents, children, brothers, sisters. For the most people it is the most essential dimension of their life to be integrated into a family. The family is an essential place in which the faith is realized. High attention has to be given to this, in the celebration of the faith in the service, in the proclamation and interpretation of the word of God and in the service to the neighbour. Family is the place of the church, faith is lived in the family, and the faith experiences of families are inalienable for the faith of the church. Family pastoral doesn't mean first the forming of particular offers for families, but it demands to look always for the piority, everywhere in the church, that the members of the parish are members of families mostly.

Is is particularly important, that the parishes are open for all kinds of families. The “prime importance option for the poor ones” requires a special attention for those families, who have to live with any social loadings: who are concerned with unemployment, who live at the edge of the subsistence level, who are strange in Germany. Also those families, who don't correspond to the church ideas and to the expectations fully, are part of the municipality and may expect openness and approaching invitingly.

Parishes as communities, as networks of social relations, are able to support families by different ways: as places, in which families find native country and contacts, as religious groups, where the families find orientation, as nets, which carries and keeps in hard situations. Just in situations of failing, saying farewell, dying and mourning, the church has to be seen as a healing and helping community, and attests credibly the nearness of God so. By a spiritual welfare for marriage and family, knowing about the vulnerability of human relations, disaster, fault and death, municipality also becomes the place, where separated, widowed and divorced ones find help, to accept the end of their relationship as part of the own life-story, and to be able to handle the mourning about foiled life plans by the power of the faith. They attest by this way the philanthropy of God, who breaks the circulation of failure, fault, human error and death and wakes up to new life possibilities.

The rooms, which municipalities have as a rule, make possible meeting and exchange of families and should be utilizable for families. Unlike experiences about “structural inconsiderateness” in the society, municipalities should do their best, to be places of “structural family kindness”. For example by a corresponding forming of the nursery school and its opening times, by the flexible use of the rooms of the parish, or by the family right for elections of the parish district council. Finally belongs to this the church and municipal speaking for justifiable requests of the families. Just at the municipal level the influence of the voice of the parish can often be considerably.

Family is the “first and most essential way of the church (Letter to the families, Johannes Paul II. 1994)”, it is place of humanity and the basis of the society. We thank all those, who make this possible by their work with big or small actions, that family is able to be this, and ask them to stop."

2.3.2 Some demands of the Roman Catholic familyassociation

In the basis program of the familyassossiation of the German Roman Catholics were done the following statements, among others, about family work and waged work:

"The parents have to be free, how they want to connect family life and profession/waged work with each other. At this the married couple is obliged, women and men, to consider at the partner and the interests of the family. To this, corresponding prerequisites have to be made in the economy and acquisition working world. The state finally has the obligation, to make basic conditions for an actual electoral freedom, making possible the seperation, with equal rights, of waged work and the family job, for mothers and fathers.

A distribution of waged work based on partnership, familian job and other socially necessary jobs corresponds to the changed roll understanding of woman and man. In the life planings of women and men, waged work and the life with children in the family, have to be equal options.

A just society of the future has to correspond to the special needs and life situations of families therefore, and to pick up the following aspects:

§ family just working times;

§ more qualified time-flexible workplaces for women and men;

§ offers about looking after the children;

§ extended and flexible, lastingly protected financially exemption for education time ("parents time").

These requirements have to be the fundament of entrepreneurial decisions and entrepreneurial conceptions on the way to an activity society, however, because they are in the interest of the economy and companies themselves in the long run. In this degree the paid waged work loses more and more its monopoly as source of life meaning. The existing dominance of the waged work with regard to unpaid work, which is now in our society for account of the parents, has to be overcome.

The wage agreement parties should, so the legislator, make supporting measures by essential basic conditions, for the development of a family oriented company policy, especially this sociopolitical task will get a higher meaning in future. The familyassossiation of the German Roman Catholics sees here an important contribution about forming of equivalence of the areas of life of acquisition working world and family. It particularly emphasizes according to this, that also in future a minimum of common free time has to be safeguarded for family living together.

The organization of the acquisition working world has to respect the freedom of the family for leisure and culture. The waged work free weekend is part of this. The Sunday primarily, however, plays an important by its social and religious cultural, community causing role, as an inalienable component of our culture."

Income is demanded, which ensures the cost of living of the family.

"The economic basic conditions make more difficult the decision for the life-form family. Material and social safety are still connected to the priority of the lifelong acquisition biography and hinder so the decision about the life-form family. The waged work society and its working world are central points for the life possibilities of the family. Under the omen of more and more demanded flexibility and mobility, they come even into the private living areas of the people and influence the forming of the living together of the families. The participation in waged work is, at the same time, the central factor for the economic creation options, particularly of the families. This gets particularly clear, when families are excluded of the participation in waged work by unemployment or family work. A responsible family policy has to make just economic and social basic conditions, which make it easier for families, to realize a lasting life concept together with children.

That families are able to handle the growing expenditure, which has to be calculated for education and care of the children, they need a sufficient and durable financial protection. Poverty caused by children is a scandal, which documents, by a glaring way, the various structural discrimination against the family. Demanded is therefore a family policy, which understands itself as an extensive society forming structural policy, and makes material and social basic conditions, so that families and children are able to unfold their possibilities.

Not only families have a right for governmental support for their special need. The society is also dependent on the material reliability of the other generations and has to produce a solidary contribution for the economic stabilization of the family therefore, as a hidden and too often forgotten highly efficient group.

A prior-ranking aim has to be the elimination of poverty caused on children. Transfer payments for families without any or with low income have to be calculated so, that families don't need any supplementary payments of the welfare because of the children.

Beyond this the social cultural subsistence level has to be exempted completely from taxation, by constitutional law. Calculating the subsistence level of children and families, the single cost factors have to be judged justly. The parental support and education expenditure is also part of the subsistence level of children.

On the other side of the tax justice, families have a constitutionally attested right for support (Family equalization of burdens, by orientation at the need justice). The part of the child allowance belongs to this primarily, which contributes as family support the settlement, of the family caused additional costs. Further transfer expenditures like child benefit for parents or education support, partly serve at least the payment compensation, which stands till now only at the beginning, they have to be developed situation justly.

This and other transfer payments have to be done by this way, that education performance and family work are taken into account adequately and equally to the waged work, and the development chances of the children are improved. All child obtained payments have to be index-linked.

A systematic further development of the existing subsidy for parents settlement can lead medium-term into a lasting and also income effective appreciation of the family support- and educationperformances. In the change of the waged work society to the "working and participation society" could be found a justified socially important education performance, which is financed socially and which has a material and social existence safeguarding, beside the income from gainful employment.

Such an income safeguarding also takes the external effects into account, which are connected to the social service of the family child support and education. It contains elements of the little "public good", which can be get less and less in future, without the income effective recognition.

In principle, the support of education has to be reformed with the aim, to give the families this support, they need for safeguarding the education of their children. The payments of the BAföG have to be calculated so high, that the parents are relieved in required degree".

2.4 Perspectives

The society has to think about the performance, which the family does for its existence, and to support it adequately. The bases of the social living together are given into the family. Our community and our economy depend on an excellent social education. Also the great performances are also inalienable, which the families do in emergencies. Therefore family work has to be estamated at least so highly as waged work. The families are called first, to produce a lobby for their situation. They have to public their problems. Here they have to be supported by family orientated associations as well. The families have a right to public, because they run the decisive performance for the complete society.

4. What is the change of the family in its expansion in the last centuries?

5. Where do you see today the economic challenges of the family?

2.5.2 Questions about 2.2 The importance of the family – Judge

1. Describe shortly the forms of family?

2. What does the social word call the connection of marriage and family?

3. How many percent of the children grow up in this social form?

4. What elements do define the family?

5. What is your opinion about the necessity of family?

2.5.3 Questions about 2.3 Act for the family

1. How can family start the initiative for the improvement in its situation?

2. What has primarily be done by the politics?