The foundation of all Catholic social teaching is the dignity of the human person, made in the image and likeness of God. Every person — at every stage of life and in every condition — possesses an inviolable worth that does not depend on usefulness, achievement, or the judgment of others.

From this single truth the rest of the Church’s social teaching unfolds: because persons have dignity, they have rights, and society and the economy exist to serve them, not the reverse.