IDENTIDADES 1 ENGLISH IDENTIDADES 2 ENGLISH | Page 62

The Human in

Marti’s Social Doctrine
Moisés Leonardo Rodríguez
Professor and civic activist
Artemisa, Cuba
Liberty is already nature’s essense and respect for
the rights of others guarantees one’s own.
We have not yet reached this era of calm reflection:
it is, however, possible; let’s move forward towards
it.”
José Martí, Revista Universal (July 2, 1875).

S

omeone was correct when he said that
Martí was the most read and least heeded
Cuban author in our history. Some of the
ways his life and words are manipulated to defend
personal or group interests are quoting him out of
context or conveniently, or promoting ideas he
never expressed or wrote.
There are various editions of his complete and selected works, and even a dictionary devoted to the
colossal production of a man who died at the
young age of 42, but there is no systematized
compendium of his essential points, the social
doctrine, which some of us followers believe can
be found in them.

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Despite the fact said systematization needs to be
realized by an impartial, objective and unprejudiced team, it should first be very precise about
its goals. Extracting and presenting Martí’s social
doctrine in an accessible manner could result in a
tool for achieving and creating new foundations
and foci for society’s structuring. This could reveal the existence and usefulness of the moral values that shaped his life and work, create citizens
in a way that inspires and guides free and responsible men and women towards a comfortable, social coexistence, and to act on behalf of the common good.
Th is compendium’s first chapter could cover the
Apostle’s (Martí’s) anthropological ideas, his understanding of what it means to be a human being,
and his answers to eternal questions like ‘where
do we come from,’ ‘who are we,’ and ‘where are
we going.’
About the origin of the human person and its inherent attributes
Martí reveals an eclectic view of man’s origins
based on creationist and evolutionist theories. In
it, as with so many other issues, he uses a number