EXCERPT: Beyond the “Market” Idol. A major debate is brewing among American commentators over the central question: is Benedict XVI pro-capitalist or anti-capitalist? A timely, even urgent question, with "big government" fears fueling outbursts across America. Yet the question is so badly framed, it is nearly beside the point.
Benedict is neither pro- nor anti-capitalist–just as he is neither pro- nor anti-big government. For him, both free enterprise and government are just means to an end, mere instruments of human development. Neither has absolute value. Insofar as they promote "integral human development" (IHD), they are good. Insofar as they impede IHD, they are bad.
Remember, the root of papal social encyclicals since 1891 is the "social question": Will modern market economies produce the "liberty, equality, and fraternity" we expect in modern democracies? In 21st century global language, that becomes: Can markets produce IHD on their own?
In Chapter 3 of his new encyclical Caritas in Veritate (Charity in Truth), entitled "Fraternity, Economic Development, and Civil Society," Benedict argues that the market cannot solve all social problems unless it is "directed to the common good.” He wants justice applied "to every phase of economic activity," which will require a "spirit of gratuitousness" that recognizes all our resources as God's gifts calling us to greater charity. This requires the ethical interaction of politics; only then will economics and politics be partners in building the true solidarity he seeks:
"A person-based and community-oriented cultural process of world-wide integration that is open to transcendence."
It is difficult to imagine any U.S. politician setting such a goal!
I believe Pope Benedict is saying we need a something better beyond what we have now as far as the work day is concerned. Pope John Paul did call for something new. We review Pope Benedict's economic encyclical at http://tapsearch.com/pope-benedict-economic-encyclical in a Bewildered New World. Ray Tapajna Chronicles writes that only local value added economies work in balanced geopolitical settings. Workers must have a voice in the process too. We explore this related to the common good at http://www.therationale.com.
ReplyDeleteRay Tapajna's links are interesting if not instructive. The underlying theology tends toward literalism/fundamentalism, which is not mine and is outside the Catholic mainstream--but his attempts to reflect on current events in light of faith are sincere, and worthy of imitation!
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