Economic Life & Social Justice (part 6)

The final two principles of A Catholic Framework for Economic Life (www.usccb.org/jphd/economiclife) indicate how everyone in an economic system — from the workers to global leaders — is responsible for a just outcome:

• Principle 9. Workers, owners, managers, stockholders, and consumers are moral agents in economic life. By our choices, initiative, creativity and investment, we enhance or diminish economic opportunity, community life and social justice.
• Principle 10. The global economy has moral dimensions and human consequences. Decisions on investment, trade, aid, and development should protect human life and promote human rights, especially for those most in need wherever they might live on this globe. 

An exercise for this week: What role are you in with respect to Principle 9? What moral responsibilities can you identify as being a part of your role? 
Copyright © 2010, Deacon Carl D. Smith. All rights reserved. Reprint permission granted to parishes for use in Sunday bulletins. (http://bit.ly/16p8ws)
 

Economic Life & Social Justice (part 5)

The seventh and eighth principles of A Catholic Framework for Economic Life (www.usccb.org/jphd/economiclife) declares the checks and balances that are necessary between the free market, voluntary groups, and the government:

• Principle 7. In economic life, free markets have both clear advantages and limits; government has essential responsibilities and limitations; voluntary groups have irreplaceable roles, but cannot substitute for the proper working of the market and the just policies of the state.
• Principle 8. Society has a moral obligation, including governmental action where necessary, to assure opportunity, meet basic human needs, and pursue justice in economic life.

Principle 7 makes the case that all parties with economic interests have roles to play, and Principle 8 speaks specifically to he important role that we as a society should be asking our government to play in assuring a just and compassionate society.
        An exercise for this week: Consider the news this week. Ask yourself, "Are our leaders’ actions benefiting everyone, including families, workers, and the most vulnerable among us?" If not, pick one elected leader and write to them about your feelings.
Copyright © 2010, Deacon Carl D. Smith. All rights reserved. Reprint permission granted to parishes for use in Sunday bulletins. (http://bit.ly/16p8ws)
 

Economic Life & Social Justice (part 4)

The fifth and sixth principles of A Catholic Framework for Economic Life (www.usccb.org/jphd/economiclife) could easily be named the "individual rights and responsibilities" principles:

• Principle 5. All people have the right to economic initiative, to productive work, to just wages and benefits, to decent working conditions as well as to organize and join unions or other associations.

• Principle 6. All people, to the extent they are able, have a corresponding duty to work, a responsibility to provide for the needs of their families and an obligation to contribute to the broader society. 

Principle 5 is rooted in our belief that, by working, we are participating in God's creation, and therefore it is a noble and worthy endeavor that no one should be deprived of. It goes further to state that work should be justly compensated and dignified, and a worker may associate with others in order to balance the power between employer and employee.
       The sixth principle outlines the why we should work, if we are able: to financially take care of our families and to contribute to the common good.
       An exercise for this week: As we come out of the current recession, many individuals still suffer unemployment or underemployment. Consider them in your prayers this week.
Copyright © 2010, Deacon Carl D. Smith. All rights reserved. Reprint permission granted to parishes for use in Sunday bulletins. (http://bit.ly/16p8ws)
   

Economic Life & Social Justice (part 3)

The second and third principles of A Catholic Framework for Economic Life (www.usccb.org/jphd/economiclife) lay a key piece of foundation for looking at our spending as individuals and as a nation:

•  Principle 2. All economic life should be shaped by moral principles. Economic choices and institutions must be judged by how they protect or undermine the life and dignity of the human person, support the family and serve the common good.

• Principle 3. A fundamental moral measure of any economy is how the poor and vulnerable are faring.

Principle 2 calls us, in our personal lives, to make economic decisions in ways that go beyond our style preferences our notions of what constitutes a "good deal," and calls us to ask the question, "A good deal for whom?" Were the goods made with sweatshop labor? Was the food produced in a way that respected God's creation and the environment? Does the merchant pay fair wages and support the common good?

       Principle 3 applies that same decision-making on a national level and gives the concrete measure of the perspective of the poor and vulnerable. Isaiah, Jeremiah, and other prophets of the Old Testament were constantly calling on the ancient Israelites to care for the poor and vulnerable, and we are part of that same spiritual tradition.

       An exercise for this week: Look at what you are buying and throwing out this week. Ask yourself whether those decisions are consistent with these principles.
Copyright © 2010, Deacon Carl D. Smith. All rights reserved. Reprint permission granted to parishes for use in Sunday bulletins. (http://bit.ly/16p8ws)
   

Economic Life & Social Justice (part 2)

In the US bishops' 1996 document, A Catholic Framework for Economic Life, they identified ten important principles to help Catholics reflect on the values that should shape our participation in economic life. The first and the fourth principles are related:

• Principle 1. The economy exists for the person, not the person for the economy. 
• Principle 4. All people have a right to life and to secure the basic necessities of life (e.g., food, clothing, shelter, education, health care, safe environment, economic security.)

The first principle is rooted in our teaching that human life is of paramount importance; we should not subordinate persons to government, corporations, or some "invisible hand." People are not mere resources for production of goods and services; rather, the production of goods and services exist in order to (1) help human beings develop and meet basic necessities, and (2) provide an opportunity for dignified work.
       The fourth principle is related, in that it defines the rights to which all human beings are entitled, regardless of their economic status or their means. The list of basic goes beyond the bare minimum of food, clothing, and shelter and includes the items that point at what the bishops mean by human dignity: education, health care, safe environment, and economic security. So, while a lot of politicians debate issues of food, clothing, and shelter, our bishops teach us that we have to go way beyond that. 
       An exercise for this week: as you hear about budgets, financial market reforms, spending allocations, and similar stories coming out of the state capitol and Washington, DC this week, review them carefully in light of these two points. Then, consider calling your representatives and tell them how feel about one of these issues.
Copyright © 2010, Deacon Carl D. Smith. All rights reserved. Reprint permission granted to parishes for use in Sunday bulletins. (http://bit.ly/16p8ws)
   

Economic Life & Social Justice (part 1)

One very important part of Catholic social teaching is the Church's teaching on economic life (i.e., how a society organizes its financial resources). The Church teaches that all economic life should be shaped by moral principles. The social justice principals of life and dignity of the human person, concern for the common good, and support for the family are key to evaluating economic choices and institutions. 
       In November 1996, the US bishops produced a document called A Catholic Framework for Economic Life. In it, they outline ten important principals to help Catholics reflect on the values that should inform our consciences as we participate in economic life. Even though that document is over thirteen years old, the principals are timeless and can offer great guidance in our current economic situation in the US.
       For more information, including Catholic Framework document, some reflection questions, links to downloadable documents, and podcasts), check out the USCCB web page at www.usccb.org/jphd/economiclife/.
Copyright © 2010, Deacon Carl D. Smith. All rights reserved. Reprint permission granted to parishes for use in Sunday bulletins. (http://bit.ly/16p8ws)