Christian Economy and Social Doctrine

Separating economic man from cultural man is a false dichotomy. Man is a whole person. I think that artificial division denoted by 'economic man' and 'cultural conservatism' results in a lessening of an individual's and a society's ability to act in a holistic and wholesome manner.

The error that follows from this basic error is particularly marked in our materialistic culture. Economics become paramount. All measures of value are converted into economic measures. Work is commodified an d the worker becomes, for the economically, materially-centered thinker, a commodity himself with a monetary value or cost. Whether he is a wage-slave or an automaton of a socialist state, he is no longer seen as possessing himself and his efforts. He is only valued in terms of output and 'quality of life' which itself is measured too often in mone tary terms.

This review of a book by Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone, the Vatican's Secretary of State, entitled, “The Ethics of the Common Good in the Social Doctrine of the Church” offers an alternative to the materialism that leads to both so-called 'unbridled capitalism' and socialist bondage.

"Recalling Pope Benedict XVI’s encyclical Deus caritas est, Bertone even criticizes the nation-state for crowding out charity with social spending. “The State, presupposing a [strong sense of] solidarity among citizens to realize their rights, makes social spending obligatory. In this way, the State compromises the principle of gratuitousness, denying space to principles other than solidarity.”"

"Likewise, Bertone’s insight on the social nature of markets is very welcome but it could also be extended to how market economies are necessary in order to meet the needs of human beings, and how economic expansion is the best way to reduce poverty. Here he would be following Catholic social teaching as developed by Pope John Paul II in Centesimus Annus: Expanded international trade is not only a way to express so lidarity, it also creates wealth and increases living standards."