This essay was on Page 1 of the OR for 10/24/09.
'Caritas in veritate':
Beyond social doctrine
by Lord Brian Griffiths of Fforestfach
Vice-President, Goldman Sachs International
Translated from
the 10/24/09 issue of
The supporters of economic liberalism had a tepid welcome for the encyclical
Caritas in veritate. They acknowledge its positive support for profit, the free market economy, globalization, technology and international commerce.
Some consider it a mix of good and bad things, because it calls for greater international aid, strengthening the power of labor unions. and the management of globalization by international institutions.
Some consider it a step backward with respect to
Centesimus annus because it does not pay homage to entrepreneurs adn the entrepreneurial culture.
Some argue that social and economic questions having become so complicated, the time is past for encyclicals proposing the social doctrine of the Church.
I strongly disagree.
This encyclical is an extraordinarily incisive document. It has firmly placed the Christian faith as a vision of the world on the international agenda.
It faces all the key issues of our time - the financial crisis, global poverty, the environment, globalization, technology - and shows that the Christian faith can offer a unique perspective on each of these issues.
I cannot call to mind any other writing of an individual Christian nor a text by any other Church that can have its impact.
The great strength of this encyclical is its theology. It draws from profound reflections on Christian teaching that Benedict XVI has elaborated over six decades and demonstrates the importance of the Christian faith today.
For example, even as it recognizes that the environment is a gift of God to mankind and that we are its administrators, it rejects pantheism and the idea that nature is an untouchable taboo.
It affirms that work has innate dignity, which comes from our being creatures of God, but that it is violated by teh growing unemployment resulting from the crisis. The market economy creates prosperity but without trust, as during this crisis, then social cohesion is undermined.
The theology of the encyclical is above all Christ-centered. The life of Jesus is, in fact, the supreme example of "love filled with truth'. Echoing Paul VI, Benedict XVI affirms that life in Christ is "the first and principal factor of development", and that the Christian faith, concerning itself with development, does not count "on privileges or positions of power, and not even on the merits of Christians, but only on Christ... The Gospel is a fundamental element of development."
While I was reading the encyclical for the third time, I started to understand that its theological intuitions are so profound that it should be read not only on the intellectual plane as a formulation of social doctrine. but also in a meditative manner, because it offers a profound vision of the human being.
Caritas in veritate brings its greatest challenge to the dominant vision of the world inspired by economic liberalism and philosophical libertarianism, which have elevated personal freedom to be absolute.
The encyclical categorically rejects the vision that economic life is autonomous and that it can be independent of the moral. The present financial crisis is partly the collapse of a system, seen mechanically, but is also the continuing presentation of a moral tragedy.
Economic life is made up of individuals with a moral conscience and personal responsibilities that require a moral compass for guidance. Consequently, they cannot be conceived as something impersonal and amoral, like a spontaneous order that left to itself would produce the common good.
Thus, the defense of the free market on the part of secular economists like Friedrich Hayek e Milton Friedman is flawed by their imperfect vision of the human being and by their limited understanding of the moral foundation of markets.
The encyclical is an argument in favor of Christian humanism. The human being with his dignity deserves justice, and brings the divine image where it should always be at the center of economic life.
The benchmark of every reform is its impact on persons, on their relationships and on their communities. That is why the encyclical does not suggest an economic system alternative to capitalism.
In fact, it supports something more radical: e global market economy that is pervaded with charity and justice, respectful of the world created by God and of human beings, who bear God's image.
"Development is impossible without upright men, without economic workers and political men who strongly live in their consciences the call to the common good".
The encyclical considers this a realistic project and not an impossible ideal. The financial crisis has created a crossroads for all of us, for the financial institutions in which we work, and the societies in which we live.
Caritas in veritate is an exhortation addressed to Christians so they may renew their vision of what is possible, to live this with the help of God, and doing so, to serve the world with love.
Shortly after CIV came out last July, Lord Griffiths wrote an outstanding appreciation for the Times of London, and although I posted it on this thread at the time, I am reposting it here as a companion piece to the OR essay for his reading of the encyclical in his capacity as a financial and economic expert:
Pope Benedict is
the man on the money
The best analysis yet of the global economic crisis,
tells how people, not just rules, must change
by Brian Griffiths
July 13, 2009
Lord Griffiths of Fforestfach is a trustee of the Archbishop of Canterbury’s Lambeth Trust and Vice-Chairman of Goldman Sachs International. He was an economic adviser to British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher. A devout evangelical Christian, he is, by virtue of his title, a member of the House of Lords.
P.S. today: Too bad the OR did not see fit to provide more biodata on Lord Griffiths other than his being VP of Goldman Sachs International.
When Cardinal Ratzinger was elected Pope, his strengths and weaknesses seemed clear. Here was an eminent theologian, philosopher and guardian of Christian truth, but a man unlikely to make the Church’s message relevant to the world today.
How simplistic this now looks in the light of his third encyclical, in which Pope Benedict XVI confronts head-on the financial crisis that has rocked the world.
The language may be dense, but the message is sufficiently rewarding. The encyclical analyses modern capitalism from an ethical and spiritual perspective as well as a technical one.
As a result
it makes the (UK) Government’s White Paper on financial reforms published two days later look embarrassingly one-dimensional and colourless.
It is highly critical of today’s global economy but always positive. Its major concern is how to promote human development in the context of justice and the common good.
Despite heavy competition from some of the world’s finest minds, it is without doubt the most articulate, comprehensive and thoughtful response to the financial crisis that has yet appeared. It should strike a chord with all who wish to see modern capitalism serving broader human ends.
The Pope makes it clear that the encyclical takes its inspiration from
Populorum Progressio, the encyclical published by Paul VI in 1967, at the height of anti-capitalism in Europe. It attacked liberal capitalism, was ambivalent about economic growth, recommended expropriation of landed estates if poorly used, and enthused about economic planning.
It was in stark contrast to
Centesimus Annus (1991), the most recent encyclical dealing with economic matters, published after the fall of communism by a Polish Pope.
John Paul II affirmed the market economy as a way of producing wealth by allowing human creativity and enterprise to flourish.
Pope Benedict is highly critical of modern capitalism.
- He believes that the international economy is marked by “grave deviations and failures”.
- Economic growth is weighed down by “malfunctions and dramatic problems”.
- Businesses that are answerable almost exclusively to their investors have limited social value.
- The financial system has been abused by speculative financial dealing and has wreaked havoc on the real economy.
- Globalisation has undermined the rights of workers, downsized social security systems and exploited the environment.
- As global prosperity has grown, so has “the scandal of glaring inequalities”.
Despite these criticisms, the encyclical has a positive view of profit, providing it is not an exclusive goal.
- It recognises that more labour mobility resulting from deregulation can increase wealth.
- It accepts that economic growth has lifted billions out of poverty and enabled some developing countries to become effective players in international politics.
- Globalisation offers an unprecedented chance of large-scale redistribution of wealth worldwide.
The kind of market economy Pope Benedict defends is much closer to the European social model than the “spontaneous order” of Milton Friedman and Friedrich Hayek.
For him, market capitalism can never be conceived of in purely technical terms. Development is not just about freeing up markets, removing tariffs, increasing investment and reforming institutions. It is not even about social policies to accompany economic reforms.
At the heart of the market is the human person, possessing dignity, deserving of justice and bearing the divine image. The market needs to be infused with a morality emanating from Christian humanism, which respects truth and encourages charity.
The encyclical suggests six major ways to make global capitalism more human.
First, it calls for “the management of globalisation” and a reform of international economic institutions. They are needed “to manage the global economy, to revive economies hit by the crisis, to avoid any deterioration of the present crisis . . . to guarantee the protection of the environment and to regulate migration”.
Not surprisingly, for this huge task we need “a true world political authority” through reform of the United Nations.
Next, there needs to be greater diversity among the enterprises that create wealth: mutual societies, credit unions and hybrid forms of commercial organisation.
Third, globalisation has weakened the ability of trade unions to represent the interests of workers, something that needs to be reversed.
Fourth, the scandal of inequality requires countries to increase the proportion of GDP given as foreign aid.
Fifth, because the environment is the gift of the Creator we have an inter-generational responsibility to tackle climate change.
Finally, everyone involved in the market, traders, producers, bankers — even consumers — must be alert to the moral consequences of their actions.
“Development is impossible without upright men and women, without financiers and politicians whose consciences are finely attuned to the common good.”
Pope Benedict’s words are not just platitudes. They affect every person at work every day. In the City [London's financial center], they are a challenge to management to create a culture of prudence, responsibility and integrity.
There has to be zero tolerance for misleading clients, fudging conflicts of interest and inflating valuations. However great the revenue they produce, those who deviate must be disciplined. This kind of ethos cannot be imposed by regulation alone.
At the time I first posted the above, I said that if the Nobel juries were not ideologically driven, I would have sent Griffith's essay to nominate Benedict XVI for the Nobel Prise in Economics, and I still think so.
[Modificato da TERESA BENEDETTA 25/10/2009 10:42]