Catholicism and Economics

At the Nassau Community College, Center for Catholic Studies

The speakers were

Charles Clark, the Democratic Socialist, St John's University

Michael Novak, the Democratic Capitalist, American Enterprise Institute

Thomas Storck, for the Distributists, The Distributist Society

It was not capitalism's day to shine. It's wasn't a classic debate along the lines of "Resolved: The United States should abandon capitalism for socialism." or
"Resolved: The United States should abandon capitalism for distributism" it was more like put the texts of An Inquiry into the Nature and Causes of the Wealth of Nations through Meltdown: A Free-Market Look at Why the Stock Market Collapsed, the Economy Tanked, and Government Bailouts Will Make Things Worse into a pinata and beat it around.

Really, there were so many lies and half-truths said about the "c" word, there would be scarcely any time to offer up criticism on socialism and distributism.

Michael Novak, I think, fell into several traps, citing government interventions into political matters as favorable evidence for capitalism. I thought citing the provision for patents and copyrights in the Constitution as a very odd way of defending capitalism -- an example of how the government grants a limited monopoly. Rather, it demonstrates that government often intervenes into markets.

Rather than convincing me to stop being a capitalist, I heard many familiar complaints which I could have answered like "capitalism necessarily increases income inequality", but I also heard a few that made me think about things: how different the country would be if it were not so easy to create limited liability corporations.

The lasting impact on me was a resolution to reread Rerum Novarum (1891) and its sequels through Centesimus Annus (1991) to get a better sense of how they connect to Catholic social justice.

Finally, if they do this again, it should include someone who can argue for more capitalism -- that the Louisiana Purchase was unconstitutional because it was not an enumerated power, and that "commerce clause" cases all the way back to Gibbons v. Ogden were decided in contravention of the principles of capitalism. Don't stop with unwinding creeping socialism in FDR's new deal, let's unwind all the way back to George Washington.

NRO Corner: Jim Boulet has died

Jim Boulet was the head of English First. Where I live is the most multicultural census tract in the United States. Americans of European descent are now a minority here, so I have always followed the groups which support English as the primary language for creating a cultural unity and identity for America.

I know many more immigrants (legal and illegal) than the average New Yorker and that's saying a lot. They love the opportunity and quality of life here. On the down side they also see a huge opportunity in scamming the government for benefits, even some which they might legitimately qualify for.

One thing for certain is that the ability to read and write English is the critical skill to get employment above the most menial level. I hope the children raised in my neighborhood see it as their home and not merely an address.

Is this a Catholic prayer?

Cardinal Theodore E. McCarrick, Archbishop Emeritus of Washington, offered the following prayer at opening session of the House of Representatives:

Dear friends, let us remind ourselves in this special place, on this special day, that we are in the presence of God.

Lord, we praise You at this historic moment. You are the loving Father of us all, the merciful, the compassionate, the source of all wisdom, the giver of all gifts.

We have so much to thank You for, dear God -- for our lives, our families, for our freedom and our opportunities, for our Nation and for the historic choice of leadership it has just made and, indeed, for the age-old values that are still enshrined in our Constitution and in our hearts.

Sustain the Members of the 111th Congress in courage and in confidence as they face the daunting needs of this special time. Challenge them, Lord, not to forget the hungry and the homeless, the unborn and the immigrant, those without access to good education or decent health care, and those many men and women caught in a cycle of poverty from which they cannot escape without our help.

Let our Representatives be builders of a better world--a world without war or violence, without oppression or corruption--builders of a new world whose foundations are human dignity, the values of family life and respect for the laws of nature.

Lord, we pray: Make us always proud of those we have chosen to lead us so that, with their leadership and Your loving care, You may always be proud of us and of these United States of America. Amen.

I had 500 chars in make a comment on the over at Catholic Culture

(1) "...the merciful, the compassionate" is frankly, a typical Muslim invocation of the name of the One-God-who-is-not-the-Holy-Trinity.

(2) The jump from the Constitution which doesn't mention the role Congress in remembering the hungry and the homeless is breathtaking. Charitable giving in Catholic experience has always been a matter of private choice and not the government's mandate.

(3) "Lord..make us proud" better spoken as "Lord...make us humble -- and always be in awe of You"

A false dichotomy

As I get up to speed with the other Catholic bloggers in 2009, I will mention a few blogs I have read and some comments I have posted.

Unam Sanctam presented what I thought was a false dichotomy.

It is common enough to lay out here and I also have some space to explain where I am in the middle of this.

On one hand, there's Catholic Monarchism -- from Constantine to Blessed Charles I, Emperor of Austria. This is the ideal government is one that it Catholic from the top down and able to establish the Catholic Church as a state religion, and to encumber or even suppress the spread and practice of non-Catholic religions. When it comes to papal observations I take the insights of Pope John Paul II and Pope Benedict VI over that of Pope Pius IV who, in office from 1559 to 1565, would know nothing but monarchy. Excessive zeal -- seeking a short cut to establishing the Kingdom on earth as it is in heaven -- is its driving force.

On the other hand, there is spiritual sloth -- Indifferentism, Syncretism, false Ecumenism -- it has many names. I don't think it's important to make a major argument against this now, just identify it.

There's a big middle in the middle of the two. When I am, I am a big believer in the principle of subsidiarity and accountability. Small, visible local charities -- where people can give up all three: time, talent, and treasure. Uncoupling it all -- creates two evils: powerful politicians who control the flow of other people's money and a class of people becoming dependent on the government.

I am likely the first (and perhaps only) blogger to declare admiration for both Dorothy Day and for Cardinal Spellman. In many ways, the inability for these two to work out some accommodation is the legacy we have contend with today.

The sloth aspect of it comes in when you believe that you need to eliminate war, poverty, economic instability, and deadly disease before you can share the gospel. Those four, you might recognize as the Four Horsemen of Rev 6. The right sort of balance between the corporal works and spiritual works of mercy is "DOMINUS JESUS" written by Pope Benedict when he was prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith.