Catholic Teachings on Social Theory

It is called Rerum Novarum. New Things. Written in 1891 by his Holiness Pope Leo XIII, the cornerstone encyclical of all Catholic Social Teaching (CST) was a response to the rise of socialistic and secularistic economic schools. Many rightly feared that, in this period of great economic upheaval, revolution would sweep nations and bring the old order tumbling down – including the established order of Holy Mother Church. While critical of secular socialist movements, stating that "socialists, working on the poor man's envy of the rich, are striving to do away with private property," Rerum Novarum also implores capitalists – that is, those who possess the ways and means of capital – to treat their workers justly and humanely, arguing that "the richer class have many ways of shielding themselves, and stand less in need of help from the State; whereas the mass of the poor have no resources of their own to fall back upon, and must chiefly depend upon the assistance of the State." The document made the advocacy of policies, which promoted this compassionate means of conducting business, a matter of church policy. The empowerment of unions and provision of social welfare, amongst other things anathema to many in our modern political life, are key elements of secular policy outlined in Rerum Novarum, as evidenced by the quote: "Let the working man and the employer make free agreements, and in particular let them agree freely as to the wages; nevertheless, there underlies a dictate of natural justice more imperious and ancient than any bargain between man and man, namely, that wages ought not to be insufficient to support a frugal and well-behaved wage-earner."

It is important that this point be emphasized, for the push for social and economic justice amongst classes is a continuing cause amongst pontiffs both pre- and post- Vatican II. Pope Paul VI's 1967 encyclical, Populorum Progressio, asserts that "the development of peoples has the Church's close attention, particularly the development of those peoples who are striving to escape from hunger, misery, endemic diseases and ignorance," while Pope John Paul II's 1987 encyclical, Sollicitudo Rei Socialis, critiques both "liberal capitalism and Marxist collectivism," asking "in what way and to what extent are these two systems capable of changes and updatings such as to favor or promote a true and integral development of individuals and peoples in modern society?" It is unfortunate that the politics of the Cold War, and the power of capital on the minds of men, hamstrung the translation of these ideals into secular political life in the west. Indeed, western governments (particularly the United States Government) acted directly to stymie the development of grassroots movements towards the establishment of some form of justice in accordance with the tenets of CST. The most egregious example of this is that of El Salvador, where a murderous tyranny was supported and empowered by the United States, a tyranny under which roving death squads were not uncommon. Archbishop St. Oscar Romero, who "began to speak out forcefully against poverty, social injustice, assassinations and torture in his country" after the assassination of his friend Fr. Rutilio Grande in 1977, took up the tradition established by these papal encyclicals – and many other lay thinkers such as Dorothy Day and Peter Maurin – and created a movement fighting for the cause of liberation from earthly tyrannies. St. Oscar was murdered whilst giving the Eucharist.

It is imperative that we Christians, not just Catholics but all Christians, recognize the very real evils and injustices allowed and supported for the sake of capital and profit. It is lamentable that, despite over a hundred years of effort by Christians everywhere, exploitative practices in the name of profit margins continue to proliferate in supposedly free and equal nations. It is a shame, in fact, that the message of social and economic justice advocated for by popes and priests and laymen has been derided and buried by the rhetoric of the material world, by the propaganda of a conflict of ideologies, by the black and white dichotomy of electoral politics. It is a shame that this has been pushed to the fringe, while falsehoods such as the Prosperity Gospel are powerful forces in the public conception of Christianity and the hearts of millions of desperate, suffering people. It is curious that, even though they were initially penned in 1891, Pope Leo’s “New Things” continue to be seen as revolutionary ideas, even though they align significantly with the message of the scriptures.