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81. Journal of Catholic Social Thought: Volume > 16 > Issue: 2
James B. Ball The Social Content of Gaudete et exsultate: Exposition, Relevance, and Critique
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Though not part of the corpus of Catholic social teaching, Pope Francis’s Apostolic Exhortation On the Call to Holiness in Today’s World (Gaudete et exsultate) merits attention from a social-ethical perspective. The other-directed quality of Christian holiness draws Francis into the social dimension of the Gospel. The text’s meditation on the Beatitudes and the Last Judgment scene of Matthew 25 tethers holiness to empathy and justice for those who suffer. It also critiques ideologies within the Church whose hierarchy of evils constitutes our holistic response to the call of Jesus. The article places its exposition of Gaudete et exsultate within the context of theological literature on holiness and the early reception of the text in the Church. While the apostolic exhortation has important social content, its passing references to the common good and politics and its lack of explicit treatment of nonviolence represent a missed opportunity to deepen its message about what it means to live a holy life today.
82. Journal of Catholic Social Thought: Volume > 16 > Issue: 2
John Sniegocki Alternative Economic Visions
83. Journal of Catholic Social Thought: Volume > 16 > Issue: 2
Drew Christiansen The Once and Future World: Global Catholicism amid the Decline of the Liberal World Order
84. Journal of Catholic Social Thought: Volume > 16 > Issue: 2
Matthew Petrusek The Mysticism of Encounter: How Pope Francis Provides Fresh Grounds for Solidarity by Transcending Postcolonial and Civilizational-Clash Paradigms of the Other
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This article retrieves the theme of “otherization” as it appears in the watershed postcolonial text Orientalism, by Edward Said, and applies it to another historically influential text on otherization, The Clash of Civilizations, by Samuel Huntington. A close comparative reading of Said’s and Huntington’s arguments reveals deep logical and moral flaws in both the postcolonial and civilizational-clash paradigms that each, respectively, represents. Pope Francis’s “mysticism of encounter” provides an alternative that overcomes these flaws. Francis’s framing of how to understand and approach difference, the article concludes, is superior precisely because of its theological content: In grounding the discourse about the other in God, Francis demonstrates how it is possible to cogently define the other as other without creating oppressive power hierarchies—an insight that provides greater promise for establishing solidarity among diverse peoples.
85. Journal of Catholic Social Thought: Volume > 16 > Issue: 2
Jason T. Eberl A Bioethical Vision
86. Journal of Catholic Social Thought: Volume > 16 > Issue: 2
Marcus Mescher Mercy: The Crux of Pope Francis’s Moral Imagination
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Mercy is the defining characteristic of Pope Francis’s leadership. Francis’s words and actions have made visible a discipline of mercy, which does more than illuminate God’s character and purpose; it offers an expansive imaginative framework to spark new possibilities for moral agency and growth. Before Francis, mercy received limited attention in the canon of Catholic social thought. Francis’s signature message of mercy retrieves a central moral duty in Scripture, provides a focal lens for Catholic social thought, and aims to inspire a “revolution of tenderness” capable of inspiring personal conversion and social change. This essay moves forward in three steps. It first unpacks the rich and diverse meaning of the word mercy and explores its undervalued role in CST; it then analyzes how mercy functions as the crux of Francis’s moral imagination; and finally, it explores how mercy expands possibilities for living the principles of Catholic social thought.
87. Journal of Catholic Social Thought: Volume > 16 > Issue: 2
Pia Matthews Being Disabled and Disability Theology: Insights from and for Catholic Social Teaching
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A recent report in the UK, Being Disabled in Britain: A Journey Less Equal, highlights the many inequalities, threats to dignity and discriminatory attitudes faced by disabled people. No doubt these are replicated in other countries. Using the evidenced-based findings from this report and the report’s invitation for those concerned to join the conversation on disability, this paper explores both the way in which the experiences of people with disabilities can sharpen up an understanding of Catholic social teaching and the way in which that teaching contributes to a deeper theology of disability. Moreover, insights from this teaching demonstrate that people with disabilities contribute significantly and positively to society and to interpersonal relationships.
88. Journal of Catholic Social Thought: Volume > 16 > Issue: 2
Thomas F. Dailey The Church at 30,000 Feet: Appreciating Pope Francis’s Press Conferences
89. Journal of Catholic Social Thought: Volume > 17 > Issue: 2
Jens Mueller The Power of #Hashtags: Envisioning Solidarity in the Digital Sphere
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The article proposes that social media, particularly Twitter, has theological potential to foster solidarity through collective activism. It argues that solidarity is a social virtue, cultivated and habituated through social action in the digital sphere, thus becoming a key element in promoting the mission of the Church. The use of Twitter reinforces the importance of Catholic social movements and activism within the 21st century. The vision of solidarity in Catholic social thought ultimately contributes to the wider debate surrounding caring for the poor and empowering those on the margins, as well as promoting social justice through social media. The use of Twitter aids in the praxis solidarity in an effective way, demonstrating the transformative nature of social media for Catholic social thought. The example of the #BlackLivesMatter movement helps in underlining how people show their support through social media, extending the notion of solidarity from mere compassion toward working for the common good. With the aid of liberation theologies, the article emphasizes how solidarity moves beyond the public sphere into the digital world and becomes a key element in promoting social justice.
90. Journal of Catholic Social Thought: Volume > 17 > Issue: 2
Elisabeth M. Yang, Giovanni Patriarca, Diana M. Valentini The Cost of Indifference: General Apathy and Economic Paralysis?
91. Journal of Catholic Social Thought: Volume > 17 > Issue: 2
Suzanne Wentzel Introduction
92. Journal of Catholic Social Thought: Volume > 17 > Issue: 2
Matthew Eaton, Timothy Harvie Laudato si’ and Animal Well-Being: Food Ethics in a Throwaway Culture
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In Laudato si’, Pope Francis calls for an “ecological conversion,” inviting his readers to abandon the interspecies violence characterizing our “throwaway culture,” which reductively and lamentably instrumentalizes the earth. Yet, while Francis recognizes the problems of systemic anthropogenic animal violence and economic agricultural imperialisms inherent in corporatized food production systems individually, he does not address the intersectional nature of these issues. Neither does he address the most obvious ethical conflicts arising in industrialized food production: the conflicts focused on meat eating. In this article, we explore what Laudato si’ means for the ethics of eating well with reference to industrialized animal agriculture and its relation to animal dignity and environmental concerns. After analyzing Laudato si’ on the economics and ethics of food, animal well-being, and ecological ethics, we discuss the possibilities and limitations of Catholic vegetarianism in the context of traditional ascetic fasting practices and a discussion of ecological lamentation.
93. Journal of Catholic Social Thought: Volume > 17 > Issue: 2
Matthew Bagot Another Vision of Integral Human Development: Luigi Sturzo and Christian Smith on Human Personality and Global Politics
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This paper seeks to rehabilitate the work of the Italian priest and social theorist Luigi Sturzo in regard to two areas of current concern: first, the interdependence of nation-states and the emergence of the international community; and, second, the notion of human personality as ground for these developments. In this latter regard, the paper draws on the work of the sociologist Christian Smith to show how an account of the person that transcends empiricist positivism can shed light on authentic human development. Finally, the paper correlates this moral vision espoused by Sturzo and Smith with the work of some contemporary cosmopolitan democrats.
94. Journal of Catholic Social Thought: Volume > 17 > Issue: 2
Terence McGoldrick Indigenous Community Cooperatives: A New Paradigm for Integral Ecology
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After World War II, various versions of cooperatives adapted to modern economies were begun by the Church and governments. They were considered central to development strategy, remain so in many places today. This article touches on the role of missionaries beginning cooperatives with the poor indigenous peoples of Bolivia and Kenya, showing how they have evolved into a successful and sustainable enterprise in today’s globalized economy. Indigenous traditional sacred cultural ties to the land and community are transformed into a successful business model that may not be as efficient as the capitalist model from a production perspective, but they are more sustainable as forces for the greater well-being of the community and the earth. I will argue that they offer a new way to consider efficiency as sustainable management of their sacred heritage lands in a Trinitarian integral ecology that is an example of the kind of new thinking that Catholic social thought calls for to counter the threats posed by our current global economic system.
95. Journal of Catholic Social Thought: Volume > 17 > Issue: 2
Philip Booth Orcid-ID Ethics in Economics: Lessons and Themes for Further Development from Oeconomicae et pecuniariae quaestiones
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Since the financial crisis, there has been much discussion about the importance of ethics in economic life. An important contribution to this discussion was a 2018 Vatican letter on the financial system which reiterated and further developed Catholic social teaching. This article argues that the Catholic Church is correct to unite the disciplines of economics and ethics. However, it is proposed that, as Catholic social teaching in this field develops further, there should be more focus on the importance and development of the virtues. The letter reaffirmed earlier Catholic Church teaching on the regulation of markets. Once again, the formation in the virtues, especially the virtue of prudence, can help us make discerning judgments about the place of regulation in economic life. Furthermore, an understanding of human anthropology and the economic history of financial institutions can help us make prudent judgments in relation to these issues.
96. Journal of Catholic Social Thought: Volume > 17 > Issue: 2
Daniel R. DiLeo Laudato si’ and Climate Change Communications: Public Theology Informed by the Social Sciences
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This article develops an evidence-based public theology of Laudato si’ that US Catholics might use to help society address anthropogenic climate change. The essay argues that religion generally and Laudato si’ specifically have the potential to inspire action in the United States to address human-forced climate change. At the same time, the article identifies the heretofore lack of social scientific data to discern which theological insights from the encyclical should be incorporated into a public theology of Laudato si’ that addresses this climate change. To redress this lacuna, the article presents original social scientific data from research about Laudato si’-informed climate change messages conducted on adults in the United States. Informed by this data, the essay concludes with discussion of how US Catholics might proceed to construct an evidence-based public theology of Laudato si’ in response to anthropogenic climate change.
97. Journal of Catholic Social Thought: Volume > 18 > Issue: 1
Barbara E. Wall Introduction
98. Journal of Catholic Social Thought: Volume > 18 > Issue: 1
Drew Christiansen, SJ Fratelli tutti and the Responsibility to Protect
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Fratelli tutti expresses skepticism about the ability of the just-war tradition to provide guidance on the state use of force. It is dismissive of a whole range of rationales for going to war. In rejecting humanitarian “excuses,” Pope Francis puts to question the Church’s support even for armed enforcement of the Responsibility to Protect (R2P). In place of abstract moral reasoning, Francis invites contemplation of the suffering of the victims of war. He expands the horizon of analysis from particular acts to consideration of the cascading consequences of war. He invites the military to color their warrior ethic with the kindness of Christ. In practice, his teaching implies increased attention to the ius postbellum and “the responsibility to rebuild” after armed conflict.
99. Journal of Catholic Social Thought: Volume > 18 > Issue: 1
Andrew Beauchamp, Jason A. Heron Immigration, Reciprocity, and the Modern Economic Tradition
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Contemporary economists are silent regarding economic rights because modern economic theory does not adequately account for reciprocity and risk in human relationships. The immigration question in the US serves as our test case for both the reality of reciprocity and risk in the realm of economic rights, and the need for economic analysis that more honestly contends with this reality. We examine reciprocity and risk in immigration through an economic lens and then complement that examination with resources from the Catholic social teaching tradition. We show how Catholic social teaching can enhance economic analysis of immigration and other social phenomena by helping economics make sense of reciprocity and risk in economic relations.
100. Journal of Catholic Social Thought: Volume > 18 > Issue: 1
Miguel Cerón Becerra, SJ Health Care in US Detention Centers: Ethical Analysis from the Preferential Option for the Poor
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The US has built the most extensive immigration detention system globally. Over the last three administrations, several organizations have noted a systemic failure in the provision of health care in detention centers, leading to the torture and death of immigrants. This essay develops the principle of the preferential option for the poor to examine the causes of deficient access to health care and solutions to overcome them. It analyzes the substandard health care in detention centers from the notion of structural violence and systematizes solutions of grassroots immigrant organizations from the idea of solidarity, understood here as a form of friendship with the poor that moves toward relational justice. Its goal is to build bridges between people so that the political will is generated to create policies to improve and enforce health care standards in detention centers and address the unjust foundations of immigration detention.