God’s Pursuit of Fr. Walter Ciszek, and Each of Us
Fr. Walter Ciszek was conscious that every person we encounter, every suffering we endure, and every situation we find ourselves is an opportunity God uses to pursue us.
Meeting Jesus in the Poor and the Privileged
The very ill and the paralyzed who come for help often tell us they are praying for us, that they know that we have a heart for the poor.
To Proclaim Christ to All Peoples and Nations
An Economics of Justice & Charity unpacks the social teachings and challenges Catholics to deepen their knowledge of the social doctrine of the Church.
Not Just Solidarity, But Fraternity
Pope Francis invites us to find new creative ways to apply fraternity and solidarity as governing principles in the economic order.
The Lost Condemnations of Capitalism
The Lost Condemnations of Communism of Vatican II make clear that communism is opposed to Catholic faith and morals, but so is capitalism.
Globalization Must Not Be a New Form of Colonialism
Years ago, St. John Paul II critiqued the economics of globalization, and raised serious ethical questions about the way it is implemented.
Hurricane or No Hurricane—Why Don’t They Just Go To Work?
After the massive floods in Texas caused by Hurricane Harvey, even the harshest judge of the poor could hardly ask, “Why don’t they work?”
Catholics and Libertarian Economics: A Reply to Samuel Gregg
Gregg frames the conflict between Pope Francis and libertarian thought, whereas it is really a conflict between Catholic teaching and libertarian thought.
New Names For Old Things
It is much harder to make distinctions between beneficial and harmful innovations, and even more so between new things and new names for old things.
Homage to Christ the King
Economic activity is part of that hierarchy of means and ends leading up to God, part of the homage to Christ the King which mankind is bound to offer.
Politics and Mysticism, and Mysticism Is Better
Dorothy and Peter did not put their best hopes in partisan politics. Peter Maurin quoted Péguy: “There is politics and mysticism, and mysticism is better.”
Social Justice According to Pius XI
The term “social justice” is little understood by most of those who use it—but the term does have a precise meaning as carefully explained by Pius XI.
Socialism, Capitalism, and Materialism
Catholics assume that the reason for Pius' declaration against socialism was the economic or perhaps the political practices of socialists.
Flandria Village
Jules Steverlynk moved to Argentina in the late 1930s and established Flandria Village, a property designed in harmony with Catholic social principles.
Revolution Starts with “I,” Not “They”
In much of the criticism of the Church, an opinion emerges that She should be more like the State, like a secular democracy, or like a business corporation.
Thinking with the Church
Are we turning to the teachings of the Church only to evaluate how these deviate from our favorite secular theories and authors?
The Christian Attitude on Social Problems
The bishops, while defending the rights of labor, warn labor against coercion and injustice in seeking a just solution of social problems.
Laudato Si' and the Critique of the Technocratic Paradigm
Once the human mind is shaped by the technocratic paradigm it looks upon everything it surveys as simply material for manipulation.
Rerum Novarum: One Hundred Twenty-Five Years Later
One hundred twenty-five years ago, Pope Leo XIII published Rerum Novarum, and it has been annoying people ever since.
What the New York Times Did Not Say
People often seem to choose one of two sides of Dorothy. There is mysticism and activism in her life, and one cannot understand one without the other.