Pope urges for ethics in the service of man and
environment
(Vatican Radio) Pope Francis on Friday urged for an ethics
that is friendly to man and the environment, where fundamental values are not
“sacrificed on the altar of efficiency”. The Pope was speaking to
participants in a workshop organized in the Vatican by the Pontifical
Academy of Social Sciencesin collaboration with the Organization of
Catholic Universities in Latin America (ODUCAL). The Oct. 19-21
workshop is discussing “Changing relations among market, state and civil
society.”
Inequalities and exploitation of planet
In line with their discussions, the Pope stressed on two
specific causes that fuel “exclusion and existential peripheries”. The
first is the “endemic and systemic increase in inequalities and the
exploitation of the planet.” Besides depending on individual behavior,
inequality and exploitation also depend on economic rules that society adopts,
the Pope pointed out. The way sectors such as energy, labor, banking,
welfare, tax and school are designed, depends on how income and wealth are
shared among those who have contributed to producing them. But “if profit
prevails, democracy tends to become a plutocracy in which inequalities and the
exploitation of the planet grow,” the Pope warned.
Labour
The other cause of exclusion the Pope pointed out is work
that is unworthy of the human person. Besides providing a just
wage to the worker, he said, the entire production process should be
adapted “to the needs of the person and to his way of life,” while at the same
time respect “creation, our common home”. This calls for the need to “get
rid of the pressures of the public and private lobbyists who defend
sectoral interests.” “Political action must be placed in the service
of the human person, the common good, and respect for nature,” the Pope
stressed.
Civilizing the market
The market must not only be efficient in creating wealth and
ensuring sustainable growth, but it must also be at the service of integral
human development, the Pope said. “We cannot sacrifice on the altar of efficiency
- the "golden calf" of our times - fundamental values such
as democracy, justice, freedom, family, creation.” In essence, we must
aim at "civilizing the market" in the perspective of a friendly
ethics of man and his environment.
Reminding the workshop participants about the principles of subsidiarity
and solidarity of the Church’s social doctrine, Pope said the state
cannot conceive itself as the sole and exclusive holder of the common good but
by not allowing the intermediate bodies of civil society to freely express their
full potential. The challenge here is how to connect individual rights
with the common good.
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