Pope Wants a United Nations with Real Teeth and a Christian Conscience

Catholic Communications, Sydney Archdiocese,
10 Jul 2009

The market is not and must not become the place where the strong subdue the weak, Pope Benedict XVI warns in his long-waited Encyclical: Caritas In Veritate.

Financiers must rediscover ethics and not use sophisticated instruments to betray the interests of savers, the Holy Father says and urges the return of a social conscience and Christian values, Pope Benedict XVI points out that "every economic decision has a moral consequence."

Going even further, the Pontiff calls the establishment of a "true world political authority" with "real teeth" to manage the global economy. Such an authority is urgently needed to end the current worldwide financial crisis and prevent similar crises in the future, he says in his Encyclical on social justice.

Envisaging the authority as a reformed United Nations or a similar body, its role would include "reviving" damaged economies as well as working towards "disarmament, food security and peace" for all and offering protection to the environment and regulating "migration."

"It is a remarkable document," says Dr Michael Costigan, scholar, journalist, Adjunct Professor at the Australian Catholic University (Sydney) and chairman of the Sydney Archdiocese's Justice and Peace Advisory Council.

"Basically the theme of Caritas in Veritate, which with two years delay, marks the 40th anniversary of Pope Paul VI's 1967 Encyclical Populorum Progressio (the Progress of People), can be summed up in one word: globalisation," he says, adding that in this, Pope Benedict XVI's third Encyclical - and his first on social justice -  solidarity also plays an important part. "Not just solidarity between nations but between individuals within each nation. We are still very much our brother's and sister's keeper, and throughout the Encyclical there is an emphasis on social responsibility and obligation based on love and charity."

The 144 page Encyclical which is divided into six chapters, was released on July 8 (July 9, Australian time) and calls for creation of a new worldwide economic authority, a redistribution of the world's wealth as well as protections for workers through unionism. The Pontiff also addresses such diverse issues as unemployment, world hunger, ecological sustainability, the Church's continued strong stance against abortion and birth control, and the revolution in technology with the burgeoning use of email, texting and the internet.

The release of the Encyclical on July 8 (July 9 Sydney time) just as world leaders began arriving in Italy for the G-8 Summit at the earthquake ravaged town of L'Aquila, suggests the Church is hoping world's leaders will study the Papal letter and hopefully, begin instigating some of the changes suggested.

"I don't think they (the world leaders) will be able to ignore it," says Dr Costigan. "Even those with small Catholic populations recognise the importance of a Papal Encyclical. But whether this will influence their decisions is another matter."

However with the G-8 Summit in Italy, the Pope will be meeting many of the leaders on at individual audiences in Rome. A meeting between the Pontiff and American President Barak Obama is expected to be focused squarely on the worldwide financial crisis and on the Holy Father's vision for a "true world political authority" to manage the global economy with God-centered ethics.

The economic downturn is also expected to take up a large part of the discussion between Pope Benedict XVI and Kevin Rudd.

However, Dr Costigan is quick to point out that the Pope, as head of the Church, is never political and does not involve himself with politics.

"The church's role is not to find political solutions or make political suggestions but to underline moral principles," he says.

While many newspaper reports have commented on the Pope's backing for trade unions and worker protection, Dr Costigan points out that this is not new in the church's teachings and was first mentioned by Leo XIII in 1891 in his Encyclical, Rerum Novarum (Capital and labour). "This was at a particularly sensitive time and in the midst of the Industrial revolution when there was much exploitation of workers," he says, adding that in Sydney in 1890, Cardinal Moran had backed the maritime workers strike and was an enthusiastic supporter of unions.

Pope Benedict XVI's Encyclical however goes further than his predecessors and suggests that unions step forward and protect those workers who are not union members as they live in countries where unions are disallowed or where there are no protections for them.

"The church has been consistent in its defence of social justice and the rights of workers," says Dr Costigan.

The Caritas in Veritate Encyclical should be read and studied by lay people as well as clergy, religious and scholars, he says.

"Pope Benedict like Pope Paul VI and Pope John Paul II, delivers a calutious and nuanced message about the free market, which can be defended only if it operates in a just and compassionate way, without the influence of the kind of greed, self-interest and exploitation which have led to the present world financial crisis and the suffering it is causing for many, especially those already suffering from poverty and discrimination."

The key points of the Encyclical are:

• Labor must be safeguarded after years of rampant market forces leaving citizens powerless in the face of "new and old" risks and without effective trade union protection
• World hunger must be eliminated to "safeguard the peace and stability of the planet." The problem, the Pontiff says, is not resources but their inequitable distribution.
• The environment is "God’s gift" to everyone and we have a "grave duty to hand the earth on to future generations" in good condition. Pope Benedict XVI also decries how many natural resources are squandered during the planet’s many wars and how the environment becomes degraded as a result.
• Financiers must rediscover "ethics" and cease using sophisticated financial instruments to betray the "interests of savers."
• Consumers must realise that purchasing is always a moral, not merely a simple economic act. Where did what you buy come from, who made it, was it ethically produced by workers who were protected rather than exploited.

To obtain a full copy of Caritas in Veritate log on to www.vatican.va