Pope Francis and the Caring Society

by Robert M. Whaples (Editor)

Overview

Pope Francis and the Caring Society is a thoughtful and in-depth exploration of the Pope’s earnest call for a dialogue on building a truly compassionate society.

Francis’s fervent support for uplifting the poor and protecting the environment has inspired far-reaching discussions worldwide: What is the most effective way to fight poverty? Can environmental resources be better protected with property rights? Are the poor better off under a market economy? And what value does a religious perspective offer in addressing moral, political, and economic problems?

Pope Francis and the Caring Society is an indispensable resource for consideration of these vital questions. Edited by Robert M. Whaples, with a foreword by Michael Novak, the book provides an integrated perspective on Francis and the issues he has raised, examining the intersection of religion, politics, and economics. Readers will discover important historical and cultural context for considering Francis’s views, along with non-bureaucratic solutions for environmental preservation, an analysis of Francis’s criticism of power and privilege, the case for market-based entrepreneurship and private charity as the essential tools for fighting poverty, and an examination of Francis’s philosophy of the family. Pope Francis and the Caring Society is essential reading for anyone interested in creating a better, more caring, and prosperous world.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781598132878
Publisher:	Independent Institute
Publication date:	09/01/2017
Pages:	256
Product dimensions:	6.10(w) x 9.10(h) x 1.00(d)

About the Author

Robert M. Whaples is a Senior Fellow at the Independent Institute, Co-Editor and Managing Editor of The Independent Review, Professor of Economics at Wake Forest University, Director and Book Review Editor for EH.NET, and a member of the Board of Advisors for the Center on Culture and Civil Society at the Independent Institute. He is the co-editor of the Independent Institute books Is Social Justice Just?, In All Fairness, and Pope Francis and the Caring Society. He received his Ph.D. in economics from the University of Pennsylvania. He has also served as Assistant Professor of History at the University of Wisconsin at Milwaukee, Associate Editor of the Business Library Review, Chair of the Cliometric Society, and editor of EH.Net's Encyclopedia of Economic and Business History.

Table of Contents

Acknowledgements xvii

Foreword Michael Novak xix

Introduction: The Economics of Pope Francis Robert M. Whaples 1

1 Pope Francis, His Predecessors, and the Market Andrew M. Yuengert 31

2 Understanding Pope Francis: Argentina, Economic Failure, and the Teología del Pueblo Samuel Gregg 51

3 Uneven Playing Fields: Markets and Oligarchy Gabriel X. Martinez 69

4 Pope Francis, Capitalism, and Private Charitable Giving Lawrence J. McQuillan Hayeon Carol Park 87

5 Pope Francis on the Environmental Crisis A. M. C. Waterman 119

6 Property Rights and Conservation: The Missing Theme of Laudato si' Philip Booth 155

7 The Family Economics of Pope Francis Allan C. Carlson 183

Conclusion Robert P. Murphy 199

Index 221

About the Editor and Contributors 231

Editorial Reviews

The important book Pope Francis and the Caring Society makes a crucial point: It is not enough to have good intentions. How one attempts to fulfill them may override.

Rodney Stark

"Responding to Pope Francis's welcome call in Laudato si' for dialogue, the authoritative book Pope Francis and the Caring Society is the perfect antidote for the toxic folly of command economies that have long kept billions of people in hopeless destitution and misery. Only the moral process and dynamic creativity of free enterprise and private charity can overcome poverty and create widespread human flourishing worldwide. Grounded in the enduring, Judeo-Christian, natural-law principles of liberty and civic virtue, this fascinating book will inspire and guide people on how to care for those in need to have healthy, prosperous, and rewarding lives. Pope Francis and the Caring Society is highly recommended and must reading."

Christoph Cardinal Schönborn

At a time when those today most responsible for transmitting Catholic social teaching need urgently to be reminded of some cause-and-effect realities essential to it, Pope Francis and the Caring Society provides us with many necessary reminders, readably and soundly.

John M. Finnis

The authority of the Pope is regarded by many as grounded in essentially spiritual sources of wisdom and inspiration. Non-Catholics may stand aloof to such considerations but nonetheless acknowledge the great influence of papal thought on the social and moral dimensions of our time. In light of this, the Pope’s teaching warrants respectful but critical appraisal and receives it in the important book, Pope Francis and the Caring Society. If what the Pope teaches is influential, competent critics must test the teaching, often under the light of history. Under that light, Pope Francis’s blueprint for ‘caring’ draws support from the notoriously failed theories on which socialism erects barriers to human freedom, creativity, and well-being.

Daniel N. Robinson

We are all called to serve and care humbly for others, especially those most in need, but how we do so is crucial in guiding our moral responsibility. Firmly rooted in our Christian tradition, the incisive and timely book, Pope Francis and the Caring Society, carefully examines this vital issue by applying natural-law ethical and economic principles. Instead of command societies, cooperative, virtuous systems of enterprise, creativity, and charity are crucial to uplift people out of poverty, marginalization, and hopelessness; dignify people as purposeful beings through work and families; protect our environment for future generations; and bring us all into closer harmony with one another and to God.

Michael C. Barber

"We are all called to serve and care humbly for others, especially those most in need, but how we do so is crucial in guiding our moral responsibility. Firmly rooted in our Christian tradition, the incisive and timely book, Pope Francis and the Caring Society, carefully examines this vital issue by applying natural-law ethical and economic principles. Instead of command societies, cooperative, virtuous systems of enterprise, creativity, and charity are crucial to uplift people out of poverty, marginalization, and hopelessness; dignify people as purposeful beings through work and families; protect our environment for future generations; and bring us all into closer harmony with one another and to God." —Michael C. Barber, S.J., Bishop, Roman Catholic Diocese of Oakland, California


"The important book Pope Francis and the Caring Society makes a crucial point: It is not enough to have good intentions. How one attempts to fulfill them may override.” —Rodney Stark, Distinguished University Professor, Social Sciences; Co-Director, the Institute for Studies of Religion, Baylor University


"The authority of the Pope is regarded by many as grounded in essentially spiritual sources of wisdom and inspiration. Non-Catholics may stand aloof to such considerations but nonetheless acknowledge the great influence of papal thought on the social and moral dimensions of our time. In light of this, the Pope’s teaching warrants respectful but critical appraisal and receives it in the important book, Pope Francis and the Caring Society. If what the Pope teaches is influential, competent critics must test the teaching, often under the light of history. Under that light, Pope Francis’s blueprint for ‘caring’ draws support from the notoriously failed theories on which socialism erects barriers to human freedom, creativity, and well-being.” —Daniel N. Robinson, Faculty Fellow of Philosophy, Linacre College, University of Oxford; Distinguished Professor Emeritus, Philosophy, Georgetown University


"At a time when those today most responsible for transmitting Catholic social teaching need urgently to be reminded of some cause-and-effect realities essential to it, Pope Francis and the Caring Society provides us with many necessary reminders, readably and soundly.” —John M. Finnis, Biolchini Family Professor of Law, The Law School, University of Notre Dame


“Pope Francis and the Caring Society is a brilliant book laying out both Christian and economic principles side by side in dialogue with Pope Francis’s Laudato si’. The authors are careful to lay empirical data alongside the claims and historical experiences of Pope Francis and current efforts to help the poor, in which they share a common goal. The various chapters contain a wealth of history, theory and facts in the context of the Christians’ call to serve the poor. Committed Christians who are nonetheless neophytes to economic theory, like myself, will get a thorough education in economics and reality. It is a timely and critical book for our age and for anyone who seriously wants to understand and participate in effectual service to the poor.” —Mary S. Poplin, Professor, Educational Studies, Claremont Graduate University; author, Is Reality Secular?


“Pope Francis and the Caring Society offers novel, balanced, and constructively critical insights into the historical interpretations and empirical assumptions which have informed many of the Pope’s most important pronouncements on economic development, environmental protection, and other issues. On topics ranging from the Pope’s precepts regarding how to strengthen the family to his prescriptions for how best to promote charitable giving, reduce poverty, and cope with climate change, this volume is hardly ‘for Catholics only,’ and it will stimulate and challenge readers of diverse intellectual, theological, and ideological stripes.” —John J. DiIulio, Jr., Frederic Fox Leadership Professor of Politics, Religion, and Civil Society and Professor, Political Science, University of Pennsylvania; first Director, White House Office of Faith-Based and Community Initiatives


"Pope Francis and the Caring Society responds to Pope Francis’s call for dialog with a clarion critique of redistributive bromides and bureaucracies. Grounded in the Judeo-Christian principles of liberty, subsidiarity, and civic virtue, this luminous work shines through and shrivels the sanctimonious smog of socialist levelers who wreak demoralization and poverty wherever they rule.” —George Gilder, bestselling author, Wealth and Poverty, The Spirit of Enterprise, Microcosm, Knowledge and Power, and other books


“In a manner graceful and civil—and with a proper respect for the Holy Father—Pope Francis and the Caring Society speaks some bracing truths about economics that Pope Francis, with all his large, encompassing nature, does not seem to understand. In that respect, the authors not only teach lessons that all of us should know; they also show the deep strength of the body of the Church: they treat the Holy Father with reverence and they are inclined to put the most charitable constructions on his sweeping commentaries on inequality and capitalism. The Pope’s concern for the caring society and the uplifting of the poor is a concern that the authors share. But they also respect truth, and they see no conflict for Christians to convey to Pope Francis the serious things that he must understand when he has the attention of the world for his commentaries. What he doesn’t understand are the pitfalls of a ‘managed economy,’ a scheme of political control that purports to rescue the poor, but delivers instead an economy of rationing, shortages, a diminished standard of living and the pervasiveness of political controls. Some of this misunderstanding may be traced to the Pope’s lifetime spent in the ‘crony capitalism’ and ‘corporatism’ of Argentina. But the volume, in a generous spirit, finds hope that Francis will come to understand far more about the forces at work in the economy as he simply comes to know more about a larger world, extending far beyond his native ground. Pope Francis and the Caring Society could not have come at a more timely moment, and in tone and substance, it delivers a worldly lesson that more of the world needs to know.” —Hadley P. Arkes, Edward N. Ney Professor of Jurisprudence and American Institutions Emeritus, Amherst College; Founder and Director, James Wilson Institute on Natural Rights and the American Founding

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