Summary
The success of the US economy should be measured on its ability to touch human life and protect human dignity. The article is written to address the effects of the US economy on the human life. It is an invitation to Catholics to analyze the Christian faith, economy, governance, and society. The letter is not aimed at advancing the economic discourse. However, it examines the moral principles from the Scripture and social teachings of the Church aimed at establishing what economic life should serve.
Economic life of a society should be discussed and shaped by its effect on human, moral, and Christian aspects of a person. It is also paramount to discuss the signs of hope as well as the failures that come with the opportunities available in the US economic life. The US economy has not reached its levels without grave cost to human values and violation of human dignity. The history of the US economic life is tainted with injustice to Native Americans, slavery, civil war, fights for equality and recognition of women. The state of the economy today, is as a result of persistent creative struggle of entrepreneurs, workers unions, business people, consumers, and government. This force should continue to drive the search for freedom and justice for all in the present America.
The journey to economic supremacy has had its own costs that have led to social fragmentation and individualism. The discussion of on economic justice for all aims at introducing a moral vision that will help men and women to be responsible in their positions in government and corporations. The discussion hopes to establish responsibility of the society to the poor and vulnerable. The Church believes that economic life should reflect the transcendent worth of human beings. Public and private institutions should support the bonds of community and solidarity that enhance human dignity.
Ethical norms for economic life are governed by respect for human dignity and rights. This economic life is evident in the economic choices of individuals, communities, and nation as a whole. A society evincing ethical norms for economic life has at its core responsibilities of social living that include love and solidarity, justice and participation, and overcoming marginalization and powerlessness. Such a society will also show respect for human rights, which can be noticed through the moral priorities of a nation.
All persons and institutions should work for the greater justice to all. To solve most of the social injustices that plagues the society, worker and labor unions, owners and managers, and citizens and governments should work together to address social cohesiveness and care for the poor and vulnerable. Through faith, experimentation and imagination, Christian hope and courage to act seeks to establish a more just economic order.
The church should be committed to a future that blends the light of the Gospel to economic affairs. This entails the contribution of everyone professing the Christian faith. The Church, as a coming together of the people of God, should take a greater role in dealing with the economic challenges that face the society through education, family and other agencies.
Analysis
“Economic Justice for All” is an article that articulates the challenges the country is facing at the moment. The marginalized communities are still fighting to be recognized and the push for individualism is alienating the youth in minority communities such as the Mexican-Americans. The economic injustices discussed on this article and the solutions recommended can be used in dealing with the challenges facing the Mexican-Americans in the United States.
The push for individualism, personal growth at the expense of community cohesiveness and solidarity (United States Catholic Bishops 5-8), is epitomized in the plight of Mexican-American Studies in the State of Arizona. Ethnic studies were established in the school curriculum to help minority groups build a sense of belonging and address the issues of dropout rate among the Mexican-Americans (Kunnie 16). However, despite the success of the program, the government passed a legislation banning the inclusion of such programs in schools. Efforts by the Tucson Unified School District’s teachers, students, and parents to appeal against such move fell on deaf ears (Kunnie 18).
In the ensuing discussion, government officials advocated for individualism at the expense of community solidarity. At the core of the success of the program was the feeling of worthiness the students got from the ethnic studies. This is just one of the many instances where the government delineates policies that enhance social injustices against the vulnerable. In light of economic justice for all, the government ought to consider the needs of the minority groups like the Mexican-Americans in Arizona. Policies such as HB2281 should be abolished and the establishment of policies that encourage students’ performance introduced.
“Economic Justice for All” calls for an emphasis of responsibilities of the Church for education and family (84). The Ethnic studies at Tucson Unified School District were aimed at educating students on family values, respect for one another, as well as caring for each other. The graduation rate of Mexican-American rose due to these studies. It is my position that the letter to Catholics in United States is in support of the ethnic studies in Arizona. However, the following questions persist in my mind.
Questions
- Did the Arizona House of Representatives act in favor of economic justice by passing the HB2281 bill into law.
- What constitutes a community?
- Does encouraging community solidarity lead to disunity and fragmentation of the United States?
Work Cited
Kunnie, Julian. “Apartheid in Arizona? HB 2281 and Arizona's Denial of Human Rights of Peoples of Color.” The Black Scholar 40.4 (2010): 16-26. Web.
United States Catholic Bishops. Economic Justice for All: Pastoral Letter on Catholic Social Teaching and the U.S. Economy. (1986). Web.
