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Christian Economic Ethics: History and Implications PDF

414 Pages·2013·4.282 MB·English
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Exploring the history of economic thought for today— What does the history of Christian views of economic life mean for economic life in the twenty- first century? Daniel K. Finn reviews the insights provided by a large number of texts, from the F i Bible and the early church, to the Middle Ages and the Protestant Reformation, to treatments n n of the subject in the last century. Relying on both social science and theology, Finn then turns to the implications of this history for economic life today. Throughout, the book invites the reader to engage the sources and to develop an answer to the volume’s basic question. Praise for Christian Economic Ethics “I can only think of one concise and apt adjective to describe Daniel Finn’s Christian Economic Ethics: History and Implications: magisterial! No other single volume so deftly recounts the entire history of Christian economic ethics, Protestant and Catholic, and its development while so brilliantly engaging in a two-way dialogue between economics and Christian eco- C nomic ethics. Specialists will want their own copy and beginners will find this work as an h indispensable introduction to the topic.” r John A. Coleman, s.j. | Loyola Marymount University i s “Daniel Finn treats the relationship of Christian social ethics and economic life with the sub- t i tlety, insight, and balance that it deserves but rarely gets. The study is deepened by opening up a the history of Christian social teaching, brightened by everyday examples, and sweetened by n a kind and generous tone. Finn is gracious toward those who disagree with his positions, but E always clear and firm about where he stands.” C John Tiemstra | Calvin College o n “Finn accomplishes two important tasks in this book. First, he surveys the historical develop- o ment of the principles of Christian social thought. Second, he presents the Christian tradition m as a credible and challenging alternative to the entire spectrum of political ideology, not sim- ply as a another tool for those ideologies to employ in the political fray.” i C Andrew Yuengert | Pepperdine University E t Daniel K. Finn is the William and Virginia Clemens Professor h of Economics and the Liberal Arts and professor of theology i at St. John’s University and the College of St. Benedict, C Collegeville, Minnesota. He is a past president of the Society s of Christian Ethics, the Association for Social Economics, and the Catholic Theological Society of America. He is the author or editor of a number of books, including The Moral Ecology of Markets (2006), The True Wealth of Nations (2010), and The Moral Dynamics of Economic Life (2012). Religion / History / Ethics CHRISTIAN ECONOMIC ETHICS CHRISTIAN ECONOMIC ETHICS HISTORY AND IMPLICATIONS DANIEL K. FINN Fortress Press Minneapolis CHRISTIAN ECONOMIC ETHICS History and Implications Copyright © 2013 Fortress Press. All rights reserved. Except for brief quotations in critical articles or reviews, no part of this book may be reproduced in any manner without prior written permission from the publisher. Visit http://www.augsburgfortress.org/copyrights/ or write to Permissions, Augsburg Fortress, Box 1209, Minneapolis, MN 55440. ScriptureistakenfromtheHolyBible,NewInternationalVersion®,copyright©1973, 1978, 1984 International Bible Society. Used by permission of Zondervan Publishing House. All rights reserved. Cover image © iStockphoto.com / tomograf Cover design: Justin Korhonen Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Print ISBN: 978-0-8006-9961-1 eBook ISBN: 978-1-4514-5228-0 The paper used in this publication meets the minimum requirements of American NationalStandardforInformationSciences—PermanenceofPaperforPrintedLibrary Materials, ANSI Z329.48-1984. Manufactured in the U.S.A. This book was produced using PressBooks.com, and PDF rendering was done by PrinceXML. To Paul Caron, Polymath and Friend CONTENTS Acknowledgments ix PPaarrtt II..IInnttrroodduuccttiioonn 1. Introduction: Well Water Deep Down 3 2. How a Living Tradition Means 19 PPaarrtt IIII..FFrroomm tthhee BBiibbllee ttoo tthhee RReeffoorrmmaattiioonn 3. The Hebrew Scriptures 33 4. The New Testament 51 5. The Early Church Christian Faith and Concern for the Poor 71 6. The Early Church Patristic Teaching on Ownership and Wealth 87 7. The Beginnings of Monastic Life 107 8. The Medieval Period Thomas Aquinas and Natural Law Ethics 123 9. The Medieval Period Thomas Aquinas on Four Economic Issues 139 10. The Protestant Reformation 159 PPaarrtt IIIIII..RReessoouurrcceess ffoorr IInntteerrpprreettaattiioonn 11. The Development of Moral Teaching 181 12. Engaging Controversies Today 199 13. What We Should and Should Not Learn from Economics 217 PPaarrtt IIVV..MMooddeerrnn CChhuurrcchh TTeeaacchhiinngg oonn EEccoonnoommiicc LLiiffee 14. Pope Leo XIII and Pope Pius XI 237 15. Pope John XXIII and Pope Paul VI 257 vii 16. Contemporary Protestant Thought on Economic Life 275 17. Pope John Paul II and Pope Benedict XVI 301 PPaarrtt VV..CCoommiinngg ttoo CCoonncclluussiioonnss 18. Principles for an Economic Ethic Today 329 19. Implications for an Economic Ethic Today 349 20. Society, Government, and Market: Getting the Relationships Right 369 21. Conclusion 383 Bibliography 391 Index 405 Additional Praise forChristian Economic Ethics 411 viii Acknowledgments Inwritingthisbook,Ihaveincurredsignificantdebtstomanypeoplewhohave helped me improve both the substance and presentation of the ideas included here. Colleagues who have attended exceptionally carefully to the manuscript and have provided extensive critical advice include Sylvester Theisen, Patrick Henry, David Cloutier, Albino Barrera, O.P., Mary Hirschfeld, Thomas Massaro, S.J., and Andrew Yuengert. I am indebted to many who took time from their days to provide careful advice on particular parts of the book, including Brian Matz, Jon Gunnemann, Joseph Friedrich, John Erb, Christine Firer Hinze, James Childs, Karen Bloomquist, and Bronwen McShea. MycolleaguesintheeconomicsdepartmentattheCollegeofSt.Benedict and St. John’s University provided helpful feedback on Chapter 13. The theologians at New Wine, New Wineskins provided really helpful input on several chapters. And numerous colleagues at the Society of Christian Ethics, the Catholic Theological Society of America, and the Association for Social Economics have improved my thinking about the issues underlying this book over the past three and a half decades. I have likewise been assisted over the yearsbyanumberofableandgenerousstudentresearchassistantsatSt.John’s, includingJamesFoley,TylorKlein,NatalieLandwehr,RichardDeVine,Shafak Samsheer, and Adam Liske. IamparticularlygratefulforthegeneroushelpofeditorsatFortressPress, particularly Will Bergkamp, Esther Diley, Lisa Gruenisen, and Marissa Wold. I am deeply grateful to St. John’s University, where, since 1977, I have beenamemberoftheDepartmentofEconomics,theDepartmentofTheology, and the School of Theology, and where since 1984 I have held the William E. and Virginia Clemens Chair in Economics and the Liberal Arts. Many people at St. John’s and St. Ben’s have helped me in a myriad of ways over the years. Of all those who contributed directly or indirectly to this book, I owe the greatestdebtofgratitudetoJudyShank,whohaspainstakinglytypedandmade amultitudeofchanges—andchangesofthechanges—ineachpageofthisbook. Her patience and care have made this final version possible. ix

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