G.K. Chesterton once said, “The opposite of employment is not unemployment, but independence.” Employment, or work, is activity done for some utilitarian end. So, when he says the opposite of employment is independence, he is saying that true independence (or freedom) involves doing things for their own sake. Things done for their own sake he [...]
The classical tradition considered the hands the bodily expression of intelligence, and therefore understood work as a way of knowing the world. A program of education centered on mentorship in forms of human work is indispensable in this regard. Shop Class as Soulcraft: An Inquiry into the Value of Work, by Matthew B. Crawford, (246 pages, [...]
Work is given to man principally as a gift, as a particular way to commune, so to speak, with God, by imitating his own absolute creativity, his perfect work. In an address to the “ministers of the world of culture,” given in 2008, Benedict XVI recalled the central role monasteries played in the development of Europe: [...]
Suppose a man named Hutcheson lends ten pounds to a man named Smith. Then we might say, “Smith owes Hutcheson ten pounds.” Suppose that Hutcheson also teaches and aids Smith. Then we might say, “Smith owes Hutcheson gratitude/esteem/love.” Beyond Hutcheson, Smith might feel that he has been taught and aided by humankind generally, and Smith [...]
President Trump’s protection of the American economy through the implementation of protectionist principles with regard to trade is nothing less than an extension of his desire to protect America’s sovereignty. "Protection will lead to great prosperity and strength." —Donald Trump (First Inaugural Address) The world is full of ironies... and the world of politics especially. [...]
On the (Proposed) Sinking of America’s Great Flagship It wasn’t supposed to end this way for America’s flagship, the SS United States: the ship bestowed with the honor of bearing the namesake of her nation; she is, perhaps, the greatest merchant ship to ever be constructed by, and operated under, the American flag. If you [...]
Often placed, more or less justifiably, in the lineage of John Courtney Murray S.J. (1904–1967), Michael Novak (1933–2017) distinguished himself through systematic efforts in the direction of building a theology of economics. At the risk of making a statement that may seem too daring, I believe that Michael Novak’s work can be considered one of [...]
What constitutes a well-ordered house from the national perspective? How do we know what order it is in? According to the conventional wisdom we need the statistics of aggregate income, spending and output. We need, in other words, the GNP approach whose figures bombard us whenever we read something about the national economy on particular [...]
While there is a good deal of cant about how paying higher taxes is “patriotic,” most people instinctively recoil from taxes and don’t hesitate to avoid paying any more than they have to. So, is taxation moral? Income tax season is mostly over. For our family it just ended a week ago when the IRS [...]
President William McKinley championed the American System: “We lead all nations in agriculture; we lead all nations in mining; we lead all nations in manufacturing. These are the trophies which we bring after twenty-nine years of a protective tariff.” A return to the American System would be a major step toward increasing prosperity and restoring [...]
The fundamental principle of Christian politics is that all power ought to be used for the common good. As Pope St. John XXIII put it, the realization of the common good is the “sole reason for the existence of civil authorities.” But what is the common good? The political right is in a state of [...]
Celebrated truly, Sunday is the means for harmonizing our mundane economies with the economy of salvation God is always working in the world. Authentic celebration of the Lord’s Day restores man to an awareness of his true dignity and of the proper orientation of his daily labor. Money, the Lord’s Day, and the Spirit Who [...]
Distributism is the only practical solution to the problem of rampant corporatism and the globalism which is its inevitable consequence. Next time we raise a glass of craft-brewed ale, we should not merely enjoy its flavor, we should also raise a toast to the political and economic freedom that it represents. Some time ago I [...]
Wilhelm Röpke maintained that freedom depends upon certain social and moral factors, which are essential for a free enterprise system to be successful, enduring, and truly free. A Humane Economy: The Social Framework of the Free Market, by Wilhelm Röpke, Wilmington, DE: Intercollegiate Studies Institute, 1998. 200 pp. Wilhelm Röpke (in some texts spelled “Roepke”), [...]