Money is a human invention. It is about promises and trust in human relationships. To make life easier people moved beyond bartering goods to exchange coins and notes of an agreed value. They are the symbols which we trust because they carry the promise of exchanging them for something of a set value – food, transport or even a house. Now shares and other investment instruments have made the use of money more complex and even lethal for many people as evidenced by the 2009 financial meltdown.
Scripture warns that collecting money and the power that goes with it carries the danger of greed, even saying the love of money is the root of all evil. The New Testament shows that Jesus did not have much time for the money lenders in the temple, and prophetically drove them out as a sign of his mission. We have the story of how Jesus was sad when the rich young man decided not to follow him when told to sell all he had and give the money to the poor.
Money has a central place in our lives. As individuals we work and receive wages, sell and trade, borrow and save, spend or invest, give money away as charity. As a society we pay taxes and receive benefits, elect governments to legislate on financial institutions like banks and credit unions, have agencies to pay for education and health, finance local infrastructure and give aid to poorer nations. The challenge for individuals and nations is to use money morally. We must ‘Stay Awake!’
Catholic moral teachings have grown over millennia to guide our use of money in complex situations. This teaching uses rational and logical arguments which provide a philosophically based ethical framework. This is usually called ‘moral teaching’ when the light of Scripture and Church Tradition is added. Rational logic and religious experience go together in religious ethics and morals. Papal encyclicals and Vatican II constantly update this teaching in a globalised trading world. The Social Teaching of the Catholic Church summarized that teaching and helps our ongoing Church search to combine justice and generosity.
Australian history shows that since the time of Governors Philip and Macquarie there has been a struggle to create a just society which both respects individual freedom and creates opportunities for people. Opposition to this vision constantly arises from elite businesses, traders and bankers who think only of their own benefit. More than a hundred years ago, Cardinal Moran, the third Archbishop of Sydney demonstrated on the streets of Sydney with workers deprived of just wages and safe working conditions. Our bishops have written about a family wage and adequate housing for all. This active Catholic pursuit of justice continues today through bodies like Australian Catholic Social Justice Council (ACSJC) and Catholic Earthcare Australia. They add a spiritual and ethical reflection to bottom line financial, social and environmental measures.
Modern liberal capitalism needs to be closely monitored. It is not the sole way of preserving private property rights and has in fact destroyed them in many cases. Social equity principles have a solid base in Catholic ethical teaching so that socialism is not to be equated with communism. We try to grow fair systems. Michael Moore’s 2009 movie ‘Capitalism’ has a fun look at the dire impact of out-of-control liberal capitalist systems.
00:01:43 | Jun 03, 2011
The capitalist trading system pervades the world through international trade-agreements under the umbrella of the World Trade Organisation (WTO). It often pushes nations into legislation that oppresses peoples and destroys the environment. Australian Fair Trade and Investment Network (AFTINET) is a non-government organization (NGO) that monitors trade agreements and like Columban Mission is concerned about provisions in the proposed eight-nation Pacific Trade Pact.
One evil outcome of a globalised banking systems is that individuals and nations have become slaves to debt. Groups like ‘Jubilee Australia’ fight to implement just taxes systems in Australia and debt reduction for poor countries.
At a personal level we need to reflect on the pull of consumerism. Maybe we have let greed into our inner soul and hearts, warping our judgments, stunting our imaginations and sapping our courage to fight for anything different.
Fr Charles Rue is the Coordinator of Columban Justice, Peace, Intergity and Creation (JPIC) at the Columban Mission Institute, Strathfield, NSW.