The impact of the current economic model of capitalism on the western world’s social and democratic fabric should prod us into making some serious reflections.
The most salient reality of this deeply-flawed political system is rooted in the concentration of financial power in the hands of the few to the detriment of the many. It has led to a situation where the political process is hijacked by a small class of capitalists who use the economic process mainly to enrich themselves rather than for the common good.
Malta is no exception. The deep-seated corruption we see at the highest levels stares us in the face. The unbelievable runaway and rapid degradation of our environment is a very clear example of this. The assault on the traditional family and the promotion of the culture of death is another.
The cause of this mess is spelled out by the Chestertonian Thomas Storck in the Distributist Review of June 2012, where he writes: “Allowing free play to mankind’s appetite for gain is as socially harmful as allowing free play to our sexual appetite. And just as the sexual appetite of mankind needs restraint by law and custom, so does man’s acquisitive appetite, a fact that our Catholic ancestors fully recognised and embodied in laws and in institutions such as the craft guild”. In other words, our current sad situation is definitely not inevitable.
Allowing free play to mankind’s appetite for gain is as socially harmful as allowing free play to our sexual appetite- Thomas Storck, Distributist Review, June 2012
In this respect, the Church’s social teaching has a rich tradition that we need to rediscover and apply in our own country. The traditional wisdom is there for us to absorb and make our own. It is this corpus of teaching that influenced G. K. Chesterton to coin the term ‘distributism’.
Chesterton’s writings influenced many people and led to their conversion. One was Joseph Pearce, who had been jailed twice for his violent racist ideology. After his conversion, he became an academic and researched outstanding intellectuals.
This led him to discover the writings of the late legendary economist, E. F. Schumacher, also a Catholic convert, author of the landmark book Small is Beautiful. At the time, it was considered revolutionary as it challenged the flawed capitalist system that is plaguing us today. Pearce went on to write a book on the same topic entitled Small is Still Beautiful.
Small is Beautiful
Small is Still Beautiful
Catholic Social Teaching: Our Best Kept Secret
It is also of interest that when interviewed by Pearce, Alexander Solzhenitsyn stated that, at about the same time, he had come to the same conclusions on social and economic issues as Schumacher, though independently. It should be inspiring to us that people of the calibre of Schumacher and Solzhenitsyn dovetail with the ‘distributism’ of Chesterton. It is therefore disheartening that today there is so much ignorance of Catholic social teaching. So much so that two American Jesuits published a book in 2003 with the sarcastic title of Catholic Social Teaching: Our Best Kept Secret. The book was translated into Maltese by Dun Anġ Seychell, a priest who is passionately concerned with social issues.
It is long overdue that Maltese Catholics, especially those who are involved in the public arena, make an effort to inform themselves and, in turn, try to make these ideals a reality.