Economic Justice for All
Encyclopedia
"Economic Justice for All" is the pastoral letter
promulgated by the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops
in 1986. It deals with the U.S. economy and with Catholic social teaching
in the U.S. context. It is a part of the tradition of Catholic social teaching
.
The letter was written at a time when the Reagan administration
was implementing libertarian
policies of laissez-faire
capitalism, and it may be interpreted as a reaction to what was seen as hostility towards the Catholic Church's teachings on social justice
, subsidiarity
, corporatism
and distributism
.
Archbishop Rembert Weakland
was asked to chair the U.S. bishops’ committee responsible for drafting the pastoral letter. He terms the experience “one of the most important and formative periods of my life”.
Pastoral letter
A Pastoral letter, often called simply a pastoral, is an open letter addressed by a bishop to the clergy or laity of his diocese, or to both, containing either general admonition, instruction or consolation, or directions for behaviour in particular circumstances...
promulgated by the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops
United States Conference of Catholic Bishops
The United States Conference of Catholic Bishops is the episcopal conference of the Catholic Church in the United States. Founded in 1966 as the joint National Conference of Catholic Bishops and United States Catholic Conference, it is composed of all active and retired members of the Catholic...
in 1986. It deals with the U.S. economy and with Catholic social teaching
Catholic social teaching
Catholic social teaching is a body of doctrine developed by the Catholic Church on matters of poverty and wealth, economics, social organization and the role of the state...
in the U.S. context. It is a part of the tradition of Catholic social teaching
Catholic social teaching
Catholic social teaching is a body of doctrine developed by the Catholic Church on matters of poverty and wealth, economics, social organization and the role of the state...
.
The letter was written at a time when the Reagan administration
Reagan Administration
The United States presidency of Ronald Reagan, also known as the Reagan administration, was a Republican administration headed by Ronald Reagan from January 20, 1981, to January 20, 1989....
was implementing libertarian
Libertarianism
Libertarianism, in the strictest sense, is the political philosophy that holds individual liberty as the basic moral principle of society. In the broadest sense, it is any political philosophy which approximates this view...
policies of laissez-faire
Laissez-faire
In economics, laissez-faire describes an environment in which transactions between private parties are free from state intervention, including restrictive regulations, taxes, tariffs and enforced monopolies....
capitalism, and it may be interpreted as a reaction to what was seen as hostility towards the Catholic Church's teachings on social justice
Social justice
Social justice generally refers to the idea of creating a society or institution that is based on the principles of equality and solidarity, that understands and values human rights, and that recognizes the dignity of every human being. The term and modern concept of "social justice" was coined by...
, subsidiarity
Subsidiarity
Subsidiarity is an organizing principle that matters ought to be handled by the smallest, lowest or least centralized competent authority. The Oxford English Dictionary defines subsidiarity as the idea that a central authority should have a subsidiary function, performing only those tasks which...
, corporatism
Corporatism
Corporatism, also known as corporativism, is a system of economic, political, or social organization that involves association of the people of society into corporate groups, such as agricultural, business, ethnic, labor, military, patronage, or scientific affiliations, on the basis of common...
and distributism
Distributism
Distributism is a third-way economic philosophy formulated by such Catholic thinkers as G. K...
.
Archbishop Rembert Weakland
Rembert Weakland
Rembert George Weakland was an American prelate of the Catholic Church. He served as Archbishop of Milwaukee from 1977 to 2002. He is the author of A Pilgrim in a Pilgrim Church: Memoirs of a Catholic Archbishop, which explores Church reform issues, his homosexuality, and the child abuse crisis....
was asked to chair the U.S. bishops’ committee responsible for drafting the pastoral letter. He terms the experience “one of the most important and formative periods of my life”.