Develop a sharing ethic: Nobel economics laureate

Developing a sharing ethic, proper regulation, and going beyond the market and profit motive can be antidotes to the rampant capitalism of the last three decades, said Professor Amartya Kumar Sen of Harvard University at a lecture at Trinity College Dublin last weekend.  

Indian-born Professor Sen is a Nobel laureate for economics (1998) and was speaking On Global Confusion. He stated that since last autumn as the global economic downturn went deeper and deeper, governments had tried unsuccessfully to prop up capitalism. He asked: if our system is so based on greed, why didn’t we just give up capitalism? Where could we look for a replacement?

Pope Benedict XVI addresses the economic situation in Caritas in Veritate and states that the conviction that the economy must stand alone, and be protected from influences of a moral nature has led people to abuse and destroy the economic processes.

Benedict points to a new “broad intermediate area” between private businesses and companies on one hand and non-profit initiatives on the other. In this area are firms and enterprises that operate not just from the profit motive, but also out of a sense of social responsibility.

The Pope gives the example of the Economy of Communion, linked to the “Folocare” lay Catholic movement founded by the late Chiara Lubich. When she visited Brazil in 1991 she was struck by the huge contrast between rich and poor, and felt the spirituality of unity (typical of the Focolare) and the gospel message could be put into practice within the business world.

Now there are many Economy of Communion businesses in Brazil and a total of almost 800 businesses worldwide.  These small- to medium-sized businesses divide their profits in three ways: one third to supporting those in poverty, one to promote the Economy / Culture of Communion including formation programmes, and another is re-invested in the company. These businesses have *guidelines that balance the life of the company and include good social and environmental practices.

“It is to be hoped that these new kinds of enterprise will succeed in finding a suitable juridical and fiscal structure in every country,” the Pope writes. “The very plurality of institutional forms of business gives rise to a market which is not only more civilized but also more competitive.”

The Economy of Communion was presented at the Focolare summer meeting, the Mariapolis, earlier this month. In a session entitled **How the Tiger Lost its Roar, John McNerney, chaplain UCD School of Business, spoke of the Economy of Communion and proposed three ways to counter the current economic crisis: a counter-culture of sharing; just relationships and new institutions - all of which can be based on gospel values.

Another speaker Prof Ray Kinsella, Director of the Centre for Insurance Studies, UCD School of Business, characterised the current economic and banking problems as an "ethical crisis". He proposed a new model based on people’s needs rather than their wants. He suggested that Jesus Christ’s washing of the disciples’ feet is a real model of leadership – that of service.

Prof Sen’s lecture was sponsored by Concern Worldwide, Trinity College Dublin, the Royal Irish Academy (RIA) and The Irish Times.

For *guidelines and further info on Economy of Communion see: www.edc-online.org

**How the Tiger  Lost its Roar: A Christian Response by Dr Lorna Gold, Advocacy Manager, Trócaire, and Member of the Economy of Communion International Commission.