The Catholic Church and Capitalism

Via the Social Encyclicals, The Vocation of the Business Leader, and an article by Joseph Ratzinger titled, “The Church and the Economy”, I attempt historically, philosophically and theologically to locate the position of the Catholic Church towards Capitalism and to express the underlying principles enunciated by the Church on the basis of which lay people participating in the free market should base their decisions. I am grateful to The Neumann Forum, who sponsored this lecture, which was held at St. Charles Borromeo Seminary, Oct. 9, 2014.