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Related: Editorials & Other Articles, Issue Forums, Alliance Forums, Region ForumsJorge Bergoglio, now Pope Francis: Against liberalism, critic of the IMF and foreign debt
Let me preface this, for anyone who reads this without the proper background, that liberalism here refers to the economics of private property and free trade. And private property, for anyone thinking that's their house and their car, is when the land, the means of production and transport (etc) are privately owned for an individual's or a corporation's benefit instead of belonging to the people for their benefit. I'm not saying Pope Francis is a Socialist, but he doesn't sound like much a capitalist either.
This article is very badly written. You can tell it's written by a Spanish speaker but it still makes perfect sense. And the document can't possibly be called Episcopal Conference of Argentina, that sounds more like the authorship heading.
By Carlos Burgueño
Ambito Financiero staff
Harsh critic of free-market liberalism, the IMF and adjustment policies, and defender of the debt restructuring processes, Jorge Bergoglio, now Pope Francis, never refused to define where he stands when it comes down to economics, even in the most difficult moments. Adept to the most classical conceptions of the Social Doctrine of the Church, he openly confronted adjustment policies during the 2001 crisis, and then, in 2011, he battled those same remedies when intended to solve debt problems in Europe.
Bergoglio took an active stance against liberal policies since his early years, but it became public in 2001 when Argentina went into a terminal crisis. In his sermons, he used to openly condemn the social situation, even with former President Fernando de la Rua sitting right in front of him and hearing his Sunday Mass.
It was in August 2001 when he submitted a document known as Episcopal Conference of Argentina, where the Church indicated its stance on the delicate situation the country was going through.
The document said that "some of the most serious social ills we suffer are a reflection of the raw liberalism. Likewise, it indicated the State as an instrument created to serve the common good, and to be the guarantor of equity and solidarity of the people.
The communiqué also condemned the fact of not having created a social network in order to contain the expelled from the system. To conclude, it also remarked the existence of two diseases: tax evasion and squandering of State funds, which are funds obtained with the sweat and sacrifice of the people.
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http://www.buenosairesherald.com/article/126381/against-liberalism-critic-of-the-imf-and-foreign-debt
"economic liberalism with no rules or controls whatsoever is one of the causes of the current economic crisis since it creates speculative financial markets, thus damaging the real economy, especially in weak countries." -- Archbishop Boroglio, now Pope Francis
hedgehog
(36,286 posts)Catherina
(35,568 posts)Thanks Hedgehog I'm looking forward to his encyclicals now
http://www.lowyinterpreter.org/post/2013/03/14/Francis-I-The-economic-crusader.aspx
Buenos Aires, Argentina, Oct 1, 2009 / 09:01 pm (CNA)
...
Social debt is immoral, unjust and illegitimate, the cardinal said, emphasizing that this is especially true when it occurs in a nation that has the objective conditions for avoiding or correcting such harm. Unfortunately, he noted, it seems that those same countries opt for exacerbating inequalities even more.
Argentineans have the duty to work to change the structural causes and personal or corporate attitudes that give rise to this situation (of poverty), and through dialogue reach agreements that allow us to transform this painful reality we refer to when we speak about social debt, the prelate said.
Cardinal Bergoglio said the challenge to eradicate poverty could not be truthfully met as long as the poor continue to be dependents of the State. The government and other organizations should instead work to create the social conditions that will promote and protect the rights of the poor and enable them to be the builders of their own future, he explained.
The problem of debt and social justice must be of concern to every sector of society, he added, including leaders in government, politics, finance, business, agriculture, industry, unions, the Church and other social organizations.
http://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/extreme_poverty_is_also_a_violation_of_human_rights_says_argentinean_cardinal/
jsr
(7,712 posts)Looks like he's been very vocal about economic inequities for many years. I'm surprised they didn't try to shut him up.
Catherina
(35,568 posts)President Nestor Kirchner was so furious at him that he stopped attending the annual Te Deum since Bergoglio was officiating. That's practically unheard of for a Catholic leader. I can't find the link now but I read that under Nestor Kirchner, Bergoglio wasn't allowed to step foot in the palace anymore because they felt he was sabotaging their economic miracles.
It was never a good relation, said Oscar Aguad, a deputy in Argentinas congress from the opposition Radical party. There were scraps between Bergoglio and the Kirchner governments, to the point where Nestor Kirchner even said that Bergoglio was the head of the opposition.
Tensions between Bergoglio and the Kirchners increased during the 2000s as the couple began to guide Argentina out of an economic collapse. The Kirchners rode a wave of popularity, which critics say they used to intervene in the economy and adopt a take-no-prisoners approach to the opposition and the press. Eventually, they tussled with the Roman Catholic Church.
Observers in Argentina said Bergoglio did not act in opposition to the Kirchners stated goal of reducing poverty; in fact, Bergoglio emerged during the peak of the Argentine economic crisis of 2000 as a fierce critic of globalization. Rather, he was simply not shy about exposing what some critics of the government call its mendacity in reporting economic data. The church waded into this thicket not with a direct attack but by issuing its own poverty figures showing that the number of poor people was much higher than the Kirchners asserted.
When Bergoglio talked of extreme poverty, or of the kids who are among the army of drug addicts, the government felt it was under attack because theyre in charge of anti-narcotics efforts, social programs and health care, said Oscar Raúl Aguad, a lawmaker who opposed the Kirchners programs.
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http://www.washingtonpost.com/world/the_americas/bergoglio-challenged-moral-authority-of-argentinas-elected-leaders/2013/03/14/95db94f6-8ce7-11e2-b63f-f53fb9f2fcb4_story.html
Oh boy, here we go:
We live in world in which the primacy of economics, without a base of reference in the common good, impedes the resurgence of many nations, the statement read. It further contended, To accustom ourselves to living in a world of exclusion and inequality is a serious moral failure that erodes the dignity of mankind and compromises peace and social harmony.
In a subsequent interview, Bergoglio charged wildly economistic ideas with manufacturing poverty.
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http://www.dissentmagazine.org/blog/the-pope-and-the-poor
There's a lot of strength and resolve under that meek exterior, that's for sure.