In the contentious political environment that we currently occupy, it is too easy to retreat from political disagreement and instead seek the security of agreement or avoidance. It is a rare pleasure, therefore, in contrast, to be able to discuss economic inequalities in this forum. In her second contribution, Dr. Johnson raises a collection of important arguments, and has identified some areas where we see things differently. Her depth of reflection about the way theology can inform public life has challenged me to think very carefully about things that I care deeply about. This is a great gift. In this final contribution I will reflect on these areas, returning to some of the themes of my original post, and then finish by thinking about what I have learned from our dialogue. Broadly, I would encourage Christians to think hard and long about economic inequalities, and the injustice that they can point to. Because some Christians inhabit a powerful cultural and economic position in the world, it is important for us to study and highlight the dimensions of our tradition that push us to fight these injustices, reconcile with our neighbors, and live into our calling. I will try to share some of my hope and optimism that even if we see significant setbacks, real progress is possible.

My intellectual hero, Peter Maurin, once wrote about what happened when he went to a university looking for advice on his project to animate the economic order in line with Christian tradition:

A few years ago,
I asked a college professor
to give me
the formulation
of those universal concepts
embodied
in the universal message
of universal universities
that will enable
the common man
to create
a universal economy.
And I was told
by the college professor:
“That is not my subject.” 

The careful reflection that Kelly Johnson provided last week is a great starting point, and I am looking forward to seeing what she writes as the month goes by. While this conversation is designed to create a space for long, careful, and respectful disagreement, it is worth noting from the outset that I found her initial contribution to be illuminating, and there is very little in it that I disagree with.  I agree that economic inequality is a first order moral problem, that Christians are called to care deeply about the material well-being of their neighbors, and that inadequate regard for economic disparities is deeply woven into our culture (and apparently, we both find compelling the doctrine of the universal destination of goods). Hopefully this common ground will set the stage for a fruitful dialogue.

First , I want to offer my appreciation for Dr. McMullen’s post, which avoids ideological home bases in favor of practical and serious work to promote human well-being. I know, because I faced it, what a challenge it is to respond to these questions, and I applaud both the clarity and attention to complexity that he captured.

A key area on which we agree is that questions of poverty and wealth are questions of moral import, political questions in the sense that they require discernment by a community about what is good. The economy is not just a procedure, a quasi-mechanical system; it serves an end. Economic interests do not necessarily create good results, if left to themselves, and some very important goods, particularly public goods, need to be fostered by means other than the market. Such goods are beneficial in ways that have to do both with a good business climate and also with humanity. In short, I found much in Dr. McMullen’s vision thoughtful and clearly driven by moral concerns as well as scholarship.

Christians in the US have played key roles in the creation of that creatureliness-denying freedom, and they’ve also played key roles in surviving it, challenging it, and witnessing to faith within it. When we tell the story of Christianity in the US, which of those stories do we mean? Which ought to be at the center? Which most informs our action now?

There are few questions about economics that garner as much attention as those surrounding inequality. Over the last 30 years in particular, as we have watched income and wealth inequality rise in the United States, there has been considerable scholarly and popular attention to questions about fairness in our economic system. This attention is well-warranted. Christians, in particular, live in a tradition that has long questioned the morality of wealth and poverty, and has prioritized concerns about justice in the economy. Moreover, there have been dramatic changes in inequality in our lifetimes, both in the U.S. and globally, that are worth paying attention to. In this first part of our conversation I would like to set the stage by describing some recent trends in economic inequalities, then examine a range of explanations that are given for these trends, and then finally offer some suggestions for Christian thinking about inequality.