"Test everything; hold fast to what is good."
For a less snarky, clearer, and more compelling discussion of the rights that correspond — necessarily — from the obligation to work, see John Paul II’s encyclical Laborem Exercens, or “On Human Labor.” Regular readers of this blog know that I’m a big fan of this encyclical, due mainly to the forceful logic of its [...]
Or consider the role and duty of a ferry boat captain. Her job is to pilot a ferry boat from Point A to Point B and back again according to schedule while ensuring the safety of her passengers. That is her primary responsibility. It’s what she was hired to do and what she is paid [...]
My frustration was showing a couple of weeks ago in a post titled: “Responsibility is differentiated, mutual and complementary, not exclusive, binary and competitive.” That post consisted almost entirely of the sentence “Responsibility is differentiated, mutual and complementary; responsibility is not exclusive, binary and competitive,” repeated 10 times with each repetition linking to a different [...]
One point, 10 reiterations, 10 links to longer, more thorough expressions of and arguments for that same one point: Responsibility is differentiated, mutual and complementary; responsibility is not exclusive, binary and competitive. Responsibility is differentiated, mutual and complementary; responsibility is not exclusive, binary and competitive. Responsibility is differentiated, mutual and complementary; responsibility is not exclusive, [...]
So Franklin Graham says that churches, rather than governments, are responsible for meeting the needs of the poor. Either one or the other, zero-sum, in competition, etc. This is not the view of most Christians or of most Christian churches. Nor is it an easy view to reconcile with the Christian Bible, which is full [...]
Some simple equations: Subsidiarity + Solidarity = Democracy Subsidiarity – Solidarity = Tyranny It really is that stark and that simple. The good news — at least for those of us who don't favor tyranny — is that these two things are not easily separable. Subsidiarity clarifies solidarity, but it cannot exist apart from it. [...]
The previous post was intended as red meat for a Thursday, but it prompted some good discussion in comments and I want to respond to a bit of that Specifically, I want to follow up on this comment from josh, which is thoughtful and well-stated, but hits a sour note at the end: “It’s once [...]
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