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[ianspirations]

A BETTER KIND OF POLITICS: Chapter 5 of Fratelli Tutti

A global community of fraternity bound by ties of social friendship is possible if we upgrade to a better kind of politics, one that is truly at the service of the common good. Sadly, politics today often goes in the opposite direction by hindering progress toward a better world.

Populism and Liberalism

Populism exploits the vulnerable for its own purposes and liberalism only serves the economic interests of the powerful.

Populism is a political approach that tries to appeal to ordinary people who feel that their voice is not heard by the majority or elite. Such a politic threatens democracy because it thrives on the differences of people and in the bargain deepens the fractures. Populists try to exploit culture by pushing an ideological agenda that serves selfish purposes. To this end they are ready to exert pressure and ‘capture’ other institutions and amend laws. Despite the existence of different kinds of people there are also communitarian aspirations. “Men and women are capable of coming up with shared goals that transcend their differences and can thus engage in a common endeavour” (FT#157). We have to beware of demagoguery within politics. Our identity as ‘people’ is a shared notion that arises from social and cultural bonds. Thus, it is not something automatic and natural but something that develops gradually over a period of time and directed to a common end.

Contrary to Populist leaders we have Popular leaders who are capable of understanding the feelings and cultural dynamics of people and society. They have the potential to lead according to an enduring vision of transformation and growth that allows everyone space to pursue the common good.

One sign of populist politics is the concern for short-term advantage. Any initiative of development is done with the view of attracting votes and not for the real good of the people. Inequality can be eliminated with the help of economic growth that taps into each region’s potential and provides equal opportunity to all. Welfare projects which meet urgent needs are important but should only be a temporary response. Providing employment is one of the best ways to uplift the poor and offer them dignity through work. “Since production systems may change, political systems must keep working to structure society in such a way that everyone has a chance to contribute his/her own talents and efforts” (FT#162). Work does more than provide economic sustenance, it allows for personal growth, building of healthy relationships, self-expression and exchange of gifts; it gives a sense of shared responsibility for the development of the world.

The concepts of people, along with their community and cultural bonds and neighbour are criticized by individualistic liberalists. Charity unites both the individual and the social. We cannot have a private life without a public order. An individual’s life depends on the security and stability assured by law; their wellbeing requires that there exist a division of labour, commercial exchange, social justice and political citizenship. Real charity is able to recognize these as necessities for an individual and is willing to offer it even to a foreigner or a neglected brother or sister. To do this, one can have recourse to various institutions that are willing to offer their services to provide these basic necessities. Even the Samaritan needed the inn to care for the hurt person. Love of neighbour is concrete and makes use of every resource to bring about historical change that benefits the poor and disadvantaged. But leftist ideologies and social doctrines can also prove ineffective if they are propelled by individualistic ambitions. Therefore, we see the need for worldwide organization to resolve the problems plaguing our world. There is no one solution.

Everything hinges on our ability to see the need for a change of heart, attitudes and lifestyles. Until then, political propaganda, the media and shapers of public opinion will continue to promote an individualistic culture that perpetuates the problem. The tendency to selfishness or what is known within Christian circles as Concupiscence is not limited to our times. It has been present since Adam and has only taken on different forms in different ages. It can be overcome with the help of God. (FT#166) Education and upbringing, concern for others, a well-integrated view of life and spiritual growth are all essential for better relations and a better society.

Some liberal approaches fail to consider the impact of concupiscence and hence envisage a world that is determined by certain laws and capable of providing its own solutions for every problem. This is clearly not true. Encouraging the rich to get richer and purporting that their excess wealth will ‘trickle’ over to help the disadvantaged just does not hold any water in reality. Such alleged ‘spillovers’ do not resolve inequality or the violence that ensues from desperation. We need an economic policy that encourages business creativity and creates jobs. A business that seeks quick profits ends up creating more havoc than good. The pandemic has shown that “not everything can be resolved by market freedom. It has also shown that, in addition to recovering sound political life that is not subject to the dictates of finance, we must put human dignity back at the centre and on that pillar build the alternative social structures we need” (FT#168).

We need an economic framework that integrates popular movements of the unemployed, temporary, informal and other kinds of workers who do not find a place in existing structures. Political and economic institutions stand to gain from allowing for the excluded to be included in the task of building up a common destiny. These movements act as ‘social poets’ who work, propose, promote and liberate; they make possible integral human development. Many might consider them troublesome and disruptive but they ensure that democracy stays alive and remains true to its nature of being a government for the people, by the people and of the people.

The response to the financial crisis of 07-08 was a lame effort at revival that did not include rethinking strategies to avoid such a crisis in the future but which rather “fostered greater individualism, less integration and increased freedom” for the wealthy to retain their wealth (FT#170). In keeping with the concept of justice, no individual or group can consider themselves to be above any other; they have no right to bypass the rights and dignity of others in serving their own interests. In order to prevent this we need a strong judicial system and an effective distribution of power among the population. What is noticeable is that politics is coming under the influence of economics such that those with economic power wield immense power within the political arena whether they enter into it directly or not. Often, this economic power is transnational, that is, it goes beyond state or national borders. Therefore, it is necessary to have “some form of world authority regulated by law” which can regulate transnational economics and impose sanctions if necessary, so as to prevent transnational economic powers from interfering and influencing local and global politics, and promoting the “global common good” and the “defence of fundamental human rights” (FT#172).

In this regard, the UN needs to evolve into something more than just an advisory and administrative body. It has to be able to set “clear legal limits to avoid power being co-opted only by a few countries and to prevent cultural impositions or a restriction of the basic freedoms of weaker nations on the basis of ideological differences” (FT#173).

In order to achieve these goals all of us have to show courage and generosity. To this end, agreements have to be honoured and controversies have to be resolved as peacefully as possible. It is fortuitous that many groups and organizations are striving to make up for the deficiencies of governments. Their work is a “concrete application of the principle of subsidiarity which justifies the participation and activity of communities and organizations on lower levels as a means of integrating and complementing the activity of the state” (FT#175).

Social and Political Charity

For many people, politics is a dirty word. This association has come through the way politics is done in many parts. But politics is essential to society and to building a better world. Recognizing all people as family and seeking social friendship is not a utopian ideal, “it demands decisive commitment to devising effective means to this end” (FT#180). This is a work of charity; politics is in fact, “a lofty vocation and one of the highest forms of charity, inasmuch as it seeks the common good” (FT#180).

Putting Jesus’ command of love of neighbour into action is itself a political act. Love of neighbour does not stop with those who are close to us but extends to macro relationships which are social, economic and political. Every action inspired by the Church’s social teaching is an act of charity that seeks to build a better world. We are fully human when we form part of a society but in the collective, the individual is valuable. Therefore, growth, development and progress cannot be individual feats but have to be communitarian. Business today is focused on the individual but a healthy politics will ensure that it does not restrict itself to the individual but rather extend to the whole community.

There is a form of love that is elicited, that is, actions which flow out of a deep love for people. There is another form of love which is commanded, that is, actions which “spur people to create more sound institutions, more just regulations, more supportive structures” (FT#186). This latter form of love encourages social friendship because it cannot see others suffer, deprived or exploited.

A simple act of charity can give a hungry person something to eat but a politician through a higher form of charity can create an opportunity for that person to earn their food. Such a form of charity ought to be the spiritual heart of politics. It has a preferential love for those in greatest need. Education has a role to play in helping each person shape their own future. Politicians need to take account and act against those things which threaten the fundamental human rights. They have to be men and women of vision whose concern is not about winning elections but finding solutions to the various challenges that hinder the common good.

We are still far from a globalization of the most basic of human rights: food! Politics needs to make the elimination of hunger a top priority. The huge amounts of wasted food speak of a crime against humanity. Another shameful practice is human trafficking. Politicians would do better to waste less time on speeches and give more time to eradicating these miseries (FT#189).

Political charity is expressed in a spirit of openness. Politicians ought to foster encounter and consensus on important issues. They should be ready to listen to alternative points of view and thus make room for different voices and opinions. In a world that is rearing fundamentalism and intolerance, we can make a difference by being respectful of others, welcoming differences, giving importance to the dignity of people over ideas and projects. Disagreements can lead to conflict but they are necessary for healthy societies; uniformity only leads to stagnation.

Politicians need to beware of the modern tendency to functionalize the satisfaction of human desires. Instead of viewing people as persons with an identity and interests, they are seen as sick and in need of medical attention, struggling and in need of financial backing, homeless and in need of a home or frustrated and in need of entertainment. We have to be aware that persons are persons at the end of the day and not mere beneficiaries.

Political love is also a tender love. Tenderness means being close to someone. This is a path for the strongest and most courageous. The ability to be tender to the most needy and oppressed is challenging but necessary and fulfilling. Political life cannot only be about achieving great results that is not possible all the time. It has to be about respecting people for who they are and giving them an opportunity to fulfil their potential. One might not achieve great things in a political career but every act of love is not lost to the universe, it remains in the world as a vital force (FT#195). For this reason, it is noble to place hope in the hidden power of the seeds of goodness that we sow. This makes starting new initiatives for a better future meaningful.

When we approach politics in this way we will see it as something noble. The focus needs to shift from media posturing and marketing oneself to focusing on how much love one has shown through one’s work.

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