On Tuesday, November 28 at 7 p.m. US Central Time, Deacon Christopher May will be leading a session on The Universal Destination of Goods, live on Zoom.
Our prevailing economic order assumes that ownership of property implies the right to almost any arbitrary use, or non-use, of that property. However, the Catholic tradition teaches that ownership of property necessitates the use of that property for the common good. Christian tradition has never recognized the right to private property as absolute and untouchable. Rather, the right to private property is secondary to, and at the service of, the right of all people to have access to the level of well-being that is necessary for their full development. The right to private property is subordinated to the right to common use, to the fact that goods are meant for everyone.
We will examine the history of the Universal Destination of Goods starting with the Mosaic Law, through the Christian New Testament, the Church Fathers, and finally modern Catholic Social Teaching.