This thesis synthesizes a Catholic theological understanding of work and the responsibilities of wealth. This understanding serves as the conceptual basis for understanding an emerging dimension of justice called contributive justice. Contributive justice is defined in this project as a normative theory that concerns the right and obligation of every man to contribute his efforts, resources, and talents toward his own flourishing and the flourishing of others to develop societies whose measure of justice is how they advance every member’s ability to contribute and flourish within a social framework that enables justice. Contributive justice is contemplated as a moral foundation for the renewal of the social contract, and a framework is offered for operationalization in the context of being co-workers with God.
“Justice is conscience, not a personal conscience but the conscience of the whole of humanity. Those who clearly recognize the voice of their own conscience usually recognize also the voice of justice.” – Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn from A Letter to Three Students
This project begins with a question that has haunted the author’s conscience: why do we work? For some, this question may seem nonsensical. For most, this question may never even arise, because the answer seems obvious. We work to live, or, said another way, we work to obtain the resources we need to live. On one level, this is true. However, the author believes that the answer is more complicated, because this question is really asking four questions: (1) who are we, (2) what is work, (3) what is the purpose of our work, and (4) what is the purpose of the wealth generated by our work?
At its core, the question of why we work challenges us to commit to an understanding of who we are as humans, as unique individuals, and as members of families and communities. Arguably, the resources needed to address this question span many disciplines. Rather than narrow the scope of the question, the author has taken the approach of identifying the human values inherent in the question. This thesis is designed to build upon the key human values at the core of the question to develop new scholarly insights derived from diverse disciplines. This is the work of the discipline of Liberal Studies.
It could be argued that there are many human values involved in the question of why we work, such as commitment, prudence, diligence, excellence, creativity, and many others. The author will make the argument that the most fundamental human value at the center of the question of why we work is the value of contribution. This is because without contribution, none of the other values have a chance to percolate and mature. At its essence, to work is to make a personal contribution. However, to contribute, one must be able to contribute, and at the heart of this issue is the value of justice. This project explores the core values of contribution and justice, and it links them to the corresponding aspirational value of human flourishing.
