November 13, 2010. The Pontifical Council for Justice and Peace has  analyzed during its Plenary Assembly, the world's reception of Benedict XVI's latest encyclical, “Caritas in Veritate." Participants say the most influential groups in society have welcomed the encyclical, even though they do not support all its points.

According to the director of the financing for development office in the UN, Oscar de Rojas, some sectors in the U.S. and Latin America didn't accept the Pope's questioning of the market system. Because of this, some parts of the  encyclical were rejected.

Óscar de Rojas
Director of the financing for development office in the UN
“There are parts of the encyclical, especially on the second part, that talk about economics issues.  Issues, for example the phenomenon of globalization, what does it mean for justice, is the market system working in a way that promotes justice, that promotes the common good.”

In the encyclical, Benedict XVI denounces the market as the engine of society and advocates a humanistic perspective of market, economics and finance to overcome the current economic crisis.

Another view comes from Janne Haaland Matlary, she notes that in Europe the banking and financial sector does not accept this economic proposal given by the Pope because more would be weighed on ethics than on profit.  

Janne Haaland Matlary
University of Oslo
“It came at the time when the financial crisis is evolving, but it is hard to communicate about the ethical implications of the financial system so I think the reception depends for image on people willing to look at ethics as a key problem.”

However, in other areas like the Middle East, the problem is that the encyclical has not spread.   

S.B. Michel Sabbah
Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem
“The Churches in the region are the ones who should present the encyclical. So far this has not been done. Local churches must respond and present the full potential of the encyclical to the whole society in the Middle East."

So one of the goals the Pontifical Council has set for the coming years is to explain this encyclical to the sectors with capacity to make better decisions for a more just and equal economy.

PVB/AE
FF
JM
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