CATHOLIC SOCIAL DOCTRINE APPLIES TO DIOCESAN ADMINISTRATION AS WELL

According to William Bowman, dean of Catholic University of America’s Busch School of Business, the Catholic Church’s social doctrine rests on four pillars: solidarity, subsidiarity, the dignity of the human person and the care of the common good.

A number of privately owned companies, he said, are living those principles in their business “day in and day out” without necessarily realizing that they have made Catholic social teaching part of their practices.

These practices include “incredible subsidiarity” with employees, by giving them a lot of discretion to exercise responsibility and initiative.

Other companies exemplify Catholic social teaching, Bowman said, by supporting a strong culture of solidarity linked with subsidiarity, where helping each other do better — like one plant team helping another team become more efficient on the line — means the company does better.

Bowman said, generally, large, publicly held companies have a “much tougher” time implementing the business practices Catholic social doctrine calls for because their boards base their decisions on strict metrics for return on investment.   “That in itself is a minor violation of Catholic social teaching, because the person is the purpose of the business, and not the dollar, and that has to be reflected in how the company operates,” he said.

If Dean Bowman is correct, one must wonder why these same Catholic social principles are not ingrained into the corporate structure of dioceses not only in America but around the globe.

One need only consider the clear lack of solidarity and subsidiarity which characterizes much of the administrative decisions and communications between Bishops and their Pastors.   Working with the local Bishop often means accepting whatever initiative or directive the Bishop has initiated most often without meaningful and real consultation with local Pastors.

Guidelines and procedures are often established by consultors close to the Bishop or his surrogates, people who have little practical knowledge or experience of the exigencies of parish administration.

And, deadly to almost any collegial endeavor, advancement is often based upon one’s closeness to the inner circle of administration rather than proven ability and competence. 

Dean Bowman has highlighted how Catholic social doctrine can be of tremendous benefit in the marketplace.  Perhaps, he needs now to turn his gaze upon diocesan administration and suggest ways Bishops can implement these same principles in their local churches.