Legatus, an international organization of Catholic business professionals, is celebrating its 25th year of existence. The mission of Legatus is to help its members and spouses live out their Catholic faith and to spread that faith “through good works, good ideas, and high ethical standards.”
The current issue of Legatus magazine features an article by the Acton Institute’s Michael Matheson Miller, research fellow and director of Acton media. Entitled ‘Poverty, social justice, and the role of business’, Miller points out that business people – especially business people with well-developed faith lives – have a crucial role in alleviating poverty and creating truly just environments in which to grow businesses:
Poverty has been the norm for most people throughout history. The real question is: How do we create wealth?
That’s where businesspeople come in. Governments can help by providing clear private property rights, rule of law and justice. But they cannot create wealth. The Church is essential because it helps build a moral culture that supports strong families and vibrant communities. But the Church’s function is not to create wealth. Wealth is created through business and entrepreneurship….
I encourage you to think about how to bring your faith and business skills to bear on questions of poverty, social justice and development. It’s not easy and there isn’t single or simple solution to poverty, but the role that faithful Catholic businesspeople can play has been overlooked. It’s time to change the paradigm.
The men and women of Legatus receive professional and spiritual support in order to make a positive impact in business, community and family life. They stand poised to change the paradigm, as Miller states, in their vocations as faithful business leaders.
