Catholic Social Teaching and United States Welfare Reform [Paperback]

Thomas Massaro (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: May 1998

The passage of welfare reform lesiglation in 1996 has prompted the need for an evaluation of ethics in American social policy. "Catholic Social Teaching And United States Welfare Reform" examines how Catholic social teaching may be used as a resource for that evaluation, now and in the future. This is an informative book for anyone concerned with welfare reform or the place of faith in political action.

Product Details

• Paperback: 276 pages
• Publisher: Liturgical Pr (May 1998)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0814659276
• ISBN-13: 978-0814659274
• Product Dimensions: 8.8 x 6 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.1 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #4,301,199 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Father Thomas Massaro is a Jesuit priest of the New England Province who is professor of moral theology at Boston College. He holds a doctorate from Emory University in Christian social ethics, three masters degrees in philosophy and theology, and a bachelors degree from Amherst College. He taught for eleven years at Weston Jesuit School of Theology in Cambridge before coming to Boston College in 2008. His work in Christian social ethics draws upon wide-ranging studies in political science, economics, philosophy and theology. Among the topics his books, articles and lectures have addressed in recent years are welfare reform, globalization, peacemaking, environmental concern, and the ethics of voting and patriotism. He enjoys speaking at academic conferences, diocesan workshops and parish settings on topics of social justice and civic responsibility.

Fr. Massaro's teaching interests include Catholic social ethics, theories of economic justice, sociology of religion and the history of Christian political thought. His research focuses on how Catholic social teaching can contribute to a constructive consensus on responsible public policies.

Besides writing and teaching courses on Catholic social teaching, religion in public life and ethical dimensions of the economy, Father Massaro seeks to maintain a commitment to hand-on social activism. He recently completed a term on the Peace Commission of the City of Cambridge and is a founding member of the steering committee of Catholic Scholars for Worker Justice.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Highly readable study of Christian ethics and public policy, April 20, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Catholic Social Teaching and United States Welfare Reform (Paperback)

Father Massaro is a professor of ethics at a Jesuit theological school, and shows full command of his subject. Better yet, his writing style is very clear and accessible to the average reader. When it becomes necessary to use specialized theological or philosophical terminology, he is always careful to give the reader a lucid explanation. Moreover, in the course of his career he has had a great deal of exposure to other Christian denominations (his Ph.D in ethics is from Emory, a Methodist university, and the Jesuit institution at which he currently teaches shares facilities with an Episcopal divinity school). This also shows in his writing. He writes for an audience that may not be familiar with the basic premises behind Roman Catholic social teaching.

Massaro does a masterful job of outlining his church's position. At its most basic level, it is what Christians of all stripes believe: that they must love their neighbor, in part through sharing their wordly possessions with those less fortunate than they. Exactly how one is to obey this stricture is where the real debate begins.

Advocates of welfare reform stress the need to foster a sense of responsibility among recipients by setting time limits and instituting work requirements. In their view, welfare is to be a temporary emergency measure, not a long-term way of life. While Massaro finds this to be a laudable goal in theory, he is worried that, in reality, people who are really unable to fend for themselves (especially children) are being shunted aside by society. Thus, he is a stern critic of current policy.

This is a well-researched book, with a great deal of statistical citations. Nonetheless, in advocating a more welfarist, European model for the U.S. economy, he ignores some of its key deficiencies, such as the disincentives it gives people to seek employment and companies to expand their payrolls.

But then, this book is useful in sparking debate. Even if you disagree with the author's prescriptions, he does an excellent job of getting you thinking.