While not uncritical of aspects of modern capitalism, John Paul II's 1991 social encyclical, Centesimus Annus, directed official Catholic teaching towards more explicit affirmation of the moral potential of free markets, exchange and enterprise. Analysis of the pre-pontifical writings of Pope...

The ethical dimension of market solutions to problems is often neglected by their proponents. This article examines the market from the standpoint of orthodox Roman Catholic moral theology. It illustrates how Catholic theologians have contributed to thinking about the market, draws attention to...