Question

Need a summary of Franciscan theological view of politics and economics

Answer 1

Saint Francis of Assisi founded the Franciscan Orders. The 'Orders' contained several groups. The Franciscans were the disciples of Saint Francis. They practiced his doctrines. The Franciscans belonged to the 'First Order' and were also called as the 'Friars MInor' or the 'Little Brothers.' They subsisted on the alms and charity. They had no source of income and did not own any property. They devoted their whole life for holy work and followed Saint Francis on the path of poverty. The Franciscan theological view of politics and economics is in fact the view of Saint Francis and also, some of the views of other saints, which the Franciscans added later.

The Franciscans view of politics was not the contemporary view of politics. They did not indulge in politics. Their way of life of practicing poverty did not have any political connotation. Instead, they had a very religious and spiritual outlook towards life. The Franciscans preached 'frugality' in life, which was beneficial to a person's physical and mental health. They did not crave power or any materialistic gains. In fact, they were so far from politics, that the Pope acknowledge and recognized their ideology because they did not appear as a threat to any authority.

Poverty is a universal problem and is not deliberately chosen by anyone. But for some people it is their path of life. The Franciscan theological approach to economics was the opposite of what economics means in today's world. The Franciscans believed that 'Economics' should be related to the satisfaction of basic human wants. In their opinion, money was not a criteria in Economics. The Franciscans regarded money and materialism with contempt.. Taking advantage and destroying nature for materialistic purposes was abhorred. They believed that desiring more than the basic needs like food, shelter and clothes led to deterioration of health. According to them the economic activities were just meant to fulfill man's basic needs through the cooperation with other people. The moderation in satisfying the wants led to good health and contentment for everyone. They opined that the community also should produce only that quantity of goods which were required to fulfill the needs of that particular community. The over production for exporting the goods led to a burden on the local ecology. Thus, prudence in using the natural resources and moderation in satisfaction of wants would lead to an economy which was self-reliant. According to the Franciscan theological view of economics, a community should flourish with the good health of its members, a feeling of brotherhood and a rich religious way of life.