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Social Justice Isn't What You Think It Is
Paul Adams and Michael Novak see that “social justice” is neither an ideology nor a synonym for “progressive” programs and policies. Rather, it is social virtue, in two senses. First, it inheres in free persons who have learned the skills of association with others; second, they practice these skills to build up the common good – locally, nationally, globally. This analysis cuts deeper than libertarianism and most North American liberalism. Novak shows how “social justice” was originally invented as an alternative to unchecked state power, and considers such diverse figures as Rosmini, Taparelli d’Azeglio, Abraham Lincoln, Popes Leo XIII, Pius XI, John Paul II, Benedict XVI, and Francis, and other contributors to the argument such as Friedrich Hayek and Alexis de Tocqueville. Adams shows how widely “social justice” is now used in many branches of social work, and how its recent best practices require and build personal virtues of responsibility, initiative, and cooperation with others.
324 pages, Hardcover
First published November 3, 2015
34 people are currently reading
216 people want to read
About the author
Michael Novak
195 books35 followersMichael Novak is an American Catholic philosopher, journalist, novelist, and diplomat. He is George Frederick Jewett Scholar in Religion, Philosophy, and Public Policy at the American Enterprise Institute
Novak served as United States Ambassador to the United Nations Commission on Human Rights in 1981 and 1982 and led the U.S. delegation to the Conference on Security and Cooperation in Europe in 1986.
In 1993 Novak was honored with an honorary doctorate degree at Universidad Francisco Marroquín] due to his commitment to the idea of liberty. In 1994 he was awarded the Templeton Prize for Progress in Religion.
Novak served as United States Ambassador to the United Nations Commission on Human Rights in 1981 and 1982 and led the U.S. delegation to the Conference on Security and Cooperation in Europe in 1986.
In 1993 Novak was honored with an honorary doctorate degree at Universidad Francisco Marroquín] due to his commitment to the idea of liberty. In 1994 he was awarded the Templeton Prize for Progress in Religion.
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November 27, 2015A few years ago, the Catholic public intellectual Michael Novak traveled to Poland to receive an award for his role in supporting the Solidarity movement of the 1980s. Standing with the Polish president on a thoroughfare across from the U.S. Embassy, he lit a candle in front of a bronze statue of Ronald Reagan. It was, as Novak describes in his newest book, a “lovely visualization” of “solidarity as an appeal for the freedom and dignity of all individuals everywhere.”
In Social Justice Isn’t What You Think It Is, Novak and co-author Paul Adams are clear from the first chapter: They want to redefine or reclaim or re-invent—I’m not sure exactly which—the concept of social justice. In their view, it should be understood as a purely individual and subjective thing—a personal “virtue” rather than an objective standard of justice in society. They want to talk about social justice, but they only want to talk about it, in Adams’s words, as a habit “internalized by individuals.”
In a way, they aren’t wrong. But they are also only half right. Their version of justice is reductionistic, which is to say that it is true in what it contains, but false and pernicious in what it ignores—and it ignores a lot. Half of the picture, to be precise. Novak and Adams end up with a truncated notion of justice that precludes them from dealing properly with their subject matter from the start.
http://www.theamericanconservative.co...
In Social Justice Isn’t What You Think It Is, Novak and co-author Paul Adams are clear from the first chapter: They want to redefine or reclaim or re-invent—I’m not sure exactly which—the concept of social justice. In their view, it should be understood as a purely individual and subjective thing—a personal “virtue” rather than an objective standard of justice in society. They want to talk about social justice, but they only want to talk about it, in Adams’s words, as a habit “internalized by individuals.”
In a way, they aren’t wrong. But they are also only half right. Their version of justice is reductionistic, which is to say that it is true in what it contains, but false and pernicious in what it ignores—and it ignores a lot. Half of the picture, to be precise. Novak and Adams end up with a truncated notion of justice that precludes them from dealing properly with their subject matter from the start.
http://www.theamericanconservative.co...
July 31, 2016
This book is a must-read for anyone interested in Catholic Social Teaching as a political platform. I'm not sure if there is a more comprehensive book on this subject.
Co-written by Michael Novak, a Catholic philosopher, and Paul Adams, a social worker; this book dives into the theory of Catholic Social Teaching, and establishes how Catholic Social Teaching works in practice.
The "theory" section, written by Novak, draws from the works of political philosophers suck as Hayek and Tocqueville, and the works of Popes Leo XIII, Pius XI, John Paul II, Benedict XVI, and Francis. Weaved together, this section highlights that proponents of large government overreach often use the term "social justice" to coerce the public into adopting their preferred methods and opinions, which is an obstacle to our God-given liberties. The popes recognize that while socialism and communism interfere with our liberties, unfettered capitalism does not provide the structure needed in order to sustain society and allow people to rise from poverty. John Paul II and Francis are especially keen to this truth, since the former witnessed the fall of the Soviet Union and played a large role in encouraging post-Soviet countries such as his native Poland to adopt a free economy that "nourishes the virtues and values on which its existence depends." Francis, having witnessed the lack of upward mobility in Argentina's form of capitalism, is a starch critic of traditional market systems that do not value innovation and free enterprise. "It takes a lot more than economic growth to make a system 'equitable.' It takes the rule of law, the protection of natural rights, and the Jewish/Christian concern for the widow, the orphan, the hungry, the sick, the imprisoned. In short, it requires effective concern for all the vulnerable and needy." Benedict XVI invokes the word "caritas" - "that outward-moving, creative love that is God" as the core of social justice.
This leads us to the role of social justice as practiced in serving the poor. The "practice" section, written by Adams, contains a quote by Archbishop Charles Chaput: "Government cannot love. It has no soul and no heart. The greatest danger of the modern secularist state is this: In the name of humanity, under the banner of serving human needs and easing human suffering, it ultimately, ironically - and too often tragically - lacks humanity." In this section, Adams argues that intervention in a needy person's life does not have to resort to dependency. "In Catholic social teaching, individualism and collectivism are seen not as alternatives but as twin evils, the one reinforcing the other as they squeeze the life out of civil society. Providing professional help to people who are poor, weak, or oppressed does not have to create dependency and weaken personal responsibility." Adams references the principle of subsidiarity, the protection of smaller groups of people assimilating for the common good, as the principle that aligns with social justice groups intervening in personal lives while empowering individuals to take control of their own lives. There is also a chapter on marriage, and how encouraging couples to marry and supporting cultural, political, and economic structures that nourish marriage in our society will help decrease the number of children who fail at school, get suspended, need psychotherapy, involve themselves with violence, smoke, and attempt suicide. This is because divorce does a significant amount of damage to children's well-being, and the normalization of divorce has not necessarily made its negative impact go away.
There is much more depth in this book than what I have just covered; I am merely communicating the parts that struck most to me personally. It was a heavy read, and I am sure that I have missed some finer details upon my first read-through. I hope to be able to visit this work again.
Co-written by Michael Novak, a Catholic philosopher, and Paul Adams, a social worker; this book dives into the theory of Catholic Social Teaching, and establishes how Catholic Social Teaching works in practice.
The "theory" section, written by Novak, draws from the works of political philosophers suck as Hayek and Tocqueville, and the works of Popes Leo XIII, Pius XI, John Paul II, Benedict XVI, and Francis. Weaved together, this section highlights that proponents of large government overreach often use the term "social justice" to coerce the public into adopting their preferred methods and opinions, which is an obstacle to our God-given liberties. The popes recognize that while socialism and communism interfere with our liberties, unfettered capitalism does not provide the structure needed in order to sustain society and allow people to rise from poverty. John Paul II and Francis are especially keen to this truth, since the former witnessed the fall of the Soviet Union and played a large role in encouraging post-Soviet countries such as his native Poland to adopt a free economy that "nourishes the virtues and values on which its existence depends." Francis, having witnessed the lack of upward mobility in Argentina's form of capitalism, is a starch critic of traditional market systems that do not value innovation and free enterprise. "It takes a lot more than economic growth to make a system 'equitable.' It takes the rule of law, the protection of natural rights, and the Jewish/Christian concern for the widow, the orphan, the hungry, the sick, the imprisoned. In short, it requires effective concern for all the vulnerable and needy." Benedict XVI invokes the word "caritas" - "that outward-moving, creative love that is God" as the core of social justice.
This leads us to the role of social justice as practiced in serving the poor. The "practice" section, written by Adams, contains a quote by Archbishop Charles Chaput: "Government cannot love. It has no soul and no heart. The greatest danger of the modern secularist state is this: In the name of humanity, under the banner of serving human needs and easing human suffering, it ultimately, ironically - and too often tragically - lacks humanity." In this section, Adams argues that intervention in a needy person's life does not have to resort to dependency. "In Catholic social teaching, individualism and collectivism are seen not as alternatives but as twin evils, the one reinforcing the other as they squeeze the life out of civil society. Providing professional help to people who are poor, weak, or oppressed does not have to create dependency and weaken personal responsibility." Adams references the principle of subsidiarity, the protection of smaller groups of people assimilating for the common good, as the principle that aligns with social justice groups intervening in personal lives while empowering individuals to take control of their own lives. There is also a chapter on marriage, and how encouraging couples to marry and supporting cultural, political, and economic structures that nourish marriage in our society will help decrease the number of children who fail at school, get suspended, need psychotherapy, involve themselves with violence, smoke, and attempt suicide. This is because divorce does a significant amount of damage to children's well-being, and the normalization of divorce has not necessarily made its negative impact go away.
There is much more depth in this book than what I have just covered; I am merely communicating the parts that struck most to me personally. It was a heavy read, and I am sure that I have missed some finer details upon my first read-through. I hope to be able to visit this work again.
July 17, 2018
Friedrich Hayek wrote that social justice is a mirage, a vacuous term. It can be used to support any government program while branding those in opposition supporter of social injustice. The authors, Michael Novak and Paul Adams, want to reclaim this word. With the support of Catholic social teachings, Papal Encyclicals (that are fascinating to revisit), and current social worker practices, beliefs, and customs, they make a compelling case that social justice is actually a virtue. And since it’s individuals who can be virtuous and non-virtuous, it’s a personal virtue and responsibility, not necessarily a societal one. Novak is a beautiful writer, one of my favorites, and the chapters from him are just excellent. Paul Adams is more practical, and from a social worker perspective, but is still quite interesting. The book did change my mind on the term, my only problem is I don’t think we will be able to ascribe the meaning the authors want to the rest of society. The term has been fully corrupted by the left, and I don’t see that changing because of Catholic thought, or this book. It’s unfortunate, but words can and do change meaning over time, and I think this is one we’ve lost. I do like the term “social charity” that they mention, among some other phrases. A very worthwhile read.
May 14, 2017
So I have some friends on the right who make the joke that liberals put their hand in someone else's pocket to help the poor but actually create programs to keep them poor. Then I have libertarian friends who say, "Help all you want, but it's not government's job." So I thought I'd do some reading on social justice. Interestingly much of the literature on the subject comes out of the church. The other source is Social Sciences. From the book: "Social Work's accrediting body holds all bachelors and masters social work programs accountable for incorporating social justice into their mission and goals for assuring that students achieve competency in this area." It's baked into the cake in college programs!
August 12, 2017
Reclaim the term. A little longer than it needed to be. And Novak part of the book was better written.
June 10, 2022
A thoughtful nuanced look at social justice, written from a socially conservative, catholic perspective.
On the one hand, the authors point out deep systematic flaws in progressive, secular approaches to social justice, bringing a historical eye to this critique.
On the other hand, they utilize Catholic doctrine and social thought to develop an approach to social justice not so much rooted in government structures but the choice and compassion of individuals.
As a confessional Presbyterian, there are some bones to spit out in this book. But this book really does get to the sweet spot on social justice where it discerns truth from error, good approaches from bad approaches, without turning into a tired, thin, oversimplified fundamentalist harangue against social justice, nor becoming a rah-rah, mindless embrace of all that is called social justice in our day.
On the one hand, the authors point out deep systematic flaws in progressive, secular approaches to social justice, bringing a historical eye to this critique.
On the other hand, they utilize Catholic doctrine and social thought to develop an approach to social justice not so much rooted in government structures but the choice and compassion of individuals.
As a confessional Presbyterian, there are some bones to spit out in this book. But this book really does get to the sweet spot on social justice where it discerns truth from error, good approaches from bad approaches, without turning into a tired, thin, oversimplified fundamentalist harangue against social justice, nor becoming a rah-rah, mindless embrace of all that is called social justice in our day.
February 14, 2021
This is a great book about a very relevant to current cultural turmoils. IMO, the second part of the book (its split between the two authors) was more engaging because it was more philosophical but much comprehend and digest mentally. The topic about the intersection of social work and charity in the second half was really compelling and eye-opening.
April 1, 2024
This is essential reading for anyone interested in understanding the social justice debate today. Highly recommended!
June 4, 2016
I have just finished the book and made my usual on page notes and highlights. Now it is time to go back for a slower reread. The basic point - social justice is not what is owed the individual. It is a personal virtue, not a natural right. It seeks that which is right for the common good, to create conditions for the flourishing of the people, including structures which promote the virtuous citizen. The way the term is often used it ends up requiring state intervention to demand of all the citizens to do what is "right" for the autonomous individual who is not seen as relationally part of the whole but simply as a bearer of rights that must be honored. This definition refuses the insight that the individual cannot flourish apart from the polis, and that virtue requires social relations. Once that is clear, the common good becomes the primary aim of action. What does the common good require? It requires that the state retreat from coming in between the individual and those associations which mean so much for character formation - family, church and all the many voluntary associations which people develop for human flourishing. The state, as the state, does not promote virtue, the very thing that is needed for social good. I will post more. The book is a convincing argument that we must push back against those who call for state intervention for the purpose of social justice, the very definition of which, employed by the state, decreases the opportunities for the common good.
July 4, 2016
This was a very dry read, but contained incredibly important insight and information. The writers' goal is to reclaim the term "social justice" for the Church. Many of us on the right look at the term social justice and see left-wing social-engineering. It's a term thrown about to get policy goals to go in their favor. However, Michael Novak and Paul Adams argue that this term's origins is in the Catholic church and, when understood accurately, is a key part of a free people.
This is one of those books I'm happy to have on my shelf; happier now that I have completed it.
This is one of those books I'm happy to have on my shelf; happier now that I have completed it.
July 12, 2016
Not sure the term social justice can be rescued from progressives, but it should be. This book gives extensive history that informs that social justice was devised by mainly Catholic thinkers who wished to benefit society. It's sadly been usurped by those who want government control and a dependent class. If enough ppl read this maybe "social justice" could be saved. But I fear the term is as lost as the "rainbow."
February 17, 2016
This book opened my eyes to a new way of defining social justice. It also gave me a much clearer view of social justice as defined in Catholicism
Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews