Rimettere al centro i salari: l’economia di Bernard Lonergan S.J.
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.13133/2037-3651_71.283_4Keywords:
income distribution and growth, history of economic thought, economics and ethicsAbstract
Bernard Lonergan (1904-1984) fu un grande teologo che si occupò anche di economia allo scopo di ricavare principi morali dalle sue meccaniche. Il suo contributo in questo campo resta tuttavia oscuro nonostante molte presentazioni, rimaste su un terreno prevalentemente celebrativo. In questo articolo, sintesi di un più ampio lavoro, si sottolinea l’affinità di tale contributo con analisi neokeynesiane, e se ne dà un’applicazione con al centro il nesso tra distribuzione del reddito e crescita. Il pensiero economico del teologo, elaborato negli anni ’40 e ripreso nei ’70 del secolo scorso, è così utile anche in epoca di globalizzazione. La sua riscoperta potrebbe collocarlo tra le voci controcorrente che oggi per i paesi avanzati prospettano una ‘via alta’ allo sviluppo nonostante la concorrenza dei paesi emergenti.
Bernard Lonergan (1904-1984) was a great theologian who also dealt with economics in order to derive moral principles from his mechanics. His contribution in this field, however, remains obscure despite many presentations, which remained on a predominantly celebratory ground. In this article, a summary of a broader work, the affinity of this contribution with new Keynesian analysis is underlined. We present an application based on the link between income distribution and growth. The theologian’s economic thought, elaborated in the ‘40s and resumed in the ‘70s of last century, is thus useful even in the age of globalization. Its rediscovery could place it among the nonconformist voices that today envisage a ‘high road’ to development for the advanced countries despite the competition from emerging ones.
JEL codes: O11, B22, Z1
Keywords: income distribution and growth, history of economic thought, economics and ethics
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