Derrick Ting Barria

Abstract

Pope John Paul II affirms that the purpose of a business firm is not simply to make a profit, but is to be found in its very existence as a community of persons. While many of the manuals, essays, and manuscripts on the social doctrine of the Church do speak of business as a community of persons, this is done merely in passing or as a subsection, and not as a starting point or the conclusion of a developed treatise. Given the centrality of the person in the business enterprise, a new theory that satisfies both the technical and human requirements of the business firm is needed. This article offers a framework for discussion and a deeper reflection of what the business enterprise ought to be, as seen from the perspective of Pope John Paul II in his encyclical letter “On the Hundredth Anniversary of Rerum Novarum” (Centesimus annus). °

Keywords: Business, Theology, Economics