Calling out evil for what it is… (Part 2)

When we apply the concept of evil to social policy things can become a bit murky. It is not easy to categorize all social policy into good and evil. Most social policy is neutral, simply a way of dealing with certain problems. Even social policy that is primarily good can have negative elements. Social policy that is fundamentally evil in its intention and consequences can have positive elements. The challenge is to call out the evil while pursuing the good.

I am hesitant to label anyone or any policy as evil. An attitude that rejects objective truth in favor of “my opinion” is more often the result of ignorance or narcissism than deliberate maliciousness. Yet, the harm that can come because of such cavalier rejection of truth can be just as devastating as the harm that comes from the conscious embrace of evil. Rejecting a deliberate and rational search for truth results in a high probability of accepting falsehood as the basis of social policy. Social policy based on falsehood is likely to result in wasted resources and human suffering. The least damaging result would be that the problem that the social policy is meant to address is not addressed. The most damaging result is that the situation is made irreparably worse.

Catholic social teaching provides us with several principles that we can use as a yardstick in judging the moral value (“goodness” or “badness”) of any social policy. The first of these values is honoring the dignity of the human being. The right to life is one expression of this value but not the only expression. Any policy that denigrates human beings and reduces them to objects that are used and forgotten is contrary to this fundamental value. 

Another principle is the common good. All social policy should seek the common good, that is what promotes the well-being and fulfillment of the entire community, not just the wealthy or powerful. Part of seeking the common good is accepting the responsibility of good stewardship. We have received the heritage of a rich history and a beautiful natural environment and must act to pass those resources on to future generations.

Social policy deals with the laws that undergird our society and can have a tremendous impact on how we live our lives. Good social policy can benefit billions of people, while bad social policy can do irreparable harm to just as many people. Of course, this assumes that there is such a thing as truth, good and evil. It also assumes that the best tool for discovering the truth of a social policy is honest debate. Reliance on rhetoric assumes that there is no such thing as objective truth and thus no such thing as good and evil. There is my opinion and everyone else’s opinion.  My opinion matters and rhetoric is used to get you and everyone else to agree with me.

One hundred years ago World War I had just ended, and people were suffering through the aftermath of that war. The world had been turned upside down in particular for the people of Germany. They had a strong economy prior to the war, had been the center of European culture for centuries and leaders in the scientific revolution that was transforming the world. Yet, they lost the war and the other nations of Europe were exacting a steep price from them both economically and in terms of their pride as a nation and a culture. Amid this pain and chaos, a voice called out. That voice named the pain that the German people were suffering. That voice spoke of pride and hope. That voice reminded the German people of their long heritage of greatness. That voice touched the hearts of many Germans. That voice belonged to Adolph Hitler. It was the social policy embraced by Hitler that was the problem.  His social policy brought division to the community and scapegoated the weakest and most vulnerable in the community as the source of the suffering being endured. His rhetoric and related social policy eventually resulted in the Holocaust and the devastation of World War II. This didn’t happen all at once but little by little social policies that violated Christian values and Catholic social teaching became the accepted norm. As divisive rhetoric became the basis for social policy, evil became normalized and one of the greatest nations in the history of human events became a satanic nightmare.

All of this places a very serious and heavy burden on government, church and civic leaders to seek the truth; to reach a consensus on social policy through honest and responsible debate and to avoid the manipulative use of rhetoric that inflames emotions, divides communities and merely attempts to persuade others to accept my opinion.  It also places a similar burden on the average person to call out those who reject honest debate and truth seeking, to identify social policy that violates basic human and Christian values and to oppose such social policy. Otherwise, there is a real and present danger that we are complicit in the embrace of evil.

As a brief epilogue to this reflection, I want to add that I am not targeting one party or one politician or another. Resort to rhetoric over truth seeking and honest debate is found in both major US political parties and in other nations throughout the world.  There are social policies advocated by different politicians and major parties that clearly violate the dignity and right to life of all human beings, as well as undermine the common good. As Catholics and disciples of Jesus Christ, our challenge is to always seek the truth with the gifts God has given us (reason, critical analysis, debate, and our Faith) and to call out and oppose evil when we encounter it.