Luxury. The word alone conjures up visions of visions of attractive, desirable lifestyle choices, yet it also faces criticism as a moral vice harmful to both the self and society. Engaging with ideas from business, marketing, and economics, The Vice of Luxury takes on the challenging task of naming how much is too much in today's consumer-oriented society. David Cloutier's critique goes to the heart of a fundamental contradiction. Though overconsumption and materialism make us uneasy, they also seem inevitable in advanced economies. Current studies of economic ethics focus on the structural problems of poverty, of international trade, of workers' rights -- but rarely, if ever, do such studies speak directly to the excesses of the wealthy, including the middle classes of advanced economies. Cloutier proposes a new approach to economic ethics that focuses attention on our everyday economic choices. He shows why luxury is a problem, explains how to identify what counts as the vice of luxury today, and develops an ethic of consumption that is grounded in Christian moral convictions.

Business Ethics and Catholic Social Thought provides a new and wide-ranging account of these two ostensibly divergent fields. Focusing on the agency of the business person and the interests of firms, this volume outlines fundamental issues confronting moral leaders and corporations committed to responsible business practices.

The growing shift in Catholic moral theology from reflecting on rules alone to focusing on the identity and formation of persons as moral agents prompts a further question: What impact do recent changes in the identity and formation of Catholic moral theologians themselves have on how that discipline is practiced? Young Catholic moral theologians experience a sharply different professional formation and a changed location of ongoing professional life than prior generations of moral theologians. How do these differences influence the field of moral theology as a whole? New Wine, New Wineskins: A Next Generation Reflects on Key Issues in Catholic Moral Theology addresses these questions and more by offering a snapshot of how a new generation of Catholic moral theologians understands not only topics in the field, but the effects of their own identity and formation on their treatment of those topics. The distinctive contribution of this volume is the interweaving of three key concerns, all of which arise out of a critical self-reflection on the task of moral theology today: the character and adequacy of training and ongoing formation in the field of Catholic moral theology, the purpose and nature of teaching Catholic moral theology, and the fittingness of methodological debates with regard to the needs of the Christian life. Each essay makes a contribution to its specific area of interest-ranging from economic ethics, to Patristic rhetoric, to the nature and development of practical reasoning-while probing what exactly young Catholic moral theologians are doing, and how they can do what they do better.

During his papacy, Pope Benedict XVI was called 'the green pope' because of his ecological commitments in his writings, statements, and practical initiatives. Containing twelve essays by lay, ordained, and religious Catholic theologians and scholars, along with a presentation and a homily by bishops, Environmental Justice and Climate Change: Assessing Pope Benedict XVI's Ecological Vision for the Catholic Church in the United States explores four key areas in connection with Benedict XVI's teachings: human and natural ecology/human life and dignity; solidarity, justice, poverty and the common good; sacramentality of creation; and our Catholic faith in action. The product of mutual collaboration by bishops, scholars and staff, this anthology provides the most thorough treatment of Benedict XVI's contributions to ecological teaching and offers fruitful directions for advancing concern among Catholics in the United States about ongoing threats to the integrity of Earth.

Christian ethics has addressed moral agency and culture from the start, and Christian social ethics increasingly acknowledges the power of social structures. However, neither has made sufficient use of the discipline that specializes in understanding structures and culture: sociology. In Moral Agency within Social Structures and Culture, editor and contributor Daniel K. Finn proposes a field-changing critical realist sociology that puts Christian ethics into conversation with modern discourses on human agency and social transformation. Catholic social teaching mischaracterizes social evil as being little more than the sum of individual choices, remedied through individual conversion. Liberation theology points to the power of social structures but without specifying how structures affect moral agency. Critical realist sociology provides a solution to both shortcomings. This collection shows how sociological insights can deepen and extend Catholic social thought by enabling ethicists to analyze more precisely how structures and culture impact human decisions. The book demonstrates how this sociological framework has applications for the study of the ecological crisis, economic life, and virtue ethics. Moral Agency within Social Structures and Culture is a valuable tool for Christian ethicists who seek systemic change in accord with the Gospel.

Business Ethics and Catholic Social Thought provides a new and wide-ranging account of these two ostensibly divergent fields. Focusing on the agency of the business person and the interests of firms, this volume outlines fundamental issues confronting moral leaders and corporations committed to responsible business practices.

Christian ethics has addressed moral agency and culture from the start, and Christian social ethics increasingly acknowledges the power of social structures. However, neither has made sufficient use of the discipline that specializes in understanding structures and culture: sociology. In Moral Agency within Social Structures and Culture, editor and contributor Daniel K. Finn proposes a field-changing critical realist sociology that puts Christian ethics into conversation with modern discourses on human agency and social transformation. Catholic social teaching mischaracterizes social evil as being little more than the sum of individual choices, remedied through individual conversion. Liberation theology points to the power of social structures but without specifying how structures affect moral agency. Critical realist sociology provides a solution to both shortcomings. This collection shows how sociological insights can deepen and extend Catholic social thought by enabling ethicists to analyze more precisely how structures and culture impact human decisions. The book demonstrates how this sociological framework has applications for the study of the ecological crisis, economic life, and virtue ethics. Moral Agency within Social Structures and Culture is a valuable tool for Christian ethicists who seek systemic change in accord with the Gospel.

Luxury. The word alone conjures up visions of visions of attractive, desirable lifestyle choices, yet it also faces criticism as a moral vice harmful to both the self and society. Engaging with ideas from business, marketing, and economics, The Vice of Luxury takes on the challenging task of naming how much is too much in today's consumer-oriented society. David Cloutier's critique goes to the heart of a fundamental contradiction. Though overconsumption and materialism make us uneasy, they also seem inevitable in advanced economies. Current studies of economic ethics focus on the structural problems of poverty, of international trade, of workers' rights -- but rarely, if ever, do such studies speak directly to the excesses of the wealthy, including the middle classes of advanced economies. Cloutier proposes a new approach to economic ethics that focuses attention on our everyday economic choices. He shows why luxury is a problem, explains how to identify what counts as the vice of luxury today, and develops an ethic of consumption that is grounded in Christian moral convictions.

Once again, Pope Francis has set the pundits, news outlets, and politicians buzzing, this time with an historic encyclical letter on care for the environment called Laudato Si: On Care for our Common Home. As an alternative to all the noise and bloviating, the faithful and the curious alike will welcome this reliable, serene, and inspiring companion to the document. David Cloutier's Reading, Praying, Living Pope Francis's Laudato Si is an ideal guide for parish adult faith formation, RCIA, college and high school campus ministry, and individual study. Preachers and teachers, too, will welcome Cloutier's consistently clear and engaging writing, free of academic jargon and Catholic code words. With Cloutier as a guide, readers will understand better and respond more effectively to the profound spirituality, the solid doctrinal principles, and the stirring call to action that Pope Francis offers in Laudato Si.

How does the Catholic tradition understand the significance of the environment, and what are the implications for our daily lives? In "Walking God's Earth," David Cloutier provides a concise, accessible, and spiritually engaging introduction to these questions. Cloutier emphasizes the importance of "finding our place" within God's created order, showing how spiritual experiences and scriptural narratives guide us to a humble and realistic perspective, one that often clashes with the presumptions of society. In its focus on practical ways of living out this message, the book identifies key areas--food, fuel, dwelling places, work, and leisure--where Catholics can bring their faith convictions into daily living.We are called to handle the things of God's creation in holy, sacramental ways, as an essential part of our vocation to live out our faith. "Walking God's Earth" emphasizes the importance of connecting both spiritually and morally, our environmental lives with the basics of our faith in hope that God's desire for "the renewal of the earth" may be realized in our own desires and in the practices of our communities.

Description: SINCE 2002, THE SYMPOSIUM NEW WINE, NEW WINESKINS HAS OFFERED AN OPPORTUNITY for young Catholic moral theologians to engage in shared work and conversation. Here, the fruits of these labors are gathered into one collection, which represents the wide scope of the future of Catholic sexual ethics. This volume offers the rst collection of a new generation's approaches to Catholic sexual ethics. The collection displays young scholars with diverse views, yet whose work moves beyond the impasses that have beset the eld. The volume offers original and engaging essays on a variety of topics, from the hook-up culture and dating violence, to cohabitation and homosexuality, to contraception and natural family planning, to the promises and pitfalls of ""the theology of the body."" The authors display a fresh engagement with these issues in conversation with the Christian tradition and with contemporary culture. David Cloutier provides an introduction that locates this work within the past decades of Catholic scholarship, and articulates new categories for future work. The essays also offer practical insights and models that will interest pastors and lay ministers, as well as scholars. Endorsements: ""In this excellent collection of essays on sexuality and marriage, we see emerging theological voices effectively move beyond the impasse of a previous generation. These authors both acknowledge the deep in uence of contemporary culture on Christian understandings of sex and marriage, and critically respond with a surprisingly sophisticated set of theological resources. Alternatively fascinating and disconcerting, this collection has a real chance to seriously engage a 'hooked up' and 'porni ed' undergraduate culture. An excellent resource for teaching."" --JOHN BERKMAN, Associate Professor of Moral Theology, Regis College, University of Toronto ""Leaving and Coming Home is a breath of fresh air in Catholic moral thinking about sexuality. The authors take the warring personalisms of decades past and present and nest them in the setting of 'home.' The resulting essays, suitable for use in both undergraduate and graduate moral theology courses, offer refreshing takes on hard questions."" --WILLIAM L. PORTIER, Mary Ann Spearin Chair of Catholic Theology, University of Dayton ""By countering the trivialization, as well as overly glori ed accounts, of sex and marriage, the authors of Leaving and Coming Home convincingly argue that any Christian understanding of sexuality and marriage must be incorporated into a theology of discipleship and connected to the practices of the Christian life. Challenging and engaging, each of the essays offers a liberating alternative to contemporary notions of sex and marriage by demonstrating that the fundamental purpose of both is to deepen our ability to love God and neighbor."" --PAUL J. WADELL, Professor of Religious Studies, St. Norbert College, De Pere, Wisconsin ""Leaving and Coming Home offers wide-ranging treatments and fresh perspectives on issues in sexual ethics, both new and old. The blend of voices from different points on the theological spectrum is harmonized in a shared attention to practices--understood not just as sociological descriptions of human behaviors, but as productive of virtue and vice within persons and communities. An excellent addition to college or introductory graduate courses on marriage or sexual ethics."" --JOHN S. GRABOWSKI, Associate Professor of Moral Theology/Ethics, The School of Theology and Religious Studies, The Catholic University of America About the Contributor(s): David Cloutier is Associate Professor of Theology at Mount St. Mary's University in Emmitsburg, MD. He is the author of Love, Reason, and God's Story: An Introduction to Catholic Sexual Ethics (2008), as well as a number of articles and book chapters on sexual ethics and moral theology.