Christian praxis economic justice

Abstract

The major aim of this thesis is to formulate the principles of economic justice and propose a just economic system which would critically guide Christian praxis in a secular pluralist society in general and Korea in particular. It is done through a critical dialogue with major Western and Latin American theologians and thinkers. First we have a brief historical overview of the socio-political condition in Korea and the Korean Protestant Church's response to show the importance of the question of economic justice for Korean Christians and the impasse in which they find themselves (Chapter 1). Our critical dialogue with the Western and Latin American thinkers starts with the consideration of the most fundamental issue of theological method (chapter 2). We establish our own theological method which involves the reciprocal relationship between theory and praxis at all levels of enquiry and the reciprocal interactions between philosophical, socio-analytic and hermeneutic mediations. After establishing the legitimacy of the notion of economic justice (chapter 3), we formulate our own principles of economic justice employing the philosophical method of hypothetical reflective equilibrium (chapter 4). We then propose democratic communitarianism as an alternative just economic system through a critical appropriation of the Marxist theory of exploitation and capitalist mainstream economics (chapter 5). We then elaborate theological views of the person, society (chapter 6) and the principles of economic justice underpinning the preceding discussions (chapter 7). Finally we return to our own context, Korea, to show the relevance of democratic communitarianism and its corresponding principles of economic justice (chapter 8).