Rimettere al centro i salari: l’economia di Bernard Lonergan S.J.

Abstract

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.