The consumer has power.  How many of us believe that, and how many of us behave as though we have power? 

Many consumers feel that they are at the mercy of businesses and their managers and they have to accept what is presented to them for purchase.  But the Social Doctrine of the Church tells us differently.

 “Consumers, who in many cases have a broad range of buying power well above the mere subsistence level, exercise significant influence over economic realities by their free decisions regarding whether to put their money into consumer goods or savings.  In fact, the possibility to influence the choices made within the economic sector is in the hands of those who must decide where to place their financial resources.”

The Consumer has power; he/she makes the decision and therefore is able to have significant influence over what happens in the market place.  Further, the statement by the Church highlights the issue of savings, and the need for decisions to be made between spending on consumer goods and putting aside money/resources for savings. 

“Today more than in the past it is possible to evaluate the available options not only on the basis of the expected return and the relative risk but also by making a value judgment of the investment projects that those resources would finance, in the awareness that “the decision to invest in one place rather than another, in one productive sector rather than another, is always a moral and cultural choice.”

The Social Doctrine of the Church indicates that this is always a moral or cultural choice.  How is this so?  Modern society has valued consumerism highly.  There is a chronic purchasing of new goods and services, with little attention to their true need, durability, product origin or the environmental consequences of manufacture and disposal. 

Consumerism is driven by huge sums spent on advertising designed to create both a desire to follow trends, and the resultant personal self-reward system based on acquisition.  Materialism is one of the end results of consumerism. 

Many people shop without much thought of environmental preservation, working conditions of those involved in production; or even lack of basic consideration – is the item needed, can it be done without.

 This is not however to suggest that persons cannot treat themselves to something nice even if it is not needed.  This may indeed be necessary for social and mental well being. 

Consumerism can interfere with the workings of society by replacing the normal common-sense desire for an adequate supply of life's necessities, community life, a stable family and healthy relationships with an artificial ongoing and insatiable quest for things and the money to buy them with little regard for the true utility of what is bought.

“Purchasing power must be used in the context of the moral demands of justice and solidarity, and in that of precise social responsibilities.  One must never forget “the duty of charity…, that is, the duty to give from one’s abundance, and sometimes even out of one’s needs, in order to provide what is essential for the life of a poor person. 

This responsibility gives to consumers the possibility, thanks to the wider circulation of information, of directing the behaviour of producers, through preferences – individual and collective – given to the products of certain companies rather than to those of others, taking into account not only the price and quality of what is being purchased but also the presence of correct working conditions in the company as well as the level of protection of the natural environment in which it operates.”

 The consumer therefore has power; he/she makes the decision and therefore is able to have significant influence over what happens.  The consumer must ensure that they exercise this power.  This could result in significant reforms in the business place to ensure social justice, if this duty were taken seriously. 

“The phenomenon of consumerism maintains a persistent orientation towards “having” rather than “being”.  This confuses the “criteria for correctly distinguishing new and higher forms of satisfying human needs from artificial new needs which hinder the formation of a mature personality.” 

To counteract this phenomenon it is necessary to create “life-styles in which the quest for truth, beauty, goodness and communion with others for the sake of common growth are the factors which determine consumer choices, savings and investments.”

 It is undeniable that ways of life are significantly influenced by different social contexts, for this reason the cultural challenge that consumerism poses today must be met with greater resolve, above all in consideration of future generations, who risk having to live in a natural environment that has been pillaged by an excessive and disordered consumerism.”

Next week we look at the opportunities and risks of globalisation. 
For persons interested in purchasing the Compendium of the Social Doctrine of the Church, please contact the Justice Desk, Archbishop’s House at 622-6680.