Romana

From the 15th to the 17th of December, fifteen professional men from various enterprises assembled at Haus Hardtberg Conference Center near Cologne to discuss practical cases regarding the Church’s social doctrine. They also received classes on the transcendent dimension of the human person, on the social nature of the human being, and on justice and solidarity. The Kompendium der Soziallehre der Kirche (“Compendium of the Social Doctrine of the Church”), which was published in German this year, was the basic text.

The participants, young men in the first years of their professional life, were eager to learn about a non-materialist vision of the human person. They came to see their work as more than a mere profession, and as contributing to the moral improvement of their fellow men and women.

The practical talks, given by experienced professionals, touched on three topics: “The temptation of corruption,” “Love for the truth in business counseling,” and “The relationship of justice to the stabilization of a company in bankruptcy.” A lively debate followed each of the talks with quite practical and personal questions.

For those attending, the greatest surprise was to discover many others who shared their desire to contribute to the common good through their work, and to fight against what John Paul II called “structures of sin.”