The Moral Challenges of Economic Equality and Diversity

Abstract:     
Envy has long been identified as a “deadly sin” or a “capital vice” in the Christian tradition, and deservedly so. Thomas Aquinas defined envy as “sadness at the good of another,” and it has been recognized as one of the perennial temptations of the human heart. This paper examines the phenomenon of envy from a theological perspective and with an eye toward the social implications of this vice. Since envy arises out of inequality, envy and inequality go together. And since markets inevitably generate inequalities, therefore envy and markets go together. An anthropology that takes into account the reality of envy provides us with a better perspective for making decisions about the prospects of social policy, including proposals to deal with issues of wealth and income inequality.

Number of Pages in PDF File: 17

Keywords: envy, equality, economic inequality, happiness, social justice, morality, markets

working papers series