Leo Xi

Leo xi

Property: A word that is paradoxically both easy and difficult to define. Obviously, anyone can tell you that property is what you own (land and agriculture in particular). However, how does one truly own anything? Simply because we give someone else a sum of money, we assume that a piece of Earth is now our and ours alone. We can even designate this newly purchased soil as being "private" property. To most of us living in 21st century America, the idea of "property" has been ingrained in us at a young age. But if one is to analyze the matter and not merely accept it as an indisputable and absolute fact of life than one could draw the conclusion that the principle behind "private property" is merely a societal construct, and that property (particularly private property) rights are not absolute. Two men who independently pondered this very issue were Aristotle and Leo XIII. Both men were in agreement that property is a necessary element of society, however their viewpoints differed as to the reasons why it's a necessity.

If a person looks at the argument stated by Leo it supplements what Aristotle says: "That Property is justified as necessary because nature does nothing in vain, the imperfect is created for the sake of the perfect, all creatures need external things for sustenance, humans have the rational ability to exploit nature to get sustenance".

Aristotle's view is as follows "preferable to commonly-held property because easier, fewer fights, more care, virtues, feels good to own [consequentiality argument] People ought to be willing to share and give to those in need. Amount of property capped at natural needs for a comfortable life".

Leo states "Property justified as necessary by Scripture and Aristotle's argument (with more emphasis on the forward-looking element of reason, hence the necessity of land, agriculture)".

"Private property justified procedurally (mixing labor, etc.) BUT individuals responsible for ensuring the "common destination of goods" is fulfilled, i.e. property has an inherent purpose private owners must respect. Private property rights not absolute".

Leo holds a particularly progressive-minded viewpoint on the matter on what constitutes private property as well as its societal implications. In order to fully understand and appreciate Leo's viewpoint one needs to take into consideration the period of time in which it was written. Leo's existence, and consequently his reign as pope, occurred in the nineteenth century. While this was by no means an ancient or primitive period, it's important to acknowledge that the world of the modern era (and the factors that one must take into consideration when dealing with issues of private property from said era) would be completely alien to someone from Leo's time.

This fact should come as a shock to no one. After all, the technological advancements that have been made in the scant hundred or so years since Leo XIII has been alive. The way in which this has changed the lives of the inhabitants of the world (particularly those who inhabit first world countries) has been astronomical. During Leo's time, before the days of modern

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