Vatican official reflects on the ‘vocation of agriculture’
November 07, 2014
Taking the place of Cardinal Peter Turkson, an official of the Pontifical Council for Justice and Peace delivered an address in Minnesota on November 5 on the vocation of agriculture.
“What are the unique features of the vocation of a leader in agriculture?”, asked Father Michael Czerny, SJ. “Thinking about the logic of gift, it is abundantly clear that agricultural leaders exercise influence over immense resources-- the very land that feeds us and houses us, the water, the nutritional value of the soil … Can GMOs and chemical fertilizers make their contribution without inhibiting the preservation and continued spontaneous growth of God’s creation, the original gift to all?”
He added, “How do agricultural leaders react to the central tenets of CST [Catholic social teaching]? For instance, is common good subordinated to ‘ability to pay’? Does subsidiarity influence the willingness of powerful corporations to allow and even assist other farming structures – family farming in some regions, subsistence farming in others – to flourish alongside agribusiness?”
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