Rachel Malinowski, third-year divinity student at Yale Divinity School in New Haven, is a member of the St. Thomas More Catholic Community at Yale and a social justice intern with the Office for Catholic Social Justice Ministry.

How did you first learn about the office?

During my first year of studies at Yale Divinity School I felt called to live out my ministry through the social mission of the Church and wanted to find a place where I could experience that ministry first-hand. To do that I arranged an informal internship with the Office.

How long have you been connected to the office, and in what ways?

I started working with the office as an intern during the summer of 2013. During that summer, I performed site visits and wrote features about various Cooperative Parish Sharing (CPS) projects. Through my work with CPS, I had the opportunity to witness the strong and inspiring commitment of communities across the archdiocese to addressing the problems that faced them. That summer I also had the opportunity to assist with the Office's new video initiative, interviewing justice advocates from across the archdiocese about the way their Catholic faith impels them to work for justice.

How are you working with OCSJM presently? 

I am currently working with the Office thanks to an Intern Alumni Grant from the Catholic Campaign for Human Development. With the funds from this grant, I will be assisting the Office with its preparations for the Catholic Social Ministry Gathering [a national advocacy gathering in Washington DC in February] and will serve as a state captain and lead the delegation from the archdiocese at the Gathering.

Why do you volunteer with OCSJM?

I believe in the social mission of the Church. The Church's social mission is at the heart of Catholicism. It has the power to transform our faith and, more importantly, our communities. As such, it is essential that we support parishes and communities in learning about and participating in our rich social tradition.  

Capital in the Twenty-First Century  

Thomas Piketty. Belknap Press, 2014

Pope Francis has called for changes in our economic system, because so many people are being left out of the system. He tweeted, "Inequality is the root of social evil."  (@Pontifex, Apr 28, 2014)

Thomas Piketty, in his recent economic tome, CAPITAL in the Twenty-First Century, says essentially the same thing. Capitalism, as it stands, has produced the great inequalities of income and wealth that exist in the United States and in the world. Unless changes are made in the structure of our economy, inequalities will continue to increase.

CAPITAL is groundbreaking, both earthshaking and new, because Piketty's 300 years of empirical research data on the effects of capitalism has surprised the economic academic community. If 600 pages of readable narrative, loaded with graphs, is too much for you ... be sure to read some of the many articles that have been written about the book, reactions to it, and proposed changes.

Understanding the content and implications of this book seems very important to any advocate for justice, especially economic justice, these days. We know, as Pope Francis continues to encourage us, it is time for change to happen and CAPITAL is a very important addition to our toolbox.

Submitted by John Ryan, Pastoral Associate at St. Bridget Parish in Manchester