Setting Limits

“The Sabbath is one way of setting limits to the market and its mindset, focusing on the dimension of time. There are other ways, too: values such as loyalty that are not sacrificed to the pursuit of profit; aspects of happiness that derive not from what we earn or own or buy but from what we contribute to the lives of others; and gratitude for what we have rather than yearning for what we do not have. Market values are not the only ones that count. There are others necessary for personal happiness and the collective beatitude that constitutes a good society. Marriage is not a transaction. Parenthood is not a form of ownership. Universities are not intellectual vending machines. Healthcare is distinct from wealth care. Neighbourhoods should not be gilded ghettoes. Politics should not be a form of power for sale.”

Morality, Chapter 7, p. 117