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Consumerism, the Architecture of Indifference, and the Work of Solidarity

Date of Lecture: April 23, 2015

About the Speaker: Vincent J. Miller is the Gudorf Chair of Catholic Theology and Culture at the University of Dayton and author of "Consuming Religion: Christian Faith and Practice in a Consumer Culture" (New York: Continuum, 2003). In 2013, as a member of the Catholic Relief Service’s Scholars in Global Solidarity, he traveled to Brazil to examine the issue of slave labor and to map strategies to combat the problem.

About the talk: Miller suggests our relationships to the things we buy are shallow — most of the time we don't know where or how the products we buy were made, and often they can involve slave labor and unfair practices. Because of a globalized economy, it's difficult to track the sources of products on the shelves. Miller explains why this is Catholic concern and what the popes since Vatican II have had to say about it, and then proposes actions individuals can take to become more mindful consumers.

One of the Deitchman Family Lectures on Religion & Modernity.

Watch the lecture below or download it free from iTunes U.