The sudden crisis which has shaken the entire world since the (northern) summer reveals the vast network of interdependencies which link the economies of all countries, even to those who have ignored this fact so far.

A new global landscape is being formed, disturbing in more ways than one, produced by forces which are little known and difficult to decipher, leading to an unpredictable future.

There are shifts in values, shifts in cultures, and what we call globalisation, meaning something which has swept up all humanity on the planet, now obliges us to think globally.

So that we are in agreement about what we are speaking of when we use the word 'globalisation', I would like to specify that it refers to two different realities. On one hand it refers to a system of exploiting measures of profit linked to a liberal vision of society and economics - that which one calls the market. On the other hand, it refers to the fact that everyone's fate is now more and more closely linked to everyone else's.

PART ONE: THE LANDSCAPES OF GLOBALISATION

1. An Economy Driven by Financial Markets

We are now living with a system of floating exchange rates, deregulated credit and frantic market activity. This system rules a huge money market, with instant transactions and no regard for national borders.

The money which changes hands ceaselessly through electronic means doesn't exist, it is largely vitual money.

The active agents - or 'operators' who control large sums, are in fact the managers of our savings, or in the Anglo-Saxon countries, employee's retirement funds.

Rules don't exist and no one has the power to control this complex machine. There is no longer a "conspiracy of big capital". The market is a jungle. Everyone approaches the market with his own intuition, his taste for risk, and his sources of information.

Corruption undermines the system. In theory, financial regulation should have had positive effects on global economic growth.

Production will never again be as it was in the past. The material economy has given way to an "immaterial economy", the production of goods has been replaced by production of intangibles.

Production is globalised, and can be shifted elsewhere quickly where opportunities arise. For some years, fund managers have been investing capital in companies. They expect increased returns, with a rate of risk comparable to the share markets. To achieve this, companies find it necessary to decrease the percentage of wage costs in the total cost of production, which puts pressure on workers' incomes.

This multiplicity of mutual interdependencies characterises this turn-of-the-century economy. Interdependencies between countries - interdependencies between businesses and the markets.

The issue which all of this gives rise to is mastering this system by introducing regulations.

A CULTURE WITH PRETENSIONS TO UNIVERSALITY

The finance-driven economy clearly corresponds to the first definition of globalisation. On the other hand, culture combines both meanings. It can be seen as the common wealth of humankind, as well as as merchandise.

An enormous development in communication tools has occurred in the last few years.Potentially, the means exist which will allow each inhabitant of the earth to communicate with all others and exchange messages with them. An interactive dialogue between cultures, encouraged by migration and above all by the spread of new means of communication, is constantly creating new cultural forms through mingling and cross-fertilisation. An accumulation of knowledge on an unprecedented scale is being made possible through global communication - this is a very positive element. On the other hand, one should be alarmed at the retreat of local cultures and the uniformity being imposed by Hollywood culture.

Demographics: Living side by side

The UN Conference in Cairo in 1994 on "Population and Development" reinforced the awareness that humanity has a common destiny, but is truly diverse.

A finite world

We have only one earth for one humankind and this earth is small and fragile, unable to meet the desire of close to 8 billion people of attaining the average standard of living of the rich countries. The biosphere is also the common and indivisible inheritance of an enlarging human population.

The challenge of global politics

How capable are political institutions of responding to the challenges of uncontrolled globalisation?

One of the obvious reactions is the globalisation of "civil society". Non-government organisations (NGOs) have dialogues at regional and global levels. This spider's web of peoples' organisations is the prototype of a global civil society and of global public opinion.

The military strategies of the economically powerful nations are now focused on a capacity to maintain order from a great distance. Nation States have become too small to deal with great problems, and too large to deal with small ones. Analysts of the world situation see a prototype of an international political situation in the development of zones of free trade, some of which already exist.

PART TWO: BEING A CITIZEN OF THE WORLD

Whether one likes it or not, we are all participants in globalisation. This means two things: we are all implicated even in what we deplore; we can at the same time exercise power to change the way things are.

PART THREE: CATHOLIC TEACHING AND GLOBALISATION

It seems certain however that, without restraint, the enrichment of a few at the price of the impoverishment of many will lead to an unviable situation for humanity: all out civil war. This is not to say that one has to reject the global system of credits: that would be catastrophic. But this system must be constrained so that everyone can have a better lot in life. On the other hand, the growth in mutual communication between individuals and groups brings humankind closer together.

There are serious contradictions between a doctrine based on the Word of God and the reality of our time. Within globalisation, there are "structures of sin" which hinder humankind's universal aspiration to greater happiness and dignity. It is neccessary to identify these structures, change and redirect them. On the other hand there are aspects of globalisation which are in keeping with legitimate human aspirations.

To conclude, let us remember the message of John Paul II at the recent World Day for Peace: The globalisation of the economy and of finance is now a reality and we are understanding more and more clearly the results of the rapid progress of information technology. We are on the threshold of a new era which brings great hopes and disturbing questions.

Let us promote "globalisation based on solidarity, globalisation without marginalisation. There is an obvious duty to ensure justice which allows for the important moral implications in the organisation of the economic, social, cultural and political lives of nations."