An Economic Alternative from the Base: The Basic Ecclesial Communities (BECs) in the Diocese of Boac, Philippines

Abstract

Roughly dialogical in approach, this paper attempts to converse the ideation of Jesus’ narrative of compassion as embodied in biblical literature with the praxis of compassion as exemplified in the socio-economic dynamics of selected Basic Ecclesial Communities (BECs) in the Diocese of Boac, Marinduque, Philippines, namely the communities of Panag Kalangkang, Bahi, and Dolores. Its purpose is to propose a compassion-based economic alternative that incorporates the salient features of Jesus’ compassion as its thematic anima (soul) and the praxeological attributes of BECs, particularly their integration of community stores, as its ideal corpus (body). This paper argues that as an ecclesial unit, often and traditionally constrained to liturgical and spiritual performances of faith, the BEC can be a suitable base to host and embody an economic dimension that features ethical and moral dynamics responsive to the call of Pope Francis for a new economic model.