SÃO PAULO, Brazil – In a message issued for the Festivity of Saint Cajetan, revered all over Argentina as the patron saint of bread, peace and labor, the Bishops’ Conference affirmed on Aug. 5 that no economic policy can be considered successful if it implies unemployment, in a direct reference to President Javier Milei’s continuous measures of austerity.

In the letter released two days before Saint Cajetan’s feast, Argentina’s episcopate said that the celebrations invited churchgoers to listen to the cry of so many people that “see work as a possibility of being useful and of collaborating with the common good.”

Unemployment is something that deeply harms a person’s dignity and can lead to discouragement, isolation and loss of meaning, the document read.

“In every economic plan, taking care of employment and of labor rights must be an undeclinable priority. No measure can be considered successful if it implies that workers will lose their jobs or live with anguish and uncertainty regarding their future,” the message said.

The bishops concluded their message by asking for Saint Cajetan’s intercession, so there’s no lack of employment and those who are unemployed or who are facing precarious work conditions will find new opportunities.

The bishops’ letter was released amid a war between Milei and the opposition to him in Congress. Lawmakers had approved in July a rise of 7.2 percent in pensions and increased the State relief aid to disabled people. On Aug. 2, the ultra-libertarian leader vetoed both bills, arguing that they are harmful for the State’s financial balance.

Since Milei took office in December of 2023, he approved numerous policies in order to battle inflation and restore the government’s finances. His critics, however, argue that such measures are not taking into account the needs of the poorest.

Pensioners have been continuously demonstrating against Milei, as well as public employees of several areas who lost their jobs. At least 54,000 government workers have been dismissed since the end of 2023. Forty-two percent of the workforce is in the informal economy nowadays.

Despite the impact of Milei’s reform on several social groups, the level of support he still receives is considerably high. A survey carried out in July by University San Andrés revealed that 42 percent of the Argentinians approve of Milei’s administration. For the upcoming legislative elections – which will happen on Oct. 26 –, Milei and his opponents have been presenting similar rates.

Despite such a politically charged scenario, the Church’s criticism of the president’s policies doesn’t necessarily repel his voters, said Pablo Semán, an expert on the religious dynamics in Argentina.

“Argentinian society is already very divided, and the Church doesn’t amplify such a division. Part of Milei’s voters, moreover, won’t think that message is equivocal,” Semán told Crux.

Bishop Marcelo Margni of the Diocese of Avellaneda-Lanús told Crux that “this year’s message is not against anybody, but in favor of something that’s essential: dignified work as a right and as a pillar of social life.”

“When we point out that every economic plan must take care of employment and labor rights, we don’t do so from the perspective of political parties, but from the perspective of the prophetic mission that demands from us to think about what builds and what destroys human dignity,” Margni said.

He said that the Church’s “prophetic mission” is not conditioned by political surveys or the political situation, “but by the Gospel and by the Social Doctrine.”

“We know there are sectors that may feel that our message challenges a government they support, but the Church cannot remain silent when it sees brothers and sisters without jobs, families anxious about the future, or precarious working conditions,” Margni added.

The Catholic Church has been assuming a critical stance when it comes to the most extreme forms of neoliberalism since the 1990s, recalled Semán. In the face of Javier Milei’s reforms, large segments of the Church have been continuously showing their opposition to his economic ideas.

Bishop Ángel Macín of Reconquista, in Santa Fé province, doesn’t hide his discomfort over Milei’s policies.

“We had prepared our own message for the San Cajetan festivity, but we decided not to publish it in order to avoid a superposition of declarations. We were going to mention not only the theme of labor, but also other critical issues that have emerged,” Macín told Crux.

He said many people have been losing their jobs as a direct or indirect consequence of the government’s budget cuts. Those who are in the informal economy have been especially punished, he added.

“Access to health care has been equally critical. With the economic adjustment, the medicines’ prices have gone up. Patients with chronic illnesses are not able to afford them,” he added.

The social crisis caused by the government’s financial policies directly impacts the Church. At the beginning of his administration, Milei cut the State support to Catholic social works, like public restaurants and drug rehabilitation programs.

“Now, the government is sending money to those works, but the social demands are always growing. So, the Church has to make efforts and fund those programs from its pockets,” Macín said.

In his opinion, the people are paying the price of an abrupt State model change.

“For 20 years, we had a certain kind of government, with all its contradictions. Now, we’re on the other extreme. It’s almost an absent, anarchic State,” he concluded.