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Discusses the communist system, based on an èlite Party and the privileged nomenklatura which executes its orders. An ubiquitous secret police, whose tentacles reach into the most private spheres of the citizens, kills any opposition in its bud. The people are constantly indoctrinated with Marxist‐Leninist ideology which also justifies the total power of the Party. The ideals of egalitarianism and open‐ended social obligation, inculcated from early childhood on, led to “apathy, indifference, and the disdain of honest work” (Shmelev) as well as widespread dishonesty. The population was kept ignorant by hermetically sealed borders and subjected to constant humiliation. Advancement depended not on hard work, but on Party loyalty. Laws served only a decorative function. The mafia has flourished under these conditions, once clandestinely, now for all to see. The result is a moral vacuum, a spiritual and physical decline of the citizenry who, unfamiliar with self‐responsibility and freedom, feel threatened by change.

Marxism‐Leninism has played an instrumental role in the achievement and consolidation of a hitherto unparalleled concentration of power by the Communist Party of the Soviet Union. The key aspects of this ideology are: (1) the concept of a Vanguard Party led by professional revolutionaries which possesses the true Marxist class consciousness unattainable by the workers themselves; and (2) Lenin′s distinction between strategy and tactics. While the ultimate strategic goal is the worldwide overthrow of capitalism, the tactical steps by which this goal is to be achieved must continuously be adapted to the prevailing requirements of time, place and circumstances. There is no indication, so far, that perestroika represents the abandonment of the strategic goal of world revolution; rather, it is one more tactical response to the newest and most severe Soviet crisis. Like past “reforms”, it is aimed at saving the power of the Communist Party and the new class it has created.

Current events in the Soviet Union cannot be understood without comprehending the nature of Soviet communism. Begins with a description of the system singlehandedly imposed on the Soviet Union by Lenin and Stalin, focusing on the key elements of Marxist‐Leninist ideology and the nomenklatura. Brings to light a seldom‐recognized characteristic of communist governments, which is obscured by official propaganda, that Marxism‐Leninism is firmly grounded on “science”. It involves the rejection, by communist policy makers, of any coherent intellectual framework which would guide and also explain their actions. This, however, is not surprising, because any theoretical blueprint would force these leaders to spell out the precise goals they are pursuing, as well as the costs (to whom?) and the benefits (also to whom?) of their actions. It would, additionally, make the communist party accountable for its policies, a fact that would represent an intolerable restriction of its practically unlimited power. Perestroika has not changed this situation. The absence of a programme or of a priori guidelines allows Gorbachev to declare his willingness to introduce market processes, while, at the same time, emphasizing that all his reforms are made “in accordance with the socialist choice”. A case study of the recently legalized Soviet “co‐operative” sector confirms this lack of commitment to unambiguous policies. The prerequisites for a transition from a centrally planned to a market economy are therefore developed by Western, not Soviet, experts. They invariably call for the abandonment of the communist system and the demise of its beneficiary, the nomenklatura. Gorbachev, who has risen to power as an exponent of the “new class” (Milovan Djilas) is unwilling to accept this trade‐off. He can therefore be expected to continue his policy of vacillation, while his country′s economic, political, and social problems remain unresolved.

The encyclical Centesimus Annus was published by Pope John Paul II in commemoration of Rerum Novarum, written 100 years ago by Leo XIII. That encyclical initiated a century of Catholic social teaching consisting, by now, of six encyclicals. Together, they are intended to represent a unified system of thought, the Church′s social vision. Its basic themes all centre on the God‐ordained dignity of man. The Pope calls for a modified, “corrected” capitalism, a “Society of free work, of enterprise and of participation”. The economic activities of man are to be reoriented towards the common good, with the ultimate goal of eradicating poverty, exploitation, and alienation. Rejects the economic proposals of the Pope as lacking of substance and internal consistency. Its assumption that man can enjoy all the advantages of free markets while also correcting for their less‐desirable effects at will reveals that, despite some modifications, Catholic social thought is still inspired by what has been termed the “unconstrained” vision.