Broadening the concept of rational economic behavior: a case study of cheese making at the Abbey of Tamie.

Publication: Review of Social Economy

Publication Date: 01-JUN-07

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COPYRIGHT 2007 Routledge

Abstract Through an analysis of the business activities of a Trappist monastery, an attempt is made to add to the understanding of how ethical considerations, custom, and culture, as well as the profit motive, affect how actual economic decisions are made. This analysis is implemented through a case study of the cheese-making business of a monastery in the French Alps where the tradition of cheese, agriculture, and monks is important to the culture and customs of the area. The analysis finds that the monks are able to successfully conduct their business in ways that honor their custom and culture within the religious confines imposed by the monastery.

Keywords: monasteries, economic provisioning, ethics, culture, cheese production

INTRODUCTION

The extent to which religious beliefs, ethical considerations, culture, and custom play a role in economic behavior is important in a broad theory of rational economic behavior which includes motives in addition to the profit motive and to utility maximization. Also, in order to better understand actual economic behavior, the ways in which individuals consider the consequences of their actions on others must be examined and included in the analysis of economic behavior and outcomes. This paper proposes to investigate and analyze economic behavior in a broad, social context in order to gain a more comprehensive understanding of the ways in which individuals provide for their physical and financial well being. Special attention is paid to the roles of religion, ethics, culture, and custom, and to interaction among individuals in affecting economic decisions.

The vehicle used for this analysis is a case study of the business of producing and selling cheese by the monks at the Abbey of Tamie in France. Monks have lived in the Tamie valley in the Savoie region of France since the early 12th century and are very much a part of the custom, tradition, and culture of the region. The monks are largely self-dependent, and, while they must find the necessary resources to provide for their material needs, they must do so within the constraints and purpose of the monastic life. The monks at Tamie produce and sell cheese as the primary source of funds for the Abbey. This paper attempts to show how the monks reconcile their "business" life with their "religious" life and how they conduct their economic activities in a larger, social context.

For large groups and for the economy as a whole, the effects of religion, ethics, and culture on economic activity are difficult to ascertain. For instance, identifying precisely which particular religious beliefs have an impact on economic behavior and isolating the effect of the behavior on economic output in general is highly problematic. The problem, however, can be simplified by limiting the analysis to a small, well-defined group, such as a monastery, that practices a distinct lifestyle and follows specific rules pertaining to economic (an other) activity.

Kanter (1972) in her study of intentional communities defines these communities to include communes and utopian communities, stressing the degree to which these communities are held together by commitment, demonstrating how the interests of the individuals and of the group coincide, and discussing the extent to which responsibility to others is necessary for personal growth. In her discussion of utopian values, Kanter addresses the ways in which property might be distributed, how jobs might be allocated, and how work might be arranged within the community. This paper proposes to analyze how these decisions are made in practice with specific examples.

Several studies have examined the economic activities of the Amish. Hostetler (1963, 1989) describes how the Amish have adjusted to industrialization and cultural change, Cosgel (1993) measured the agricultural productivity of the Amish in mid-19th century America, and O'Neil (1997) observed the Amish lifestyle in an attempt to explain the continued success of the Amish people, with their reliance on agriculture in their efforts to achieve community self-sufficiency in the modern economy. These studies did not, however, examine the particular ways in which the Amish made decisions in their business activities.

Hillery and Morrow (1976) and Della Fave and Hillery (1980) have argued that perhaps the oldest and most enduring of all communal ventures are monasteries. Studies of the economic behavior of monasteries include those of Buddhist monks (Pryor 1990, 1991) in which the scriptural canons of Buddhism as they relate to economic systems are examined and Zadek (1993) in which the actual individual and social aspects of Buddhist practice in the economic sphere are examined. Della Fave and Hillery (1980) studied the extent to which holding positions of responsibility in the business activities of the monastery might be a factor in determining status among the monks, especially due to the importance for Trappist monasteries of being economically self-sustaining. This paper proposes to add to this literature by analyzing how, specifically, religious beliefs, ethical considerations, custom and culture affect the economic behavior of this group.

The information included in this study is based primarily on field notes compiled from observation and interviews by the author over a period of several years, beginning in 2001 and continuing to the present. Several interviews were conducted with the monk in charge of cheese production. Additional interviews were conducted with other cheese producers in the local area, farmers and milk producers, and managers of fromageries who purchase the cheese for aging and re-sale. The cheese production and aging process was observed through visits to the monastery's fromagerie and caves. Economic records supplied by the monks and historical documents are additional sources of data.

The first section of the paper describes how the monks go about providing for their economic needs and describes the business of cheese making at the Abbey. The next section is a review and explanation of broader concepts of rational economic behavior, which include the role of ethics and culture in making economic decisions. This section then includes an analysis of the business of the monks in order to better understand how individuals, in real economic life, make ethical and other considerations a part of rational economic decisions. The final section attempts to draw conclusions concerning how the monks reconcile the necessity of their business life with their chosen monastic life.

PROVISIONING FOR THE ECONOMIC NEEDS OF THE MONASTERY

The Cistercian community of approximately 30 Trappist monks of the Benedictine order at the Abbey of Tamie is just one of many such communities of monks throughout the world. While the very earliest monks lived as hermits in informal groups, over time they found that some sort of community life was needed to provide both security and order. In the early 6th century, Benedict wrote his rules governing monastic life, and most monks today live according to the Holy Rule of St Benedict. The Cistercian order was founded in the 11th century as a reform movement in the Benedictine tradition, and further reforms aimed at renewing the penitential element of monastic life took place at the Abbey of La Trappe in France in the late 1600s, giving the particular order the name Trappist. Approximately 100 Cistercian Order Trappist monasteries are located throughout the world today.

The monks are Roman Catholics who have decided to live in a closed community with others like themselves. They have all forsaken worldly goods to live a life of prayer, work, and abstinence. The monks may be ordained priests or lay members, and they live in a community under the guidance of an Abbot who is generally independent of the area Bishop and who is answerable directly to the Vatican. While the purpose and central aspect of the monks' lives is prayer, both communal and private, the monastery must be economically self-sustaining and all monks must work to help sustain the monastery. Physical labor, in fact, is considered part of the "calling" of a Cistercian Trappist monk, although the labor is not sold in the market for a wage.

Each monastery provides for its material well-being in different ways but in ways usually related to food and agriculture. Six Trappist monasteries, mostly in Belgium, make a highly rated beer, of which the Chimay is the most well known. Assumption Abbey in Missouri produces fruitcakes, which are sold mostly during the Thanksgiving and Christmas seasons, and the monks at Mepkin Abbey in South Carolina raise chickens and sell their eggs as the primary source of income. The monks at Tamie produce artisan cheese. While these monks are devoted to...

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