A Conservative Application of Roman Catholic Social Teaching

It's not bad as far as it goes, and of course enumerates the main principles of Catholic Social Teaching, the common good, social justice, solidarity, and subsidiarity. Should the authors be citing Michael Novak's interpretation? No, but I don't think the essay itself mandates or depends upon Novak's interpretation.

It all looks good on paper, but writing is much easier than making it a reality. Would the state (and I am applying this term to the American states, not to the National Government) be willing to concede authority and autonomy to local communities? When it happens, I will be one of the first to celebrate, but I think it also requires a replacement of the state constitution with some other form of political arrangement that is codified in a document.

Public Discourse: Reclaiming Social Justice by Andy Smarick and Bruno V. Manno

"Today, the term 'social justice' is invoked almost exclusively by those on the political left. Those on the right seldom even engage in these debates. This shouldn’t be the case," @smarick and Bruno V. Manno write. https://t.co/5cRpv4qGb5

— Public Discourse (@PublicDiscourse) May 20, 2020

This gives those on the political right, in particular, a way to think about engaging with domestic policy issues. First, it encourages individuals to join with others in forming voluntary associations and other types of mediating institutions, so that citizens can solve common challenges together. This view doesn’t look first for large, impersonal, faraway public or private bodies to define and solve problems. Instead, it affirms that citizens can and should collaborate with their family members, friends, and neighbors to address the challenges of the day.

Find your tribe.

Second, it aims to achieve the common good first and foremost at the community level, not just at the national or international level. It directs collective efforts toward shared, local goals—not private interests. It respects individuals and allows societies, and the institutions on which they rely, to thrive.

First, there must be a community. (1) needs to lead to the creation of community; some mass aggregate is not a community, nor should it dominate "voluntary associations" that are actually communities in their own right.

Skipping to the end:

By way of conclusion, four points seem essential: to appreciate the value of individual agency and voluntary associations; to recognize the danger of investing too much authority in distant, powerful bodies; to protect the right of groups to take distinctive forms and pursue different activities, while also holding such groups responsible for meeting their obligations; finally, especially today, to commit to civic participation, temperance, and collaboration.

Without the authority for a group or community to determine who its members are and to exclude, this is meaningless.