Pope Leo XIV calls business a path to sainthood
The pontiff cited Enrique Shaw's career as a model for integrating faith with economic leadership during a speech in Buenos Aires.
By Marina Weber ·
Pope Leo XIV visited Buenos Aires to address leaders in industry and labor. He used the occasion to elevate the legacy of Enrique Shaw, a late Argentine entrepreneur. The pope presented Shaw as proof that business can be a path to holiness when guided by the Gospel.
The event took place on November 9 at the Pontifical Catholic University of Argentina. Shaw had supported the university's founding and served as its first treasurer. He also sat on its administrative council. The pope spoke to a room filled with business leaders, trade unionists, workers, and representatives of social movements.
Leo described Shaw as a Venerable entrepreneur who converted after discovering the beauty of the Gospel. The pope quoted Shaw’s view that industry is a true community of people called to grow together. This stands in contrast to seeing it only as a mechanism for accumulating capital. The pope referred to Shaw as the future Blessed.
Shaw’s granddaughter, María Elena Critto, noted a connection between the pope’s name and the teaching that shaped her grandfather. Pope Leo XIII wrote Rerum Novarum in 1891, a document foundational to modern Catholic social teaching. Shaw studied this doctrine deeply and applied it to his work in the business sector.
Critto stated that Shaw embodied this teaching by recognizing the dimension of human dignity in his company. Shaw was born in Paris in 1921 to Argentine parents. He married Cecilia Bunge in 1943, and they had nine children. He eventually became managing director of the Rigolleau glass company, which employed thousands of workers.
Shaw helped found the Christian Association of Business Executives in 1952. He also participated in establishing Caritas Argentina. At Rigolleau, he pioneered health care programs and financial assistance for employees. In 1961, during an economic crisis, majority shareholders ordered the dismissal of 1,200 workers. Shaw traveled to the United States to convince the executives to rescind the layoffs.
Shaw died of cancer in Buenos Aires on August 27, 1962, at age 41. During his illness, more than 200 employees volunteered to donate blood for transfusions. He joked that nearly all the blood in his veins was workers' blood. Pope Francis declared him Venerable in 2021. In December 2025, Pope Leo authorized a decree recognizing a miracle attributed to Shaw's intercession, clearing the way for his beatification.
Critto said her grandfather’s witness challenges Catholics to avoid separating their professional and religious lives. She emphasized that holiness must be pursued through every responsibility. Shaw began his spiritual life with prayer, the Eucharist, and the sacraments. He was advised to influence the business world from his position as an employer rather than as an ordinary worker.
