Philippe Buchez
Buchez, a physician and ex-Saint-Simonian, was certainly the most prominent proponent of a conciliation between socialism and Christianity while rejecting paternalism. He accepted the Saint-Simonian analysis of the misery of the working class (critique of conventional economic policies based on individualistic principles, class analysis opposing a minority of idle proprietors and producers, and role of competition) and wished to continue the ideas Saint-Simon expressed in his 1825 Nouveau Christianisme by providing an outline of morality reflecting present day world.
Although a partisan of a “Republique dans l’atelier”, he nevertheless developed (Buchez 1833) a three-tier implementation of the associative principle (or collectivism): the creation of joint bodies with State representation in factories (the main aim being to set wages), smaller sized associations of skilled workers, and access to public (state-run) credit funds based on taxation and placements. The latter would support the creation of skilled workers’ associations and make up for any initial shortage of individual capital (Frobert 2014b). These economic measures would however first require a moral revolution through an education based on devotion, in accordance with the Gospel principles.