Economics of Christianity

CAPITALISM "an economic system in which investment in and ownership of the means of production, distribution, and exchange of wealth is made and maintained chiefly by private individuals or corporations, especially as contrasted to cooperatively or state-owned means of wealth. " [1] "Capitalism is a social system based on the principle of individual rights." [2] What capitalism boils down to is property rights in the hands of individuals. You can't met any of the above definitions without individuals having property rights. Capitalism respects property rights of individuals while communism is the opposite. Communism is about equality, while capitalism is about inequality. Let's examine this further. JESUS ON PROPERTY RIGHTS I think it's pretty clear that God and Jesus both (or the same, whatever your belief is) support private property rights. At one point Jesus gives a parable that illustrates why the owner of a property will treat it better than a non owner who uses it for gain. "The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep. The hired hand, who is not the shepherd and does not own the sheep, sees the wolf coming and leaves the sheep and runs away"and the wolf snatches them and scatters them. The hired hand runs away because a hired hand does not care for the sheep. I am the good shepherd. I know my own and my own know me." John 10:11-13 That same type of reasoning can be applied to any type of property and you'll likely see the same result. In Matthew 25:14-30 A story is told of a master (representing God) leaves his servants some of his money to hold for him. This is the concept of stewardship we'll dive more into shortly. The ones who accumulated more money were rewarded. The one who didn't......... Well read for your self. "You wicked and slothful servant......... Take away therefore the talent from him, and give it to him who has the ten talents........ Throw out the unprofitable servant into the outer darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth" Sounds like God wants us to accumulate as much wealth as possible and on top of that this is clearly not a position that advocates for equality. The saying in communism is "From each according to his ability, to each according to his need", but Jesus would say "To each according to his ability, from each according to his ability". WHO'S HOUSE? GOD'S HOUSE! This should probably go without saying but God owns the world. It's his private property. "The earth is the Lord's, and all its fullness, The world and those who dwell therein. For He has founded it upon the seas, And established it upon the waters" (Psalm 24:1-2). Despite the Earth being God's he has decided to give mankind stewardship over the Earth. "Be fruitful and multiply; fill the earth and subdue it; have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, and over every living thing that moves on the earth" (Genesis 1:28). This is God's house and He's given us stewardship over it. God does in fact give us a rulebook for this stewardship which is contained in The Laws of Moses and scattered throughout other parts of the Bible. LAWS CONCERNING PROPERTY RIGHTS Pay attention to these laws concerning property rights. Nowhere does God advocate for the abolition of property rights and instead gives laws showing massive respect for property rights. If his laws are to protect property rights then by it's very definition the laws are capitalist. Real Estate laws 1.The earth and all realty and things on it belong to God. Gen. 14:199 22; Exod. 19:5; Lev. 25:23; Deut. 10:14; Psa. 24:1; Psa. 50:10-12; Psa. 89:11; 1 Cor. 10:26, 28. 2.Land can be sold but not permanently. You shall grant a redemption for all the land in your possession (the original owner has the right to buy back land he sold). Lev. 25:23-24. 3.In the year of the Jubilee (every fiftieth year) land is to be returned to the person, or his rightful heirs or family, that originally possessed the land. Lev. 25:10, 13-17, 28, 31, 33-34. 4.If a house in the city is sold, it can be redeemed (bought back) within a year. After that the house is unredeemable and shall belong permanently to him who bought it. It will not return to the seller in the Jubilee. Lev. 25:29-30. 5.Houses in the rural or country regions may be redeemed at any time, and they shall be released in the Jubilee. Lev. 25:31. 6.If one becomes poor and is unable to redeem his land, a kinsmen of his may redeem for him what he had sold. Lev. 25:25; Ruth 4:3-4; Jer. 32:7. 7.If one has no means by which to pay the purchaser of his property the redemption money, then what was sold shall remain in the hand of him who bought it until the Year of Jubilee. Lev. 25:28. 8.Transfer of land to be by signed deed in the presence of witnesses. Jer. 32:8-12. 9.Deeds to land are to be preserved as a record. Jer. 32:14. 10.Silver used to buy land. Gen. 23:13-16; Josh. 24:32; Jer. 32:9. 11.Do not to remove established landmarks and boundaries. Deut 19:14; Deut 27:17; Job 24:2 Prov. 22:28; Prov. 23:10. 12.You should take appropriate precautions of any dangerous situation on your land which might cause damage or injury to other persons or their property. Exod. 21:33-34; Deut 22:8. 13.The mortgage of land and homes brings one into bondage. Neh. 5:1 -5. 14.Restitution is required for damage done to one's land or crops. Exod. 22:5-6. Property Rights 1.You shall not steal another's property. Exod. 20:15; Lev. 19:11, 13; Psa. 62:10; Prov. 21:7; Amos 3:10; Deut 5:19; Matt. 19:18; Mark 10: 19; Luke 18:20; Rom. 13:9; 1 Cor. 6:10; 1 Pet 4:15. 2.Theft from the poor is especially forbidden. Prov. 22:22. 3.A thief is cursed by God and to be cut off from the people. Jer. 7:9-15; Zech. 5:3-4; 1 Cor. 6:10. 4.Theft proceeds from the heart and defiles a man. Matt. 15:19-20. 5.One who is judged to have stolen property is to repay double to the owner. Exod. 22:7-9. 6.If one strikes a thief found breaking in a building and he dies, there shall be no guilt upon him for murder. Exod. 22:2. 7.We are exhorted to stop theft in the land by having a thief labor with his hands. Eph. 4:28. 8.We should not despise one who steals due to hunger, though he must restore sevenfold of what he took. Prov. 6:30. GOD ENCOURAGES INEQUALITY "For even when we were with you, we gave you this rule: "The one who is unwilling to work shall not eat." 2 Thessalonians 3:10 "A slack hand causes poverty, but the hand of the diligent makes rich" Proverbs 10:4 "In all toil there is profit, but mere talk tends only to poverty" proverbs 14:23 These verses and others I've shared show God could care less about economic equality. The bible is clearly saying that people should be rewarded for their hard work, and be rewarded disproportionately to others. CONCLUSION The bible teaches us that God has given us dominion over this land and that each of us should have property rights . He's laid out his laws to Moses commanding respect for private property. There are numerous examples in the bible where God rewards his people with wealth and affluence, or where he expects people to be rewarded compensation equal to their ability. I think at this point it is clear that Christianity advocates for a capitalist system and that God himself is a capitalist. If this isn't clear by now it will be abundantly clear by the time my rebuttals come. sources [1] http://dictionary.reference.com... [2] http://www.capitalism.org...