I think I do know the cause. It isn't Big Business. It isn't Big Government. It isn't Corporate Greed. It is people. There is a word used quite often in the New Testament. It is translated in older English as "covetous" or, in the newer translations, as "greedy." It is listed with the common sins, the common failings of Man, the typical reasons that humans do not get to heaven (Eph 4:17-19; 1 Cor 6:9-10). The word means, essentially, "not enough." It means "desiring more." It is a standard sin, one, in fact, that the Roman Catholics classify as one of the seven deadly sins.
Americans have changed. Where there used to be a community that banded together to help each other we've shifted to a dog-eat-dog world where "what I want is what I need and you had better not get in my way." We shifted from a pull-yourself-up-by-your-bootstrap view of the world to a "health care is a right" world. Imagine that! "Health care is a right." Where did it come from? Who gave it? Who imposed it? We've eliminated the possibility of "unalienable rights endowed by our Creator," so who or what endowed this right? Who or what maintains this right? Who or what will respond if this right isn't met? I want answers!
"So," you say, "you're saying it's not Big Business or Big Government or Corporate Greed? What about ..." and you'll give me your favorite argument or example. Don't misunderstand me. These entities are populated with ... people. These people are infected with the new American mentality. The new American mentality requires things like, for instance, equal pay for equal work. (Did you know that Jesus disagreed with that mentality (Matt 20:1-15)?) This mentality has long ago pushed past "privileges" and gone beyond "rights," pushing all the way to "entitlements." And those "entitlements" are broad. The new American mentality is hedonistic. "If it feels good, do it" is our national mantra. The new American mentality is "not responsible." "I am not responsible for anything that happens." If something goes wrong, it's the product's fault or the big company's fault or the government's fault. If there's something wrong with me it's the fault of hormones or chemical imbalance or a syndrome (named or unnamed). If I buy a house with money I don't have and will never have and then lose that house, it's not my fault. And if I have a problem, someone else had better fix it ... now! The old American mentality was a "free market" mentality. A laborer is worthy of his hire. In the original "Puritan work ethic" the idea was "I will do what I can to support my community." If a community needed shoes and I could make shoes, I'd be a shoemaker. That shifted to "I will do what there is a market to do." If I can get people to buy my widget, I'll make widgets. That has shifted even farther today. "There must be no poverty (and we get to define 'poverty') and I deserve more."
It's a funny thing about people. It seems that the more they have the more they want. Have you ever, for instance, met people who came out of the Great Depression? That was a different generation. They tended to avoid "more" because they didn't have it to begin with. The same is true in third world countries. While we "need" new window coverings every year, they are happy with a hole in the wall (literally) that serves as a window. While this lousy, three-year-old couch "needs" to be replaced soon, they're content with a dirt floor and a mat on which to sleep.
How did we get in this mess today? "Desiring more." It was wrong of lenders to limit their lending to "rich" people who could afford to borrow money. They had to loosen their standards to allow "poor" people to borrow money. Why? Because they "desired more." A place to live wasn't sufficient. Ownership was required. It wasn't merely desirable; it was needed. Oh, it wasn't solely there that the problem occurred. That was simply the symptom. "More" from Enron meant that they could manipulate the energy market in California. "More" to Wall Street meant that they could drive up oil prices by speculating on oil futures. "More" tells illegal aliens that they have the right to break the law to get what they want. And somehow "enough" never seems to rear its ugly head.
The original "free market" idea of Capitalism was based on the original mentality that took into account other people and encompassed an underlying morality. This underlying morality has eroded. It isn't the fault of George Bush. It isn't the fault of Bill Clinton. It isn't the fault of the Democrats or the Republicans or even Wall Street or a greedy banking industry. It is an erosion that has been occurring for a lot longer than that, and it is finally down to the bare rocks of "greed" and "me first." A "free market" seems, to me, to be a market that is free to succeed ... or fail. The voices from government and its leading wanna-be's seem to be that "accountability" and "oversight" are the key to fixing the problem. Charge the American people with the bill and let the government fix our problems. By no means should we allow big companies to fail. Frankly, a "bail out" is a band aid on a cancer patient. The problem is not with Big Business or Big Government or Corporate Greed. The problem is with the sinful humans that inhabit those entities. And the fix is not to shore up their failing economics. The fix is a spiritual revival.
As for you and I, Christians, remember:
Now there is great gain in godliness with contentment, for we brought nothing into the world, and we cannot take anything out of the world. But if we have food and clothing, with these we will be content. But those who desire to be rich fall into temptation, into a snare, into many senseless and harmful desires that plunge people into ruin and destruction (1 Tim 6:6-9).
2 comments:
Amen, Stan! I can't begin to understand all that's going on, other than that I believe I will have to help pay for it.
The Bible tells us two things that I believe are important here: One is that covetousness is the same as idolatry (Colossians 3:5). That means that those who are greedy are seen by God as idol-worshippers.
The other is that when we do things God's way, we will be blessed. We read in Malachi 3 that because the children of Israel were withholding their tithes from God, all the money they earned was not sustaining them, but rather slipping through their fingers as though it had been put in a bag full of holes.
The prophet even went so far as to tell the people they were actually robbing God of what was rightfully His (see also Leviticus 27:30 and Matthew 23:23). But look at the promise to those who bring their tithes to God's house! He will pour out a blessing so great that we cannot even receive it.
If just the Christians in this country would repent and tithe to their local churches, I believe things would turn around quite quickly for the entire nation (see 2 Chronicles 7:14). ~ 10km
Absolutely right Stan. My husband and I personally have been convicted about good stewardship of God's money, because yes, it is God's money!! How foolish we are to think that we have ownership of it and that it is meant to serve our own pleasures. Every single thing we have comes from God, and in our house we are just beginning to appreciate the number of blessings God has given to us. We are just praying that He helps us to be better stewards of what He has given to us, and that includes giving more back to Him as first fruits!
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