Connecting Evangelical Faith and Free-Market Capitalism

Daniel King emailed me a link to a fascinating essay in Harpers (May, 2005) called, "Let There Be Markets: The Evangelical Roots of Economics." The title of the article says it all. It is not a difficult read, nor is it too long. However it will require your attention to think through much of what author Gordon Bigelow is saying. I have read very little about the historical development of economic theory. That theology figures into economics should not come as a surprise to anyone who has read the Bible. It is a fascinating history to read, especially if you believe that ideas matter - indeed shape reality. As his article traces the rise of a free-market economy you can hear the echoes of these two-centuries old philosophical commitments reverberating in our political debates about the rich and the poor.

The article tackles a number of inter-related disciplines, including physics, but it is Bigelow's engagement of the sociological and theological commitments of 19th-century evangelical Christians that fascinates me.

"The group that bridled most against these pessimistic elements of [Adam] Smith (Wealth of Nations) and [David] Ricardo (Principles of Political Economy and Taxation) was the evangelicals. These were middle-class reformers who wanted to reshape Protestant doctrine. For them it was unthinkable that capitalism led to class conflict, for that would mean that God had created a world at war with itself. The evangelicals believed in a providential God, one who built a logical and orderly universe, and they saw the new industrial economy as a fulfillment of God’s plan. The free market, they believed, was a perfectly designed instrument to reward good Christian behavior and to punish and humiliate the unrepentant."

He continues:

"At the center of this early evangelical doctrine was the idea of original sin: we were all born stained by corruption and fleshly desire, and the true purpose of earthly life was to redeem this. The trials of economic life—the sweat of hard labor, the fear of poverty, the self-denial involved in saving—were earthly tests of sinfulness and virtue. While evangelicals believed salvation was ultimately possible only through conversion and faith, they saw the pain of earthly life as means of atonement for original sin. The definitive source here is Boyd Hilton’s masterful book The Age of Atonement: The Influence of Evangelicalism on Social and Economic Thought, 1785–1865. These were the people that writers like Dickens detested. The extreme among them urged mortification of the flesh and would scold anyone who took pleasure in food, drink, or good company. Moreover, they regarded poverty as part of a divine program. Evangelicals interpreted the mental anguish of poverty and debt, and the physical agony of hunger or cold, as natural spurs to prick the conscience of sinners. They believed that the suffering of the poor would provoke remorse, reflection, and ultimately the conversion that would change their fate. In other words, poor people were poor for a reason, and helping them out of poverty would endanger their mortal souls."

Do you hear the echoes?

Comments

[Larry]

For a somewhat more critical view of the relationship between Christianity and capitalism, try William Cavanaugh's "Being Consumed: Economics and Christian Desire". This is from the same guy who wrote "Torture and Eucharist", except you can read this on the bus without getting strange looks from your seatmate.

[Gerard]

Thanks for sharing this. What a fascinating essay, especially as it connects so many different disciplines. I am of course interested in how our theology still plays into sustaining the free-market system as a justified system that does not need to be questioned or challenged. While we might not articulate these thoughts as those from two centuries ago would, the undertones are still very present in our thinking today (even in my own). What a challenge to consider.

[suhr]

I've thought a lot this year (since last year's Advent Conspiracy, really) about the conundrum of living capitalism and following Christ at the same time, and this historical perspective is an angle I hadn't stumbled across before. Thanks for sharing.

By the way, I'm sure you've seen it, but Zack Exley @ Revolution in Jesusland has done some quality blogging on the topic... http://revolutioninjesusland.com/tag/capitalism/

[Tim]

Thanks for sharing this resource, Larry. I remember Mike King reading, and being really challenged by, Cavanaugh's "Torture and the Eucharist." Just by title alone it sounds like a compelling read.

I have read some of Zack's posts, Josh. It is good stuff. It reminds of when, a number of years ago, in the early days of JW, we brought Andy Crouch in and he did a weekend seminar on "The Post-Consumer Church."