Christian Church and Economy

8/13/2019 Christian Church and Economy

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CHRISTIAN CHURCH AND ECONOMY

Adrian Ignat

Abstract

Romania, as well as many other Eastern countries, is facing a pronounced economic crisis. For many countries,especially in the East, the risk of living like Greece, only from loans, will have repercussions in the future, for the nextgenerations. herefore, it is a!solutely necessary to change our lifestyle, to replace our way of receiving goods,material satisfaction and unsu!stantiated work, with receiving earned rewards for our hard la!our. he loan, as it has

!een practiced in recent years, was an unnatural way toward progress and prosperity".It is also true that many times, as we live in a society !ased on consumption, on valuing our material desires, we

want to have more than we can truly cope with and more than is necessary #. $oderation in consumption, in life, isconsidered !y many economists to !e unproductive, economically unprofita!le, !ecause if we do not consume, we donot produce. %ut, is it not true that our resources and our Earth are wasted !y the excessive consumption& Is wastegood& Is this the specific 'hristian life& (oly Fathers always talk a!out moderation, lent and communion with God,with others and with all creation. Every!ody should have respect for values and life, and this must !e an essential partof our lives.

Keywors:economical challenges, Christian Church, crisis, material goods, capitalism, ideology

1. Introdct!on

$aterial goods represent a certain path in today)s world and even a purpose in itself. As far as man

was separated from God, so far did he direct his attention to temporal things, which, in his opinion, could

replace God. he cosmos of contemporary human existence can often !e found in phrases such as*economic welfare, living conditions and life, seculari+ation and glo!ali+ation etc. 'ontemporary man,

called !y some the recent man -atapievici, "//01, is not 'hrist2lover3or 'hrist2centred0, !ut selfish, self2

centred, considering to !e a 4measure of all things5 6.4%y self2divini+ation, man is separated from God and

his neigh!our, while !y 'hristian deification kept in the unit, or more precisely, he lives in the same !eing

-4same2!eing51 and eschatological restoration of unity5 -$ant+aridis, #77#, p. #1.

8nfortunately, until now, the 9rthodox 'hurch has not made a scientific research on the relationship

of 'hristian 'hurch with the economical life of our society. his study comes from the necessity of

'hristian 'hurch to show its social doctrine, to understand the social transformation of our society, mostly

on the crisis period, to present the 'hristian understanding of material goods, according to the Gospel ofour :ord ;esus 'hrist. For that reason, this paper will focus on the relationship 'hristian 'hurch2economy,

1In the middle of the economic crisis, the !ank loan, from the identity card to the estate loans, led the ma of the food that people !uy, goes to the gar!age. he same thing happens in the most developed countries, where

people !uy more than they consume, from the desire to have everything and even much more. ?ee* http*@@derscanu.ani.net@cata2mancare2aruncam2la2gunoi@3 ?eculari+ation, according to the theologians, is an irreconcila!le separation !etween religious and secular society. Alexander

?chmemann considers seculari+ation to !e the reaction of the society against medieval 'hristian clericalism, and the most commonform of human life is no seculari+ation of pu!lic and private prayer. 9ther scholars defined seculari+ation as individualistic type ofhuman !ehaviour, as if death did not exist, or as if God did not exist -etsi deus non daretur1. A development of the issue of 9rthodox2'hristian perspective was reali+ed !y Alexander ?chmemann -"/1.For the Life of the World. Bew Cork* ?t. Dladimir)s ?eminaryress, pp. /2// and ""= r. Gheorghe opa -#7771. Comuniune i nnoire spiritual n contextul secularizrii lumii moderne. Iasi*

rinitas u!lishing (ouse, p. #".4'hristopher 2 'hrist !earers, as ?t. aul claimed* Bow I no longer live, !ut 'hrist lives in me5 -Gal. #, #71. 'hrist, the new Adam,

assumes Adam in the whole human race5, suffers for it, and it will lead to life through death5 says Georgios I. $ant+aridis -#77#1.Gloalizare i uni!ersalitate. "imer i ade!r.translated !y rof. h. Dasile Raduca, %ucharest* %y+antine u!lishing (ouse, p0. 'hrist is the measure of all things, the divine and the human5, Archimandrite ?ophronius -"//61. #$L !edem pe %umnezeu aacum este. Essex, hird Edition, p. #03.5 Hith 'hrist in the centre of his life, as ?aint ;ustin opovici -#7"71. &mul i %umnezeu$&mul. 'isurile i culmile filosofiei.

introductory study and translation* rof. Ioan Ic and iac. Ioan I. Ic


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having some propositions for our society, which is confronted with several economical crises* moderation

in consumption= lent= a new understanding of economical !enefits, of material goods= the ethics in affairs=

the perversion of moral and social values, and so forth.

?tarting from the idea that the material goods are useful and they are gifts of God for human !eings,

I try to show how these goods can !e used for common !enefit, how the idea of ste+ardship can define ourrelationship with these goods, how the 'hristian 'hurch understands the welfare or the moderation in

consumption. ". Met#odo$o%y o& researc#

he main goal of this article is to present a clear point of view on the relationship 'hurch2economy

on this life, even if the 9rthodox 'hurch has not reali+ed it as a social doctrine. he reader will understand

that the material goods are important not only for our own use, !ut the !enefits of all people. 9n my

analysis, I used the 'hristian and non2'hristian studies, mostly pu!lished on Romania, to present the

economical life from 'hristian point of view, using the modern theological methods of research andconsulting various !i!liographical sources in the field.

he methodology of research is !ased on the o!


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If God is recogni+ed as the 'reator of the world, then material goods can not !e !ad .In human

history, in the first centuries after 'hrist, various Eastern heresies appeared, such as dualistic Gnostics, who

!elieved that matter is evil in itself and not God, !ut some emiurge created the world and man. 9n the

opposite side are those who strive to collect goods and fortunes, even fraudulently, proving much greed and

wickedness.In the twentieth century, in the East, an atheistic ideology of Hestern tone/appeared which had a

wide area of distri!ution and marked the lives of many people. It)s a!out communist ideology, which islikened !y some to 'hristian teaching, especially in terms of material goods. If 'hristianity axiom is 4all

that is mine is also yours5, the communist axiom is 4anything that is yours is mine, too5 -?tefanidu, "/0",

p. "661. In 'hristianity, the common property is !ased on the free and spontaneous consent, while in

communism is !ased on the outside imposition and coercion -Acts 0, 31. Furthermore, the common

property of 'hristianity recogni+es God as the real master of goods, while common property in

'ommunism granted this human Muality5 -$ant+aridis, #776, p. 0/1.

+. C#r!st!an C#rc# (os!t!on on t#e )ater!a$ %oods

'hristian 'hurch mission is salvation, the acMuisition of eternal life. %ut eternal life !egins here on

earth, and is perfected in heaven. It penetrates and transforms our lives. 'onseMuently, it has an impact on

life on earth. hus, in the history of the 'hristian 'hurch, there were 'hristians who !elieved they must

ignore all that is earthly, seeking to live only in God and desiring future happiness acMuisition. It is the case

of 'hristians in hessalonica, who, waiting for the ?aviour)s coming, have ceased to work and worry a!out

the pro!lems of life, focusing on piety and ignoring practical action. 4he truth is that eternal happiness is

acMuired through action, through the love of man to improve his earthly life to earthly happiness of man.?erve God !y serving man5 -Bicolae, "/6/, p. "#1.

Another group of 'hristians !elieve that !etween faith and everyday aspects of life there is noconnection. hey attend 'hurch, !ut are guided !y their own rules. hey are, however, who Apostle ;ames

addresses, when he says 4faith without deeds is dead5 -;ames #, ##2#61.

9ther 'hristians !elieve that the 'hristian 'hurch should !e involved in the implementation of

social programs 2 political, economic, cultural, creating prereMuisites for a 'hristian policy or economy.

From all this we can see clearly that in their attempt to analy+e the relationship of the 'hurch with society,

some 'hristians felt the need to capture favourite aspects of personal or group interest. %ut 4the 'hurch is

not the first factor of social development, it is not directly dealing with solving social pro!lems, !ut the

'hurch can support the progress of society, focusing on social !orders on its religious2moral principles.he 'hristian, then, has the 'hristian moral principles -even in the dogmas of the 'hurch1, a general social

character. Hhat is said on the religious and moral level can !e socially transposed and stated5 -Bicolae,

"/6/, p. "1.(owever, economy, thrift, capitalism and market economy values include the whole human race.

Everyone centres their existence around economic values, taking into account the evolution of the

economy, personal welfare and glo!al economic crises, etc. 4Uhe economy has strategic importance for

the powerful people of the earth, as it may provide or support glo!al hegemony, which is associated today

with the idea of a world superpower5 -$elas, "///, p. 61.Economic market, structured on supply2demand system stands in the contemporary society as the

economic vector that esta!lishes the extent of economic development. 9n the other hand, in an economic

relationship, the investor aims to maximi+e profits, even resorting to compromises. In many cases, the 4law

of profit5 takes over 4moral laws5. hus, the infiltration of capitalist spirit in all fields of life was not

!eneficial. If in trade, industry and finance the !asic law is that of profita!ility, not !y the same law the

politicians, priests, soldiers are guided and so forth, !ut on the interests of the people, !y the laws of

salvation, truth and honour.

In an analysis of the economic implications in the social and political fields, Fernand %raudel doesnot agree that the economy uneMuivocally determines them. (e !elieves that 4complex inter2relationship is

one of unitary historical realities, which is not segmented on fragmented sectors5 -$urgescu, #77#, p. /1.herefore, worthy of consideration are not only some of the economic interferences in the field of the

8He should say that the !i!lical Muote said* 'nd God sa+ that it +as good5 -Gen. ", 1.

9It was promoted !y Jarl $arx and F. Engels, Jarl $arx, he 'ommunist $anifesto5, in Jarl $arx -"/1. #electi!e Writings.

edited !y avid $c:ellan, 9xford* 9xford 8niversity ress. He mention that %i!le Muotation* 'nd God sa+ that it +as good.5 -Gen.", 1.


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'hristian 'hurch, and vice versa, !ut the historical evolution of this relationship, as it appears from the

very antithesis of material2spiritual, secular2sacred -Ries, #7771.

he picture, provided !y the current world, presents it as divided !etween privileged and

underprivileged, !etween rich and poor. 4here is a universal society, like a normal hierarchical, an image,

!ut easy to recogni+e it5 -%raudel, #77#, p. 601. In analy+ing this spectrum, the historian, after acomprehensive overview of events can discern or suggest to the reader to do so, and propose the origins of

ma


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romoting an openness to man and to society, the 'hurch has always promoted a social doctrine that

addresses all people, following the transformation of society through knowledge, love and


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?aviour who said* 4Foxes have holes and !irds of the air have nests, and the ?on of $an has nowhere to lay

his head5 -$atthew , #71.

'hristianity has never a!andoned people, especially when they faced various challenges of social,

economic, political or other nature. Although 'hristian 'hurch has not settled a social system, it often was

actively involved in mitigating of some harsh social policies and in raising every man in society, regardlessof social position of ethnic, gender or age. In this respect, ?aint aul said* 4here is neither a ;ew nor

Greek, there is either slave or free, there is no male and female, for you are all one in ;esus 'hrist5 -Gal. ,#1. herefore, it will !e interesting to analy+e the point of view of the 'hristian 'hurch to the economic

pro!lems humanity has ever faced and is still facing. ersonally, I !elieve that every economical crisis from

this world has roots in the moral crisis. he economical pro!lems can !e solved only through 'hristian

love, which must characterised !y relationships !etween humans. ?haring and receiving is the way of life

in this world, !ecause we are only stewards and the owner is God.

0. !b$!o%ra(#y

%raudel, Fernand -#77#1. %inamica capitalismului, translated !y Adriana Gheorghe, %ucharest* 'orintu!lishing (ouse.

'yril of Alexandria, ?aint -#7771. Comentariu la -!anghelia #f7ntului oan, translation, introduction andnotes !y rof. h. umitru ?tniloae, col. ?%, vol. 3", %ucharest* Institutul %i!lic Ni de $isiune al

%isericii 9rtodoxe RomTne u!lishing (ouse.ollar, avid, W Jraay, Aart -;une #77"1. rade, Gro+th and 0o!erty, %e!elopment 5esearch Group ,Horld %ank.Engels, F., W $arx, Jarl -"/1. he 'ommunist $anifesto. #electi!e Writings, edited !y avid$c:ellan, 9xford* 9xford 8niversity ress.

Evdokimov, aul -#771. ?7rstele !ie)ii spirituale, translation !y r. rof. Ioan %uga, ?econd Edition,%ucharest* 'hristiana u!lishing (ouse.

Floca, Arhid. rof. h. ;ohn B. -#7701. Canoanele /isericii &rtodoxe. >ote i comentarii, ?i!iu* hirdEdition.

Gheorghescu, Arhim. 'hesarie -"/71. 4n!)tura ortodox despre iconomia dumnezeiasc i iconomiaisericeasc, %ucharest* Institutului %i!lic Ni de $isiune al %isericii 9rtodoxe RomTne u!lishing (ouse.(arakas, ?tanley ?amuel -"//#1. Li!ing the Faith. he 0raxis of -astern &rtodox -thics, $inneapolis*:ight and :ife u!lishing 'ompany.

Ic,


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opescu, r. 9ctavian -#7731. 0redici la duminici i unele srtori de peste an,%ucharest* Institutului%i!lic Ni de $isiune al %isericii 9rtodoxe RomTne u!lishing (ouse.

opovici, ?aint ;ustin -#7"71. &mul i %umnezeu$&mul. 'isurile i culmile filosofiei, introductory studyand translation* rof. Ioan Ic and iac. Ioan I. Ic

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Christian Church and Economy