In Theory

I have just returned home from residency work on a doctorate in ministry in Chicago, where I took a course on economic realities. Like the world’s religious leaders, I too question our business as usual and its lapse in morality. Our culture prizes greed by renaming it as success. We lift up material success to where it appears that money is the only means of attaining success.

Material success does not guarantee happiness and peace. This desire to have more only creates anxiety. The myth that more is better is the foundation of capitalism — creating a need where there previously was not one. There are serious flaws in capitalistic societies — unchecked, they can be quite destructive despite their ability to create affluence.

I am not opposed to all forms of capitalism. I am not a monastic and I can appreciate the affluence of our society. It is not that affluence on its own is bad. However, the disparity between the haves and have-nots is unconscionable.

As people of faith, we are called to speak prophetically. My impression is that because this economic crisis is affecting all levels of society to some degree, people are more willing to listen to the need for strong moral values in the marketplace. It is not always an easy word to preach, but for those of us who follow the prophets like Isaiah, Micah and Amos, and we Christians who claim Jesus, we must continue to call society to ethical responsibility, moral interaction, and loving care for the least of these.

Fairview Community Church

Costa Mesa

Beloveds with whom I live, work and play understand that Gordon Gekko was wrong in the 1987 movie “Wall Street.” Greed is not good!

Jesus’ wisdom, “Where your treasure is, there your heart will be also” (Matthew 6:21, Luke 12:34), gives perspective to “greed” as choosing material possessions, wealth and money over the most important values: peace, justice and love.