Essay on "Christian Ethics in Relation to Capitalism"

Essay 12 pages (3886 words) Sources: 10

[EXCERPT] . . . .

Christian Ethics in Relation to Capitalism and Ecology

The role of Christian ethics in the political sphere has shifted dramatically over the last thirty years, as the fall of the Soviet Union and a growing awareness of the planet's interconnected nature has forced a reevaluation of theology's role in public life. The near-total triumph of capitalism over socialism and communism (even in ostensibly "communist" states such as China) requires theologians to consider how Christian ethics might be usefully applied to this dominant economic system, while increasing evidence of humanity's effect on the planet requires a simultaneous reevaluation of ecology as to how it can embody Christian ethics. The crises of the next century will largely be economic and ecological, and theologians must necessarily direct their intellectual efforts to preventing or alleviating these crises. By reflecting on the role of Christian ethics in a post-communist, ecologically unbalanced world, it will be possible to formulate some general principles for the effective deployment of Christian ethics within the political and public arena, without allowing the more extreme dictates of either capitalism or ecology to alter or otherwise influence those ethics.

Arguably the most dramatic shift in modern society occurred at the beginning of the 1990s with the fall of the Soviet Union. Practically overnight, the global political and economic landscape was transformed, and the effects of this transformation were felt universally, if unevenly. In their 1991 essay "Responses to 'A Postcommunist Manifesto': Ethics, Economics, and the Corporate Life," Robert Benne and Preston Williams consider the opportunities presented to theologians by this global transformation. Benne and Williams respond to a previous essay (Max Stackhouse and Dennis McCann's "A Postcommunist Manifesto") written as an intentional adaptation of Marx and Engel's original Communist Manifesto, and evaluate the suggestions of the "Postcommunist Manifesto" while adding some of their own. Before exploring the ramifications of Benne and William's work, it will be useful to examine their critiques of the earlier essay, as a means of placing their larger arguments in some context.

Overall, Benne and Williams agree with the intentions and conclusions of the "Postcommunist Manifesto," but according to Benne, they "cannot give three cheers for the particular form of [Stackhouse and McCann's] proposal," because "they need a dash of Lutheran diffidence to dampen an unseemly enthusiasm." Benne sees "two basic fronts on which their enthusiasm needs to be qualified" (Benne & Williams 489). Benne and Williams' criticisms will be explored in more detail in a moment, but to summarize, their main contention is that the tone and certain portions of the "Postcommunist Manifesto" appear to engage Christian ethics as a justification for global capitalism, rather than as a means of making global capitalism more just. Thus, Benne's first criticism is that the authors of the "Postcommunist Manifesto" "confuse the central Christian message of salvation with political and economic practice, in this case capitalist practice," thereby proposing "that human efforts at economic and political transformation are in some sense salvatory" (Benne & Williams 489). Benne does not allow that this might be the result of "the careless exuberance of manifestos," but rather sees it as a continuation of "a tendency to qualify the radicality and universality of the gospel by conflating a desirable human practice with salvation." The problems with this tendency are twofold, and although Benne and Williams only explicitly address the problem it presents for theology, they hint at the somewhat more dramatic problem this tendency creates for society as a whole.

First, as Benne notes, this conflation of the gospel's universal, redemptive power with a particular economic system "leads to an inclination to rule others out of the reach of redeeming grace" by suggesting that only those supportive of one particular manmade system of commerce are able to benefit from the gospel (Benne & Williams 490). Although a major problem, as it attempts to circumscribe the totality of Christian salvation with prerequisites, it is easily identified and rectified, as Benne has done. The second and perhaps more pervasive problem, which Benne and Williams only hint at (likely in order to keep from accusing their colleagues of something so nefarious), is the threat of Christian theology being used as a justification for capitalism. Benne notes that the authors of the manifesto "claim that if our generation does not respond to the challenge (the constructive engagement with capitalism they commend), we betray the gospel" (Benne & Williams 489). This claim is a far cry from suggesting that Christian ethics might be usefully applied to capitalism, arguing instead that engagement with capitalism is a requirement of Christian ethics. The danger of this thinking then, is the perversion of Christian truth in the service of a definitionally secular belief system (capitalism), which can ultimately lead to Christian theology being deployed as justification for atrocities committed in the name of capitalism, just as the misapplication of Darwin's theories served as justification for atrocities committed in the name of racism. As mentioned before, Benne and Williams do not go this far in pointing out the dangers of conflating Christian belief with capitalist practice, but their critique of the manifesto evidences their fears.

The second "front" where Benne and Williams see the need for some tempered enthusiasm is the manifesto's "particular formulation of public theology" (Benne & Williams 490). Benne and Williams disagree with the manifesto in terms of the location at which Christian ethics enters the discourse of capitalism. Whereas the manifesto sees "theology and ecclesiology […] on the front lines of the public discussion," Benne proposes "that the most effective public theology will be carried forward by laity who are more expert in their fields than theologians and ethicists will ever be" (Benne & Williams 490). In short, Benne suggests that a truly useful engagement between capitalism and theology will be mediated by those individuals best suited to navigate both. Thus, while the theologian and ethicist are dedicated to understanding capitalism in light of Christian ethics, it is the specialists in the fields of sociology, economics, and political philosophy who will ultimately bring these ethics to fore of capitalist discourse. Bearing these critiques in mind, one can now easily see where Benne and Williams agree with the manifesto. Namely, they agree with the need for Christian theologians and ethicists to focus on "the moral and practical possibilities inherent in varieties of democratic capitalism rather than diverting their efforts to the unrelenting and exaggerated criticism that has been so characteristic of the past," coupled with "strong support for a renewed public relevance of Christian religious and moral claims for the evolving system of democratic capitalism in the face of a world that has marginalized and privatized those claims" (Benne & Williams 489). The need for this renewed focus can be seen most plainly in the field of ecology, where the conflict between capitalism and a secularly-informed conservation movement has thus far failed to yield solutions for the ever-increasing economic and ecological disasters that are the hallmarks of 21st century global capitalism.

In his essay "God and Country," Wendell Berry contemplates the phenomena of "churches, which claim to honor God as the 'maker of heaven and earth,'" showing "little inclination to honor the earth or protect it from those who would dishonor it" (Berry 524). Berry's qualms are not rooted in any ephemeral notion of "dishonoring" the earth one might find in neo-pagan theories of Gaia or an earthly consciousness, but in a very literal interpretation of humanity's role in relation to planet as informed by Christian ethics and theology. Berry notes a general disinterest in ecology among churches, even though "those of use who are devoted both to biblical tradition and to the defense of the earth" see churches as belonging "properly and logically" to the cause of ecology (Berry 524).

Berry argues that this inattention to the planet's well-being arises from "the failures and errors of Christian practice," rather than Christian truth. Specifically, he identifies Genesis 1:28 "in which God instructs Adam and Eve to 'be fruitful and multiply and replenish the earth, and subdue it,'" as the point of contention, and sees any subsequent problems in addressing ecology from a Christian perspective as arising from a misreading of this verse (Berry 526). He suggests that it is "the belief of many non-Christian environmentalists as well as at least some Christians that Genesis 1:28 […] gives unconditional permission to humankind to use the world as it pleases" (Berry 526).

This is precisely the kind of misapplication of theology Benne and Williams warn against, because it arises from "an extremely unintelligent misreading of Genesis 1:28 itself," focusing only on the "subdue" portion without any attention or interpretation of "replenish." (Berry 526). Berry goes on to point out that "such a reading of Genesis 1:28 is contradicted by virtually all the rest of the Bible," and that "the ecological teaching of the Bible is simply inescapable," the most important part of which being the fact that God "has never revoked the conditions, bearing on his gift to us of the use of… READ MORE

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