new church life: jan uary / february 201 4
are. In nations that are not free those wielding economic power are not serving
“the common good,” and inflict horrific injustices upon their people. Economic
systems cannot be tarred with one brush. But the pope was right when he said,
“We do not live better when we flee, hide, refuse to share, stop giving and lock
ourselves up in our own comforts. Such a life is nothing less than slow suicide.”
This is not the pathway to heaven.
Capitalism itself is neither good nor evil. It is what we choose to do with
it that defines it. Capitalism is a system rooted in freedom, and there is both
curse and blessing in that. When we are free, we can choose good or evil.
Plenty of both has been done under the banner of capitalism.
There is no doubt that people have been exploited and victimized by the
greed and profiteering that give capitalism a bad name. This is what the pope
called “the globalization of indifference” toward the poor and exploited. These
are evil choices.
But nations and leaders also have taken advantage of capitalism to help
free people from poverty, to create economic systems that create opportunities
for individuals to succeed, to encourage innovations in industry and health
care, and to give charitably to those in need.
As with power, it comes down to our free choices. The pope did call
business “a noble vocation” and rejected “the welfare mentality” of those
who avoid being useful. And he warned that without a commitment to
human dignity, virtue and a charitable approach to use, capitalism can invite
materialism, selfishness and greed. There is more charity and goodwill in
businessmen and -women throughout the world than many people realize, but
it is overshadowed by greed and exploitation. The challenge within freedom is
always to encourage people to make better choices for the good of all.
Consider the hope and the challenge offered by the Rev. Dr. Reuben Bell
in a sermon preached in the Boston Society when he was its pastor: “What
would happen to business practices in this nation if businessmen and -women
were to discover and apply the New Church doctrine of charity in the work
they do every day? . . . The business culture would be magnified to infinity, and
very good things would happen.”
(BMH)
the demand for sand
This common natural material is so full of benefits for human life that we
might say sand has a built in urge to be of use to us. And it actually does.
There seems to be no limit to sand’s uses. It can be packed into bags to
make a dike. It flows in an hourglass to mark time. It is used in abrasives from
sandpaper to sand blasters. It is used to make glass. For ages before glass was
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