Uncompromised Christian Economic Principles - Part I

Political economy is not a law unto itself.  It too is subject to the laws of God, and, therefore, to the scrutiny of Christ’s Church.

Eastern Christians, having been purified by their terrible sufferings under the Communist yoke, have acquired a deep wisdom in many areas that we would do well to heed.  The realm of economics is no exception.

Here then are portions of an encyclical of the Russian Orthodox Church published in August of the year 2000 (entitled The Basis of the Social Concept of the Russian Orthodox Church) that deal specifically with economic matters.  Below one will find the wisdom of the Church on issues affecting labor: creativity, the Sabbath, turning the economy and civilization into idols (such as the American Empire has done), what sort of labor is virtuous and what sort not, the just distribution of material goods, etc. 

The other sections of the encyclical touching on economic life will follow in Part II of this series.

But for now, we present Chapter VI of the encyclical, ‘Labor and Its Fruits’ (accessible at this address: http://www.stlukeorthodox.com/html/currentissues/articles/churchAndSociety/chapters/chapter6.cfm):

VI.1. Labor is an organic element of human life. The Book of Genesis says that in the beginning “there was not a man to till the ground” (Gen. 2:5). Having created the Garden of Eden, God put man in it “to till it and to care for it” (Gen. 2:15). Labor is the creative fulfillment of man who was called to be the co-creator and co-worker of the Lord by virtue of his original likeness with God. However, after man fell away from the Creator, the nature of his Labor changed: “In the sweat of your face shall you eat bread, until you return to the ground” (Gen. 3:19). The creative component of labor weakened to become mostly a means of sustenance for fallen man.

VI.2. The Word of God does not only draw people’s attention to the need of daily labor, but also sets a special rhythm for it. The fourth commandment reads: “Remember to keep the Sabbath day holy. Six days shall you labor, and do all your work. But the seventh day is the Sabbath of the Lord your God: that day you shall not do any work, neither you, nor your son, your daughter, your servant your maidservant, your cattle, nor the stranger within your gates” (Ex. 20:8-10). By this commandment of the Creator human labor is compared to the divine creative work of making and creating the universe. Indeed, the commandment to observe the Sabbath is substantiated by the fact that in the creation “God blessed the seventh day, and sanctified it, because on that day He rested from all the work which He created and made” (Gen. 2:3). This day should be dedicated to the Lord so that everyday chores may not divert man from the Creator. At the same time, the active manifestations of charity and selfless aid to one’s neighbors- are not violations of the commandment: “The Sabbath was made for man, and not man for the Sabbath (1~1k. 2:27). In Christian tradition, the first day of the week, the day of the Resurrection of Christ, has been a day of rest since apostolic times.

VI.3. The improvement of the tools and methods of labor, its division into professions and the move to more complex forms contribute to better material living standards. However, people’s enticement with the achievements of civilization moves them away from the Creator and leads to an imaginary triumph of reason that seeks to arrange earthly life without God. The realization of such aspirations in human history has always ended in tragedy. Holy Scriptures relates that the first builders of earthly civilization were Cain’s successors: Lamech and his children invented and made the first copper and iron tools, movable tents and various musical instruments; they were also the founders of many skills and arts (Gen. 4:22). However, they and many other people with them failed to avoid temptations: “all men lived corrupt lives on earth” (Gen. 6:12). Therefore, the Creator willed that the civilization of Cain be ended with a flood. Among the most vivid biblical images of the failure of fallen humanity “to make a name for itself’ is the construction of the Tower of Babel “whose top may reach to heaven.” The Tower of Babel is presented as a symbol of people joining efforts to achieve an ungodly goal. The Lord punishes arrogant men: by confusing their tongues He makes understanding among them impossible and scatters them throughout the earth.

VI.4. From a Christian perspective, labor in itself is not an absolute value. It is blessed when it represents co-working with the Lord and contributing to the realization of His design for the world and mankind. However, labor is not something pleasing to God if it is intended to serve the ego-centered interests of the individual or human communities, and to meet the sinful needs of the spirit and the flesh. Holy Scriptures points to two moral motives of labor: work to sustain oneself without being a burden for others, and work to give to the needy. The Apostle writes: “Let him labor, working with his hands that which is good, so he may have to give to him who is in need” (Eph. 4:28). Such labor cultivates the soul and strengthens the body and enables the Christian to express his faith in God-pleasing works of charity and love of his neighbor (Mt. 5:16; James 2:17). Everyone remembers the words of St. Paul: “If any would not work, neither should he eat” (2 Thess. 3:10). The Fathers and Doctors of the Church continuously stressed the moral meaning of labor. Thus, St. Clement of Alexandria described it as “a school of social justice.” St. Basil the Great argued that “a pious intention should not be a pretext for idleness and evasion from work, but rather an incentive for even more work.” St. John Chrysostom insisted that “not labor, but idleness should be regarded as dishonor.” Monks in many monasteries gave an example of laborious asceticism. Their economic activity was in many ways an example for emulation, while the founders of major monasteries were renowned not only as high spiritual authorities but also great toilers. Well known are such models of zealous work as the Venerable Theodosius of Pechory, Sergius of Radonezh, Cyril of White Lake, Joseph of Volotsk, Nil of Sora and other Russian ascetics.

VI.5. The Church blesses every work aimed to benefit people. At the same time, she does not give preference to any form of human work if it conforms to Christian moral standards. In His parables, our Lord Jesus Christ keeps referring to various professions, without singling out any of them. He speaks of the work of a sower (W. 4:3-9), servants and the ruler of a household (Lk. 12:42-48), a merchant and fishermen (Mt. 13:4548), the householder and laborers of a vineyard (Mt. 20:1-16). Modem times, however, have seen the emergence of a whole industry intended to propagate vice and sin and satisfy such pernicious passions and addictions as drinking, drug-addiction, fornication and adultery. The Church testifies to the sin of being involved in such activities as they corrupt not only workers, but also society as a whole.

VI.6. A worker has the right to use the fruits of his labor: “Who plants a vineyard, and does not eat of its fruits? Who feeds a flock, and does not drink the milk of the flock?... He who plows should plow in hope; and he who threshes in hope should be a partaker of his hope” (I Cor. 9:7, 10). The Church teaches that refusal to pay for honest work is not only a crime against man, but also a sin before God. Holy Scripture says: “You shall not oppress a hired servant... At his day you shall give him his pay... lest he cry against you to the Lord, and it be sinful to you” (Deut. 24:14-15); “Woe to him... who uses his neighbor’s services without wages, and does not give him anything for his work” (Jer. 22:13); “Indeed, the wages of the laborers who reaped your fields, which you kept back by fraud, cry out; and the cries of the reapers have reached the ears of the Lord of Sabaoth” (James 5:4). At the same time, by God’s command those who work are ordered to take care of those who for various reasons cannot earn their living, such as the weak, the sick, strangers (refugees), orphans and widows. The worker should share the fruits of his work with them, “that the Lord may bless you in all the work of your hands” (Deut. 24:19-22). Continuing on earth the service of Christ Who identified Himself with the destitute, the Church always comes out in defense of the voiceless and powerless. Therefore, she calls upon society to ensure the equitable distribution of the fruits of labor, in which the rich support the poor, the healthy the sick, the able-bodied the elderly. The spiritual welfare and survival of society are possible only if the effort to ensure life, health and minimal welfare for all citizens becomes an indisputable priority in distributing material resources.

Ward off the Cold and Flu Naturally

Given the dangers of taking the flu vaccine,

http://www.naturalnews.com/042159_flu_shot_vaccine_myths_influenza.html

it should be avoided by most.  However, there are still a number of ways to protect yourself and your families and friends from cold and flu viruses.  This article by Dr Mercola lists several:

http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2013/09/23/garlic-health-benefits.aspx

The opening lines:

If you want a simple way to increase the disease-fighting power of your meals, be generous with your use of high-quality herbs and spices. This applies year-round, but as cold and flu season nears, you may want to consider spicing things up more than you might normally.

There is no shortage of research showing that herbs and spices are among the healthiest you can consume. And they’re a “secret weapon” that just about everyone can take advantage of, regardless of your budget.

Garlic in particular has long been hailed for its healing powers, especially against infectious diseases like cold and flu.

This is likely due to its immune boosting effects. Fresh garlic is also a potent antibacterial, antiviral and anti-fungal agent. But its therapeutic effects may go much further than that.

A Different Way to Settle the Wilderness . . .

 . . . and build intentional Christian communities, courtesy of Saint Ammon of Egypt.

"Our holy Father Ammon's parents died in his childhood. He was brought up by an uncle, who made him marry when he was still very young. On the night of his wedding, as soon as he and his wife retired to the bridal chamber, Ammon took up the holy Scriptures and read the passage in the Epistle to the Corinthians where the Apostle speaks of the disadvantages of marriage because of all the troubles and cares that come with it, while virgins consecrated to the Lord can devote themselves without distraction to prayer and to spiritual labour. Both spouses took the following words literally: From now on, let those who have wives be as though they had none... and those who deal with the world, as though they had no dealings with it (1 Cor. 7:29,31). They decided to remain in their virginity and to retire together to a desert place where they could give themselves over to prayer and fasting. They set out for the mountain of Nitria, some way from Alexandria, and settled in a little hut there. But, living together as man and woman, they soon realized the inexpedience of tempting nature head-on and of provoking the attacks of demons. They parted company, therefore, each to live separately in ascesis. Ammon never used wine or oil but lived only on dry bread that he ate every two or three days.

"His manner of life was pleasing to the Lord, and a great many brethren who wanted to embrace the monastic life soon came to join him. When a new aspirant arrived, Ammon would immediately let him have his own cell with everything in it, and the other brethren would secretly bring provisions to the newcomer or whatever else might be useful. This showed that fraternal love was first among the laws observed in this ever-growing brotherhood. In a few years, under the direction of Ammon, the desert of Nitria was transformed into a veritable city. Some of the brethren now wanted to build their cells at a distance where they could live in greater solitude, so when one day Saint Antony the Great came to visit him, Abba Ammon asked his advice about the place to choose. At the ninth hour, after taking a scanty meal together, they walked in the desert until sunset, when they set up a cross at the place they had reached, so that those who wanted to could build their cells there with the blessing of the two Elders. 'In this way', Abba Antony said, 'the brethren coming from Nitria, after a meal at the ninth hour, to see those who are here, will meet them at this moment. And if those who leave here to go to Nitria do the same, they will not lose their hesychia (stillness).' This was how the desert of Kellia ('the Cells') came to be established almost twelve miles from Nitria. More than six hundred monks were soon living there, each in his own cell.

"Saint Ammon and Saint Antony were united in a deep spiritual friendship. When Abba Ammon gave up his soul in peace to the Lord at Nitria, Antony, far away on his mountain, broke off the conversation he was having with some monks and, in ecstasy, saw the soul of Ammon going up to Heaven accompanied by the joyful hymns of a multitude of angels. Among other words inspired by the Holy Spirit, Saint Ammon said, 'Bear with everyone as God bears with you'." (Synaxarion)

Found at http://www.abbamoses.com/months/october.html for the day of 4 October.

There are still plenty of wilds in the States and Canada that could be settled in the way described above: deserts, mountains, plains, forests, marshes.  But are there any men and women whose hearts are sufficiently free from bondage to the passions and the other snares of the earthly life to even begin such a formidable spiritual struggle?

They Have Us Right Where They Want Us - Part II

Part I of this series offered a glimpse of the corporations who control so much of life nowadays; Part II will explore what industrialism/corporatism has done for the average adult in the united States.

As Allan Carlson explained in his presentation to the ISI conference (see earlier post, ‘Toward Christian Economics’), in traditional societies most families are fairly self-sufficient.  But when the ideology of industrialism intrudes, most become quite dependent on the big conglomerates to provide them their necessities in exchange for labor.

This is borne out by the numbers. 

In the united States, farmers amount to less than one percent of the population (2.2 million out of 313 million), with three-fifths of all crop sales coming from only about 188,000 of that 2.2 million.

Source:  http://www.epa.gov/agriculture/ag101/demographics.html

This is a dangerous condition for any people.  First and foremost, it takes one of the most basic necessities out of our control.  If no food made it to the grocery store shelves for a month or more, how many would fare well?  Second, even if it does continue to arrive in a timely manner, there is still the quality of the food to consider.  Many of our chronic illnesses are due to various pesticides, dyes, preservatives, flavorings, etc. added to the produce of factory farms, whether at the farm or during processing.

With so few people able to make a living off the land, many millions are forced to sell our labor to others, some to small businesses, many more to oversized businesses.  The stats:  ‘Some 19.6 million Americans work for companies employing fewer than 20 workers, 18.4 million work for firms employing between 20 and 99 workers, and 14.6 million work for firms with 100 to 499 workers. By contrast, 47.7 million Americans work for firms with 500 or more employees.’

Source:  http://economics.about.com/od/smallbigbusiness/a/us_business.htm

Only 9.2 million Americans are now self-employed.

Source:  http://rt.com/usa/recession-number-americans-self-employed-787/

Thus, we have lost much of our day-to-day freedom in order to work for the new masters of society (big industrial businesses - or their dependencies - of one kind or another).  This would be bad enough, but it is made the worse by the fact that the work is often dull, monotonous, lacking creativity, and hazardous to the workers’ health (e.g., chemical exposure, repetitive motion, too much sitting, not enough time outdoors in the sunlight).

When joy is therefore divorced from work as it is in many places in the States, people try to make up for this by buying - buying movies, buying food, buying phones, buying cars.  Or by indulging in some of the other vices encouraged by business advertising.  The endless cycle of producing and consuming is thus established, covetousness and envy become the foundation of the economy, and new products must be introduced and new markets must be opened continuously (subjecting ever more people in the world to the destructive effects of industrialism) in order to keep the whole system afloat

This is NOT the incarnation of Christianity in the realm of economics.  It is truly an evil system that chains us to this world, blinds us to spiritual reality, denies free will and the idea of God-given vocation, and encourages the worship of money rather than the All-Holy Trinity.  Of these things we must repent, removing ourselves, our families, and our villages and towns as much as possible from the industrialized/globalized economy, and dedicating ourselves anew to living uncomfortably in this world, to preparing every day for the eternal life to come, that we might have a good defense at the Dread Judgment of Christ.

This Is How Truly Evil and Despicable Many Parts of Our Government Have Become

Two stories that ought to bring the corporate-controlled regime crashing down.  Whether they will or not remains to be seen.  May God help us, through the mediation of the Most Pure Mother of Jesus Christ.

First, and most vile, is the celebration of the U.S. House of Representatives of the needless - and let us emphasize needless - killing by the police in D.C. of an unarmed mother whose baby was in the back seat of her vehicle at the time.

Full story here (text and video):  http://www.infowars.com/congress-gives-standing-ovation-to-dc-cops-for-executing-unarmed-mother/

Second, a reporter and his team are illegally harassed by guards patrolling the NSA’s new super spy center in Utah.  The lesson to us?  They can pry into our lives in any way imaginable (whether through legal means or not), but we are not permitted to know even the smallest detail of what they do.

Full story here (some text, but mostly a video):  http://www.storyleak.com/breaking-video-nsa-detains-anthony-gucciardi-confiscates-cameras/

When ‘Boy-Meets-Girl’ Encounters the Grace of God

Even earthly romance is fundamentally changed by God’s grace.  Would that we had more of it!  Here now is the beautiful story of Sts Justina and Cyprian:

"Saint Justina, who was from Damascus, lived in virginity for the sake of Christ. Saint Cyprian, who was from Antioch, began as an initiate of magic and worshipper of the demons. A certain foolish young man who had been smitten with Justina's beauty hired Cyprian to draw her to love him; when Cyprian had used every demonic device he knew, and had failed, being repulsed by the power of Christ Whom Justina invoked, he understood the weakness of the demons and came to know the truth. Delivered from demonic delusion, he came to Christ and burned all his books of magic, was baptized, and later ascended the episcopal throne in his country. Later, he and Justina were arrested by the Count of Damascus, and having endured many torments at his hands, they were sent finally to Diocletian in Nicomedia, where they were beheaded in the year 304." (Great Horologion)

Found at http://www.abbamoses.com/months/october.html for the day of 2 October.

For a much fuller account of their lives, the reader may visit this site:

http://orthodoxinfo.com/death/cyprian_justina.aspx

Let the single man or woman understand that a life lived entirely for Christ, forsaking even marriage for Him if that is what He has called him or her to do, is a very blessed life indeed and ought to be pursued with all fervor, no matter the disdainful attitude of modern society toward those who choose to remain single, and more importantly, virgins.

They Have Us Right Where They Want Us - Part I

‘[The Southern Agrarians] saw, earlier than most, that industrialism and applied science were not simply benign ways of improving our material standard of living. Rather, they were ways of organizing society’ (Busick and Cheek, Jr., ‘Not in Memoriam, But in Affirmation: Mel Bradford’s Scholarly Legacy at 20’, Part I, The Imaginative Conservative, July 2013, http://www.theimaginativeconservative.org/2013/07/in-affirmation-mel-bradford-scholarly-legacy-at-20.html).

The transformation being wrought by industrialism continues unabated for now in the Western world and most other places, as a weak Christianity is relentlessly assaulted by the modern gods of the new order: money, material goods, entertainment, comfort, and such like. 

All too many have become like domesticated animals thanks to the lifestyle forced on us by industrialism:  We depend on industrial farms to grow our food, and on national and international chain stores to cook and package it for us.  We depend on corporations to make our clothing, our means of traveling, our culture in many cases, our medicine, etc.

By and large, we have become as helpless as housebound dogs, canaries, or gerbils when it comes to providing the basic necessities of life for ourselves and for our families:  If no one accepts our labor, we are either abandoned to destitution or become wards of the government.

Meanwhile, the owners of the large corporations who are enriched by this scheme grow ever more powerful, economically and politically.  Andrew Gavin Marshall writes,

In the year 2000, of the world’s 100 largest economies, 51 were corporations, while only 49 were countries, based upon national GDP (gross domestic product) and corporate sales. Of the top 200 corporations in 2000, the United States had the largest share with 82, followed by Japan at 41, Germany at 20, and France at 17.

Of the world’s 100 largest economic entities in 2010, 42% were corporations; when looking at the top 150 economic entities, 58% were corporations. The largest corporation in 2010 was Wal-Mart, the 25th largest economic entity on earth, surpassed only by the 24 largest countries in the world, but with greater revenues than the GDP of 171 countries, placing it higher on the list than Norway and Iran.

Following Wal-Mart, the largest corporations in the world were: Royal Dutch Shell (larger than Austria, Argentina and South Africa), Exxon Mobil (larger than Thailand and Denmark), BP (larger than Greece, UAE, Venezuela and Colombia), followed by several other energy and automotive conglomerates.

. . .

In October of 2011, a scientific study about the global financial system was released, the first of its kind, undertaken by three complex systems theorists at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology in Zurich, Switzerland. The conclusion of the study revealed what many theorists and observers have noted for years:

“An analysis of the relationships between 43,000 transnational corporations has identified a relatively small group of companies, mainly banks, with disproportionate power over the global economy.” As one of the researchers stated, “Reality is so complex, we must move away from dogma, whether it’s conspiracy theories or free-market... Our analysis is reality-based.” Using a database which listed 37 million companies and investors worldwide, the researchers studied all 43,060 trans-national corporations (TNCs), including the share ownerships linking them.

The mapping of "power" was done through the construction of a model showing which companies controlled other companies through shareholdings. The web of ownership revealed a core of 1,318 companies with ties to two or more other companies. This "core" was found to own roughly 80% of global revenues for the entire set of 43,000 TNCs.

And then came what the researchers referred to as the “super-entity” of 147 tightly-knit companies, which all own each other, and collectively own 40% of the total wealth in the entire network. One of the researchers noted, “In effect, less than 1 per cent of the companies were able to control 40 per cent of the entire network.”

. . .

In December of 2011, Roger Altman, the former Deputy Secretary of the Treasury under the Clinton administration, wrote an article for the Financial Times in which he explained that financial markets were “acting like a global supra-government,” noting:

"They oust entrenched regimes where normal political processes could not do so. They force austerity, banking bail-outs and other major policy changes. Their influence dwarfs multilateral institutions such as the International Monetary Fund. Indeed, leaving aside unusable nuclear weapons, they have become the most powerful force on earth."

Source:  http://www.occupy.com/article/welcome-network-global-corporate-control

About the fate of the average person/worker in the industrial pattern of living, we shall have more to say in Part II.