From Anxiety and Greed to Milk and Honey

In a recent article in Sojourners magazine, theologian Walter Brueggemann discusses the issue of what the Bible has to say about bailouts.

He says, "Biblical faith invites us out of self-destruction toward God's generosity and abundance."

Brueggemann continues, "So far as I know, the Bible says nothing explicit about subprime loans and the financial implications of such risky economic practice. There is a great deal, nonetheless, that the Bible has to say about such a crisis as we now face. I will comment in turn on a biblical perspective of an analysis of the crisis and a biblical perspective for an alternative economic practice.

While the specifics of the current market collapse are peculiarly modern, biblical perspectives are pertinent because the fundamental issues of economics are constant from ancient to contemporary time, constants such as credit and debt, loans and interest, and the endless tension between haves and have-nots."

With whit and imagination, Brueggemann then identifies three dimensions of the theological-moral foundations of the current economic crisis: autonomy, anxiety, and greed. His conclusion is that we must move to an alternative way in economics: "from autonomy to covenantal existence, from anxiety to divine abundance, and from acquisitive greed to neighborly generosity."

Although this article is, at times, overly simplistic in how it deals with very complex issues, it should function to stimulate positive dialogue both inside and outside of the church!

To read the whole article, go to:

http://www.sojo.net/index.cfm?action=magazine.article&issue=soj0902&article=from-anxiety-and-greed-to-milk-and-honey