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Started by Imperator; Last updated Feb 25, 08 5:52 PM CST by D Lim | View history

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God & Mammon

"And the Jews' passover was at hand, and Jesus went up to Jerusalem, And found in the temple those that sold oxen and sheep and doves, and the changers of money sitting: And when he had made a scourge of small cords, he drove them all out of the temple, and the sheep, and the oxen; and poured out the changers' money, and overthrew the tables; And said unto them that sold doves, Take these things hence; make not my Father's house an house of merchandise." - John 2:13-16

The love and hate of money have always been intertwined with religion. Christ decried the money changers in the temple. In his famous work, "The Protestant Ethic and the Spirit of Capitalism," sociologist Max Weber posited that the origins of modern capitalism could be found in some of the the principles inherent in the Protestant Reformation, particularly Calvinism.  Like it or not churches and religion have taken on many aspects of capitalism.  And capitalism is not just for Protestants anymore. There follows some of the evidence for this trend.

Stories

Stories 1 - 20 of 21

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  • July 2008

    • Weak Dollar Sends Vatican to $14.5M Loss

      newser  |  Guardian (UK)  |  Jul 11, 08 8:19 AM CDT

      Weak Dollar Sends Vatican to $14.5M Loss

      The weak dollar has wreaked havoc on business across Europe, but one organization has posted a surprising loss: the Vatican. The Catholic Church blamed the declining greenback for its first loss in 4 years as it ended the year $14.5 million in the red. The Guardian reports on how the decline of the almighty dollar is hurting the house of the Almighty. More »

  • April 2008

    • Robocop Director Pens Shocking Jesus Bio

      newser  |  Associated Press  |  Apr 24, 08 5:42 AM CDT

      Robocop Director Pens Shocking Jesus Bio

      Dutch director Paul Verhoeven, best known for directing films like Robocop , Basic Instinct , and Total Recall , is releasing a biography of Jesus which is bound to spark an angry response, reports AP. The book, which Verhoeven has been working on for 20 years, suggests that Jesus' father was a Roman soldier who raped Mary. The director hopes the book will lead to a film. More »

    • Florida lawmakers debate offering a Christian license plate

      Associated Press  |  Apr 24, 08

      Florida drivers can order more than 100 specialty license plates celebrating everything from manatees to the Miami Heat basketball team, but one now under consideration would be the first in the nation to explicitly promote a specific religion.The Florida Legislature is considering a specialty plate with a design that includes a Christian cross, a stained-glass window and the words "I Believe."Rep. Edward Bullard, the plate's sponsor, said people who "believe in their college or university" or "believe in their football team" already have license plates they can buy. The new design is a chance...

    • Greenies Find God Might Be the Answer

      newser  |  Politico  |  Apr 15, 08 11:56 AM CDT

      Greenies Find God Might Be the Answer

      How much carbon would Jesus use? Not much, say the religious communities now teaming with environmentalists to lobby Capitol Hill. As a carbon-capping bill approaches the Senate, eco-advocates hope that church partnerships will re-frame the debate, and religious leaders rail against the desecration of divine creation and the suffering of the poor coping with energy costs and food shortages. More »

  • March 2008

    • Holy Week With the Homeless

      newser  |  Austin American-Statesman  |  Mar 23, 08 12:52 PM CDT

      Holy Week With the Homeless

      In an effort to follow in the steps of Jesus, seven prosperous Austin men spent part of Holy Week this year living in a park in downtown Austin, Texas, with the homeless. The "street retreat' is led by Alan Graham, co-founder of a national organization that ministers to the homeless called Mobile Loaves & Fishes. More »

    • Easter Defies Madison Avenue

      newser  |  Slate  |  Mar 23, 08 8:00 AM CDT

      Easter Defies Madison Avenue

      Christmas’ religious meaning is lost in a sea of advertising, parties, and major retail dollars, but Easter has resisted becoming a “consumerist nightmare”—and that’s because its Christian origins demand serious thought, writes James Martin in Slate . While “the Christmas story is easily reduced to pablum,” Easter’s story of crucifixion and resurrection is “relentlessly disconcerting,” Martin observes. More »

  • February 2008

    • More Americans Cut Church Ties

      newser  |  Christian Science Monitor  |  Feb 26, 08 6:00 AM CST

      More Americans Cut Church Ties

      Americans are swapping  religious affiliations at an accelerating rate, with 50% choosing  a different denomination than the one they were raised in, and 16%—double the number 20 years ago—saying the have no ties to a particular church, a new survey of religious life finds. That doesn't mean they're atheists, the Pew Forum report released yesterday concludes; only 1.6% say they are non-believers. More »

    • Jesus-Themed Cosmetics Fail to Amuse

      newser  |  Independent (UK)  |  Feb 14, 08 11:29 AM CST

      Jesus-Themed Cosmetics Fail to Amuse

      What would Jesus use? A line of cosmetics that worked just that angle has been whisked from shelves in Singapore after a Catholic backlash, reports the Independent . The US-made line, called "Lookin’ Good for Jesus," drew criticism over slogans for lotions and bubble bath like “Get Tight With Jesus” and “Guaranteed to help you be worthy and get noticed by the King of Kings.” More »

    • NFL Nixes Super Bowl Church Parties

      newser  |  Washington Post  |  Feb 1, 08 10:09 AM CST

      NFL Nixes Super Bowl Church Parties

      The NFL is pulling the plug on big Super Bowl parties—complete with halftime prayers—that have become a popular tradition at many churches, saying the churches violate copyright law by showing the game to the flock on large-screen TVs. Current law bans public exhibitions of the game on screens larger than 55 inches. "Doesn't the NFL have enough money already?" one disgruntled pastor quipped to the Washington Post . More »

  • January 2008

    • Two More Televangelists Quit ORU Board

      newser  |  Associated Press  |  Jan 11, 08 6:31 AM CST

      Two More Televangelists Quit ORU Board

      Two more televangelists have stepped down from the board of regents of Oral Roberts University, under pressure from a congressional probe into misuse of funds. Benny Hinn and IV Hilliard are two of six preachers under investigation for living lavishly on their congregations' dime and violating their ministries' tax-exempt status. More »

  • December 2007

    • The Good Book Is Good Biz

      newser  |  Los Angeles Times  |  Dec 25, 07 9:19 AM CST

      The Good Book Is Good Biz

      In the thriving business of Bible publishing, the lone calligrapher in his scriptorium has been superseded by marketing execs armed with PowerPoint. About 25 million Bibles were sold this year in America, reports the Los Angeles Times —that's 11 million more than the latest Harry Potter installment. But since the content stays the same, the dressing has to keep changing. More »

  • November 2007

    • God to Roberts: You're Fired!

      newser  |  Associated Press  |  Nov 29, 07 4:14 AM CST

      God to Roberts: You're Fired!

      Oral Roberts University president Richard Roberts told the school's student body yesterday that he didn't want to resign, but God insisted on it. Roberts, son of school founder Oral Roberts, faces a lawsuit accusing him of spending extravagantly while the school was in financial straits. He said God spoke to him on Thanksgiving and ordered him to resign the next day. More »

    • Big Churches Do Bigger Business

      newser  |  New York Times  |  Nov 23, 07 9:41 PM CST

      Big Churches Do Bigger Business

      Megachurches all over the country are extending their already-considerable reach by operating business, the New York Times reports. With an eye to both boosting local economies and bringing in converts, they're running credit unions, sports centers, office complexes, and limousine services. At least 10 own shopping malls; many are invested in housing. More »

    • Sweatshop Crucifixes Stir Up Unholy Mess for Church

      newser  |  Newsday  |  Nov 21, 07 2:13 AM CST

      Sweatshop Crucifixes Stir Up Unholy Mess for Church

      Revelations that crucifixes in their gift shops are made in a Chinese sweatshop has shocked officials at New York's St. Patrick's Cathedral and Trinity Episcopal Church, who removed the crosses from stores, reports Newsday . Young workers at the crucifix factory reportedly work 15-hour days in poor conditions for only 26 cents an hour. The $1.40 crosses sell for $17.95 at St. Pat's. More »

  • October 2007

    • Jesus 2.0: GodTube Is a Smash With Believers

      newser  |  Los Angeles Times  |  Oct 21, 07 8:12 AM CDT

      Jesus 2.0: GodTube Is a Smash With Believers

      GodTube, one of the fastest-growing sites on the web, is drawing masses of the Christian faithful to its user-generated videos, social-networking tools and the "GodCaster," which offers live video presentations. It's not a church, the LA Times reports, but a for-profit business backed by a "who's who" of ministries, megachurches and Christian retailers. More »

  • September 2007

    • Moonie Scion Is Gun Magnate

      newser  |  Portfolio  |  Sep 22, 07 3:20 PM CDT

      Moonie Scion Is Gun Magnate

      The son of aging messianic leader Reverend Sun Myung Moon is the frontrunner to take over the Unification Church. Meantime, he’s built Kahr Arms—which makes some of the smallest and most lethal guns. One of 13 children, young Justin Moon was encouraged to be violent, Portfolio reports, and parlayed a Harvard degree and family money into a successful weapons business. More »

  • August 2007

    • Your Credit's Good With God

      newser  |  Boston Herald  |  Aug 27, 07 1:41 AM CDT

      Your Credit's Good With God

      Franciscan friars have another deep question to ask their congregation: Paper or plastic? The brothers of St. Anthony's Shrine in Boston have installed a wireless kiosk allowing their flock to make contributions with credit or debit cards. The service is provided by SecureGive.com, created by a Georgia minister and his wife in an effort to keep up with cashless times. More »

  • July 2007

    • Look Out, Barbie: Here Comes Moses

      newser  |  BBC  |  Jul 30, 07 4:05 PM CDT

      Look Out, Barbie: Here Comes Moses

      Faith-based action figures will soon compete with the latest Bratz and Transformers dolls on the shelves of a Wal-Mart near you. Tales of Glory figurines, including Samson, Jesus and Daniel (complete with the Lions’ Den), are being promoted as "God-honoring toys" in a market full of figures that "glorify evil, destruction, lying, cheating." More »

    • Are Finance Charges In Islam's Interest?

      Washington Post  |  Jul 28, 07

      The prohibition on charging and paying interest is a cornerstone -- along with withholding investments from trades such as alcohol and pornography -- of the rapidly emerging industry known as "Islamic finance." There are about 270 Islamic banks with more than $265 billion in assets, according to sponsors of the International Islamic Finance Forum, a semiannual industry conference that meets in Switzerland this fall. Most of the banks are found in wealthy Muslim nations, such as Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Dubai and Malaysia. In addition, many Western banks, such as industry giants Citibank and HSBC,...

  • May 2007

    • Ascending in healthcare; Roman Catholic Ascension Health has made a Fortune 500 name for itself with business acumen, risk-taking and efficiency

      Modern Healthcare  |  May 14, 07

      Ascension Health saw an offer too good to refuse when a rival cancer hospital offered $20 million for its safety net hospital in east Detroit....The tentative sale underscores how Roman Catholic-affiliated Ascension has grown in less than 10 years to become a financial and commercial powerhouse within healthcare. At a time when not-for-profit healthcare faces criticism for its care of needy and vulnerable patients, Ascension's market-friendly approach stresses innovation, efficiency and financial strength with an urgency that would impress Wall Street....But Ascension's financial savvy, strategic...

Stories 1 - 20 of 21

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Jesus Drives Out the Money Changers from the Temple   (La Vista Church of Christ (Creative Commons License))
This image supplied Thursday April 17, 2008 by Craig Dobson from Faith in Teaching, shows a proposed specialty license plate. The Florida legislature is considering a specialty license plate design that...   (AP Photo)
This image supplied Thursday April 17, 2008 by Craig Dobson from Faith in Teaching, shows a proposed specialty license plate. The Florida legislature is considering a specialty license plate design that...   (AP Photo)
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Interview Sue Swayze, Indiana Christian Chamber of Commerce   (indychristian (YouTube))

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Background

Mammon
The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology

Mammon (personification of) riches. XVI. Earlier Mammona as a proper name for ‘the devil of covetousness’ — late L. ...

» Read more about Mammon at Encyclopedia.com

protestant ethic
A Dictionary of Sociology

protestant ethic, protestant ethic thesis The set of values embodied in early Protestantism, which has controversially been linked to the development of modern capitalism, most famously in Max Weber's classic essays on The Protestant Ethic and the Spirit of Capitalism (1905).

Initially this ...

» Read more about protestant ethic at Encyclopedia.com

Max Weber
The Columbia Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition

Max Weber , 1864-1920, German sociologist, economist, and political scientist. At various times he taught at Berlin, Freiburg, Munich, and Heidelberg. One of Weber's chief interests was in developing a methodology for social science, and his works had a considerable influence on 20th-century ...

» Read more about Max Weber at Encyclopedia.com

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