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THE QUESTION
Faith and the Economy
What's your response to this question from a Post story on low-wage workers? "What role does God or your faith play in helping you get through tough financial times?"
Posted by
Sally Quinn and Jon Meacham on August 6, 2008 12:43 AM
FROM THE PANEL
Excuse Me, How Does It Feel to Be Poor?
Having abandoned the welfare state in its most liberal and generous aspects, America ignores the poor as never before. Is there a new idea that can bridge the immense gap between rich and poor in income, education, health, and opportunities? Religion certainly isn't that new idea.
Posted by Deepak Chopra, on August 11, 2008 10:52 AM
"Why Do Low-Wage Workers Have Hope?"
Every Sunday I see, in church, many low-wage workers practicing their "religion" in a community of mutual concern and affection, a community of love.
Posted by Willis E. Elliott, on August 11, 2008 8:23 AM
No Atheists in Recessions
Americans have few biblical or historical religious resources to apply to their current economic situation and they have to soldier on alone, as best they can.
Posted by Susan Brooks Thistlethwaite, on August 11, 2008 8:16 AM
God is With Us in Every Circumstance
When a person really believes in God, and has true faith (not just as hollow expressions), one always feels that he depends on God.
Posted by Adin Steinsaltz, on August 11, 2008 7:48 AM
God as My Financial Adviser
When feeling materially poor, we can recall that there is always someone with less. When feeling wealthy, we should ask about the obligations that come with that blessing. And when feeling uncertain, we might remind ourselves that there is always more possibility and potential within us and in any given situation than we immediately perceive.
Posted by Brad Hirschfield, on August 8, 2008 12:16 PM
Dual Roles for Churches: Saving Spiritually and Temporally
What role does my faith play? It teaches principles of self-reliance. It values hard work. It encourages individuals to look to their own resources first, then to those of their family, and then the Church. It urges its members to avoid debt and live within their means.
Posted by Michael Otterson, on August 8, 2008 10:06 AM
A Heart and a Helping Hand for the Poor
What about those who are truly poor, are sick or disabled, face cruel discrimination, can't get any job much less a second job, don't know how to make a chart and don't know what to do? These are the poor whom Jesus loved and invited us to love.
Posted by Leith Anderson, on August 8, 2008 4:59 AM
Tough Financial Times and the Goddess
When I need advice or guidance in times of trouble, be they economic, personal, or spiritual, I don't need a High Priestess or an oracle to interpret her voice, or a sacred grove in which to pray. I just need to step outside--a cracked pavement in a parking lot with weeds poking through will do.
Posted by Starhawk, on August 7, 2008 11:15 AM
God's Usefulness Recognized in Bad Times
When things are going well, people are less likely to be found on their knees or at church.
Posted by Susan K. Smith, on August 7, 2008 7:08 AM
The Poor Ye Shall Always Have With You
The basic appeal of religion to the poor is that it promises in the next life what its adherents do not enjoy in this life. That is why impoverished workers in South America are flocking to Pentecostal religions and people dying of AIDS in Africa are flocking to Roman Catholicism.
Posted by Susan Jacoby, on August 6, 2008 8:30 AM
Hard Times? Where? Not Here
To say these are hard times is a joke. Our relatives who lived through the Great Depression lived in harder times than ours. We are the most fortunate and blessed people on earth. The poorest American is richer than much of the rest of the world.
Posted by Cal Thomas, on August 6, 2008 7:47 AM
Trust God, Act Responsibly
Which gods are we worshiping that are extracting their usual price -- of sacrifice of weak victims? What would it mean for a society to worship Jesus Christ instead of Mammon?
Posted by Nicholas T. Wright, on August 6, 2008 12:51 AM
Faith Despite Poverty
What is remarkable about human resilience in matters of religion is that they continue to have abiding faith in God even when their woes are not really addressed in any tangible way.
Posted by Arun Gandhi, on August 5, 2008 2:26 PM
Trust the Lord, not Things
The rich, as Jesus pointed out, may trust their riches to bring happiness. Even if wealth has not done so yet, a certain kind of fool believes it will do so soon if only there was a bit more. My grandmother knew better.
Posted by John Mark Reynolds, on August 5, 2008 10:21 AM
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