Entrepreneurs, Business and Economics: Setting the Record Straight

I've just finished reading a wonderful essay titled The Entrepreneurial Vocation written by Robert A. Sirico and published in a 30-page book form by the Acton Institute for the Study of Religion and Liberty. 

In the essay, Sirico addresses the negative bias and skepticism--if not outright hostility--which many people hold, including and especially the clergy, towards those in the business, banking and economics professions. He further delineates why this is oftentimes an unfounded presupposition. 
In future posts, I will share his insights on how this presupposition is, in fact, a detriment to poverty alleviation. 


     "There was a time, in the not-too-distant past, when prejudice was an acceptable social posture. However, stereotypes, which typically function as shortcuts to knowledge, are today considered offensive. This is so, regardless of whether or not they elucidate a group characteristic. People ought not be judged merely by the associations they keep, without regard for their person or individual qualities. Such a tendency is objectionable to anyone with moral sensibilities.
     Despite the laudable attitude of popular culture against prejeudice of any form, there remains one group upon which an unofficial open season has been declared: entrepreneurs. One sees vivid evidence of this prejudice at nearly every turn, particularly in terms of popular forms of communication...
     On the rare occasion when opinion makers, especially moral leaders, refrain from denouncing the 'rapacious appetite' and the 'obscene and conspicuous consumption' of these capitalists, about the best that one can expect is that business people be tolerated as a necessary evil. Most news editors, novelists, film producers, and clergy assume that commerce requires a broad and complicated network of controls to serve genuine human needs. Even friends of capitalism frequently display the same attitude. Religious leaders and critics of the market often suffer from confusion in their economic and moral thinking. This can be seen, for example, in their refusal to grant any moral sanction to the entrepreneur. Thus, instead of praising the entrepreneur as a person of ideas, an economic innovator, or a provider of capital, the average priest or minister thinks of people in business as carrying extra guilt. Why? For owning, controlling, or manipulating a disproportionate percentage of 'society's' wealth.
     While entrepreneurs should not be unfairly criticized for making money, they also must not be treated as victims of unjust discrimination who deserve a special blessing. However, it is also true that their chosen profession deserves to be legitimized by their faith. The public must begin to acknowledge the value of the entrepreneurial vocation, the wise stewardship of talents, and the tangible contributions of entrepreneurs to society."
Robert A. Sirico, The Entrepreneurial Vocation

Do We belong to a What (the World) or a Who (Jesus Christ)?

Bob Dylan, in his song, Gotta Serve Somebody, sings,

"You're gonna have to serve somebody, yes indeed

You're gonna have to serve somebody

Well, it may be the devil or it may be the Lord

But you're gonna have to serve somebody." 

Lyrics by Bob Dylan

Dylan's words agree with Scripture:

"But if serving the Lord seems undesirable to you, then choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve, whether the gods your ancestors served beyond the Euphrates, or of the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you are living. But as for me and my household, we will serve the LORD." Joshua 24:15

Making the distinction between a Who, Christ, and a what, the world, has revealed to me how often I try to belong to both, or have thought I can belong to both. 

And then I am in that tepid water Scripture talks about; I'm neither hot nor cold, and thus, life will feel a bleh lukewarm at best or entirely pointless and frustrating at worse. It is double-mindedness that has the reputation of being alive, but is only death (Revelation 3). 

The question then is, as it was posed to the Galatians, 

"Are you so foolish? After beginning by means of the Spirit, are you now trying to finish by means of the flesh?" Galatians 3:3

But we, if we are born again, have the mind of Christ (1 Corinthians 2:16). And Christ is not of the world. Christ does not belong to a what, so neither do we. Christ is the Who, and so He alone is Who we belong to:

"What we have received is not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God so that we may understand what God has freely given us. This is what we speak, not in words taught us by human wisdom but in words taught by the Spirit, explaining spiritual realities with Spirit-taught words. The person without the Spirit does not accept the things that come from the Spirit of God but considers them foolishness, and cannot understand them because they are discerned only through the Spirit." 1 Corinthians 2:12-14

“I have revealed you to those whom you gave me out of the world. They were yours; you gave them to me and they have obeyed your word. Now they know that everything you have given me comes from you. For I gave them the words you gave me and they accepted them. They knew with certainty that I came from you, and they believed that you sent me. I pray for them. I am not praying for the world, but for those you have given me, for they are yours. All I have is yours, and all you have is mine.” John 17:6-10a

“I have given them your word and the world has hated them, for they are not of the world any more than I am of the world. My prayer is not that you take them out of the world but that you protect them from the evil one. They are not of the world, even as I am not of it.” John 17:14-16

“Righteous Father, though the world does not know you, I know you, and they know that you have sent me.” John 17:25

“and you are of Christ, and Christ is of God.” 1 Corinthians 3:23

“Do you not know that your bodies are members of Christ himself? 1 Corinthians 6:15a

“Do you not know that your bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own; you were bought at a price. Therefore, honor God with your bodies.” 1 Corinthians 6:19-20

“As for you, you were dead in your transgressions and sins, in which you used to live when you followed the ways of this world and of the ruler of the kingdom of the air, the spirit who is now at work in those who are disobedient. All of us also lived among them at one time, gratifying the cravings of our flesh and following its desires and thoughts. Like the rest, we were by nature deserving of wrath. But because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions—it is by grace you have been saved. And God raised us up with Christ and seated us with him in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus, in order that in the coming ages he might show the incomparable riches of his grace, expressed in his kindness to us in Christ Jesus. For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God—not by works, so that no-one can boast. For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.” Ephesians 2:1-10

“For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world…” Ephesians 6:12a

“For he has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son he loves, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.” Colossians 1:13

“You are all sons of the light and sons of the day. We do not belong to the night or to the darkness. So then, let us not be like others, who are asleep, but let us be alert and self-controlled. For those who sleep, sleep at night, and those who get drunk, get drunk at night. But since we belong to the day, let us be self-controlled, putting on faith and love as a breastplate, and the hope of salvation as a helmet. For God did not appoint us to suffer wrath but to receive salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ. He died for us so that, whether we are awake or asleep, we may live together with him.” 1 Thessalonians 5:5-10

“For everything in the world—the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life—comes not from the father but from the world.” 1 John 2:16

What is Hollow and Deceptive Philosophy?

“See to it that no one takes you captive through hollow and deceptive philosophy, which depends on human tradition and the basic principles of this world rather than on Christ.” Colossians 2:8

The definition of a hollow and deceptive philosophy is defined within the above verse: 

It depends upon human tradition.

It depends upon the basic principles of this world.

It does not depend on Christ.

How do we determine what a human tradition is? 

A human tradition is one created and established by humans and is extra-Biblical, meaning it is not found in the Bible.

How do we determine what a basic principle of this world is? 

It is a principle that is created and established by man that is extra-Biblical, meaning it is not found in the Bible.

How do we know when something does not depend on Christ? 

You guessed it: when it is extra-Biblical and not found in the Bible.

How do we know what does and does not depend upon Christ? 

We read the revelation of Christ—and all wisdom and knowledge provided to us about Him—in His very own Holy Word, the Bible. 

Multitudes of people claim to be following Christ, yet have never read the Bible, or do not read it daily or weekly. Therefore they have not learned and are not growing in the knowledge of who, exactly Christ is and what, exactly, He isn’t.

That’s how denominational human traditions have come to replace Christ, or have come to be considered equal to Christ. 

The only way to not be taken captive is to “examine everything carefully” (1 Thessalonians 5:21a). Other translations say to “test everything.” 

With what are we to examine and test everything? 

God’s Word. 

“Be of sober spirit, be on the alert. Your adversary, the devil, prowls around like a roaming lion, seeking someone to devour” (1 Peter 5:8).

In case we are yet confused as to what is of the world and what is of the Bible, the Bible will not leave us wondering. It makes it quite clear when we are willing to take the time to read it.

Some examples:

In 1 Peter 5, the apostle Peter is teaching on how to lead the flock of believers. Oversight is to be done voluntarily, according to the will of God, not for sordid gain; not lording it over but as an example to the flock. 

Also, the younger are to be teachable, and all are to clothe themselves in humility toward one another because God opposes the proud and gives grace to the humble. 

Not hard to understand, is it? But if we aren’t in Scripture, then we may be, and probably will give in to, the temptation to lead others according to the basic principles of this world, namely by lording it over other people for sordid (selfish, self-seeking) gain. 

We will remain stuck in our pride (not grow in humility), and, if we are young, we will fail in our thinking that we know it all and that our elders are clueless nitwits. 

The Bible is Christ’s own word to live by, not just to read or intellectually or theologically disassemble. It is the Word that, if we have the eyes and ears of Christ via His Holy Spirit, instructs us, time and time again. 

Finally, Scripture, informs us as to how to protect ourselves from the powers of darkness of this world as we are learning to internalize and live out Christ:

“Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of His might” (Ephesians 6:10).

Let’s stop there for a moment so that we don’t miss this: Scripture says to be strong in the Lord and in His might. What does the world say? Be strong in yourself and in your own might!

Okay, let’s continue with the Ephesians 6 verse:

“Put on the full armor of God, so that you will be able to stand firm against the schemes of the devil. For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the powers, against the world forces of this darkness, against the spiritual forces of wickedness in the heavenly places. Therefore, take up the full armor of God, so that you will be able to resist in the evil day, and having done everything, to stand firm. Stand firm, therefore, HAVING GIRDED YOUR LOINS WITH TRUTH, and HAVING PUT ON THE BREASTPLATE OF RIGHTEOUSNESS, and having shod YOUR FEET WITH THE PREPARATION OF THE GOSPEL OF PEACE; in addition to all, taking up the shield of faith with which you will be able to extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. And take THE HELMET OF SALVATION, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.” Ephesians 6:11-17. 

As an aside, for those wondering about “the spiritual forces of wickedness in the heavenly places,” please go to this link that explains clearly what is meant:

https://www.gotquestions.org/heavenly-places-realms.html

The above Ephesians passage ends with where I began today: with the question of “How can we know what is hollow and deceptive? How can we know what depends upon human tradition and worldly principles and not on Christ? 

Scripture. We cut through all hollow and deceptive philosophy and the worldview and behavior that results from it with the sword of the Spirit, the Bible. 

“For I testify about them that they have a zeal for God, but not in accordance with knowledge. For not knowing about God’s righteousness and seeking to establish their own, they did not subject themselves to the righteousness of God. For Christ is the head of the law for righteousness to everyone who believes" Romans 10:2-4...

"How then will they call on Him in whom they have not believed? How will they believe in Him whom they have not heard? And how will they hear without a preacher? How will they preach unless they are sent? Just as it is written, ‘HOW BEAUTIFUL ARE THE FEET OF THOSE WHO BRING GOOD NEWS OF GOOD THINGS!’” Romans 10:14-15

The Bible is that good news. Paul, Peter and the other inspired writers beautifully brought it to the people of their time and wrote it down for the people of all time. 

“Remember those who led you, who spoke the word of God to you; and considering the result of their conduct, imitate their faith. Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever.” Hebrews 13:7-8

“But evil men and imposters will proceed from bad to worse, deceiving and being deceived. You, however, continue in the things you have learned and become convinced of, knowing from whom you have learned them, and that from childhood you have known the sacred writings which are able to give you the wisdom that leads to salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus. All Scripture is inspired by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness; so that the man of God may be adequate, equipped for every good work.” 2 Timothy 3:13-17

Copyright Barb Harwood

The Necessary Positive of Self Doubt

We have come to a point in time where the uncritical liking of one’s self is, in the words of Bob Dylan, a “disease of conceit:” 

Go on BrainyQuotes.com and you will see platitudinal quotes ad nauseam on overcoming, ignoring, strong-arming, and the outright killing of inner personal doubt. 

Ironically, doubt about almost everything else is allowed, but never about oneself.

Isn’t that odd? Why is inner doubt the unforgivable sin of secular humanism?

Why is self-doubt the thing to be avoided at all costs?

Why is it to be shunned, eradicated, beaten, conquered, overthrown and pummeled into complete oblivion?

Because inner doubt—the doubt that convicts, discerns, sheds light on, creates insight, and brings perspective, usually takes our mind off of ourselves and re-directs it towards other people and the wider circle of circumstances in which we may find ourselves. In short, it breeds empathy, the ability to see another’s point of view, cooperation, and lo and behold, perhaps even an admission that we were wrong, (which would then require an apology)! We can’t have that, now, can we (says the earthly power that prowls this dark and fallen world).  

And thus, that glorious momentary clarity of self-doubt is quickly gobbled up, like Pac Man eating his way through the maze, in order that we can quickly “recover” back to our self-centered, selfish, ego-centric selves where we talk our minds into believing that we are right after all and we have all the answers. That we actually didn’t do, say or think anything amiss. It was stupid to even think so. 

If people are unable to squash self-doubt through such delusional, “positive” self talk, then their next course of action is to turn to gambling, drugs, sex, shopping, drinking, television (Binge Watching has become quite the pastime), obsessive exercise or a preoccupation with every morsel we put into our bodies. 

All of it is intended to keep the mind from going to where the Devil doesn’t want it to go: to loathing, distrust, skepticism and, ultimately, contrition within and about one’s self.

Of course, C. S. Lewis describes this brilliantly and humorously in his book, The Screwtape Letters.

And to return to Dylan’s song, it doesn’t end well for folks:

“There’s a whole lot of people in trouble tonight from the disease of conceit

Whole lot of people seeing trouble tonight from the disease of conceit

Give you delusions of grandeur and an evil eye

Give you the idea that you’re too good to die

Then they bury you from head to your feet 

From the disease of conceit.”

The battle for souls is fought first and foremost within the confines of this strong and stubborn self-will that has been raised, at least in my experience, to believe that the self is the greatest thing and is to be protected, coddled and mollified at all costs. 

In this dysfunctional wolrdview, the self is incapable of being at fault: we must over-ride any notions of being less-than. And we do this through grandiose self-talk and the application of the tenets of the socially constructed esteem movement  that demands—insists—that we are, have been and always will be fine, just the way we are. 

And yet, in the early morning quiet of daybreak, along with the sun, doubt also rises.

Or, as we lay awake at night thinking and re-thinking our actions, words, and attitudes, and we are filled with misgivings about how we handled something, or about our perspective, or about contentment with ourselves, and needled to the point of mental exhaustion yet without the rescue of sleep, doubt at these times cannot so easily be swept under the rug.

In this way, self-doubt is our very ticket out of self-will and into free will: the free will of Christ alone. But first we have to stop hardening our hearts and minds against what God is telling us through our doubt about ourselves. 

With Christ, we obtain the freedom to finally gain the victory and redemption over ourselves that, ironically, is also a mantra of humanism. Go figure. First humanism wants us to love ourselves by casting out all doubt about ourselves, but then, in the very next breath they are saying that we need to be better and stronger, redeeming ourselves at every turn (ever watch the Olympics? Count how many times the commentators use the word “redemption.”). 

But it is all, as the rock song goes, “dust in the wind” because as long as self-will is driving the bus, the self will never be content because the self will always carry within itself the doubt that can never be redeemed by self! It’s impossible. 

And the evidence is all around us.

Only when I came to the end of myself—and born again Christians will all attest to this—was my doubt finally allowed to reign in me unhindered. That’s when the doubt within put me on the road to redemption by forcing me to willingly face into the following realized truths:

If I’m so great, why does my life feel like such a failure?

I don’t, after all, have all the answers.

I am not a good person.

I am not a nice person.

I am not content. 

I am not getting along with everyone “just fine.”

I am not getting along with myself “just fine.”

I am not “just fine.”

When we refuse to authorize permission to the culture or our selves to assuage our inner doubt, and instead tackle it head on, we begin to experience the victory and redemption that is available in and through Jesus Christ alone.

“Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.” John 8:32

We must not only see, but acknowledge and agree with the truth about ourselves. 

And the secure way to do that, the way that leads to ultimate maturity, integrity and other-centeredness—the only way to do that—is through Christ. 

He will guide us through the process, every step of the way. He will not leave us as orphans (John 14:18). 

Only with Him will we be able to face the horror of our inner selves and not be crushed by that revelation. 

Only with Him will we come to see the gunk inside of us that we had been trying to tell ourselves wasn’t there. 

Only with Him will we come to see that gunk for what it is, sin, and ourselves for what we are, sinners. 

Only with Him will we understand that the answer to that sin is Jesus Christ. 

He is the only way out of ourselves. He is the “get out of jail free” card. 

But first we must admit and concede that we are in a jail.

And then we must admit and concede that the jail is self.

And then we must admit and concede that we don’t want to be in jail anymore.

And then we must admit and concede that we have been living lives with the sole purpose of distracting ourselves from our true sinful condition.

And then we must admit and concede that we can’t do anything about our true condition.

And then we must admit and concede that there is One Who Can: Jesus.

Insecurity and self-loathing are never going to go away on their own. I mean, let’s just name the elephant in the room: until Christ enters in, we can’t stand ourselves! (In spite of the motivational posters, self-esteem Facebook quotes, good karma vibes and chakras emanating, apparently, throughout the stratosphere and able to be corralled by well meaning but sadly misinformed  friends that would have us believe otherwise).

It’s when we get to the point of herculean honesty, to taking 100% ownership over what we’ve known to be true all along but tried to run from with lies—the truth that we need to, and in fact, want to, come to the end of ourself, that God Himself is opening His door to Christ.

copyright Barb Harwood

“He who has ears to hear, let him hear.” Matthew 11:15

Rejecting the Bible on a False Assumption

Christopher W. Brooks, writing in his book, Urban Apologetics: Why the Gospel is Good News for the City, addresses the common accusation used to deny Scripture that Christianity has a historical track record of behaving poorly--that Christians have failed by turning a blind eye to oppression, or by being the actual oppressor. 

However, this is selectively unfair, since, as Brooks points out, just because people call themselves Christian, or conduct themselves under the banner of a Christian church, doesn't mean they are actually Christian. 

Secondly, those who reject Christianity based on a negative historical record at the same time do not acknowledge the positive historical record of true Christians, such as William Wilberforce, Martin Luther King, Jr., Catherine Booth, Elizabeth Fry, Harriet Tubman...the list goes on. 

Again, as I have pointed out previously, many folks base their personal ideology and worldview on unexplored negative criticisms just so that they can reject God and/or Jesus Christ, along with the Bible. But it is an ignorant rejection, as Brooks makes clear:

     Focusing on oppression at the hands of supposed Christians "can lead to false conclusions if one is not careful. Merely claiming to follow Jesus is entirely different from actually following Jesus. One can nominally claim to follow Jesus and yet disregard His teaching and continually break all of His commands. However, one cannot actually follow or love Jesus while disregarding His teaching and continually breaking His commands. Doing so proves that such a person is neither obeying nor following Jesus.
     It is entirely fallacious to argue that the Bible is false because someone in history failed to obey it or chose not to apply it. It is equally fallacious to argue that the Bible is false because various people in history tried to read their own erroneous ideas into it or twist and stretch the interpretation of a passage in an attempt to make it support their personal opinions. It is not the Bible that is being irresponsible or wrong, but rather the people who do such things." Christopher W. Brooks

And to judge Christianity based on a false premise is equally detrimental.