Christianity and Materialism

[ayeshahaqqiqa]

I have recently been thinking about the far right movement in Christianity, led by TV preachers like Jerry Falwell and Pat Robertson, and have decided that what they are selling is not really Chrisitianity, but rather a form of materialism.

Let me explain my terms here: materialism I am defining as a good or product that people get, usually by purchase, and use to make their lives more comfortable, etc. Chrisitianity is a religious faith that emphasizes the importance of making onesself and one's actions be in lines with the teachings of Jesus, which often involves self-examination and change.

Just what do Falwell, et al, require of their followers? What do they offer? They appear to appeal not to changing ones heart but to lightening one's pocketbook. They don't talk about self examination and change as much as simply believe what I say and repeat these formulas and you are saved. Easy and simple, no hard work involved. They do nothing about changing people's prejudices and hatreds, but instead seem to reinforce them.

I'd be interested in hearing your comments about this. Thank you.

[Lydia Leftcoast]

1. There's a lot of the "gospel of wealth" thinking in their beliefs

It's a seductive message, and well in keeping with the American consumer culture.

Give money, go to church three times a week and sing loudly with your hands up-raised, avoid drugs, booze, and non-marital sex, and vote Republican, and you're fine. That's about the sum of their sophistication.

[Warpy]

2. Calvinism

Calvin expanded on Paul's rich man's loophole that stated faith alone was sufficient for salvation by saying great wealth and power, instead of being hindrances on the road to heaven, were proof that god had greatly favored the men who possessed them should they profess their faith.

Not only did rich men thus escape that onerous dictate to give all their possessions to the poor in order to follow Jesus, their very riches indicated they were meant to go directly to heaven after having experienced a relative heaven on earth. It was only a short leap to view all poor people as poor because of sin. The rich were exalted and revered, the poor criminalized.

Sound familiar?

This stuff has been with us for a very long time and shows no sign of disappearing any time soon. It's a perfect philosophy for the selfish and uncaring rich. That it directly contradicts the words of Jesus reported in the gospels of Mark and Matthew escapes them completely.

[Tafiti]

3. I agree with your comments.

This same idea has also been expressed in various ways, and your assessment is essentially in agreement.

I read a book several months ago called Stealing Jesus by Bruce Bawer, a gay minister. He used some terms that I thought were really useful for describing the difference between true Christianity and the decidedly corrupt brand of Christianity championed by the Falwell/Robertson crowd. He said that the latter brand of Christianity is marked by a preoccupation with the "horizontal" dimension of life - the here-on-earth. That is, what does faith do for me, what can it get me, what can it do for my life. It is a style, a lifestyle, which has little to do with faith.

On the other hand, true Christianity is more concerned with the "vertical" dimension of faith. They are content with the mystical or mysterious nature of God, and are much less likely to be dogmatic and black-and-white in their worldview. There is room for introspection, interpretation, and meditation. It is deeply personal, and is not "sold" or "peddled" (proselytized) as ferociously as the Christianity of the "horizontal" stripe.

Also, there is another book called The Protestant Ethic and the Spirit of Capitalism by Max Weber - probably the most famous and accomplished political scientist ever. It is a pretty dense read, and was written in 1934 (I believe), so the style is a bit different. Basically, he examines the uneasy relationship between wealth and protestantism that seems to have tainted Protestant Christianity throughout the years, beginning in the early colonial periods of American history - Puritanism, Calvinism, etc. Essentially, it's a history of Christianity in America, which is definitely an important element to study when making observations about the "kinds" of Christianity we see here today. This problem of materialism seems to be peculiarly American, and has been around a long time.

[ayeshahaqqiqa]

4. Thanks for your comments

I'll check up on those books.

I think it funny that people like Falwell et al are rolling in dough, while other ministers I know hold down a day job just to pay for their church....the head of my church (yeah, Sufis have churches too!) lost her secertarial job and is currently looking for another as a temp secretary-NONE of our ministers live off church donations-in fact, we don't even have church buildings. We don't even have a point in our services where we pass around an offering plate-there's usually a hat or a box in the corner and people can donate if they wish, but if they don't that's cool, too.

[Az]

5. Consider changing the term to hedonism

As you no doubt know materialism as a philosophy deals with the notion that we are the stuff of matter. There is no dualistic soul or spirit. All is the result of matter interacting.

What you are refering to is more akin to hedonism. Actually this is more in line with Lavey Satanism and its focus on comfort and pleasure.

[bloom]

6. "....After the last tree is felled, Christ will come back"

Recently someone in GD was upset that some liberals are concerned that people are wasteful of resources through huge SUV's, huge houses and such. She felt people ended up "Christian-bashing" for no apparent reason.

This article that was linked to in the Tree-huggers thread shows what the reason is - and the concern. It is a core value for me to be concerned about the earth. I have way more things than I need - but I can't begin to understand the attitude that people should just consume all they want and the more the better because it will mean we are closer to the Apocalypse (oh joy :eyes: ) - the earth be damned!

(The liberal religious groups that I have been affiliated with definately do NOT share the views contained in the following article and most consider it to be important to live simply - considering ones connection to the earth and each other... )

http://www.workingforchange.com/article.cfm?ItemID=18008

"U.S. legislators backed by the Christian right vote against these issues with near-perfect consistency. That probably doesn't surprise you, but this might: Those same legislators are equally united and unswerving in their opposition to environmental protection.

<snip>
Like him, many Christian fundamentalists feel that concern for the future of our planet is irrelevant, because it has no future. They believe we are living in the End Time, when the son of God will return, the righteous will enter heaven, and sinners will be condemned to eternal hellfire. They may also believe, along with millions of other Christian fundamentalists, that environmental destruction is not only to be disregarded but actually welcomed -- even hastened -- as a sign of the coming Apocalypse.

<snip>
People under the spell of such potent prophecies cannot be expected to worry about the environment. Why care about the earth when the droughts, floods, and pestilence brought by ecological collapse are signs of the Apocalypse foretold in the Bible? Why care about global climate change when you and yours will be rescued in the Rapture? And why care about converting from oil to solar when the same God who performed the miracle of the loaves and fishes can whip up a few billion barrels of light crude with a Word?
<snip>
DeLay has said bluntly that he intends to smite the "socialist" worldview of "secular humanists," whom, he argues, control the U.S. political system, media, public schools, and universities. He called the 2000 presidential election an apocalyptic "battle for souls," a fight to the death against the forces of liberalism, feminism, and environmentalism that are corrupting America. The utopian dreams of such movements are doomed, argues the majority leader, because they do not stem from God.
<snip>
In the past, it was not deemed politically correct to ask probing questions about a lawmaker's intimate religious beliefs. But when those beliefs play a crucial role in shaping public policy, it becomes necessary for the people to know and understand them...."

[indigobusiness]

7. Christian Materialism

Historically, materialism and Christianity have generally been at odds. This is due on the one hand to anti-materialist passages in Christian scripture; and on the other to the denial by most materialist thinkers of the existence of the kinds of spiritual realities that were fundamental to the traditional Christian church. Despite these discrepancies, however, there have been many attempts to reconcile the two in various ways.

One such attempt is found in the writings of a Spanish Roman Catholic saint of the twentieth-century Josemaría Escrivá, who wrote of the need to invest the material realities of everyday life with a spiritual sensibility.

A rather different approach to the same divide is found in present day America.


American Christian Materialism
In late twentieth-century America, modern Christian Materialism gradually emerged from the earlier phenomena of "Christian fundamentalism." The explicit goal of the movement was to reverse a perceived American social decline, which had accompanied the rise of individualism and the breakdown of traditional communities. In order to accomplish this the nascent Christian Materialists needed to establish a viable alternative to the then-ascendant philosophy of Materialism, an objective which they eventually accomplished through imitating, assimilating and reinventing many aspects of mainstream American material culture.

As its pioneers had hoped, Christian Materialism proved extremely effective at gaining new converts, particularly within a younger demographic. As a result, even though it never identified itself publicly as a movement, Christian Materialism nevertheless became increasingly influential within American Christianity, and eventually within the United States of America as a whole (where it played a decisive role in the presidential elections of 2000 and 2004).

As we enter the twenty-first century, Christian Materialism has become so successful that its underlying assumptions have begun to be integrated into mainstream American Christianity. Although many churches and individuals continue to question and oppose the Christian Materialist agenda and beliefs, the power and the influence of it as a worldview shows no sign of decreasing.


Hallmarks of Christian Materialism
Some of these hallmarks have their origins in movements that predate Christian Materialism, and many have passed into the mainstream of modern American Christianity. Taken as a whole, however, they outline the character of American Christian Materialism.

The materialization of spirituality in the form of "spiritual gifts" such as snake-handling, speaking in tongues, faith-healing, visitations of the spirit and so forth.
The promotion of "Young-Earth Creation Science," as an exact analogue to mainstream science, except where that would conflict with the Bible.
A literal and inflexible reading of the Christian Scriptures.
The promotion of "Biblical law" as a set of social principles with the same kind of universal scope, immutable validity and unambiguous interpretation as the "laws" of material science.
Extremely large churches.
Wealthy pastors.
The use of sophisticated marketing techniques to attract worshippers.
The sale of Christian-themed knick-knacks, clothing and other material items.
The sale and distribution of prosperity-themed books, tapes, seminars and brochures (often from the pulpit).
A disdain for idealism.
A focus on "Biblical proof."
Music and entertainment that consists of Christian-themed variants of mainstream music and entertainment.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christian_materialism