Uncanny. When you “criticize the excessive rhetoric” in these threads, it’s as the mild, wizened observer. I criticize your careless, insulting wording, and my feelings are hurt. That’s poor rhetoric–a cheap shot, as I called it above. See, if I let that assessment pass, it gives the appearance I that I concede my feelings were, indeed, hurt. Poor widdle me. If I respond that my feelings were unaffected (they were), I’m joining you in the “race to the bottom,” as that discussion is just petty. I suppose my intention in writing to you was similar to yours when expressing criticism of style. I don’t know. What is your intention when you do that?

IRT: free enterprise. Slowtospeak makes a good point at #23. Any system is prone to fostering greed. The link TJ provides demonstrates to some degree why Christians tend to a free market, namely, because of a respect for property rights as a manifestation of honoring the commandment forbidding theft.

I disagree with various aspects of your blaming free enterprise for our economic woes. I don’t have time to delve in there, but I’ll just offer one fact from which you might deduce my broader argument: the Federal Register is 70,000 pages long.

I, too, am writing this without any intention of stirring the pot.

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As individuals we need to examine our own motives & behavior, & can only hope others do the same. People being people (fallen), there will always be some (or even many) who will abuse the system. But that is true of any system, don’t you think?

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First, this blog is full of stereotypes of “liberals” and “homosexuals.” Some Christian posters refrain from including them in their comments. A number of Christians have told me that they avoid the “homosexual,” threads, but the discourse in those discussions sets the dominant atmosphere. There are a mixture of arguments based on “sin” and claims of fact, mixed together in a way I consider irresponsible.

In a similar fashion, words such as “socialist” and “liberal” are used as generic insults. These words have very little actual denotation as used here.

Many participants use stereotypical labeling all the time against other groups and then are outraged when they see it applied to them.

In regard to greed and free enterprise, no matter how I try to make a distinction, some commenters only perceive something along the line of He called me greedy because of free enterprise. My point is a more subtle one. Free enterprise as a system of economic organization has many virtues and strengths, but it also has many problems.

To praise the positive aspects of capitalism and to ignore the negative aspects of it is careless thinking. I don’t know much about you or how you make a living. I’ll assume that you are a decent, hard-working non-greedy, charitable, self-disciplined person. (This is not sarcastic.) Your individual virtues do not compensate for the problems of the system. That you get your feelings hurt when I point out the problems of the system, or I criticize the excessive rhetoric used by many here, is, frankly, your problem.

The greed of the heads of corporations inevitably stirs up class war and played a big role in getting Obama and other Democrats elected. It is very difficult for many people here to see how the collective behavior and rhetoric of the last eight years led to this happening.

I tried to write this comment as mildly and calmly as possible. I doubt that it will change your mind. What was your intention in writing to me? Are you trying to change my mind?

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Money can’t and won’t solve all problems though. Even if there were unlimited funds available, there will still be problems. Some missionaries/programs/projects shouldn’t be funded. They aren’t necessary bad, but the overall result of funding them may be negative.

Foreign funding of projects in the developing world often backfires because people don’t think through the long term results. For example, some organization funded a garden project in my village (in Africa). They dug a bore hole and plumbed the whole garden area so that every individual garden plot has a water faucet. They provided a HUGE generator to pump water into the large water tank. Now this has been turned over to the village and those wanting a plot must pay about $1.50 per year. Now with diesel costing $1.50/liter and that huge generator sucking about 5 liters an hour, how is this project anything but a waste?

So many times “help” doesn’t help, it hurts. This is not to say that Christians shouldn’t give and give generously, but money isn’t the cure-all.

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It may be that you just don’t realize it: your posts are full of cheap shots. Delivering them with Pepperidge Farm cookies and milk doesn’t mask their bitterness (pardon the mixed metaphor). Your first paragraph in #21 is typical. Is stereotyping good or bad? Make up our minds.

Where did I misread you? What’s the reach? You said, “Christians applaud…a system which applauds…greed.” So you’re not calling Christians greedy, only pro-greed? “The affection for personal giving…leans toward using charity as a way of browbeating people….” You’ve reduced the motive for Christian charity to that? And you’re the one always claiming the high road?

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This is not necessarily typical of all posters here. Karen O, and Klasko, for example, in this thread.

ON the other hand, Ol’ Random Name here peppers these threads with his call to elevate the level of discourse. We see that that includes calling Christians greedy browbeaters. is a bit of a reach in paraphrasing what I say. Nor do I believe all the people who post here are people who own Mercedes and and MacMansions.

My point is that the uncritical elevation of free enterprise from a useful system of motivating people to work hard and to be creative to a form of idolatry is a contradiction within the values expressed here. I am sure that quite a few people here are better in their personal behavior and values than the type of discourse frequently practiced here.

I don’t know the solution. Conservatives are reluctant to criticize conservatives. Christian believers are reluctant to criticize Christian believers. Liberals are reluctant to criticize liberals. Atheists are reluctant to criticize atheists. Yet none of those groups are monolithic, not do any of them have a monopoly on intlligence or virtue.

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Sorry, in your original comment it was tough to figure out where you were coming from. I, too, give above tithe, and I imagine that Tony probably does the same. Lots of Christians (especially conservative ones) already self-congratulate themselves on the good things that Christians already do. WORLD had a whole cover story on this about a year ago, if I recall correctly. I don’t think it’s necessarily a bad thing to do; we need to hear about the good work being done in the name of Christ all over the world.

However, if we look at the Scriptures, there are only a few passages that say, “Great job so far guys, but let’s see what more we can do.” The prophets aren’t talking to the faithful about how they’re doing well, but they’re calling out the “cows of Bashan” who selfishly pamper themselves. Paul implores the Corinthians with a strong Gospel-centered argument to give. And I’m not sure that “great job, let’s do more” is what we need right now when there are 4 billion people headed to eternity without Jesus (1.8 billion of which have never heard of Him at all), 10 million kids dying every year of hunger and preventable disease, 40 million people with HIV/AIDS… the list goes on and on. Let’s be honest: if that’s what’s going on today, what we’re doing isn’t good enough. People need a wake-up call and I need to recognize that it starts with me.

The minority group of Christians shocked the Roman Empire with their countercultural, sacrificial way of living. You can complain that the world is biased against us today and won’t pay attention when we do good work, but our forefathers overcame that same problem with overwhelming love for the people around them and careful obedience to God. We have far more power and resources than they ever did; will our theology, conviction, and worship of our great God lead us to just give and sacrifice a little, or will be fill up what is lacking in the sacrifice of Christ (Col. 1:24) by taking it to the nations and our neighbors?

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