I would like to invite you the reader to reflect on the matter of which existing economic system is the most appropriate one for Christians to advocate for. Should it be capitalism, which is a basically a system that allows some to have and others to have little if any? Should it be socialism, which is a system in which the government owns the tree and the workers own the fruit? Or should it be communism, where the government owns both the tree and the fruit, and in which there is no existence of social classes?
In order to attempt answering that question, let me begin by saying that the major political concern of those who claim to be Christians or followers of Jesus should be the politics of the reign of God enacted through Jesus the Christ. In other words, the politics of Christians should be the politics of Jesus, a system of total justice based on love for God and love for one's neighbor. While we have not seen the accomplishment of this condition in its fullest sense, Christians should continue striving for it through their lives and examples. As followers of Jesus, we are called to live as if the reign or kingdom were already here in its fullest sense.
Can Christians support the market economy (capitalism) in an ethical manner? Some Christians are of the opinion that we can support it by striving to put a human compassionate face on capitalism, and subsequently have a capitalism which is not based on greed or human competition, but rather a capitalism that is based on cooperation and the desire to give people their fair share of the resources necessary for survival. Many of these Christians tend to equate capitalism with "democracy," thinking that they are one and the same. They fail to see that democracy does not presuppose or even require a market economy. For example, in 1970, the people of Chile democratically elected a socialist President. Unfortunately, this democratically elected President was assassinated by a group of Chileans who were in turn receiving economic and military support from the government of the
U.S.A., because it was feared that to allow this government and economy to exist would present a threat to the economic interests of the U.SA. It is highly suspected, and pretty well-documented that the U.S.A. not only supported the removal of this President and replacement with a brutal dictator, but that the U.S.A. actually engineered this overthrow of the Chilean government in the name of "economic freedom."
Other Christians, including myself, sustain that to support the capitalist economy is to run counter to the Gospel. The Gospel is a message of liberation and an emphasis on equality. The capitalist system is by its very nature one which allows some people to profit from the hard labor of others, and to exploit the working class. Some people may say that "if you work hard enough, you can make it."
Well, we need to define what "making it" means. If you have people who are working hard and barely making a living wage and at the same time enriching those for whom they work, where is the "making it?' If the resources that are necessary for survival are limited, and you have a few who hoard the majority of the resources right from the beginning, how can we speak about the majority of the workers "making it?" I ask, then, how can Christians in all good conscience support an economy which allows for 96% of the resources to be owned and controlled by 4% of an elite who benefit and profit from the hard labor of the working class?
Can Christians support a communist economy? My response to that would be yes and no. If by "communist" we mean a system in which there are no social classes, then yes, Christians can and should in principle support that type of system. If, on the other hand, by "communist" we mean a system whereby the government becomes an agent of exploitation, i.e. a system of governmental capitalism (state capitalism), then we are faced with the same situation that we are faced with in capitalism. If communism amounts to state capitalism, then we just have a situation where the oppressed become the oppressors. The other thing is that "communism" does not really exist in the strictest sense of the word. If "communism" means the elimination of social classes, we have not achieved as of yet that level of economic development, even if certain governments refer to themselves as "communist." In every single country of the world, there are those who rule and those who are ruled. In every country, there are those who have more and those who have way less. In every single country, there are social classes some of whom have economic advantages over other social classes. To support this type of "communism" would also run contrary to the Gospel.
This leaves us then with the question of a socialist economy. For the purposes of this essay, I will define "socialism" as a system where the government owns the means of production and the workers own the fruit or end product. In this economy, workers and citizens would be guaranteed quality health care, quality education, quality housing, and quality employment. There would be equality of employment opportunity for everyone that wanted to work. Ideally, there would be no unemployment, nor would we have a situation where people have to present an insurance card in order to receive proper health care.
Can and should Christians support socialism? My answer in principle would be in the affirmative. Nevertheless, I would qualify that by saying that we need to ask ourselves what model of socialism we are advocating for and supporting. I am not necessarily advocating for a Marxist model of socialism, as that model has its own short-comings. As Christians we need to support a model which has the minimum of flaws, and which by its very nature, approximates the values of the reign of God through Jesus the Christ. While no existing human government has a fully developed model of perfect socialism, we are called as Christians to be constant and consistent in our efforts to achieve the construction of a such a system. And we must be prepared to acknowledge that whenever there has been failure, it has been not because of socialism per se being deficient, but rather because of the attempts of those who prefer the market economy to undermine the development of socialism. The blockade/embargo imposed on the people of Cuba by our government, and continued to this day, is a perfect example of the attempts of capitalists systems undermining the development of socialism. I am not suggesting that without the embargo that Cuba would have a perfectly developed socialism, but I would venture to say that they certainly would come closer than many countries that have attempted socialism. The mere fact that the government of Cuba has been able to maintain intact the basic provisions of socialism in the light of the embargo, and also in the light of the abandonment of their main supporter, i.e. the Soviet Union, is a witness to this. While there are economic problems in Cuba, and while the Cuban government has made some small-scale concessions to the forces of the global market economy, it continues to make every effort to maintain strong the fruits of the revolution of 1959.
In summary, we should then as followers of Jesus strive to achieve the construction of a just society which will be based on the love of God and love for one's neighbor. While sin continues to prevail preventing this from happening in the fullest sense of the word, we should remember the words of the Apostle Paul that "wherever sin abounds, grace exceeds." May the grace of the Jesus the true Liberator of all humankind inspire us to work for the construction of a system which will model and be reflective of the coming kingdom of God. Even so, come Lord Jesus. Amen.
Feel free to comment and give your input on this essay.
Grace and peace,
Dr. Juan A. Ayala-Carmona
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