Dear ASHS folks,
I received the following piece this morning from the Ayn Rand Institute, to whose listserve I subscribe. I think it does well to illustrate some of the issues born from infusions of religion into various aspects of our "secular" society, namely our economy. Whatever you think of capitalism, Dr. Andrew Bernstein raises some interesting points. I'd love to hear your thoughts on his argument.
Secularly,
Erika B. Hedberg
ASHS Coordinator
(716) 636.7571 ext. 218
erikahedberg@hotmail.com
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Dear Sir or Madam:
Following is a commentary encouraging capitalists to defend free enterprise by using secularism and reason instead of religion and faith.
If you are interesting in publishing this piece in your newsletter or magazine, or if you wish to link to it from your web site, please feel free to do so. In the event that you do decide to link to, publish, or distribute the piece, please let me know.
Sincerely yours,
Jocelyn Baker
Public Affairs Manager
The Ayn Rand Institute
310.306.9232 ext. 224
Fax: 310.306.4925
jocelynb@aynrand.org
TEAR SHEET REQUESTED
Download this Op-Ed from http://www.aynrand.org/medialink/freedom.shtml
Religion and Capitalism Are Antithetical Conservatives wrong to claim religion as base of free enterprise, which is based on secularism and reason
By Andrew Bernstein
Conservative politiciansfrom George W. Bush to Alan Keyesregularly insist that religion is the basis of free enterprise. Conservative theologian Michael Novak claims that the Catholic Church of the Middle Ages was the main locus for the first flowerings of capitalism. The religious right calls the United States a Christian country, and declares that our basic political choice is between godless communismor godless liberalismand religious capitalism.
But the truth is that religion and capitalism are incompatiblein practice and in theory. Consider the openly statist views of some prominent members of the religious right. Pat Buchanan, for example, opposes international free trade and wants to restrict immigration drastically. Gary Bauer applauds Washingtons antitrust case against Microsoft calling the courts recent ruling against the company a victory for the small manand vows to renew the Justice Dept.s efforts to prosecute adult obscenity, especially on the Internet.
Such positions should not come as a surprise, since religious teachings contradict the requirements of capitalism. The most obvious conflict centers on the religious belief that the profit motive is immoral. If we are all obligated to sacrifice ourselves on behalf of the have-nots, then private property, the pursuit of wealth, and the entire free enterprise system are evil. The only virtuous system, according to religious doctrine, would be one in which the goods of this earth are common property, to be used selflessly, for the public good i.e., a system of socialism. The U.S. Catholic Bishops have been particularly astute in recognizing this connection, as they have consistently argued for an increasing government presence in our economic lives, so that wealth can be redistributed from the productive to the non-productive.
Further, religions belief in mans innate sinfulness leads to the same collectivist conclusion. A National Review article denounces some of the pro-capitalist policies of Steve Forbes, on the grounds that they ignore the dark side of people. Economic freedominsists the leading magazine of religious conservatismwill lead unregulated corporations to trample the little guy. That is, it will lead to too much individualism. These are the exact sentiments expressed by Gary Bauer regarding the Microsoft antitrust case. Indeed, Bauer believes that the very purpose of government is to counter mans sin by restricting his freedom. In other words, government controls are needed to ensure that each individual act as his brothers keeper.
But underlying all this is a deeper point. Religion cannot be the basis of freedom and capitalism because of its inherently authoritarian nature. Religion demands acceptance on faith. It demands obedient followers. It demands the subordination of the individuals mind and the individuals interests to the dictates of some higher authority. Under capitalism, by contrast, the individual is supreme. Capitalism recognizes the autonomy of the individual citizen and the inalienability of his individual rights. This is the most fundamental reason why, where faith is culturally dominant--in the Dark Ages dominated by the medieval church or in the theocracy run by the ayatollahs of contemporary Iran--political/economic freedom is stifled.
In this country, too, whenever faith is employed in politics, it leads to more government controls. This is true whether the employer is conservative or liberal--whether it is George W. Bush, who wants to use tax dollars to fund charity activities of various churches and whose compassionate conservatism is simply a more overtly religious form of the welfare state--or whether it is Al Gore, whose advisors have declared that the Democratic Party is going to take back God, and who invokes the New Testaments concept of mans selfless stewardship of the earth to support environmentalist regulations.
Americas Founding Fathers understood the threat posed by the introduction of religious dogma into politics. This is why they advocated a legal separation of church and state. They grounded Americas freedom in reason and individualismthey upheld the individuals right to his own life, his own liberty, and the pursuit of his own happiness. They did not regard the citizen as an obedient servant, but as a sovereign person, who ought to be left free to follow the conclusions of his own reasoning mind. They wanted a secular state. They established simultaneously the freedom to practice ones religion privately and the freedom to be politically free from religious authority.
That is what made the United States the freest country in history, enabling the free enterprise system to develop. Those politicians who try to root capitalism in the soil of religion would do well to remember that.