Difference between revisions of "User:RobertC/Consecration and capitalism"

Revision as of 14:29, 22 February 2006

Teaching corporate finance at BYU, a natural question for me to contemplate is the extent to which the culture and principles of corporate capitalism are compatible with a life committed to the law of consecration.

Related scriptural topics include: Zion, the United Order, materialism, idolatry, taking care of the poor, greed, etc.

Key issues

• Debt

• Deut 15:2: Every 7 years Israel was told to forgive all debts. This would be very difficult to implement in a capitalist system (but not impossible--think of an all equity economy).

• Hugh Nibley discusses this in Approaching Zion p. 186.

• Many church leaders have warned against debt. Where can one find those quotes

• Love of money vs. love of God: The fiduciary responsibility of corporate executives is to maximize shareholder value. If one's job is to focus on creating money for shareholders, does this constitute a 2nd master in the sense Christ warned?

• Stewardship and talents: The parable of the talents seems similar to a CEO's responsibility to maximize return for shareholders. What are the similarities and differences? How is the concept of stewardship related to private property?

Other scriptures and issues

• Love of money is the root of all evil (2 Timothy I think)

• United order passages in D&C

LDS perspectives on capitalism

• Hugh Nibley

• Approaching Zion has many thoughts on how capitalism and corporate jobs take one away from core principles of the gospel.

• Noel Reynolds--see vitae for sources and other essays

• "Mormonism, Capitalism, and the Rule of Law"

• Bryson, Phillip J., "In Defense of Capitalism: Church Leaders on Property, Wealth, and the Economic Order " (1999), BYU Studies v. 38(3), pp. 89-107.

• It seems likely that this paper was sparked by Nibley's arguments against capitalism in essays such as those in Approaching Zion. (An electronic version of this paper can be ordered for free, I think through the BYU Studies homepage.)

• Encyclopeida of Mormonism (Steve Nadauld)

• Hal Heaton

• Main page
• On corporate social responsibility
• BYU devotional summer 2005

• Bob Crawford

• Interesting articles at end of vitae (mostly working papers, I'll request copies)

• Mike Pinegar: BYU devotional on talents and the principal-agent problem

• Ezra Taft Benson: Red Carpet?

• David O. McKay: He seemed to have a lot to say against coomunism (and socialism? any pro-capitalism qoutes?)

• Todd Compton: The Spiritual Roots of the Democratic Party: Why I Am a Mormon Democrat . Here's a quote from this essay:

"...[T]he scriptures warn us about the dangers of being rich, and denounce the rich's tendency to oppress the poor. As we consider how the Democratic party has championed the financially disadvantaged, has been wary of concentrations of wealth, has realized the practical necessity of scrutinizing the management of companies, we can conclude that the Democratic party is closer to the gospel on this issue than is the Republican party."

• Latter-day Saint Democrats online

• Various articles

Related links

• The Bible and Private Property by Ken Ewert
• Equality, desert, and the poor

• Blog threads

• 2006 Feb 10: Are government welfare programs Satanic? by Christian Y. Cardall

Follow-up to this T&S' post. Asks about government redistribution and individual agency.

• 2005 jul 8: Private property 3 by Fred Clark at Slactivist

Discussion of Joseph in Gen 47 regarding private property.

• 2005 may 12: Mormons and Markets, I: Property by Nate Oman at T&S

Discussion of theories of property.

• 2005 may 16: Mormons and Markets, II: Information and the Failure of the United Order by Nate Oman at T&S

Discussion of information economics and the United Order.

• 2005 april 28: Against King Benjamin by Nate Oman at T&S

Discussion of consequentialist and aretaic approaches to the poor in scripture.

• 2005 march 13: Toward a Theology of Supermarkets by Nate Oman at T&S

The name says it all.

• 2004 dec 23: How Corporations Saved the United Order (sort of) by Nate Oman at T&S

Discussion of the legal organization of the Utah era United Orders.

• 2004 dec 16: Can a Good Mormon be a Good Socialist? by Russell Arben Fox at T&S

The answer is yes, sorta, kinda, maybe...

• 2004 dec 16: The Quandry of the Sugar Beets by Nate Oman at T&S

Tubers as ground zero for the discussion of Mormonism and capitalism

• Blog: Latter-day Saint Liberation Front

• "Mormon Economic Theology: A Periodization" by RoastedTomatoes
• "Miracles of the Qual" by RoastedTomatoes