Biblical Economic Ethics

Sacred Scripture's Teachings on Economic Life

Inbunden, Engelska, 2013

AvAlbino Barrera

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Written in non-technical language accessible to non-specialist readers, this book is a theological synthesis of the findings of scripture scholars and ethicists on what the Bible teaches about economic life. It proposes a biblical theology of economic life that addresses three questions, namely: What do the individual books of Sacred Scripture say about proper economic conduct? How do these teachings fit within the larger theology and ethics of the books in which they are found?Are there recurring themes, underlying patterns, or issues running across these different sections of the Bible when read together as a single canon?The economic norms of the Old and New Testament exhibit both continuity and change. Despite their diverse social settings and theological visions, the books of the Bible nonetheless share recurring themes: care for the poor, generosity, wariness over the idolatry of wealth, the inseparability of genuine worship and upright moral conduct, and the acknowledgment of an underlying divine order in economic life. Contrary to most people’s first impression that the Bible offers merely random economic teachings without rhyme or reason, there is, in fact, a specific vision undergirding these scriptural norms. Moreover, far from being burdensome impositions of do’s and don’ts, this book finds that the Bible’s economic norms are, in fact, an invitation to participate in God’s providence. To this end, we have been granted a threefold benefaction—the gift of divine friendship, the gift of one another, and the gift of the earth. Thus, biblical economic ethics is best characterized as a chronicle of how God provides for humanity through people’s mutual solicitude and hard work. The economic ordinances, aphorisms, and admonitions of the Old and New Testament turn out to be an unmerited divine invitation to participate in God’s governance of the world. Our economic conduct provides us with a unique opportunity to shine forth in our creation in the image and likeness of God. Often extremely demanding, hard, and even fraught with temptations and distractions, economic life nevertheless is, at its core, an occasion for humans to grow in holiness, charity, and perfection.

Produktinformation

Utgivningsdatum2013-08-28
Mått152 x 229 x 30 mm
Vikt722 g
FormatInbunden
SpråkEngelska
Antal sidor370
FörlagBloomsbury Publishing Plc
ISBN9780739182291

Tillhör följande kategorier

Religion: allmänt inom Filosofi och religion
Kristendom inom Filosofi och religion

Albino Barrera is professor of theology and economics at Providence College. His books include Market Complicity and Christian Ethics (2011), Globalization and Economic Ethics: Distributive Justice in the Knowledge Economy (2007), Economic Compulsion and Christian Ethics (2005), God and the Evil of Scarcity: Moral Foundations of Economic Agency (2005), and Modern Catholic Social Documents and Political Economy (2001).

PrefaceChapter 1: Methodological Issues: Using Sacred Scripture in Economic EthicsPart I. Old TestamentChapter 2: Socioeconomic Conditions: Biblical IsraelChapter 3: Covenant and LawChapter 4: ProphetsChapter 5: Wisdom LiteraturePart II. New TestamentChapter 6: Socioeconomic Conditions: First-Century PalestineChapter 7: MarkChapter 8: MatthewChapter 9: Luke–ActsChapter 10: Pauline Letters and JamesPart III. Toward a Biblical Theology of Economic LifeChapter 11: A Divine Order of Conditional ProsperityChapter 12: Gift of Divine Friendship: Imitatio DeiChapter 13: Gift of One Another: Mutual Solicitude and Care for the PoorChapter 14: Gift of the Earth: StewardshipChapter 15: Summary and Conclusions: Economic Life as Participation in God’s Providence

Barrera offers an account of biblical teachings on the economy that is characterized by thorough and clear presentation of the ancient texts, fair and thoughtful analysis of passages within their biblical context, and sensible and reasonable discussions of how to apply this material to the contemporary world. He begins forthrightly with a well-conceived presentation of methodological issues, thereby allowing his readers to experience the range of deliberations in which he himself necessarily engaged in the process of research and writing. This prologue, if you will, gives readers an appropriate context in which to evaluate Barrera's forays into the Old Testament (including the Apocrypha) and the New Testament. Readers are also in a position to appreciate, even if they do not fully accept, the perspective from which Barrera constructs the concluding chapters of his book (part 3) under the rubric, 'Toward a Biblical Theology of Economic Life.' This book should be required reading for everyone who takes seriously the role of the Bible in the assessment of current economic policies that, for better or worse, are determinative in how people live their lives at the micro- and the macro-level. Summing Up: Highly recommended. Lower-level undergraduates through graduate students; general readers.