Economics in the Gospels Video Course: Peace, War and Takeaways

​Today we are making available the next installment of our new online video series for Economics in the Gospels.

Peace is a complicated subject in the Gospels. For instance, Jesus is commonly depicted as the “Prince of Peace”. Intriguingly though he often speaks of how he is not here to bring peace at all...

Matthew 10:34 “Do not think that I have come to bring peace to the earth. I have not come to bring peace but a sword.

The economy we see in the Gospels seems familiar in many ways.  Perhaps that is why the narrative, the stories, the people, the situations, the images seem relevant through the ages. It’s easier in some ways to notice the things that aren’t there.  But what we see is that much of what we take for granted was there, albeit in more simple states: Agriculture?  Check.  Housing?  Check.  Lawyers?  Of course. Lamps, musical instruments, tables, chairs, curtains, garments, jars, spices, servants, linens, coins, plenty of bread, wine, etc. are all in there.

Go outside and you’ll be missing cars, planes, superhighways, skyscrapers, automated factories, modern hospitals, construction equipment, and a million other things. What you would see if you had wandered around with Jesus would be a world with lots of housing, roads, boats, big buildings, crop filled fields, markets, vineyards, etc.

Jesus and his disciples appear to have lived simply.  From what we can read He lived on a diet of bread, fish, water and wine, with an occasional fig. He was certainly not one to avoid a feast however.  As pigs and other livestock are mentioned we can extrapolate that there was meat in the diet so, again, it’s not hard to place oneself in the time - and feeling right at home.  Eggs are also mentioned so a breakfast of eggs, bacon and toast could well have been put together.

Jesus and his crew apparently walked just about everywhere and took boats when a significant distance made it practicable.  I’m reminded of a quote of Thoreau’s:  “I have travelled quite extensively, in Concord.” 

He loved to hang out with friends in low places.  He did not appear to break the laws of the land unless we count turning over the tables at the temple. He appeared to have no gainful employment and there is no record of him being paid a wage.  It is often said he was a carpenter though there appears to be no record of him actually building anything physical.

Jesus as a manager, we might be able to say, had the ultimate charismatic personality.  He seemed to care less what people thought of him – and so too didn’t seem to care about making enemies.  He was treated very harshly, but never reciprocated. Like many highly successful people of today, and certainly good salespeople, he liked to tell stories and was very good at it.

Jesus seemed to have no problem with the economic factors of production of his day.  He just didn’t seem to think them particularly important, at least not as compared to the metaphysical realm he usually spoke of.

We can perhaps see the roots of our social safety net in the Gospels.  Taking care of women and children especially were of the utmost importance to him. He repeatedly reassures the poor. 

Perhaps the two most obvious takeaways for a modern Capitalist is that the Gospels, and He, try to warn rich people that chasing a buck is most definitely not to be encouraged.  One should instead try to take care of one’s soul and live in a loving way. 

Another takeaway one could construe, and probably the most important from a macroeconomic point of view: the Gospels would seem to argue for a “downsized“ way of living.  Jesus certainly incorporates this way of thinking in his lifestyle and most of what he says, and the rest of the narrative seems to support this conclusion. 

For more information about the course click here.
To view the video click here.
For the study text click here.

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Peace and War
War and Peace are the ultimate determinants of economic success in the most fundamental ways of all.  For instance, in the post WW II era America was preeminent, and is largely still, due to its escaping the destruction to its plant that most of its international competitors did not.

In the Gospels’ time there existed the Pax Romana and peace reigned.  Economic activity also appears to have flourished and the Gospels seem to demonstrate a certain prosperity.   Nowhere in the Gospels is there a mention of widespread hunger or even homelessness.  People seem to have had what they needed and a socio-economic order appears to have existed which feels largely familiar to us today in many ways.

Much talk of peace is evident in the writings; the preceding chapters show a substantial portion of the economic output went into the standing army, weapons, etc.
But peace is a complicated subject in the Gospels – and in our modern culture’s commonly held views of what the Gospels have to say on the subject.  For instance, Jesus is commonly depicted as the “Prince of Peace”…
 
Mark 5:34 He said to her, “Daughter, your faith has made you well. Go in peace, and be healed of your disease.”

Intriguingly though he often speaks of how he is not here to bring peace at all...
 
Matthew 10:34 “Do not think that I have come to bring peace to the earth. I have not come to bring peace but a sword.
 
Luke 12:51 Do you think I have come to bring peace on earth? No, I tell you, but rather division! 12:52 For from now on there will be five in one household divided, three against two and two against three. 12:53 They will be divided, father against son and son against father, mother against daughter and daughter against mother, mother-in-law against her daughter-in-law and daughter-in-law against mother-in-law.”

Live by the sword, die by the sword

In this most famous passage, Jesus admonishes his defender…
 
Matthew 26:52 Then Jesus said to him, “Put your sword back in its place! For all who take hold of the sword will die by the sword.

Peace (25)
The following passages start off peaceably enough…
 
Luke 19:37 As he approached the road leading down from the Mount of Olives, the whole crowd of his disciples began to rejoice and praise God with a loud voice for all the mighty works they had seen: 19:38 “Blessed is the king who comes in the name of the Lord! Peace in heaven and glory in the highest!” 19:39 But some of the Pharisees in the crowd said to him, “Teacher, rebuke your disciples.” 19:40 He answered, “I tell you, if they keep silent, the very stones will cry out!”

But it gets ugly…
 
Luke 19:41 Now when Jesus approached and saw the city, he wept over it, 19:42 saying, “If you had only known on this day, even you, the things that make for peace! But now they are hidden from your eyes. 19:43 For the days will come upon you when your enemies will build an embankment against you and surround you and close in on you from every side. 19:44 They will demolish you – you and your children within your walls – and they will not leave within you one stone on top of another, because you did not recognize the time of your visitation from God.”

And here he gives a view of how complicated things are, and would be - the words are enigmatic…
 
John 16:33 I have told you these things so that in me you may have peace. In the world you have trouble and suffering, but take courage – I have conquered the world.”

After the resurrection Jesus returns and offers his disciples peace before he sends them out into the world…it’s tough out there apparently.
 
John 20:19 On the evening of that day, the first day of the week, the disciples had gathered together and locked the doors of the place because they were afraid of the Jewish leaders. Jesus came and stood among them and said to them, “Peace be with you.” 20:20 When he had said this, he showed them his hands and his side. Then the disciples rejoiced when they saw the Lord. 20:21 So Jesus said to them again, “Peace be with you. Just as the Father has sent me, I also send you.”

Wars (5)
Wars are rarely cited in the Gospels aside from depictions of the end times…
 
Mark 13:7 When you hear of wars and rumors of wars, do not be alarmed. These things must happen, but the end is still to come. 13:8 For nation will rise up in arms against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. There will be earthquakes in various places, and there will be famines. These are but the beginning of birth pains.
 
Luke 14:31 Or what king, going out to confront another king in battle, will not sit down first and determine whether he is able with ten thousand to oppose the one coming against him with twenty thousand? 14:32 If he cannot succeed, he will send a representative while the other is still a long way off and ask for terms of peace. 14:33 In the same way therefore not one of you can be my disciple if he does not renounce all his own possessions.

Armies (2)
Armies are rarely mentioned in the Gospels - once in metaphysical terms to herald Jesus’ arrival as a baby…
 
Luke 2:13 Suddenly a vast, heavenly army appeared with the angel, praising God and saying, 2:14 “Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace among people with whom he is pleased!”

An actual, physical army is mentioned once…
 
Luke 21:20 “But when you see Jerusalem surrounded by armies, then know that its desolation has come near.

Legions
Legions are mentioned but once…
 
Matthew 26:53 Or do you think that I cannot call on my Father, and that he would send me more than twelve legions of angels right now.

Take Aways

The Gospel economy and Jesus as an economic participant

The economy we see in the Gospels, when broken down and analogized to today, seems familiar in many ways.  Perhaps that is why the narrative, the stories, the people, the situations, the images seem relevant through the ages.

It’s easier in some ways to notice the things that aren’t there.  But what we see is that much of what we take for granted was there, albeit in more simple states: Agriculture?  Check.  Housing?  Check.  Lawyers?  Of course.

What’s not in the Gospels?  Well, take a look around and you’ll see that anything electronic or particularly mechanical is missing.  Clocks, TVs, computers, phones, refrigerators, dishwashers, electric lights, plastics, synthetic fabrics, credit cards, toasters, microwaves, A/C, etc.

However, lamps, musical instruments, tables, chairs, curtains, garments, jars, spices, servants, linens, coins, plenty of bread, wine, etc. are mentioned

Go outside and you’ll be missing cars, planes, superhighways, skyscrapers, automated factories, modern hospitals, construction equipment, and a million other things.

What you would see if you had wandered around with Jesus would be a world with lots of housing, roads, boats, big buildings, crop filled fields, markets, vineyards, etc.

In the Gospels Jesus does not appear to have earned any kind of wage, so it would be hard to call him a worker.  He could perhaps be described as a manager.  To take it to an extreme, one could say he managed a non-profit organization.   Obviously a stretch.  How about activist?  Clergy?  Given his apparent disdain for the clergy of his day it’s not clear he would have approved.

Jesus and his disciples appear to have lived simply.  One could go so far to say, from what is in the Gospels, that Jesus would have resembled a homeless person of today. 
From what we can read He lived on a diet of bread, fish, water and wine, with an occasional fig. 

He was certainly not one to avoid a feast however.  As pigs and other livestock are mentioned we can extrapolate that there was meat in the diet so, again, it’s not hard to place oneself in the time - and feeling right at home.  Eggs are also mentioned so a breakfast of eggs, bacon and toast could well have been put together.

Jesus and his crew apparently walked just about everywhere and took boats when a significant distance made it practicable.  Personally, I walk just about everywhere.  And I suppose boating rather than buses would be nice!  I’m reminded of a quote of Thoreau’s:  “I have travelled quite extensively, in Concord.”  In other words, the distances Jesus travelled were not particularly extensive so walking sufficed nicely.  Hard to imagine it being any other way.

The widespread mention of the clergy and lawyers (Expert on the Law) jumps from the pages of the Gospel.  Along with government work (tax collection, ruling, soldiering) one might conclude that they were primary professions – and closely tied together in the day.  Servitude was also big.

Jesus was an iconoclast and mistrusted the clergy and lawyers of his day.  He loved to hang out with friends in low places.  He did not appear to break the laws of the land unless we count turning over the tables at the temple.

As mentioned previously, He appeared to have no gainful employment and there is no record of him being paid a wage.  There is also no record of him spending money nor lending or borrowing any.  He was no businessman and he appears to have had little use for money in any form.  It is often said he was a carpenter though there appears to be no record of him actually building anything physical.

One can assume construction, both of homes and other structures, as being a large segment of the economy.  The materials, the professionals, the goods manufacturers, the domestic labor, were all part of the economy.  Along with agriculture it would be reasonable to conclude that these were primary economic drivers.
Management and capital are also exhibited.  There were definitely some very rich people about, and they tended to be mentioned as landowners.  Property management skills are prized, as we see in the parables.

Jesus as a manager, we might be able to say, had the ultimate charismatic personality.  He seemed to care less what people thought of him – and so too didn’t seem to care about making enemies.  Like many good managers he was judgmental.  He also encouraged virtuousness and generally seemed to look on the “sunny side” of life.

Unlike what is generally taken for a good management style today, He spoke in a confusing fashion.  He was not particularly worried about being well understood.  He was enigmatic, and He would give you the coat off his back – if you hit him first.

He was treated very harshly, but never reciprocated.

Like many highly successful people of today, and certainly good salespeople, he liked to tell stories and was very good at it.

Our culture today shares with the Gospels a distrust of clergy, and somewhat paradoxically, a significant investment in its infrastructure.  Here in New Haven there are churches seemingly on every corner.  Our modern economy has invested heavily in churches and the like, and continues to do so with tax break supported investment, even as attendance and trust of clergy are not particularly high.  That being said, He hung out in the synagogues and was obviously very religious.

Jesus appears to have had more contempt for his clergy than he did for the Romans.  Like now, there appears to have been a very high amount of investment in Jewish infrastructure starting with the temple, then the synagogues, and on to the high priest’s housing and courtyards, and so on.

Teaching appears to have been the profession Jesus most admired. 

Many professions and jobs are mentioned in the Gospels, most all of which are still around today.  Personally, I would feel better if my vocation was mentioned, alas, it is not. 

Fortunately, slavery is no longer with us though it was taken for granted in the Gospels’ day.

It is hard to imagine our modern economy being able to exist if we put all that is stated in the Gospels to practice. Being a banker makes it tough to live by the standards in the Gospel regarding lending.  For instance, Jesus was exceedingly forgiving - though he spoke of conflict as being what he was put here for.  Bankers can get behind the conflict part; less so the forgiveness, at least as it applies to debts owed their institutions.

Jesus seemed to have no problem with the economic factors of production of his day.  He just didn’t seem to think them particularly important, at least not as compared to the metaphysical realm he usually spoke of.

We can perhaps see the roots of our social safety net in the Gospels.  Taking care of women and children especially were of the utmost importance to him. 
He repeatedly reassures the poor. 

Perhaps the two most obvious takeaways for a modern Capitalist is that the Gospels, and He, try to warn rich people that chasing a buck is most definitely not to be encouraged.  One should instead try to take care of one’s soul and live in a loving way.  Many moderns would agree.

Another takeaway one could construe, and probably the most important from a macroeconomic point of view: the Gospels would seem to argue for a “downsized“ way of living.  Jesus certainly incorporates this way of thinking in his lifestyle and most of what he says, and the rest of the narrative seems to support this conclusion, with a few exceptions. 

But it’s really left to the reader to formulate their own “takeaways”.