Explain the Impacts of Faith on Economic behavior

. Explain the Impacts of Faith on Economic behavior

“Life should be great, rather than long”. The words of Ambedkar are a genuine reflection of the kind of impression religion leaves on the believers. Ideally, the human race is a religious group. As much as there is a small percentage that does not believe in any supreme being, the rest of the people believe in a different religion. Since man began living in social groups, the aspect of faith has always been an integral part of his community. Over the years, people have grown to identify with different religions depending on their beliefs and the faith of their ancestors. Following this, many scholars have explored the role of religion in shaping the behavior and culture of human beings. It has, however, come to the attention of many scholars that the impact that religion has on the economy is not a field that has been explored to its exhaustiveness. The few that have evaluated this relationship has, however, established that religion has a significant impact on the economy of the believers. Ideally, assess the relationship that is shared between the economic status and faith in its totality is likely to enhance the understanding of the dimensions to which the two doctrines relate.

To begin with, religion impacts on the growth of the economy through various dimensions. For instance, some religions such as Christianity encourage people to work hard. As such, many people develop the art of working hard and thereby improving the economic status of the nation. Christianity holds a belief that God blesses the work of the hand of a believer. Beliefs such as these are likely to push the individuals into working so hard so that they get the personal satisfaction that they are fulfilling the requirement and commandment of God. Putnam and Campbell support that “38 percent of Americans report being an active member of a church or religious organization, compared to only 16 percent of Australians, 9 percent of Italians, and 4 percent of the French”. The more the number of believers in the Church, the more the improvements in the economy. Going to Church is yet another way in which religion contributes to economic growth. This is mainly because of the daily preaching and the various subjects that they touch on. For example, the art of encouraging Christians to cultivate the practice of tithing is enough reason to inspire the art of working hard. Ideally, people who tithe will need to tithe in the following month, and this will mean that the person has to work once more and even harder because of the increasing responsibilities.

Additionally, research has pointed out that education is yet another angle through which the relationship between the economy and religion can be analyzed. It is believed that most of the people who chose to be religious are education or have some background in education. Agreeably, there is a possibility that without the knowledge of reading, people will not have learned of the Bible and even the Quran. As such, religion is directly inclined to expertise. Through this approach, it is evident that religion creates social classes in the nation. The people who go to Church are categorically put in different social status on a fundamental basis. Putnam and Campbell support that “And when it comes to education, another measure of social

class, having more education corresponds to a higher level of attendance at religious services”. Research has pinned the highly educated individuals to high levels of belief and loyalty to religion, especially Christianity. For the few who have read the Bible, it is evident that there are books in the Bible that prove to be quite technical. However, highly educated in society can understand the Scripture from a different perspective. Putnam and Campbell further illustrate that “While racial residential segregation was declining, class segregation increased”. And this explains how religion, through education, contributes to the creation of social classes in society. Through the lives led by these individuals, people might conclude that religion impacts positively on the life of some people while it is absent in the lives of others. As such, the wealthy in society automatically fits the higher social classes, while the struggling ones come to the middle and the lower social classes.

Moreover, the teachings against poverty in many places of worship contribute to the development of the economy. Arguably, many churches preach that God did not create anyone to suffer. Poverty is a form of suffering, and by condemning it in churches, the congregation is likely to receive the message as a sign of working hard in their endeavors. The preachers encourage the congregation and even pray for them to overcome poverty. The word overcome is used in most of these talks; it means that a person has to put in more effort if the person wants to get rid of poverty. Following the increased rates of poverty in the United States, the churches had to step in and work with the government in fighting poverty. In 2006, for instance, the government and the group fighting poverty composed a Faith Matters survey that highlighted the poverty levels in the economy. According to Putnam and Campbell, “Support for the antipoverty policy was higher among Democrats, among poorer, less educated Americans”. The government, in conjunction with the Church have created employment opportunities to accommodate those who do not have places of employment. Over the years, the government of the united states has set up policies that are unique and supportive in the alleviation of poverty. For instance, the government has created a trend in which it offers aid to the poor on a regular timeline, and most people in the United States support this. The Church, however, feels that the government should try to provide a long time solution, such as employment opportunities, so that these people can work to survive, and by doing this, the government gains through taxation.

Inequality is yet another construction of the economy that religion has, for so long, take an interest in. According to the Christian faith, all humans are equal in the eyes of God, and as such, religion tends to discourage inequality. Through the efforts to curb the spreading of unequal beliefs and practices, the community continues to grow as a result of government involvement and the church donations directed towards projects that will lead to equality. “Blacks and Latinos are highly religious and very supportive of the antipoverty policy, an important but hardly surprising pattern”. Ideally, the aspects of inequality, especially on the racial level, continually impacted negatively on the economy of the united states, mainly because most of the racially discriminated minorities were disadvantaged. Other than improper housing system, these people languished in joblessness and lack of education for a while. However, as the government and the Church got involved, the minority groups got the chance to seek and get employed, enjoy better housing, and even a better society. Ideally, the more responsibility that a person takes, the more he or she has to work hard in life. Christianity acts as a pillar for these people since it urges them that God cannot test a person beyond his abilities. With this as a pillar to land on, these people work extra hard to live the life they have fought for in a very long duration. Inequality is also seen in gender. The Bible depicts a woman as a submissive person. However, due to the misinterpretations of the Scripture, women have been on the receiving end of society. Christianity however, teaches that in a marriage, the wife should love and respect the husband while the husbands love and provides for the wife. Following the scriptures, the Church has fought the inequality war by engaging in activities involving women empowerment and, in the long run contributing to the growth of the economy.

Tax is yet another bone of contention between religion and the economy. The government encourages the citizens of a nation to pay tax because this is the surest way through which the government generates revenue.  Similarly, the Bible urges Christians to pay taxes since it is a guarantee of the development of their nations. In light of paying the taxes, the Bible encourages tithing. It says that “Give to Caesar what belongs to Caesar, and God what belongs to God”. Through this, the Bible acknowledges the importance of taxation, and Christian learn from it that it is their obligation. Similarly, in the responsibility of citizens towards their government, tax obligation is a significant concern. Since it is the only thing that the government is asking, most people decide to oblige since they are patriots. Christians and non-believers agree on the fact that the government has to spend the money recovered from taxation on substantial projects that either contribute to the betterment of the economy or people within the economy. Putnam and Campbell argue that “When it comes to the public policy question of how the government spends tax money, religious and nonreligious Americans are more alike than different”. True to their argument, many Americans, including Christians and non-believers, feel that the money can be useful in the growth of the society in different dimensions. For instance, some believe that it should be used to fight crimes. This is a genuine concern since crime impacts negatively on the economy of a nation. Also, there is a group that believes that this money should be directed towards helping the poor. Either way, the money should be used to enhance the growth of the economy.

Also, ethical issues, as encouraged in religion, connect in different dimensions with the economic problems. Ethics is the study of values and virtues. Values are concepts that Christians are encouraged to cultivate since they contribute to achieving good things. The attribute, on the other hand, is the character that a person depicts and how this character can aid in achieving a goal. Arguably, the virtue that has been instilled in a person will determine how the person will take his or her endeavors in the economic world. Putnam and Campbell enlighten that “Rabbi Knobel taught, “the autonomy of the individual” is central, as is the idea that “ethics should be imposed by one’s reasoning rather than by tradition”. True to their words, a person’s ethical standards must guide him or her, especially when making economic endeavors. The contemporary society, for instance, has shed light on the short cart and back door means that people are using to gain more money. A good example can be seen in the numerous cases of fraud as well as misappropriation of funds. For some reason, people believe that making more money, regardless of the methods used, will make them productive and probably impact on the economy. This is not the case most of the time since these crooked methods offer short term solutions. The Bible encourages that believers practice honesty in small endeavors so that God can bless them with significant efforts.

Conclusively, the relationship shared between religion and economy can be analyzed in many different dimensions. To a certain degree, a belief reinforced the marketplace by offering support financially and guidance in the right manner of approaching the proposed solutions. For instance, religion urges Christians to not only concentrate on paying tithe, but they should also pay taxes since it is their obligation. Faith also imparts the art of hard work among believers. These people learn that for them to eat, they have to work hard, and by doing so, they contribute to the economic development of their nation. Inequality, as propagated by the economic construction, is something that religion discourages since it is a vice. The Christian faith, however, explains that in the eyes of God, everyone is equal and so people should not treat each other differently.

Work Cited

Putnam, Robert D., and David E. Campbell. American Grace: How Religion Divides and Unites Us. Simon & Schuster, 2010.