‘Speak up for the poor and helpless, and see that they get justice’ – Proverbs 31:9
A couple of weeks ago, a friend forwarded an article by an Evangelical author who posited that it was the duty of every Christian to support Donald Trump because, among other things, he is the only thing standing in the way of the United States becoming a ‘Socialist Country.’ He argued that all Democrats are Socialists and had to be stopped at all costs.
It’s hardly a new argument. I’ve listened to it most of my life. A Democrat (or wayward Republican) proposes a program to help the poor, and suddenly Karl Marx is at the door.
(Never mind the vast difference between Marxism and the various degrees of Socialism; it’s all the same to those who ring such alarm bells. I once had such a person nearly shout at me, ‘Haven’t you read Animal Farm?’ only to be reduced to incoherent rambling when I explained that Orwell was warning against communism, and was himself, in fact, a Socialist).
As recently as a couple of weeks ago, it seemed likely that Bernie Sanders, a self-described Democratic Socialist, was destined to become the Democrats standard bearer against Trump in the 2020 General Election. Trump and his minions were practically salivating, so thrilled were they at the prospect of pitting their right-wing extremism against the great bugbear of Socialism. Things have changed dramatically since then, with former Vice-President Joe Biden (not a Socialist) mounting a tremendous political comeback, but that hasn’t changed anything. It remains the plan of conservatives to play the ‘S’ card in 2020. Indeed, the recently completed Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) repeatedly billed the upcoming contest as ‘America v. Socialism.’ In other words, it won’t matter who the Democrats nominate, because, as the evangelical author noted above says, all Democrats are Socialists. Anyone who wants to even marginally level the playing field between the ‘haves’ and ‘have nots’ is.
But even if that were true (it isn’t, but let’s just run with it for argument’s sake), would the election of a socialist, or even a socialist-leaning Democrat, be so wrong? Is it really the duty of every Christian to oppose socialism – in all its forms and gradations?
It’s not my intention to describe all of socialism’s forms in this post. I’d certainly oppose National Socialism for instance (which is one reason I speak out against Trump; too many parallels there). Nor is it to defend Bernie Sanders’ brand. It is simply to question why providing for the poor in the manner Sanders and others propose would be considered by so many Christians to be morally wrong?
So indulge me for a moment in a thought experiment. Let’s say that a new world has just been discovered. It has ample resources and abundant land. As we enter this new land, a decision is made by our leaders. Every household will be given an equal portion of land. Every family will then work their land, utilize its resources, and live off its bounty. They will also be free to sell their land if they desire, or, if they run into problems while working it. This will, of course, result in others having more land than they. But that’s OK, because it is to be expected that some will manage land more productively than others, and so, we will allow this (free market economics). However, in order to prevent any one household or group of households from acquiring too much land over time, we will impose a rule: every few decades, the system will reset. All land that was purchased will revert to the original owners (or their descendants) free of charge.
The rationale for the rule is this: we want to allow those with greater gifts and expertise to make the most productive use of the land (hence they can buy it and use it for decades at a stretch). But we do not want to allow any one household or group of households to get so far ahead that we create a permanent upper and lower class. We want to provide for learning curves and fresh starts. And so we will not allow a scenario where the rich forever get richer while the poor forever get poorer. We will restart the game from time to time.
In between restarts, we will have other rules. For example, we will offer assistance programs to ensure that everyone, especially the vulnerable (those who have suffered loss through natural disasters, death of a spouse or parents, etc.), has sufficient resources to live. We will do this by requiring those with the resources, aka the rich, to make a portion of what they possess available to those who have fallen behind.
Additionally, given that those who fall behind might incur debts as they go about the business of daily living, and might even make contracts that obligate them to serve the rich, we will make further rules that will require debt forgiveness and the termination of such contracts every several years. This will provide further protection for the poor and will prevent their exploitation at the hands of the rich.
Basically, every several years, everyone gets a mini-fresh start, and in the longer term, a brand-new start. And all along the way, everyone will be able to participate as dignified members of the new society. No one will be left behind.
Is that Socialism?
I know many Christians who would answer yes. Equal distribution of land. Limits on wealth accumulation. Forced sharing with the poor. Debt forgiveness. Returning property to the people who couldn’t handle it in the first place, property that had been lawfully acquired with hard earned cash – and worked for decades – for free! Good God, if any politician proposed such a system today, he or she would be branded a Socialist for the rest of his or her life.
But here’s the thing (and some of you know this already). I didn’t make that system up.
God did.
When the Israelites came into the Promised Land, this is exactly what he told his people to do. He divided the land (Joshua 18 and Numbers 26). He imposed a fifty year give back program called the Year of Jubilee (Leviticus 25; Deuteronomy 15). He instituted a Sabbatical year that forgave debts and set indentured servants and slaves free every seven years (Deuteronomy 15:1-6; 12-18). He instituted laws on tithing and gleaning to help the poor and vulnerable (Deuteronomy 14:28-29; 26:12-15; Leviticus 27:30-32; Numbers 18:21-32). Heck, he even imposed environmental restrictions on the use of land to prevent people from depleting its resources (Exodus 23:10-11; Leviticus 25:2-7).
Sounds like God’s a bit of a Socialist.
Before you flip out, you should know that I’m not actually labeling God a Socialist. I am, however, saying that leveling the playing field and making provision for the poor are ideals God cares about very much. Jesus himself gave away free health care. He created a food program that fed thousands (Luke 9:10-17). He shared a common purse that was used to help the poor (John 13:29). And he created a community of brothers and sisters who shared resources to such an extent that there were no needy persons among them (Acts 4:34).
And if all that is true, and it is, then is it really the duty of every Christian to oppose policies aimed to achieve the same things?
Of course not.
Look, I’m no economic expert. I’m just a theologian. But as such I know that in the Old Testament and through Jesus, God commands us to care for the poor. Call the plans and programs to do so ‘Socialist’ if you want. But don’t tell me that I’m doing wrong if I am in favor of them.
Because it isn’t my Christian duty to oppose policies that help the poor.
It is my Christian duty to support them.
That’s God’s economics.
Under Christ’s Mercy,
Brent
Thank you to Ronald J. Sider, my Professor and Mentor from seminary, for his seminal work, Rich Christians in an Age of Hunger, from which I gleaned the Bible passages quoted above.