{"id":5977,"date":"2009-10-07T05:45:08","date_gmt":"2009-10-07T05:45:08","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blog.beliefnet.com\/jesuscreed\/2009\/10\/economics-at-the-jesus-creed-m-3.html"},"modified":"2009-10-07T05:45:08","modified_gmt":"2009-10-07T05:45:08","slug":"economics-at-the-jesus-creed-m-3","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/jesuscreed\/2009\/10\/economics-at-the-jesus-creed-m-3.html","title":{"rendered":"Economics at the Jesus Creed: Michael Kruse 5"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"WallStreet.jpg\"<\/span><\/p>\n

“Love your neighbor as yourself.” This injunction is mentioned once in the Old Testament (Lev. 19:18) and seven times in the New Testament (Matt. 19:19, 22:39; Mark 12:31; Luke 10:27; Rom. 13:9; Gal. 5:14; James 2:8) It is the core Christian ethic for relating to others. The antithesis of loving others is selfishness. A central element of market economies is self-interest. Self-interest was a central component of Adam Smith’s market economics two hundred years ago and has carried forward to today. Therefore, market economics is antithetical to Christian living … or is it?<\/p>\n

How “selfish” is “self-interest” in economics?<\/b><\/p>\n

Look at a modern thesaurus and it will offer “self-interest” as a synonym for “selfishness.” If we look under “self-interest” in a dictionary like Webster’s we read: “Regard for one’s own interest or advantage, especially with disregard for others<\/i>.” But words and expressions change in connotation over the years. Is selfishness what Smith and later economists have had in mind when they speak of self-interest? Not really.<\/b><\/p>\n


\n<\/p>\n

Consider parents who raise their daughter to brush her
\nteeth, to eat well balanced meals, to look both ways before crossing a street,
\nand to do her homework. These parents are teaching their daughter to have
\nregard for her “own interest and advantage.” Are they teaching her to be
\nselfish … to act with disregard for others? Of course not. It is the “disregard
\nfor others” phrase to which we take exception.<\/p>\n

When economists speak of self-interest they are referring to
\npurposive behavior. Each of us has a perception of truth and reality. Each of
\nhas a set of values. Each action we take is a statement of preference for that
\naction versus others we might have taken. We take each action expecting to
\nrealize particular outcomes that are in accord with our perceptions and values.
\nTherefore, each action is self-interested
\n… an attempt to accomplish outcomes based on our personal perceptions and
\nvalues<\/i>. Any attempt to act contrary to our perception and values is merely
\nto suggest that there is another set of perceptions or values that takes
\nprecedence over what we thought motivated us, otherwise we would not choose the
\n“contrary” action. If we are not acting according to self-interest, then we are
\neither automatons under the direction of an intelligent being or our actions
\nare the product of non-intelligent forces beyond our control.<\/p>\n

In some theological circles, particularly pietistic
\ntraditions, self-interest is framed as the antithesis of being other-interested
\nor God-interested. One set of interests succeeds only at the expense of the
\nother. Yet Scripture teaches the transformation of self-interest, not its eradication.
\nMy self-interest, other’s interests, and God’s interest all become one. We will
\nand desire the same things but each act from our own contexts. The interaction
\nof these interests ceases to be win-lose proposition and becomes a win-win-win
\nproposition with a multiplicative effect for good.<\/p>\n

Jesus repeatedly appealed to self-interest. Here are just three
\ninstances from Matthew’s gospel: Matt 7:1-2<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

“1 Do not judge, so that you may not be judged. 2
\nFor with the judgment you make you will be judged, and the measure you give
\nwill be the measure you get.”<\/span><\/em><\/i><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

It is in our self-interest not to
\njudge because we will get whatever treatment we dish out.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Matt 16:25-26<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

“25 For those who want to save their life will lose
\nit, and those who lose their life for my sake will find it. 26 For what will it
\nprofit them if they gain the whole world but forfeit their life? Or what will
\nthey give in return for their life?”<\/span><\/em><\/i><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

It is in our self-interest not to
\nget caught up in worldly status but rather to find our life in Jesus.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Matt 19:21<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

“21 Jesus said to him, ‘If you wish to be perfect,
\ngo, sell your possessions, and give the money to the poor, and you will have
\ntreasure in heaven; then come, follow me.'”<\/span><\/em><\/i><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

It is in our self-interest to give
\nup everything for the treasures in heaven.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Martin Luther King, Jr., preached a
\nsermon on the story from Mark 10 where James and John ask for the highest
\npositions in the coming Kingdom (The Drum
\nMajor Instinct<\/a>). King notes Jesus’ remarkable response. He doesn’t rebuke
\ntheir ambition. Instead, he says, “You want the highest positions? Go for it!
\nThey aren’t mine to give but here is how you get them. You excel at putting
\neveryone else ahead of yourself. Now get out there in front and lead the band.”
\nJesus appealed to their self-interest but turned their perception of truth and
\nvalues upside down and inside out.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Returning to economics, Adam Smith wrote about self-interest
\n(or self-love) as only one of several sentiments that are a part of life.
\nSelf-interest was joined with other sentiments like compassion, generosity, and
\nbenevolence in his combined works of The
\nTheory of Moral Sentiments<\/i> and The
\nWealth of nations<\/i>. Benevolence was seen by Smith as the highest of all
\nvirtues. My point is not to defend Smith at all points but to make clear that
\nhis theory was not an exaltation of selfishness. At the writing of the U. S.
\nConstitution, the word “liberty” simply meant not being physically imprisoned. Two
\nhundred years later liberty has come to mean so much more. Similarly, while
\n“self-interest” had a relatively narrow meaning regarding economic transactions
\nit now has a much broader socio-psychological meaning. When economists use the
\nterm, most often they are referring to perceptions and values used in ranking
\noptions and making choices … purposive behavior.<\/p>\n

Have there been economists that have said selfishness and
\nself-actualization should<\/i> be our
\nguide? Yes. Over the last half century, many of those who have been influenced
\nby social thinkers like Ayn Rand have championed such thinking. Earlier
\nexamples exist as well. But to say that some economists have wanted this
\nmindset to be normative is a far cry from saying that it is essential to market
\neconomics. It is not.<\/p>\n

It is possible to have a market economy where people are
\nother-centered, but other-centeredness alone will not solve macroeconomic
\nproblems. We are confronted with the information problems raised in our earlier
\ndiscussions. While I may know the needs of the few people I have ongoing daily
\nrelationships with, how can I (or any other person or entity) know which actions
\nare in the “common good” of three hundred million other of my national citizens
\nor the billions with whom I share the planet? We saw earlier that markets are
\ndynamic feedback loops of information and incentives, coordinating daily
\neconomic decisions. They are both imperfect and indispensable. We will have
\nmore to say about this later.<\/p>\n

Today, I merely want to distinguish “self-interest” in
\neconomic terms as purposive behavior, not as a synonym for selfishness.<\/b> I’ve
\nwritten about this topic enough times to know that some are going to find this
\ncharacterization of self-interest … and particularly the assertion that Jesus
\nappealed to our self-interest … disturbing. <\/p>\n

So a couple of questions. Am I off
\nthe mark? Why? If not, are there better ways to describe these dynamics without
\ninvolving a value-laden word like self-interest? What implications are there for
\nmissional Christians?<\/b><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

“Love your neighbor as yourself.” This injunction is mentioned once in the Old Testament (Lev. 19:18) and seven times in the New Testament (Matt. 19:19, 22:39; Mark 12:31; Luke 10:27; Rom. 13:9; Gal. 5:14; James 2:8) It is the core Christian ethic for relating to others. The antithesis of loving others is selfishness. 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