Poll: Americans See Clash Between Christianity, Capitalism

By Nicole Neroulias
Religion News Service

(RNS) Are Christianity and capitalism a marriage made in heaven, as some conservatives believe, or more of a strained relationship in need of some serious couples' counseling?

A new poll released Thursday (April 21) found that more Americans (44 percent) see the free market system at odds with Christian values than those who don't (36 percent), whether they are white evangelicals, mainline Protestants, Catholics or minority Christians.

But in other demographic breakdowns, several categories lean the other way: Republicans and Tea Party members, college graduates and members of high-income households view the systems as more compatible than not.

The poll, conducted by Public Religion Research Institute in partnership with Religion News Service, found that although conservative Christians and evangelicals tend to want their clergy to speak out on issues like abortion and homosexuality, they also tend to hold left-of-center views on some economic issues.

"Throughout the Bible, we see numerous passages about being our brother's keeper, welcoming the stranger, feeding the hungry, clothing the naked, and healing the sick," said Andrew Walsh, author of Religion, Economics and Public Policy and a religion professor at Culver-Stockton College.

"The idea that we are autonomous individuals competing for limited resources without concern for the welfare of others is a philosophy that is totally alien to the Bible, and in my view, antithetical to genuine Christianity."

The findings add a new wrinkle to national debates over the size and role of government, and raise questions about the impact of the Tea Party's cut-the-budget pressure on the GOP and its traditional base of religious conservatives.

The poll found stronger religious distinctions over the question of businesses acting ethically without government regulation, and whether faith leaders should speak out about economic concerns such as the budget deficit and the minimum wage.

White evangelicals (44 percent) are more likely than other Christians or the general population to believe that unregulated businesses would still behave ethically, and they place a higher
priority on religious leaders speaking out about social issues over economic concerns.

Minority Christians, in contrast, believe clergy should be vocal about both areas -- particularly on the economic issue of home foreclosures, which 76 percent considered important, compared to 46 percent of the general population.

"Minority Christians have a deep theological tradition of connecting faith and economic justice, and we see that link in the survey," said Robert P. Jones, CEO of Public Religion Research Institute. "Because minorities in the U.S. generally continue to have lower incomes than
whites, economic issues are also more salient in these congregations."

Admin wrote:This is a very interesting finding.

By Nicole Neroulias
Religion News Service

(RNS) Are Christianity and capitalism a marriage made in heaven, as some conservatives believe, or more of a strained relationship in need of some serious couples' counseling?

A new poll released Thursday (April 21) found that more Americans (44 percent) see the free market system at odds with Christian values than those who don't (36 percent), whether they are white evangelicals, mainline Protestants, Catholics or minority Christians.

But in other demographic breakdowns, several categories lean the other way: Republicans and Tea Party members, college graduates and members of high-income households view the systems as more compatible than not.

The poll, conducted by Public Religion Research Institute in partnership with Religion News Service, found that although conservative Christians and evangelicals tend to want their clergy to speak out on issues like abortion and homosexuality, they also tend to hold left-of-center views on some economic issues.

"Throughout the Bible, we see numerous passages about being our brother's keeper, welcoming the stranger, feeding the hungry, clothing the naked, and healing the sick," said Andrew Walsh, author of Religion, Economics and Public Policy and a religion professor at Culver-Stockton College.

"The idea that we are autonomous individuals competing for limited resources without concern for the welfare of others is a philosophy that is totally alien to the Bible, and in my view, antithetical to genuine Christianity."

The findings add a new wrinkle to national debates over the size and role of government, and raise questions about the impact of the Tea Party's cut-the-budget pressure on the GOP and its traditional base of religious conservatives.

The poll found stronger religious distinctions over the question of businesses acting ethically without government regulation, and whether faith leaders should speak out about economic concerns such as the budget deficit and the minimum wage.

White evangelicals (44 percent) are more likely than other Christians or the general population to believe that unregulated businesses would still behave ethically, and they place a higher
priority on religious leaders speaking out about social issues over economic concerns.

Minority Christians, in contrast, believe clergy should be vocal about both areas -- particularly on the economic issue of home foreclosures, which 76 percent considered important, compared to 46 percent of the general population.

"Minority Christians have a deep theological tradition of connecting faith and economic justice, and we see that link in the survey," said Robert P. Jones, CEO of Public Religion Research Institute. "Because minorities in the U.S. generally continue to have lower incomes than
whites, economic issues are also more salient in these congregations."

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I have long maintained the notion that American socialists (and really leftists of all varieties) have been deprived of an otherwise significant constituency, largely because of a cultural divide that the plutocrats have long taken full advantage of. It can all trace back to the 'Southern Strategy,' wherein conservatives sought to undermine the popularity of progressives by placing an strong emphasis on cultural issues such as the relationship between church and state, abortion, homosexuality, etc.

Leon Mcnichol wrote:The reactionary propaganda was was always:

Capitalism is against Communism and Socialism -> Communism and Socialism are against church -> Capitalism is Good while Communism and Socialism are Bad.

The second premise is supported by efforts made by socialist countries (sometimes in a brutal way, it has to be noted) to separate church from state and strip religion of the imense power it once had. What the reactionaries don't like to tell is that the capitalist system did the exact same thing in other countries, and it also destroyed the family and social values that the same reactionaries (wrongly) atribute to religion.

Admin wrote:And while I agree that the Evangelicals and their counterparts suffer from the sort of acute credulity that renders them little more than the instruments of their denominational demagogues, I would submit to you that a grassroots effort to undermine the capitalistic current within the Church could potentially shift the ideological balance at some meaningful level. Of course, it's difficult to measure what potential we, as socialists, could find in a socially conservative demographic that nevertheless rejects capitalist policy and/or theory. Nevertheless any groups discontented by the status quo threatens the system at some level, which in turn benefits any effort to abolish it.