Christians should care about politics because, ultimately, we care about people. Government has an increasingly large influence on the lives of people, thus we cannot ignore politics. Further, almost every law reflects someone’s idea of morality. Since God’s morality is ultimate and universal, society benefits by the Christian’s participation in the public square. That is, society benefits when biblical truth is reflected in law.
What we encounter in discussing societal issues today with Christians is that many think socialism is good. In fact, they think that it is distinctly compassionate, thus truly moral. In this essay we will examine why socialism—and its compadres marxism and liberalism—are in fact immoral and inhumane. Conservatism, on the other hand, not only objectively produces better results for society, but is the only moral alternative.
First, let’s define our terms. Socialism is government mandated activities or government control of assets. Marxism is using the power of the state to take money from some groups of citizens and give it to other groups (“redistribution of wealth” or “social justice”). Liberalism is a broader term that encompasses both of the above. Progressivism and statism are synonyms for liberalism. Because there is so much overlap, we will use these terms more-or-less interchangeably.
Here are the bullet points for the Ten reasons* why liberalism is not only ineffective, but indeed immoral and inhumane (for the complete article click here):
1. Redistribution of wealth is not JUSTICE, it is THEFT.
2. Socialism and marxism reduce our freedoms, thus leading to tyranny.
3. When the government redistributes wealth it even hurts the people it is trying to help!
4. Every time the government gets involved in something, in the long run it hurts the economy.
5. Socialism reduces the incentive to innovate and produce.
6. Studies show that government is much less efficient at the same tasks as private enterprise or charity.
7. Socialism rewards failure.
8. Socialism and marxism ultimately lead to financial destruction.
9. Liberalism destroys the Rule of Law.
10. Liberalism not only breeds hatred, but indeed contributes to people’s deaths.
Objection Considered: The socialist may object to these arguments by saying, “But wait. People have rights.” For example, in the current health care debate, we hear that people have a right to health care. But this is incorrect. Health care is not a right. It is a good/service—like food, clothing, shelter, or life insurance. And the way to distribute these things that is the least expensive to the consumer with the best quality is through private enterprise. The free exchange of goods and services is the most moral and the most effective means of distribution. America’s Declaration of Independence is an historic document that philosophically defines rights. Rights are God-given to personhood rather than something conferred by government. In particular, life is a right. A good or service is not a right.
Indeed, America's Declaration of Independence explains that liberty—that is, freedom from government interference—is also a right. So liberals who say that something like government health care is a right in fact have it backwards. Government interference into health care tramples on liberty and thus tramples on our rights!
Summary: Conservatism is constructive. Liberalism is destructive. And nowhere in the Scriptures do we read anything that even remotely resembles socialism. We are not arguing that government has no role to play in society. We are arguing that there are usually constitutional solutions in the free market that are much more effective while being morally upright, consistent with human rights—and biblical.
*For the complete article and expanded explanation of the ten points above, please click here .
For further information on the Bible and Government, see our article http://www.faithfacts.org/christ-and-the-culture/the-bible-and-government.
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