Sunday, December 25, 2011

The Bible and Ethical Economics

Mother Teresa of Calcutta feeding a hungry boy. (photo: unknown)

By Rick Salutin, Toronto Star

24 December 11

I'd like to join the war against the war against Christmas: a cause bravely championed by muffled voices in the catacombs like Bill O'Reilly at Fox News and Rex Murphy on CBC. So here are some Christmas presents from the Judeo-Christian tradition that I hope will find favour with deniers and those who just don't care if there's a God since it would make no practical difference. I'll draw from the Judeo part, since it's my background. You can call me Santa.

The early books of the Hebrew Bible contain some amazing laws from biblical times (packaged as divine commandments) that read like Christmas cards to people today who are drowning in debt or who've lost cherished homes. Take the law of the Sabbatical year: every seventh year, all debts are forgiven. (In addition the land must lie fallow - something under the tree, as it were, for environmentalists.) READ MORE

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