The BBC recently got into trouble for refusing to call Hamas a “terrorist” organisation. But in this podcast, we turn the focus to the actions of the Western world. Does the West have the moral legitimacy to call Hamas a terrorist organisation?
Also available as an audio podcast.
Another great podcast. If you’re continuing to feel brave enough to face unjust accusations of Antisemitism, might I propose a topic for a future podcast. It’s a topic that was, until relatively recently, a key issue of Christian morality, remains such in the Islamic world, featured in Mosaic law and likely is at the heart of the recent rise in Totalitarianism and Warmongering, though seldom gets a mention in Christian circles today: Usury. Over the past three to four hundred years, the practice of lending money at interest to governments, corporations and private individuals has become increasingly accepted as part of life. During this time, and especially during the last hundred-odd years, money has become increasingly dissociated from precious metals or anything of real value. Today money is merely numbers on pieces of paper backed by nothing more than promises (often vacuous promises at that) to handover similar pieces of paper or subtract from other numbers on computer screens; by contrast, a hundred years ago, people could reasonably expect to receive on demand a specified quantity of gold in return for their money. Our current predicament, and the causes behind it, was foreseen by former Bank of England governor Mervyn King in his 2016 book ‘The End of Alchemy: Money, Banking and the Future of the Global Economy.’
We have been here before: in the fourth century Emperor Constantine, famed for his conversion to Christianity and policy of toleration to Christianity in the Roman Empire, also reformed the Empire’s monetary system. The silver denarius, whose value had by then fallen far below a ‘day’s wage’s’ as it is translated in the New Testament text, was replaced by the gold solidus. The solidus retained much of its value for the following thousand years of Christendom. By contrast, the British pound, which achieved similar stability over many centuries, lost 98% of its value during the past century. Though unseen by most, control of money is a powerful way to control and extract wealth over populations: there is far more wisdom in Christ’s response to those asking whether it is right to pay taxes to Caesar than he generally gets credit for in sermons.
Thanks so much for the comment and encouragement!
You’re absolutely right about money. I did a podcast a few weeks about money, which was based on the Ex Nihilo documentary. But I think it’s definitely a topic which needs revisiting. Everything today is based on debt, which is exploitative. We’re ripe for change in the whole financial system.
And I think you’re right in terms of how Christians should be thinking and engaging with these issues – many people simply don’t engage at all! But the Bible has a huge amount to say about money.
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