SL notes an interesting synchronicity:
I don’t think we can expect the current prosperity doctrine to last forever. I’ve been reading an author you turned me on to not long ago (Umberto Eco) and one thing that caught my mind was how his character in the The Name of the Rose expounded that the preachers preach prosperity and poverty depending more on the nature of the economy than the simple shift of power. However, the tide will continue regardless and as the poor become poorer with little hope rising I think we will begin to see the preaching of poverty once again. Great article!
You know, I really should have noted that…. It’s an interesting point, though, and I expect he’s right. In many ways, riches are harder for the faithful to resist than persecution. Spacebunny and I actually walked out of a sermon not all that long ago when the guest preacher actually declared that Jesus cares just as much about our financial prosperity as he does about our souls.
And for all that I enjoy ripping apart atheist arguments, I have to say that they don’t disgust me anywhere nearly as much as that sort of thing. While I believe that money is morally and spiritually neutral, it’s pretty clear that the love of money is not.