Re: Fwd: [asa] Creation Care Magazine

On Jan 21, 2008 9:57 PM, Janice Matchett <janmatch@earthlink.net> wrote:

> At 01:02 PM 1/16/2008, j burg wrote:
>
> Janice wrote: "While it remained, *was it not your own*? .."
>
> I take it that your argument is that, *based on that one verse in
> scripture*, the Colismo quotation is negated. In the OT, God reminded the
> Hebrews that they were "tenants" in the land. So *unless the NT trumps the
> OT, the argument fails*. ~ jb
>
>
> *@ * Sorry for the late reply - I have a lot of mail to go through and
> just now saw your post.
>
> You're wanting to talk about oranges when I'm talking about apples.
>
> Ownership (apples) doesn't necessarily equate with sovereignty (oranges).
> *If ownership gave supreme authority it would be sovereignty, not
> ownership.*
>
> One more example: The Ten Commandments (Exodus 20:2-17 / Deuteronomy
> 5:6-21) state that the Israelites were not to steal. This is *a blanket
> early protection of private property*.
>
> *"..."Thou shalt not steal." Why not? As always, the left has found a way
> out of this one by questioning its premise, i.e., the existence of private
> property. For one way to eliminate theft is to eliminate or at least
> question the legitimacy of private property, which naturally ends with one
> big thief called "the government."
>
> Property, according to Richard Pipes<http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0375704477/103-0073253-5764633?ie=UTF8&tag=onecosmos-20&linkCode=xm2&camp=1789&creativeASIN=0375704477>,
> is "the key to the emergence of political and legal institutions that
> guarantee liberty." Look at most anyplace in the world where there is an
> absence of liberty, and you will find weak property rights.*
>

While this thread has generated far more heat than light, it has been
helpful for me to prepare for our upcoming Rocky Mountain chapter meeting of
the ASA. The topic for this year is the intersection of technology and
Christianity. I will be leading a break-out group on the issue of climate
change, technology, and Christianity. Technology is a predominantly private
sector activity -- I work in the private sector in high tech so I am
intimately familiar with it -- and thus has a heavy intersection with
economics and issues of property rights and the like. So, let's take a look
at what is alleged above and see if it passes Biblical muster.

The Ten Commandments not only prohibits theft but also has the promotion of
the Sabbath. This is worked out in both the OT and NT against the abusive
practices of employers and property owners. Liberty is mentioned above which
brings to mind the Liberty Bell which quotes Leviticus 25. How does
Leviticus 25 work out the concept of the Sabbath in reference to Creation
and the liberty promoted therein?

23 " 'The land must not be sold permanently, because *the land is mine and
> you are but aliens and my tenants.* 24 Throughout the country that you
> hold as a possession, you must provide for the redemption of the land.

How is liberty defined in Leviticus 25? By taking away property from the
"rightful owners" as defined by l aissez-f aire c apitalism and giving the
land a sabbath rest.

10 Consecrate the fiftieth year and *proclaim liberty throughout the land*
> [Quoted by the Liberty Bell. As seen by the context it is liberty *from*
> abuse of private property.] to all its inhabitants. It shall be a jubilee
> for you; each one of you is to return to his family property and each to his
> own clan. 11 The fiftieth year shall be a jubilee for you; do not sow and
> do not reap what grows of itself or harvest the untended vines. [Here we
> have the principle that we are not to drive resources into the ground on the
> basis of the fallacious conclusion that it is *our** *property as
> contradicted by verse 23.]

Throughout Scripture we are called to be stewards. What stewards are those
who are given resources in trust from God but of which said resources *we do
not truly own*. These resources are used for the benefit of others --
specifically the poor -- as Jesus summarized the Second Table of the Ten
Commandments as loving our neighbor as ourselves. C apitalism is wrong in
that they believe property belongs to the individual and c ommunism is wrong
in that they believe property belongs to the State. The former justifies the
abuse of private property and the latter uses the abuse as an excuse to
prohibit the proper use of private property found in Scripture. In the
middle, Scripture allows for and even commands the taxing of the wealthy
property owners for the benefit of the poor, e.g. rights of gleaning and
redemption of the land.

Selfishly using our resources based on the unbiblical basis of so-called
private property rights violates the very prohibition of theft that
supposedly is being promoted. What is the purpose of land ownership from
Leviticus 25 and the legitimate Biblical basis for property rights and not
the phony ones proposed by Van Hayek and others?

14 " 'If you sell land to one of your countrymen or buy any from him, *do
> not take advantage of each other*. 15 You are to buy from your countryman
> on the basis of the number of years since the Jubilee. And he is to sell to
> you on the basis of the number of years left for harvesting crops. 16 When
> the years are many, you are to increase the price, and when the years are
> few, you are to decrease the price, because *what he is really selling you
> is the number of crops*.

One of the negative consequences of anthropogenic climate change is the
decrease in agricultural productivity -- the number of crops if you will
referenced in Leviticus 25 -- particularly in Africa and India. Also,
low-lying land is literally disappearing. The anti-environmentalists violate
Scripture by taking advantage of others -- again the poor -- saying their
property rights give them the right to in essence steal from them by making
their land disappear and the agricultural productivity go away. In addition
to this they argue against giving them relief by at least compensating them
for their loses caused by the rich's selfish behavior. In true Orwellian
fashion they justify the theft on the basis of the prohibition of theft
itself and in the name of liberty they take it away!

17 Do not take advantage of each other, but fear your God. I am the LORD
> your God.

Thus saith the LORD.

Rich Blinne (Member ASA)

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Received on Tue Jan 22 12:34:15 2008