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fair and balanced

fair and balanced

Postby Ben2747 » October 5th, 2007, 6:12 pm

girlfreddy - postodave's message is worth noting. I don't want to make it sound that I, as a Catholic, subscribe to the idea that the disturbing elements of modern capitalism arise directly from intrinsic principles of Protestantism. postodave is right to demand a more nuanced view, and I think Max Weber is probably not a great place to start if you want to begin breaking down modern presuppositions. Weber IS modern sociology, so I would hardly expect him to really grasp the spirit or intention of the Reformation. I do think there's something to the notion that Protestants have a sort of anxiety about their place among the Predestined or the Reprobate. It's kind of a paradox - faith is sufficient, but there's a concern about "genuine faith" vs. "said faith," and a longing for some visible evidence of God's blessing and their place in the economy of the hereafter. Wealth could be seen as one indicator - this is painfully evident in the Protestant "gospel of wealth" messages with which we are assaulted on a daily basis. On the other hand, look at the lives of the early Reformers - their zeal for holiness, their rejection of the world, and their passion for social reform (and dedication of their substance to the benefit of society) are hard to ignore. We might as well look to other factors and their role in modern industrialization. The presence of coal and iron ore deposits, strongly centralized government (compare to Spain and Italy), even environmental factors that demand labor to produce adequate living conditions. Weber has that Teutonic habit of neat psychological packaging to produce a satisfying result. Infant separation anxiety. Oedipal complex. Unfolding of Universal Spirit. Protestant Insecurity. It's a little hard to unravel, because sociologists and economists, by definition, have to identify factors that create an independent and measurable quantatative difference. They have a theory-shaped hole in their souls, and when they come up with an explanation, everyone leaps forward to provide supplemental evidence to support the theory. The momentum is unstoppable.
Ben2747
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