On 5 December, Christian Heritage London and the Jubilee Centre, a Cambridge-based Christian research and policy think tank dedicated to promoting ‘a biblical vision for public life’, co-hosted a seminar entitled ‘Reforming the Monetary System: Christian perspectives on a crucial debate’.
Five panellists were invited to give their perspectives on this hotly-debated topic, especially in the light of the recent financial crisis. The seminar followed the publication of the Jubilee Centre’s booklet Crumbling Foundations: A Biblical Critique of Modern Money by Guy Brandon.
Academics and business people
The panellists, a varied group of Christian academics and business people, including a representative of the IMF, offered their perspectives on how Christians should view the modern money economy. Guy Brandon explained what the Bible teaches about money, laying down various principles. His main argument was that the Bible warns against concentration of control over money, and for the ‘relational’ aspect of the use of money in assuring fair dealings between individuals. Brandon argued that, in today's economy, the creation of money is in the hands of a concentrated banking system. This has led to the call by some to put the creation of money into the hands of government. Brandon warns that this is equally dangerous, because history has shown how governments can use the control of money to oppress their people or else succumb to the temptation to print too much of it, thereby debasing the currency and provoking runaway inflation (Weimar Republic).
