Egham Boiler Room

I’m amazed in all that is going on in the world in terms of economics that very little has been said about what caused this crisis.  With Wall Street in deep trouble, banks going under and huge amounts bouncing around as possible bail-outs, people need to be standing up and asking serious questions.  I am glad that prophets have stood up and spoken out in the form of John Sentamu and Rowan Williams, the heads of the Church of England and the whole Anglican communion.  Quoting the bbc news website:

….the Archbishop of York, Dr John Sentamu, called share traders who cashed in on falling prices “bank robbers and asset strippers”.  bbc news

Rowan Williams also spoke out, both calling people to account and asking serious questions.

I think perhaps the biggest question which is yet to be asked is why this happened.  Now I will probably be accused of vastly over-simplifying this and be told that there are all sorts of rules of economics that I’m ignoring, but surely this is a case of greed and blinding ourselves to the truth.  Ever since capitalism came to rule the world, the promise has been the trickle down effect, which says as the top of society gets richer so this trickles down to the rest of society.  BUT we need to stop listening to what our itching ears want to hear and look at the facts.  Still huge problems across the world in basic health, housing and nutrition.  We see chief executives living “The American Dream” with thousands of people working under them barely scrapping enough together to get by.  The chief executives kid themselves that the world is a better place because of them, and therefore they deserve a little treat, after all the world owes them.  But how can this be just.  The honest truth is that the chasing after money has caused these problems, and the worst thing is those chasing aren’t the ones who lose out.

Rowan Williams in the same bbc article is quoted as saying

The biggest challenge in the present crisis is whether we can recover some sense of the connection between money and material reality

We need to stand up and point to a radical way.  A way that says that money isn’t everything.  That says the American Dream is a lie and that in it’s places offers a reality of truth and life.

As Tom Sine said in a talk I heard yesterday (more to follow on that….)

A new world is needed.

A new world is possible.

A new world is already here.

Or as Mark says in his Gospel

“The kingdom of God is near. Repent and believe the good news!”   Mark 1.14