Socialism not only undercuts productivity. It undercuts thanksgiving to God.
—Jerry Newcombe—
Key points: History and Scripture agree: Socialism places people in bondage while free enterprise liberates people to create, produce, and enjoy the fruits of their labor.
You’re invited to engage in an insightful Thanksgiving Bible study. Check out the study itself, along with a related book and a related article.
The current clamor for socialism in America today, especially among the young, indicates that Americans of all ages need desperately to become familiar with history. The Thanksgiving season is the perfect time to learn, because the historical information we need to know arose out of the Pilgrims’ experiences in the New World during the first two years of their settlement in Plymouth, Massachusetts — 1621-1623.
In this under-six-minute video from Prager University, history professor Larry Schweikart explains what happened.
If you’re in a hurry and don’t have time now to watch this video, read this short paragraph, which I’ve adapted from this article. In condensed form, it explains what happened.
1920 Postage Stamp / Pilgrim Tercentenarywhat happened.
In the early 1600s, settlers in both Jamestown and Plymouth initially sought to produce food and wealth according to a communal system. Workers contributed the fruits of their labors to a “common store” on which all relied. This approach pushed both settlements to the brink of starvation. The people knew they would starve if they continued operating this way, so they assigned land directly to individuals and families, who then could reap the benefits of their own work. After turning this important corner, both communities prospered.
Socialism has failed everywhere it has been tried. It leads to poverty, misery, and death. Even so, for the Christian, the central question is What does the Bible say? When people make the case for socialism, they speak of being compassionate and meeting people’s needs. Aren’t these things that Christians should be about? Aren’t these to be priorities for believers?
Photo by Aaron Burden on Unsplash
Of course, we should be concerned about the poor and the otherwise disadvantaged, and we ought to be helping them in Christ’s name — but socialism isn’t the right path to do this. Socialism doesn’t accomplish its stated purpose or its high-sounding, lofty goals. In fact, it’s policies and approach forcefully oppose Christianity — at every turn.
The Pilgrims learned this, and they learned it the hard way. Plymouth Governor William Bradford wrote about what happened to him and his fellow settlers in an account titled Of Plymouth Plantation. I have taken the portion of Bradford’s account that deals with the Pilgrims’ socialist experiment and paraphrased it for modern readers. My paraphrase is available in chapter 1 of my book Heed the Pilgrims on Socialism and Critical Race Theory, and without charge as an online article here. The title of the article is “Ditching Socialism in the New World: A Lesson for 21st-Century Americans.”
A Thanksgiving Bible Study
As important as it is and as much as it can tell us, a history lesson is not enough. Realizing that a Bible study on this topic was desperately needed, I wrote one and am making it available today. It is titled, “Thank God for Free Enterprise! ~ A Thanksgiving Bible Study,” and it’s available here.
Check out the book here, the article here, and the Bible study here. Poke around a bit, too. You’ll find access to a PowerPoint presentation as well. This will be especially helpful for pastors and Bible study leaders.
Photo by Chris Lawton on Unsplash
Now, I would love for everyone to purchase my book. I believe parents should read it to their children. I believe moms and dads should give it to their teens and make it required reading for them. However, even if you don’t purchase the book, please use the article and the Bible study to discover what God thinks about economic systems, socialism and free enterprise in particular.
Your journey of discovery may surprise you. I believe you’ll also learn this: The battle in America between socialism and free enterprise is nothing less than a battle between two worldviews — a godless one and a biblical one.
The battle in America between socialism and free enterprise is nothing less than a battle between two worldviews — a godless one and a biblical one, one that leads to death and another that is thoroughly compatible with enjoying life and liberty.
The outcome either will place us in severe bondage or enable us to continue to worship God freely and enjoy our freedom.
It’s that serious.
Copyright © 2021 by B. Nathaniel Sullivan. All rights reserved.
top photo credit: Photo by Aaron Burden on Unsplash
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