--- title: Improvement Era description: Monthly periodical of the Mormon church, 1897 onward. This library holds the issues of November 1897 to December 1930. authors: - Haenle, Max collections: - periodicals tags: - magazine - improvement-era periodical: Improvement Era volume: 32 number: 1 published: 1928-11 publisher: Young Men’s Mutual Improvement Associations publisher_place: Salt Lake City language: en type: magazine reference: "Max Haenle, “Some Inter-relations Between Religion and Economics,” *Improvement Era* 32, no. 1 (November 1928): 16–25." source: url: https://archive.org/details/improvementera3201unse transcription: Transcribed from the Internet Archive scan of each issue (the item for each issue is named in the issue's own source); unnumbered advertising leaves are omitted, printed page numbers are kept as page markers. identifier: improvementera3201unse start_page: 16 end_page: 25 rights: status: public-domain basis: US publication 1930 or earlier (published 1928-11) source: https://archive.org/details/improvementera3201unse publication_year: 1928 note: The Internet Archive item metadata carries a blanket "© Copyright by Intellectual Reserve, Inc." notice. The library owner judged it inapplicable because this issue was published in 1928, before 1931; a scan-level notice does not restore copyright. --- # Some Inter-relations Between Religion and Economics Some Inter-relations Between Religion and Economics* By Dr. Max Haenle, University of Erlangen, Bavaria MR. PRESIDENT, Ladies and Gentlemen: I was very glad to accept the invitation of a pupil of the great triple-star Conrad-Wagner-Schmoller, President Dr. George Thomas, to give a lecture before the summer school of the Alma Mater Utahensis on my return from Hawaii and Samoa en route to Germany. From the outset neither the president nor I had any doubt as to the subject of my talk, inasmuch as one of my special fields of research has commanded an ever-increasing interest in Amer- ica during the last few years. I am thinking of the inter-relation be- tween religious and economic life. Various observations have shown me that many well educated men have conceived this problem only in the form of their own thoughts about the financial practices of churches, but in reality it is much more complex and comprehensive. Indeed, it is so broad that I shall not be able to do more than point out briefly the different forms in which this problem is disclosed. It will be impossible, therefore, to enter into an exhaustive treatment of the subject. At the outset of my remarks, I should like to empha- size the fact that we can speak of those inter-relations between re- ligion and economcis only which lend themselves to exact scientific investigation. This very appreciable limitation is necessary, how- ever, if our inquiry is not to result in a mixture of pietistic phrases and economic principles. To be still more explicit: the purely per- sonal experience of religious truths which cannot be conceived through a process of pure reasoning, never expanding beyond our own con- sciousness, and which will never become a completely comprehensible entity of historical research, cannot find consideration in our investi- gation. I well know, and put special emphasis on the fact, that this profound inward religious experience, this marvelous communion of the faithful with his God, and this eternal play of question and answer concerning the final meaning of this existence, is the chief characteristic of all religion. Let us not forget this when we now hear critical statements regarding those phases of the religious phe- nomenon which properly belong to the ecclesiastical superstructure of a religion and which are rationally conceivable. The transcendent nucleus of each religion, I think, is contained in a shell of varying strength. This shell, ever-changing our mind, knows how to pierce *Opening lecture at the Summer Session of the University of Utah, June 14, 1928. RELIGION AND ECONOMICS 17 and to examine with critical understanding. It is only the pith which we are not in a position to analyze rationally. We shall not and cannot master the mystery of faith with the weapons of cold reasoning. People who are able to think only in terms of the sensu- ally perceptible in nature will never visualize the true essence of re- ligion. You should keep this fact in mind, and I am very sorry to say that our subject has been treated from this perspective in a small num- ber of instances only. If people had always had due regard for this point of view it would have been impossible for so much nonsense to be published, disguised in the robes of science. One who has not been quickened himself by that phase of religion which lies beyond all rationalism has no right to speak of religious experiences; his words are just as empty as those of a flapper talking about exalted love. After this introduction which was by no means unnecessary, nobody should misunderstand me later on, when I return to the intellectually conceivable relations between religious and economic life. I do not wish to begin — as systematizers are wont to do — with an extended inquiry about the meaning of the term religion on one hand and that of economics on the other. I desire only to point out briefly that we must not think of the term religion too narrowly and that we do not understand religion to be identical with religiosity or piety. I have already tried to make this clear in my introductory remarks. We are to understand by religion the sum total of all con- ceptions, actions, and institutions by which men, with the help of the original difference between things sacred and things profane, are able to attach a deeper meaning to their lives. By economics, on the other hand, we are to understand the sum total of all conceptions, actions, and institutions by which man aims to establish a lasting material basis for the satisfaction of his needs. Is religion in any way con- nected with that? You will perhaps recall the words of the biblical account of the creation, "Multiply and replenish the earth and subdue it." If you compare the doctrine of the Jainistic or Buddhistic religion with this statement, especially the Buddhistic formula of confession, "A monk who tills the ground or has it cultivated is in need of repentance," you will see that the attitude of religious systems toward funda- mental economic questions is by no means the same. In one instance we see an attitude favorably inclined toward economics, in the other the attitude is of a hostile character. In addition to the general posi- tion of a religious system, regarding questions of economic life, spe- cial religious precepts concerning economic pursuits are of equal im- portance. I am thinking of the Israelites now who received very circumstantial economic rules from their God. These instructions were so detailed that even all agriculture became regulated by religious standards. In passing I shall mention only the command to treat 18 IMPROVEMENT ERA animals with kindness, where it says, "Thou shalt not muzzle the ox when he treadeth out the grain." Other religious injunctions in con- nection with economic life are of much greater importance. I call your attention to the Thomistic conception of justum pretium, or to the laws of the Middle-Ages forbidding the taking of interest. For anybody who wants to get a deeper insight into medieval economic life, an understanding of these regulations is indispensable. I should like to refer you briefly to an extremely interesting and instructive example which shows plainly and forcibly the relation between re- ligious institutions and economic life. According to the individual- istic school money came into existence in economic life, but in several countries at least, as for example in India, it originated in religious life. For the latter country this has been shown beyond doubt by the studies of Pran Nath, who is professor of economic history at the University of Benares, and a pupil of the well-known sociologist. O. Spann, Vienna. As early as the time of barter there existed coined pieces of precious metal in India. At first these coins had no signif- icance economically; they were nothing but the expression of stan- dardized remuneration for the priest's services. The pictures on the coin all stood in a symbolic relation to different religious rites. It was not until later that these coins assumed the characteristics of money in the modern sense of the word. Besides the examples just given we could quote many more from all stages of the history of civilization. However, I am unable to do so during the limited time at my command. We must emphasize not only the theoretical and specifically doctrinal aspects of certain faiths and their relation to economics, but for some religions at least we must also attach great importance in our present investigation to the connection between existing religious forms of organization in the broadest sense of the word, and economic life. In their economic importance the temples of Greece as institutions resemble, to a large degree, our modern savings or deposit banks. In those days deposit vaults were unknown, but for a long period of time the sanctity of the temple guaranteed that the gold and silver deposited in Delphi — the Wall Street of Greece — did not become the spoil of the ancestors of our Chicago gangmen. In this connection we must say a word also about the importance of the Temple of Mercurius in Rome which was the sacral center of a very influential merchant guild. And our modern "Messen"** (English-fairs) grew out of small fairs which were originally held in connection with religious festivals. The concurrence of the October General Confer- **The German "Messe" is of the same origin as our word "mass." "Messe" in it's economic meaning is the equivalent of the English word "fair." The word "fair" comes from the Latin "feriae" — which means religious holidays or festivals. So even the history of the English word "fair" reveals its connection with religious life in earlier times. RELIGION AND ECONOMICS 19 ence and the Utah State Fair, in Salt Lake City, can possibly be ex- plained in a similar way. A classical example of the influence of existing religious institutions upon economic life must pass by no means unmentioned. I am thinking of the colonization activity which always followed the religious endeavor of missionaries. Of the Roman institution of "ver sacrum," a heathen example which is farther removed from our experience, I shall make brief mention only. Christian missionary work, with which we are more familiar and which is of much greater consequence, has a decidedly greater interest for us. Following the Christian messenger of faith there always came the spade. The monasteries of the Middle-Ages, besides being religious and scientific centers, were also economic centers for long centuries. The fathers brought the "credo" and destroyed many harmful superstitious conceptions, the brothers brought the spade and new plants for cultivation, together with many other devices by which the monasteries stimulated economic development. Whether we quote California, or England, or Germany as examples, the same fact may be observed. During my recent stay in the South Seas I saw new evidences of the importance of the Christian missions in the economic life of the nations. In the South Seas, as well as in other parts of the so-called uncivilized world, the missions have established schools in which are taught not only subjects of a general educational value, but subjects also which are important in our economic order of things. The significance of this establishment of schools, how- ever important it may be, is of no greater consequence in connection with our problem than the weight which must be attached to the change in the total attitude of the natives through their conversion to Christianity. Phenomena which are the result of the operation of physical causal law never play any characteristic and important part in the present system of any modern religion. Today we understand such phenomena with the aid of physical causal laws. The teachings of religion, with a few exceptions only, are concerned with other things. With primitive people this is quite different. The old Polynesians and Melanesians knew no more of the operation of phys- ical causal laws in the world of matter than the great Arminius Nevertheless there was an impelling incentive for primitive man to become familiar with the forces of nature because he, not having any conception at all of the operation of physical causal laws, as I have already pointed out, might well hope to prevail upon these forces according to his desire, just as he was able to influence his fellow- men. All these attempts to gain control over nature forces, quite unknown to primitive man in their real character, belong to the re- ligious sphere and are of great economic importance. Before dealing with this aspect of the question, however, we must take a closer view of the belief of primitive man in powers in the universe, whose activ- 20 IMPROVEMENT ERA ity may be beneficial or detrimental to him. Sometimes these powers are conceived as an entity or as one uniform force. Examples of this conception are the Melanesian "mana," the Iroquoian "orenda," the Scandinavian "makt," and the Iranian "maga." From the latter expression our English word "magic" is derived. The seaworthiness of a canoe or the destructive force of an arrow depend on their richness in "mana." In our day these notions are prevalent not only in some parts of the South Seas but even in Scan- dinavian farming districts you may hear a word which savors of these old pre-Christian notions. It is the word "makt stulen" — deprived of power. The Swedish farmer likes to use this expression when he is convinced that his horse does not measure up to its normal effi- ciency. Besides such ideas, which recognize only one force as final cause of all things, history affords many examples of a belief in a large number of different nature forces. Both conceptions — and this is of particular importance — may be regarded as constituting one general group, the chief characteristic of which is that the relation be- tween man and these forces above him, with which he is but partly acquainted, is regarded as an intercommunion of a purely objective nature. Such a conception we call the dynamistic conception. The class of phenomena just discussed is clearly distinguishable from an- other class in which the forces of nature, with which man stands in daily contact, assume personal forms. Here the superhuman forces are conceived as having the characteristics of human beings who in- fluence man and who may be influenced by him. This class of prim- itive religious ideas is usually known as the demonistic conception. At this stage of our investigation it is important to understand that primitive religion is oft times merely the handmaiden of economic life. Primitive man who is engaged in a continuous struggle with nature has not yet developed any religious or philosophical abstrac- tions. The strife with the forces of nature, the rational laws of which he has not yet discovered, contributes the sum of his existence. His primitive religious concepts, as I have already indicated, are noth- ing but attempts to understand nature and to find methods for its control. Dominion over nature, however, is the natural foundation of all economic life. My contention that religion often serves eco- nomic purposes and that it is closely connected with economy may be proved even by examples from religions in a more advanced state of evolution. The Romans of early times, who progressed a step farther when they elevated their old faith in demons to a belief in gods, gave a religious sanctity to all their important economic undertakings. I should like to call your attention to a really striking example of this close connection between economic activity and religion. I am think- ing of the long list of Roman indigenous gods. Sterculinus protects fertilization: Vervactor, the first plowing; Radarator, the second RELIGION AND ECONOMICS 21 plowing; Imporcitor, the third plowing; Sator, the sowing; Obar- ator, the subsequent plowing; Occator, the harrowing; Subruncin- ator, the weeding before the harvest, etc. This example teaches us in an unequivocal manner not only the utmost importance of religious conceptions in the economic pursuits of man which we have already seen, but also the important role which purely economic factors have played in the shaping of religious systems. Marx, whose theory is the foundation of the entire socialistic movement, has flatly denied to religion all independence of character and has explained all re- ligious phenomena to be a function of economic life. So much only in passing. Our problem, therefore, has two sides. We have to dis- tinguish as far as it is possible, between religious conceptions arising from economic factors, and economic practices which are an out- growth of religious conceptions existing independently of economic conditions. On account of the close inter-relation between both de- velopments it will be hard in many instances to point out clearly the proportionate influence of each factor. I am thinking now of one circumstance which is of the greatest importance even today; namely, the close inter-relation between Cal- vinism and modern capitalism. The favor with which both regard economic activity, as well as a number of specific and peculiar doc- trines, such as predestination, have given the religion of Calvin, as Max Weber has shown, a position of dominance in the history of modern capitalistic thought. Calvinism, especially as it was devel- oped later by Beza, sees in economic success an expression of God's grace. The endeavor to demonstrate tangibly this grace by economic achievement has given an amazing impetus to the desire for gain. The tendency toward increased efficiency manifesting itself in our stan- dards of life, and the desire to exercise freely our economic capacities — both of which are characteristic of our modern economic life — were typical already of Calvin's Geneva. From there they spread, win- ning universal importance, to Britain and the New England states. Through his fight against the scholastic ban on interest and his teach- ings regarding the productivity of money and credit which are more closely related to our modern conceptions, Calvin has done a great deal to free business from its old fetters. In connection, however, with Calvin's activity as a whole, these specific regulations are of more or less secondary importance. They are but an outgrowth of the new place which is assigned by his teachings to all economic life. The Calvinistic-Puritan sects afford the most striking example of people succeeding in the world through rigid abstinence and self-denial (in- nerweltliche Askese), and by no means through a life-negating piety cultivated behind convent walls. This religious attitude of theirs is the antithesis of the old doctrine of the institution of salvation. One who does not see this difference plainly will not be able to gain a clear 11 IMPROVEMENT ERA picture of the economic and cultural importance of Puritanism. A Puritan has to succeed in the busy, producing world. Economic suc- cess gives him the assurance that he belongs to the elect. He is opposed to the mysticism of monastic life. Although we realize the full value of model economic activity on the part of monasteries we must not forget that the Catholic ideal during the Middle-Ages, which con- sidered him the best Christian who fled from the turmoil of life into a realm of mysticism and reflection behind the walls of a cloister, was by no means as forceful an incentive to economic productivity as Cal- vinism which rejected monastic life completely. Besides such specific views of the reformers, especially of Calvin and his school, in favor of economic activity, there grew out of the general mental attitude during the Reformation other factors, as we shall see, which became of economic importance. Let us not forget, though, that the strong emphasis of economic factors in Protestantism, however important it may be, contains no doubt elements of excess and onesidedness, which often make economic life a civilisatory end in itself and not a cultural means to an end. Nothing marks more distinctly that great religious movement at the end of the Middle-Ages which had its inception with Luther, and a strictly secular parallel of which we see in the Renaissance, than the fact that it broke up the authoritatively restricted culture of the Middle-Ages. Luther and the other reformers have liberated the soul more completely. As we may well expect, their view of the freedom of mind, a mere creed in the beginning, has left a lasting mark upon the nature of men directly as well as indirectly through the influence of a church, the character of whose organization was largely deter- mined by the idea of that new freedom. The Roman Catholic church is a monarchical institution. All Protestant denominations are more or less democratic. In a Protest- ant church the congregation generally elects the preacher; in the Cath- olic church the superior church government instals the priest. The Protestant reads the Bible and draws his own conclusions regarding the text; the Catholic has no such liberty; he has to adhere to the of- ficial interpretation of the church. A comparison of the Catholic and Protestant attitude of mind demonstrates, on the other hand, that all individualism of extreme intensity contains within itself the germ of its own destruction. I have in mind not only the many Christian dwarf sects whose origin can be accounted for only by this extreme individualism, but above all I am thinking of the truth that overem- phasized individualism leads gradually to an autonomous subjectism, as we find it in the different epochs of amalgamation of Protestant- ism and the spirit of the Renaissance, and develops at last a culture of reason, following which there will always arise a mechanistic con- ception of the world which does not leave room for the individual as RELIGION AND ECONOMICS 23 such. In the world of physical causal laws and atoms the individual then becomes an illusion, a mere aggregation. It has lost its character as an individual. The history of the last four centuries' culture shows plainly the result of such extreme individualistic views. A still more striking example of this development is the characteristic endeavor of many present-day churches to grow beyond this individ- ual isolation in order to gain a more vital and meaningful concept of the church. Never have I experienced a stronger evidence of this new spirit than during the World Conference of Churches in Stockholm in 1925, which had been called and presided over by Dr. Nathan Soeder- blom, eminent organizer and scientist. During the sessions and in private conversations in Sweden's beautiful capital, with church men from all parts of the world, I had a singular opportunity to get in touch more intimately with those many cultural movements the be- ginnings of which are traceable to the Reformation of four hundred years ago. One of the most valuable results of my visit in Stockholm was the observation that in Protestant churches there is, for obvious reasons resulting from the very nature of Protestantism, no parallel to the typically Catholic thoroughness in the treatment of purely dogmatic problems, while present-day Protestantism is over-zealous to circumscribe all institutions of daily life. America with its Pro- testantism of a Calvinistic shade affords very interesting examples in this respect; for example, the activity of the Methodist and Baptist churches regarding the Eighteenth Amendment to the Constitution. The general position of the Catholic church, as is well known, is less serene and "dry." It still perpetuates the ancient joy of life and lays particular stress on all factors that make for more esthetic living and a richer culture. The Catholic considers the activities of the icono- clasts to have been a deplorable smallness, to say the least, which does not encourage art by any means. In some respects the tolerance of Catholic missionaries is similar to this phase of Catholic attitude, for they are more favorably inclined toward the preservation of old cus- toms and traditions in non-Christian mission fields than many Protestant messengers, whose narrowness in this particular respect I had occasion to observe personally. We have now gone far out of our way into fields not yet tapped by western culture, with their strange and interesting conceptions of spirit and soul. Please let me make a suggestion here. Some day, when you have a quiet hour, I should like that you reflect on the three possible ways in which a religion might regard the concept of the soul and the importance which these views have sociologically. One of these views does not regard the soul as an immortal independent entity at all. Buddha held this view. He taught again and again that there is neither an immortal soul nor a god. By a strange irony of fate the average Buddhist of today believes once more in souls and 24 IMPROVEMENT ERA gods and venerates Buddha as the highest among the gods. In some respects this complete change of the foundations of the old Buddhis- tic view is merely a result of the economic environment of the prim- itive Chinese who did not understand the deep philosophy of Bud- dha's religion and who, therefore, developed for himself a belief in gods and souls which was to give him comfort and support in the hard life which he has to lead. Let us return, however, to the orig- inal Buddhistic conception denying the "ego" to be an immortal religious entity. This religious view of a fundamentally negative nature — which comes into conflict with our self-consciousness, every hour, must be kept in mind, if we wish to understand fully the hostile attitude toward all visible progress, characteristic of original Bud- dhism. Modern man has to change the foundations of his thinking if he wishes to find his way through these old Buddhistic ideas. But anybody who goes to the trouble of penetrating into that world of reflection will come back to our modern ways of thought and life with many new ideas. While Buddha denied the existence of an immortal soul without reservation, the view of the religion of ancient Greece is diametrically opposed to Buddha's teachings. The Greeks conceived man's soul to be practically absolute — for they believed that an inevitable fate gov- erned the final destinies of gods and men alike (Moira doctrine) — and thought it to be independent of the gods in its existence as a soul. They did not know prayer in its present form. Their supplications to their gods remind us of contract bargaining. "If you, Zeus, will help me to be victorious in this battle, I shall bring you a sacrifice of one hundred oxen." The relation of the immortal soul to its god, as it appears in the several monotheistic religions was entirely unknown at that time. Therefore the ancient people's whole view of life was entirely different from our own. We cannot afford to overlook these facts if we want to gain a true conception of the economic side of any type of man. The Christian religion, knowing of an immortal and responsible, but by no means entirely independent, soul, but rather conceiving it as a part of the divine principle, has developed a sense of life entirely its own. Within the several Christian churches there are, of course, small differences in degree of independence and respon- sibility of the soul. I have already pointed out some differences be- tween the Catholic and Protestant religion in this respect. I have also spoken of the importance of this greater freedom of originally relig- ious conceptions in our economic life and development. I have en- deavored to show you just a few of the many inter-relations between religion and economic life. In the short time at my command our treatment has been fragmentary, of course. But I hope that some of you have become interested in these questions sufficiently to pursue them further with the help of suitable literature. The subject merits RELIGION AND ECONOMICS 25 a thorough study, without doubt, if for no other reason than that this investigation always brings us back to the old truth of the unity of human life, the different aspects of which, namely the religious, the economic, the political, the scientific, and the artistic aspects, are understood only when we understand the comprising higher whole. Aristotle said, "to gar holon anankaion proteron einai tou merous," — the whole is necessarily earlier than the part. Due to the sway of individualistic scientific methods during the last centuries, we have dwelt too much upon the details in our work and have lost in- sight into the great, all-pervading principles without which it is impossible to gain a true picture of single phenomena; for they do not stand alone in the world but are themselves nothing but parts of a higher entity. We shall now leave the things with which you are, perhaps, less familiar, to consider conditions with which you are better acquainted. As you may know already, I have investigated the relations between the "Mormon" religion and the economic development of Utah. The conditions which I found are so interesting that I do not regret for one moment having come so far. (To be Continued) The Plan Back in that great beginning, Where Gods in council stood, They planned a glorious future For spirits great and good. They planned an earth probation. "A place where these may dwell." To walk by faith and patience, Their blessings they'd foretell. The elements were gathered, And soon the earth was framed, With streams and vegetation; The planets then were named. The sun in all his glory. By day gave warmth and light, The moon and stars in heaven Gave splendor to the night. Spirits soon were earthward bound, Their bodies to possess, To live a while, as mortal men, To serve in earnestness; A new world to replenish Which God for them prepared. He planned for them a destiny; In all he had, they shared. Pilgrims now we find ourselves 'Midst broken harmony, Where plans are sometimes thwarted, Through tear-dimmed eyes we see. Sometimes we're tried and tested. When dark'ning shadows fall. We wonder what the purpose — Is it worth-while, after all? Then comes the great conviction, That, burning in the soul, Gives faith, and hope, and courage, God helps us win the goal. Our faith grows stronger, day by day. In that eternal plan, That all things work together For the final good of man. And while we are but strangers, As in this life we roam, Our course is ever upward Toward that glorious home. The joy of that reunion When to heav'n we ascend! We'll meet our friends and loved ones. If we're faithful to the end. C. SCHWENDIMAN