‘What is not appropriate cannot be truly humane, and what contradicts what is humane cannot be appropriate’ (Arthur Rich).
From the Reformed perspective, the economy is an important instrument for supporting life that should serve as many people as possible, in a way that is appropriate to them. Crises, such as the banking crisis of 2008 or the collapse of CS in recent weeks, give us a reason to fundamentally reflect on our way of doing business.
Some of these do not require a particular spiritual perspective. Understanding the crisis or the question of whether – and if so, which – regulations are now necessary and what role the state should play in them, do not depend on a specifically religious approach.
But the crises in the world always raise theological questions: what does wealth oblige us to do? What does the Bible say about wealth and poverty? What can be said about investing from a biblical perspective?
Ultimately, we as a society face the crucial question of what we can learn from the banking crisis in order to better counteract other crises such as the climate, war or inflation.