Here follows a thread on socialism and christianity, for #SocialistSunday

When I identify as a socialist, that does not mean I agree with everything another socialist thinks.
When I identify as a christian, that does not mean I agree with everything another christian thinks.
#SocialistSunday

One of the ethical imperatives in christianity is to do to others as you would have them to do you. It is kindness. When this ethic is applied on a social and political level, it looks a lot like socialism.
#SocialistSunday

Those on the political right who oppose socialism have a lot to say about socialism, but in my experience a lot of them are straw man arguments, very wide of the mark. The classic text of such a straw man argument is Friedrich von Hayek's 'The Road To Serfdom'. #SocialistSunday

In it, Hayek's idea of socialism is that the goal of it is 'central control' or 'central planning'. But in so doing, he has missed the key point. It is like saying the point of cricket is dirty up your whites with marks of green, brown and red. #SocialistSunday

Hayek completely misses any idea of a fair society or an economy that works for all on an equitable basis Any reasoned critique of socialism must argue against that.
#SocialistSunday

Another misconception is that socialism is one and the same thing as Marxism. It is not. Marx had some useful insights and was undoubtedly a great thinker (as was Adam Smith) but I do not agree with his proposals for government. Socialism is not communism. #SocialistSunday

Harold Wilson is often attributed with the quote that the British Labour movement owed more to Methodism than to Marxism. He may not have been the one to originate the saying, but it is a true statement nonetheless. #SocialistSunday

One can certainly be a socialist without being a christian, but if one is a christian, then the ethic that is consequent to that impels one to take on such a political view that resembles socialism so much as to make the two nigh on indistinguishable. #SocialistSunday

As a socialist, I am not opposed to trade or from companies making a profit on such trade. I think that trade should be fair for buyers, sellers and employees. Trade should not be exploitative and that there should exist laws and regulations to prevent abuse. #SocialistSunday

As a socialist, I believe in a fair day's pay for a fair day's work. I also believe that a civil society should support those who are not able to work, whether that be through illness, disability or unemployment. #SocialistSunday

The political right sometimes view such people as 'non-productive' or 'not economically active' which is not only degrading, but it is inaccurate and also a little hypocritical. #SocialistSunday

A person not currently in work is probably still economically active, paying their bills, buying goods & services. In so doing, they are supporting other businesses and enabling them to support jobs. #SocialistSunday

In any company, there are always staff who do not make or sell anything but who nonetheless are paid and are valued as employees. These are the central functions such as HR, IT and finance. Think of the ill & disabled similarly. #SocialistSunday

Christianity is a religion that looks for the good of 'the other'. Any attempt to make it individualistic or self-centred is a perversion of the faith. When Thatcher said 'there is no such thing as society' she expressed not an observation, but a wish. #SocialistSunday

But that wish is antithetical to the communitarian nature of christianity. For Thatcher's ideas (as were Reagan's) depended on individualism and selfishness. At the heart of their economics is the idea of greed. To a christian, greed is a sin. #SocialistSunday

This is why endorsement of the kind of neoliberal capitalism is incompatible with christianity. For its philosophical heart, one needs to look at Ayn Rand, who was vehemently opposed to christianity. #SocialistSunday

Jesus said that one cannot serve both God and mammon. Well, that's an English translation. Think of mammon as greed, as individualism, as capitalism. These are things that are anathema to the gospel of the risen and ruling Christ.
End of thread.
#SocialistSunday