Jesus on Money (24) - Ownership of Capital

Capitalism has become a bit of a dirty word, but there is really no argument about capital. Life in a society with no capital is pretty miserable. The key issue is who should own the capital. There are a number of possible owners.

1. The State - Under Russian Communism, all capital was owned and controlled by the state. The state does not have savings, so the only way the state can obtain capital is to confiscate either the savings of other people or their capital goods.

2. Corporate - In modern economies, large capital projects are usually undertaken by joint stock companies. One person or family would not have the resources to build a car assembly plant. This is what some people refer to as capitalism

3. Private - In western countries, capital goods can be owned by private individuals.

4. Families - In Jesus time, most capital goods were owned by families. When Peter and Andrew and James and John left their boats, they were not left rotting on the beach. The boats were owned by their family and other members of their family would have carried on operating them. This is why Peter could go fishing after Jesus died. He still had access to the family boat and nets.

As the Christian influence spreads in society, we should expect to see more capital goods being established in local communities and being owned by Christian families.