The Protestant Work Ethic, pt. 1
In many ways the medieval church was influenced more by Greek philosophy than by Scripture. Philosophers under platonic influence held to an extreme separation between the spiritual (the invisible world) and the physical (an imperfect copy of the invisible world). To the Platonists, the spiritual world was good and the physical world evil. This Greek influence on the medieval church can especially be seen in its concept of vocation. In the medieval church, the idea of vocation played out in a two-tiered, or dualistic, view of human life. One could receive a “call” (Latin vocatio) from God to be a monk, priest, or nun, which were considered the spiritual callings. For everyone else, there was marriage, children, and physical labor. This kind of earthy or worldly existence was viewed as unspiritual (even though marriage was one of the seven sacraments). Those who engaged in the worldly affair of physical labor were typically poor and uneducated—reading and writing were considered necessary only for those who pursued the spiritual life of contemplation and devotion.
This Platonism of the medieval church was challenged and overturned in the 16th century by the Reformation. The Reformers rejected the dualism of the medieval church and reintroduced the scriptural notion of the “priesthood of all believers.” To the Reformers, this notion did not mean that the office of pastor was unnecessary, or that everyone had a right to interpret the Bible however they wished. The priesthood of all believers meant that Christians did not need an earthly mediator between God and man in a priestly system, because Jesus Christ is the mediator (1 Tim. 2:5). Through Jesus Christ, Christians have direct access to the Father (Heb. 4:16). Not only do Christians have direct access, we also have been called (vocatio) to the holy calling of the priesthood (1 Peter 2:9). According to Scripture, the priesthood is not the calling (vocation) of a select few; it is the duty and delight of every Christian. This means that every Christian, the preacher, the teacher, the doctor, the plumber, the trash man, the pool man, the street sweeper, the farmer, the politician, the banker, the lawyer, the grocer, the truck driver, the cashier, the housewife, the soldier, the corporate executive, and the fast food restaurant worker are all spiritually equal before God. The high calling of serving God and man is carried out through work (and other activities). This doctrine did not degrade the office of pastor, but raised to a sacred calling what once was thought to be secular or worldly work.
In my own tradition (Baptist), we still carry the residual language of the medieval church. We talk of people being called into “full-time Christian service,” which is platonic to the core. In actuality, according to the priesthood of all believers, all Christians are in full-time Christian service no matter what their jobs.
In the next few weeks we’ll discuss how the protestant work ethic gave rise to the Western notions of education and capitalism and how the protestant idea of vocation can be lived out. We will also discuss how the protestant work ethic, when God is taken out of the picture, will lead to a self-centered, pleasure-seeking, greedy, materialistic, purposeless, meaningless society.
a pdf version of this entry is available here
This Platonism of the medieval church was challenged and overturned in the 16th century by the Reformation. The Reformers rejected the dualism of the medieval church and reintroduced the scriptural notion of the “priesthood of all believers.” To the Reformers, this notion did not mean that the office of pastor was unnecessary, or that everyone had a right to interpret the Bible however they wished. The priesthood of all believers meant that Christians did not need an earthly mediator between God and man in a priestly system, because Jesus Christ is the mediator (1 Tim. 2:5). Through Jesus Christ, Christians have direct access to the Father (Heb. 4:16). Not only do Christians have direct access, we also have been called (vocatio) to the holy calling of the priesthood (1 Peter 2:9). According to Scripture, the priesthood is not the calling (vocation) of a select few; it is the duty and delight of every Christian. This means that every Christian, the preacher, the teacher, the doctor, the plumber, the trash man, the pool man, the street sweeper, the farmer, the politician, the banker, the lawyer, the grocer, the truck driver, the cashier, the housewife, the soldier, the corporate executive, and the fast food restaurant worker are all spiritually equal before God. The high calling of serving God and man is carried out through work (and other activities). This doctrine did not degrade the office of pastor, but raised to a sacred calling what once was thought to be secular or worldly work.
In my own tradition (Baptist), we still carry the residual language of the medieval church. We talk of people being called into “full-time Christian service,” which is platonic to the core. In actuality, according to the priesthood of all believers, all Christians are in full-time Christian service no matter what their jobs.
In the next few weeks we’ll discuss how the protestant work ethic gave rise to the Western notions of education and capitalism and how the protestant idea of vocation can be lived out. We will also discuss how the protestant work ethic, when God is taken out of the picture, will lead to a self-centered, pleasure-seeking, greedy, materialistic, purposeless, meaningless society.
a pdf version of this entry is available here
posted on Friday, June 15, 2007 |
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