I heard 2 sermons last week, one on Christmas Eve and the other on Sunday. Both were very good with the first about the Jesus birth story and how it was a lot messier than we depict it today and the second about taking Jesus with us as we leave Church and let others see him through us. Another Christmas story was on the news and told about the family that was shopping in Walmart but their credit card was rejected. The woman ahead of them overheard the problem and paid for their purchases. It was a nice story and gave the family a better Christmas than they would have had otherwise.
This is the sermon you won't hear. The family's credit card was rejected for a number of reasons and some of those may have been that they had hit the limit on their card or that they had missed payments and their credit rating had been reduced, etc. We have been hearing the liberal left tell us that capitalism is bad and socialism is better with much legislation that would head toward a socialistic society. What they don't know is that socialism and communism has been tried many times through history and has always ended in totalitarianism and failure. During Jesus life he lived in a home where Joseph was a carpenter. Businesses were privately owned and operated but there were no huge conglomerates such as Apple or the auto industry. He was raised in a capitalistic society even under Roman control. Capitalism is as old as the first person that sold goods or services for equity to trade or purchase other goods and services. It has always worked and is still the best way for human beings to express themselves and gain property. We have a problem today with the system being changed by those that govern to aid some at the expense of others.
The laws that god passed to the Jews contained a ban on usuary or charging excessive interest on borrowed money. This prevented the rich from taking advantage of those that needed help. This law was later adopted by the English in their Common Law which the US also adopted and is still used today. When I was a young man the top interest rate was about 6%. One of the crimes that were common then was "loan sharking" which was no more than a private individual loaning money at a much higher rate than allowed by law. It could be 25%, or higher and put many at the mercy of the shark when they could not pay. Broken legs were common punishment. Sometime after WWII the banking industry lobbied with exorbitant amounts of campaign funds and got Congress to raise the upper limit above the 6% that had been law for many years. At first the amount of interest was based on the length of the loan and later on the credit history of the lendee. Soon Credit cards were offered but at first there were no balances to be carried forward but the total amount was due when billed. This was the American Express or Diners Club cards. Then Visa and other bank cards became available with payment plans that allowed a person to borrow money and pay it back monthly in small amounts. The limits on the cards increased until they were in the thousands of dollars and with that the interest rates increased to 25% and more. Without realizing it when you borrowed money on your credit card by not paying the balance you were using what a few years before was a loan shark. The amount of interest depends on your credit rating and the limit on the amount of money you can use on the card also depends on your credit limit. Companies started the new business of tracking credit and the amount of money you spend , to whom and if you pay on time. The banking industry was not satisfied with the high interest so they added fees to penalize people that were late sending in their payments. I was charged $35 for being one day late as I had been out of town. One time in 40 years and I had a penalty. The late payments also affect your credit rating which may prevent you from getting another credit card, a home mortgage or a car loan. We are at the mercy of the banks which have been allowed to become multinational and across state lines. The persons that need the credit are also the most vulnerable and the poorest. A few late paymments or allowing the balance to get too hgh means disaster for them.
The usuary laws that used to protect us have been abandoned and are now a way or the rich to get richer by misusing the rest of us. I can't imagine the president of a bank going to his neighbor and asking him for 25% interest on a small balance in his credit account but behind the board room doors it is not seen and not heard so it is OK. Many of those that have been the victims of credit card misuse are the same people that never received any type of home budget education. Oh, you say that you did not receive it either and that is another problem. Our Congress and elected law makers were elected to protect us from criminals and being misused by others but many times are complicit in being the cause of the misuse The sin of greed has caused us to change the capitalization of Jesus time into a system that benefits those that are big enough to buy a Congressman or Senator.
(30)