Small is Still BeautifulW.H. ChellisThere are t…

Small is Still Beautiful
W.H. Chellis

There are times when the Reformed Presbyterian Testimony is down right beautiful. In chapter 4.11 it wisely declares, “The Scriptures teach that everything belongs to God; that the authority and power to obtain and use goods are given by God; and that men are to seek God’s glory in the use of their goods. The Scriptures direct how goods are to be obtained and used. No existing economic system incorporates all these teachings.”

In light of this, the confession goes on to declare the sins of both Marxism and Capitalism. In 4:12, it declares, “We reject Marxist communism because of its doctrines of atheism, necessary class struggle, economic determinism, dialectical materialism, and the inherent illegitimacy of private property”. On the other hand, in 4:13, it just as adamantly declares, “We reject that form of capitalism which holds that men possess absolute property rights and that the state has no right to protect the weak and restrain evil in economic affairs.”

In short, the RP Testimony demands a third way in the realm of economics. To think about what such a third way might look like, I suggest ISI’s blog discussion of the newly published Small is Still Beautiful: Economics as if Families Mattered. The book, written by Joseph Pearce, applies the ideas of E.F. Shumacher to defend the small, the local, and the humane. I ordered my copy today and suggest you do the same.