Topical Studies
What the Bible says about
Socialist Welfare Policies
(From Forerunner Commentary)
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Genesis 16:11-12
The world has certainly seen a great deal of "his hand shall be against every man," which has been institutionalized in Ishmael's belief system, Islam. Winston Churchill once said of it, "That religion, which above all others was founded and propagated by the sword—the tenets and principles of which are . . . incentives to slaughter and which in three continents had produced fighting breeds of men—simulates a wild and merciless fanaticism." And now we see that he indeed is dwelling in the presence of the descendants of his brother Isaac and his nephew Jacob, fomenting problems while reaping the benefits of living among the blessings of God given for Abraham's obedience. It also sets up the fulfillment of the prophecy of Israel's downfall in Deuteronomy 28:43: "The alien who is among you shall rise higher and higher above you, and you shall come down lower and lower." Germany, France, the Netherlands, Denmark, Norway, Sweden, and other European nations have experienced a massive influx of Arab or Turk immigrants over the past few decades, for much the same reasons as the U.S. has seen so many Hispanic immigrants from Central America. Economic conditions in their home countries are so depressed and hopeless that Western democracies look like the Promised Land. Add in a heavy dose of multiculturalism and socialist welfare policies, and the result is a burgeoning foreign population that refuses to integrate and abide by common standards. Denmark [in 2002] is a good example. It has about 200,000 Muslim immigrants in a population of roughly 5½ million, or about 3.5% of the population. More than half of these are crammed into urban areas because of the possibility of employment, but many are unemployed. In Denmark, these immigrants account for more than 40% of welfare spending. It gets worse. Muslims make up a majority of the nation's convicted rapists; non-Danes commit three-quarters of the rapes in Denmark. In other categories of crime, lesser but similarly disproportionate figures prevail. They have also brought in several unacceptable and illegal practices, for instance, forced marriages—promising a baby girl to a male in the home nation, then compelling her to marry him, sometimes on pain of death—and threatening to kill Muslims who convert out of Islam. On another area of Danish concern, commentator Daniel Pipes writes: Muslim violence threatens Denmark's approximately 6,000 Jews, who increasingly depend on police protection. Jewish parents were told by one school principal that she could not guarantee their children's safety and were advised to attend another institution. Anti-Israel marches have turned into anti-Jewish riots. One organization, Hizb-ut-Tahrir, openly calls on Muslims to "kill all Jews . . . wherever you find them." ("Something Rotten in Denmark?" New York Post, August 27, 2002). Muslim clerics have also called upon adherents to take over Denmark and impose Islamic law once their population has grown large enough. By one estimate, in about forty years, Muslims will comprise one-third of Denmark's population. Keep these trends in mind as time hastens toward the return of Jesus Christ.
Richard T. Ritenbaugh
His Hand Against Every Man
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Matthew 20:25
The term "Nanny State" has come to describe a government that insists on over-regulating the individual to force him to act according to the government's wishes, rather than allowing the individual to make his own choices. Such a government is essentially trying to create a self-defined utopia via legislation. Men believe the answer is more laws, better enforcement, or a more comprehensive government plan. However, the true answer is to change the heart. Since human governments cannot do that, they must resort to controlling their citizens' behaviors. On the other side of this coin, we have the expectations and responses of those being governed. As they see a nation spiraling out of control, they begin demanding that the leadership "do something." So they elect leaders who promise "change," who promise to fix this or that financial or social problem through legislation, and bit by bit, everybody's freedoms are curtailed. Political leaders soon become the arbiters of how every citizen should live. It all starts with the people demanding that the leaders "do something." Along with this are those who believe the government exists to take care of them. Many people want—even demand—government programs, benefits, and all manner of largesse to protect them from the vagaries of life. They begin believing that it is the government's job to give them healthcare, childcare, retirement, and education; to fund obscene art exhibits; and to stop hurricanes. They want a Nanny State, so it will take care of them. Thus, the government begins policies of redistribution—also known as "communism," or "socialism" in its soft form—where it takes what is produced and doles it out according to what it judges to be "fair." Even though communism was clearly a failed experiment, many people still favor a form of it because it means that they do not have to be responsible—that someone else will take care of them. Wherever governments of men are in place, pressures will mount for the responsibilities of the governor to expand and the responsibilities of the governed to contract.
David C. Grabbe
The Nanny Church (Part One)
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2 Thessalonians 3:10
Some fellowshipping with the church say that the church is responsible to take care of them. No, it is not. A Christian is responsible to provide care where there is an honest need, but not for one created by laziness. Paul says plainly in II Thessalonians 3:10: "If anyone will not work, neither shall he eat." Jesus declares, "My Father has been working until now, and I have been working" (John 5:17). He is our example. Paul also writes in I Timothy 5:8, "But if anyone does not provide for his own, and especially for those of his own household, he has denied the faith, and is worse than an infidel." In the United States is a well-developed social and governmental movement that some commentators derisively name "nannyism." Political pundits also refer to it as "cradle to the grave" social care. As a nanny state, Canada is ahead of America but lags behind England, Germany, and France, and far behind the Scandinavian countries. Tax rates in Europe are high due to the many costly social programs, yet this nannyism is at the root of Europe's growing social problems. Nations like Germany, France, Italy, England, Spain, and Sweden have native birth rates below replacement levels, and presently, their populations are aging into retirement. What did their politicians come up with to provide a large enough tax base to support their social programs? They opened their borders wide to Muslim immigration, and we hear the results on the evening news. This provides evidence that for every social action there is an equal and opposite reaction. Nannyism also contributes to a decline of self-reliance and personal responsibility as it becomes more prevalent in the United States. This nation was settled and developed by self-reliant, self-motivated people. Yet, today, too many people seem frozen in place, waiting for the government to do something for them, a dependency called by some a "welfare mentality." People learn to work the system and somehow manage to be perpetually on the dole, refusing to make their own way through work. Nannyism and the resulting decrease in self-reliance and increase in irresponsibility are gaining speed as the return of Jesus Christ nears. This phenomenon occurs regardless of the form of government because it is a human nature problem, since it involves regulation and control of the populace. It gives credence to another general principle: Power corrupts and absolute power corrupts absolutely. Public irresponsibility is now seen nearly everywhere. For example, our roadways are littered with cigarette butts and the debris of thousands of fast food restaurants thoughtlessly tossed from passing vehicles. Not to worry, though: "The government is paying somebody to clean up the garbage. I am not responsible; they will take care of it." Regulation of society is necessary, but the place where it should begin—and as much as possible end—is in the self. Responsible people have a quality—indeed, a virtue—that the irresponsible do not have: They care. They care about what God thinks. They care about what others think. They care about beauty and cleanliness. They care about peace and order. They care about the health and safety of others. Such people will regulate themselves; they do not need many laws issued by the state to tell them what to do because their caring virtually assures that they will do the right thing. Self-reliance and responsibility is learned. The best place for it to be instilled is at home and as early as possible. When teaching children to be responsible, we must begin by instructing them to care for small things: for their toys, for their clothing, for their bedroom, for simple jobs. They must learn to be concerned about what Mom and Dad think of them, which begins to teach them the fear of God, the foundation of true wisdom (Proverbs 9:10; see Psalm 34:11). As their sense of responsibility strengthens and as they learn to care about the outcome of their lives, their desire to succeed through their own efforts increases, diminishing the likelihood that they will succumb to this curse on our society, the welfare mentality.
John W. Ritenbaugh
Nannyism and Caring
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