Faith

Faith, and particularly the Christian faith, can be related to economics in many ways. This entry shows how faith has coexisted with capitalism, wealth creation, and the study of religion.

There appears to be an inherent contradiction between the focus of faith, the transcendent, and that of economics, the material. The interplay between the two has long been the subject of speculation, both academic and popular. Ancient peoples are known to have made offerings to the gods of fertility or productivity, believing that these gods would then provide them with material blessings. Today, few would see so simplistic a transaction as valid, but speculation about the connection or conflict between the transcendent and the material has continued unabated.

Alexis de Tocqueville saw religion as the antidote to ...