Weber--sin and capital

[Terrance]

MalignD at aol.com wrote:
> 
> Lycidas:
> 
> <<The "good works" of the Quakers or more generally the "Calling" of
> Protestants to do good in the world, is a product of the reformation and is
> not present in Catholic theology or Christian Antiquity. There is no need or
> desire to do good in this world for a Catholic. because he is not interested
> in this world, this mundane existence. The opposite is true for the
> Protestant. Moreover, any sin that a Catholic commits can be gotten rid of by
> his going to the medicine man or father confessor. Not so for the Protestant,
> who not only accumulates wealth in this world, does good works in this
> world--accumulates moral goodness or evil but accumulates sins. The cycle,
> the life and death cycle of sin, repentance, forgiveness, found in religions
> from Catholicism to Native American religions to African religions, is absent
> from Protestantism and the accumulation of wealth is morally sanctioned,
> provided, of course, it is combined with a sober, industrious, life and not
> to support the luxurious and conspicuous consumptions of self-indulgent
> hedonists like the Pope and the Jesuits. >>
> 
> This is hopelessly muddled and, when not entirely wrong, wrongheaded.

Muddled, yes, not wrong or wrongheaded. 


> 
> Fundamental to Luther's break with the Catholic church was disagreement with
> the idea of good works.  The Catholic church allowed for variable
> relationships to God--those of laymen, priests, and monks--based on works,
> with relative rewards and punishments, purgatory as well as hell.  Luther
> rejected this entirely.  He believed humankind so hopelessly distant from God
> that a lifetime of good works wouldn't justify salvation.

OK

> 
> Luther insisted there are no degrees of separation from God.  One has a
> relationship with God or one does not.  There is simply faith and grace and
> it is paradoxical:  one is worthy although one is unworthy.  Merit has no
> role, only acceptance.  Faith through grace.

OK


> 
> One should bear in mind when speaking of Protestantism that it is not a
> singular entity like Catholicism.  The place of work derives not from Luther,
> rather from Calvin, and it is fundamentally different from the Catholic idea.

True. 


>  Calvin had no disagreement with Luther around the idea of faith through
> grace, rather with what one did once united with God.  For Luther, reunion
> was joyous.  For Calvin, it was a calling to new life to be given over to
> serving and glorifying God.  Calvin believed God best served by hard work,
> sobriety, temperance and chastity,  but one was not in so living working
> one's way an inch closer to God or earning a place in Heaven.
> 
> One consequence of this was an accumulation of wealth in many German
> Calvinist communities.  Opposed to ostentation and sumptuous living, Calvin
> counseled investment of that wealth, increasing production, etc.  It is here
> that the so-called Protestant ethic dovetails with capitalism and it is this
> that Weber commented on.

There are many fingers in that dovetailed joint and I was only dealing
with one.  And I note that you have not taken up a single point from my
post, but only said it is muddled (no kidding) wrong and wrongheaded.