Minding The Gap
Mo’ Money, Mo’ Problems
It’s a pretty well-known fact that women often view money as security, and men like to view money as freedom.
This makes me wonder how much freedom Walmart’s CEO feels he has while making over 1,000 times the median Walmart worker.*
During a study of Proverbs this past Sunday I came across this verse:
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Proverbs 17:5
“He who mocks the poor shows contempt for their Maker; whoever gloats over disaster will not go unpunished.”
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When I first read that verse my mind instantly thought of corporate America. Before your mind begins forming wild assumptions please let me clarify a few things.
- I am not a crazy liberal hippie, but neither am I an extreme right-wing nut.
- I support deregulation to a certain extent, and I encourage people being rewarded for high production and efficiency.
However, when America is supposed to be a Godly nation and we have one of the highest, 10th or 2nd depending how you look at it^, income inequalities out of most developed nations, then the system has to be broken.
So let’s look at the first past of Proverbs 17:5…
“He who mocks the poor shows contempt for their Maker.”
In a, possibly extreme, sense, could CEO’s of our nation’s largest companies be mocking the poor by paying them at or below market?
Before you start to mark me off as crazy/silly/stupid/naive/whatever other word you want to use, just think about it.
CEO’s of Fortune 500 companies and members of an elite society were caught during a secret meeting singing lyrics such as, “I believe that God has a plan for all of us. I believe my plan involves a seven-figure bonus.”^
The companies that have the lowest CEO to median worker pay ratio have higher worker retention rates than those with high ratios.` Out of the 5 lowest pay ratios, 4 of those companies paid their workers higher than the markets.* By not valuing their employees they are mocking them by treating them as worthless people who don’t deserve a fair wage.
Since the 1980's productivity and the average income of the top 1% has increased, but average overall wages have barely noticed a change.` I’m sorry, but there is something morally wrong with that.
My intent with this post is not to promote higher taxes, and it is also not to promote more government welfare. I simply believe that if you do work hard, then you should be able to reap the benefits.
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2 Thessalonians 3:10
“For even when we were with you, we gave you this rule: “The one who is unwilling to work shall not eat.”
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I believe that everyone should work hard, work to provide for their family, and earn an honest and fair wage. However, if a CEO is making 185.3 times^ what their average worker is making, then maybe they should re-evaluate their profit distribution.
I’m sure most of y’all have heard this verse before, but just read it again and think about it.
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Matthew 19:24
“Again I tell you, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for someone who is rich to enter the kingdom of God.”
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Having more money doesn’t bring happiness or solve any problems.
As the popular saying goes “mo’ money, mo’ problems.”
It’s amazing how appropriate this verse is, and a reminder that the Bible is a living and active word.
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1 Timothy 6:17-19
“As for the rich in this present age, charge them not to be haughty, nor to set their hopes on the uncertainty of riches, but on God, who richly provides us with everything to enjoy. They are to do good, to be rich in good works, to be generous and ready to share, thus storing up treasure for themselves as a good foundation for the future, so that they may take hold of that which is truly life.”
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There will always be people whose main goal in life is to be successful and to prove that through material wealth. So how does a Christian help counteract the greed in the world?
A Christian helps by serving others.
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Matthew 25:35-40
“For I was hungry, and you gave Me something to eat; I was thirsty, and you gave Me drink; I was a stranger, and you invited Me in; naked, and you clothed Me; I was sick, and you visited Me; I was in prison, and you came to Me.’ “Then the righteous will answer Him, saying, ‘Lord, when did we see You hungry, and feed You, or thirsty, and give You drink? ‘And when did we see You a stranger, and invite You in, or naked, and clothe You? ‘And when did we see You sick, or in prison, and come to You?’ “And the King will answer and say to them, ‘Truly I say to you, to the extent that you did it to one of these brothers of Mine, even the least of them, you did it to Me.”
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Jesus served others, therefore we should do the same. He washed His disciples feet, despite how lowly of a task that was.
Jesus served us, us sinful and awful human beings, by being the ultimate sacrifice and dying for our sins. Not only did he serve others, but He did it with a willing and loving heart. How wonderful is that?
Sources:
*http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/03/29/walmart-ceo-pay_n_2978180.html
^http://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2014/01/07/5-facts-about-economic-inequality/
`http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/03/29/walmart-ceo-pay_n_2978180.html
^http://nymag.com/daily/intelligencer/2014/02/i-crashed-a-wall-street-secret-society.html (proceed with caution)
*http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/03/29/walmart-ceo-pay_n_2978180.html
^https://www.stanford.edu/group/scspi/cgi-bin/facts.php
