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9/25/11

The Netherlands: "Wall-street, the Financial Community and the Apostle James"

Watching the troubled worlds financial community these days and the fierce resistance to necessary change by corporations, extremely rich individuals and many politicians is an alarming experience to many people. It seems that a large number of people, for one reason or the other, never seem to learn from past mistakes.

Their motto is that its all about "the trickle down effect of capital". In other words, they say that if they make more profits, become richer,  everyone else will be better off.  On the other hand they also advocate that in case a financial institution collapses, even due to their own mismanagement, the taxpayer should bear the consequences. This group also opposes any kind of regulation that will avoid this to happen again.  

Does their theory make any sense, or for that matter has it ever worked? Unfortunately the answer must be, "absolutely not"..

Has mankind been warned about this excessive greed before? Oh yes they have. The response to this question, apart from continuously being discussed in the press, and aired on radio and TV, also came today, of all places, to Church goers at the New Day International Church, (NDIC) in the modern new Dutch City of Almere,  

In a sermon by NDIC Pastor Peter van der Meijden, entitled "Made to Last", he quoted to his congregation from James 5, verses 1-6 in the Bible, when James said: 

"Now listen, you rich people, weep and wail because of the misery that is coming upon you. Your wealth has rotted, and moths have eaten your clothes. Your gold and silver are corroded. Their corrosion will testify against you and eat your flesh like fire. You have hoarded wealth in the last days. 

Look! The wages you failed to pay the workmen who mowed your fields are crying out against you. The cries of the harvesters have reached the ears of the Lord Almighty. You have lived on earth in luxury and self-indulgence. You have fattened yourselves in the day of slaughter. You have condemned and murdered innocent men, who were not opposing you." 

More than 2000 years ago Apostle James wrote, and stated the above warning, as he talked about the need to close the gap between the enormous wealth of the rich and the heart wrenching poverty of the poor

Where do we stand today on this issue?  Not much has changed. It probably has even gotten worse because of the hypocrisy (even within religious circles) that has surrounded every financial crises the world has faced so far ,
Note: James, along with his brother John, is portrayed in the gospels as perhaps being more important than most of the other apostles. He was present at the resurrection of Jarius’ daughter, at Jesus’ transfiguration, and at the Garden of Gethsemane before Jesus was arrested. According to Acts, James was beheaded by Herod Agrippa I who ruled over Palestine from 41- 44 CE . The painting of James in this report is a copy of a painting by Rembrandt ( July 6 , 1606 - Oct 4, 1669) , one of the Netherlands most famous painters.

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