This week the Jubilee Centre team unpacks George Monbiot’s article ‘The horror films got it wrong. This virus has turned us into caring neighbours’. It’s a discussion that explores the limits of the state and the good instinct towards neighbourly action. As ever, we ask, how can we think biblically about these issues? And, specifically, what insight can we gain from a biblical view of human nature?
George Monbiot’s article: https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2020/mar/31/virus-neighbours-covid-19
Recorded on Tuesday 21st April 2020 as part of our Podcasts during the Lockdown series
Britain’s social welfare system is facing a long-term crisis in sustainability, particularly due to the size of the government’s unfunded pension liabilities. On the 500th anniversary of the Reformation, we look to Geneva as a case study in an approach to social welfare shaped by Christian principles.
We examine how Calvin and the city-state set up an integrated system for welfare provision through the General Hospital, and poverty prevention by strengthening families and education. Finally, we consider how marriage and extended families could be strengthened today, and how local churches and Christian organisations can become welfare advocates in their communities.
This talk is based on a Cambridge Paper available online here.
Welfare can be defined in terms of the problems to be overcome or in terms of outcomes. How we deal with it is determined by the size and role of the state, relationships between citizens, and has an impact on relational choices and incentives. Biblical teaching presents a number of challenges and implications.
Talks from the Singapore consultation: Towards Jubilee 2015.
