New York Times columnist David Brooks reviews a book by a megachurch pastor, and says Americans have always had their Christianity intertwined with mammon. Writes Brooks:
"When Europeans first settled this continent, they saw the natural abundance and came to two conclusions: that God’s plan for humanity could be realized here, and that they could get really rich while helping Him do it. This perception evolved into the notion that we have two interdependent callings: to build in this world and prepare for the next.
The tension between good and plenty, God and mammon, became the central tension in American life, propelling ferocious energies and explaining why the U.S. is at once so religious and so materialist. Americans are moral materialists, spiritualists working on matter."
Sounds a little close to true. What thinkest thou?
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