Book Review: "God's Economy: Redefining the Health and Wealth Gospel"

"God’s Economy: Redefining the Health and Wealth Gospel"
Jonathan Wilson-Hartgrove
Zondervan; 224 pages.

I enjoyed this book. Frankly, I didn’t think that I would. I worried that the author would lean toward Marxist assumptions about the nature of wealth, and statist solutions to economic disparity.

In reality, the author more or less advocated free market ideals, guided by a more consistently Christian ethic – one that would initially seem radical to most American believers. His emphasis on enjoying true prosperity in a spiritual community of choice, as opposed to a statist community of coercion, was – for me – most compelling.

At this point, I’m not certain that I agree with every aspect of his exegesis or every aspect of practical application (he’s chosen communal living – i.e. the “new monasticism”). However, the general flow of his argument seemed very refreshing to me and well worth a read.

As a Christian, I lament that many of my conservative brothers and sisters seem to advocate a cold capitalism in the current of Ayn Rand, while my more liberal brothers and sisters have a Christ that looks suspiciously like Karl Marx. Wilson-Hartgrove seems to avoid both extremes, presenting a new vision for the community of faith.