Democracy – the rule of the people at the heart of the American political ideal — and plutocracy, the rule of the wealthy and the tumor at the heart of America’s political reality: both are looked on as very problematic things  in wisdom traditions both Eastern and Western. A few snapshots will serve:

Jesus’ Needle:

It’s too easy to start with Jesus’ views on wealth laid out in Matthew 19:21-8 — surely one of the most embarrassing of all Bible passages for wealthy church-goers. A “young man” asks him what “good things” he should do so he “may have eternal life.” Take it away, Jesus:

Jesus said to him, “If you will be perfect, go and sell what you have, and give to the poor, and you shall have treasure in heaven: and come and follow me.” But when the young man heard that saying, he went away sorrowful: for he had great possessions. Then said Jesus to his disciples, “Verily I say unto you, that a rich man shall hardly enter into the kingdom of heaven. And again I say unto you, It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle, than for a rich man to enter into the kingdom of God.” When his disciples heard it, they were exceedingly amazed, saying, “Who then can be saved?” But Jesus beheld them, and said to them, “With men this is impossible; but with God all things are possible.”

(Any reader of the Gospels has to love how often Jesus does the equivalent of a forehead-slap when his students don’t get what he’s trying to teach. It’s the same old story in classrooms today.)

Plato’s Sting:

A quick glimpse at Book 8 of The Republic gives us Plato’s take, via his mouthpiece “Socrates”, on democracy and plutocracy (which Plato calls “oligarchy”): Continue reading →