2 A royal responsibility
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Mark Henrickson
Abstract
This chapter covers the period 4500 BCE to 300 CE. The royal obligation to protect the poor, the widow, and the orphan existed from the 4th millennium in the ancient Near East, Asia Minor, and Egypt. This expectation appears in the scriptures of the nomadic and monotheistic Hebrew people, who added ‘the stranger’ (or alien) to the groups that should be protected. These Hebrew scriptures formed the context for Christian scriptures which were codified in the 4th century CE. Early Christians held property in common and esteemed charity, good works, and caring for widows and orphans in their communities. These values are recorded in the gospels and epistles of what became the New Testament. A verse from one of these epistles (2 Thess. 3:10) reads ‘Anyone unwilling to work should not eat’. While this verse was intended to inspire people to continue to live their usual lives until the unpredictable return of Jesus, it became a way to differentiate the worthy from the unworthy poor for the next 2000 years.
Abstract
This chapter covers the period 4500 BCE to 300 CE. The royal obligation to protect the poor, the widow, and the orphan existed from the 4th millennium in the ancient Near East, Asia Minor, and Egypt. This expectation appears in the scriptures of the nomadic and monotheistic Hebrew people, who added ‘the stranger’ (or alien) to the groups that should be protected. These Hebrew scriptures formed the context for Christian scriptures which were codified in the 4th century CE. Early Christians held property in common and esteemed charity, good works, and caring for widows and orphans in their communities. These values are recorded in the gospels and epistles of what became the New Testament. A verse from one of these epistles (2 Thess. 3:10) reads ‘Anyone unwilling to work should not eat’. While this verse was intended to inspire people to continue to live their usual lives until the unpredictable return of Jesus, it became a way to differentiate the worthy from the unworthy poor for the next 2000 years.
Kapitel in diesem Buch
- Front Matter i
- Contents ix
- Acknowledgements xi
- Introduction 1
- A royal responsibility 18
- Inventing the poor 42
- Reforming the poor 67
- Capitalising the poor 94
- Industrialising the poor 121
- Liberalising the poor 154
- Professionalising work with the poor 180
- A global perspective 198
- Creating a global future 214
- References 224
- Index 246
Kapitel in diesem Buch
- Front Matter i
- Contents ix
- Acknowledgements xi
- Introduction 1
- A royal responsibility 18
- Inventing the poor 42
- Reforming the poor 67
- Capitalising the poor 94
- Industrialising the poor 121
- Liberalising the poor 154
- Professionalising work with the poor 180
- A global perspective 198
- Creating a global future 214
- References 224
- Index 246
