Wednesday, January 2, 2008

The History of Money Part One: Jesus and The Money Changers

Tell someone you are going to a convention of accountants and you might get a few yawns, yet money and how it works is probably one of the most interesting things on earth. It is fascinating and almost magical how money appeared on our planet. Unlike most developments we enjoy, which can be traced back to a source, civilization, or inventor, money appeared in places then unconnected all over the world in a remarkably similar way.

Consider the American Indians using Wampum, West Africans trading in decorative metallic objects called Manilas and the Fijians economy based on whales teeth, some of which are still legal tender; add to that shells, amber, ivory, decorative feathers, cattle including oxen & pigs, a large number of stones including jade and quartz which have all been used for trade across the world, and we get a taste of the variety of accepted currency.

There is something charming and childlike imagining primitive societies, our ancestors, using all these colorful forms of money. As long as everyone concerned can agree on a value, this is a sensible thing for a community to do. After all, the person who has what you need might not need what you have to trade. Money solves that problem neatly; real value with each exchange, and everyone gaining from the convenience. The idea is really inspired which might explain why so many diverse minds came up with it.

BUT ALL IS NOT WELL

"History records that the money changers have used every form of abuse, intrigue, deceit, and violent means possible to maintain their control over governments by controlling money and its issuance." -President James Madison

Money, money, money, it's always just been there, right? Wrong!
Obviously it's issued by the government to make it easy for us to exchange things. Wrong again!

The truth is, most people don't realize that the issuing of money is essentially a private business, and that the privilege of issuing money has been a major bone of contention throughout history.Wars and revolutions have been fought, and great depressions have occured, in the battle over who issues the money. However the majority of us are not aware of this, and this is largely due to the fact that in any contest, the victor is the author of history; the winning side became, and increasingly continues to be, a vital and respected member of our global society, having an influence over large aspects of our lives including our education, our media, and our governments.

While we might feel powerless in trying to stop the manipulation of money for private profit at our expense, it is easy to forget that we collectively give money its value. We have been taught to believe printed pieces of paper have special value, and because we know others believe this too, we are willing to work all our lives to get what we are convinced others will want in exchange for the goods and services we want from them.An honest look at history will show us how our innocent trust has been misused. Let's start our exploration of money with-

JESUS FLIPS (many coins) 33 A.D.

Jesus was so upset by the sight of the money changers in the temple, he waded in and started to tip over the tables and drive them out with a whip, this being the one and only time we read of Him using force during His entire ministry. So what caused the ultimate pacifist to become so aggressive? For a long time the Jews had been called upon to pay their temple tithes with a special coin called the half shekel. It was a measured half ounce of pure silver with no image of a pagan emperor on it. It was, to them, the only coin acceptable to God. But because there was only a limited number of these coins in circulation, and the money changers at the temple had a virtual monopoly on them, they were in a buyers market. Like anything else in short supply, they were able to raise the price to what the market would bear. They were making huge profits with their monopoly on these coins and turned this time of devotion into a mockery for profit. Jesus saw this as stealing from the people and proclaimed them to be: "A den of thieves". 1 1. King James NT, Mt 21:13, Mr 11:17, Lu 19:46

Once a certain type of money is accepted as a form of exchange, those who produce, loan out and manipulate the quantity of it are obviously in a very strong position. They are the "Money Changers". cont.............

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