The Lord giveth and the Lord taketh away. The rain falls on the just and the unjust. Are you suggesting that Christians are by and large richer than non-Christians? Then you take your assumption that, if Christians are richer, then they don't feel they have a privileged life.
Dwight, I'm talking perfectly normal Calvinist theology. Predestination and all taht. Remember, I was raised a Presbyterian. And Calvinists do NOT (or aren't supposed to) believe in free will. If you're rich, that's what God wanted for you; if not, tough. You may not find this sort of thing appealing--I certainly don't--but that's how it is.
True, most modern Calvinists downplay it a great deal; when I was a teenager I asked our minister if Presbyterians really ought to believe in predestination, and he was rather embarrassed that he had to say yes. But we see these concepts revived by many of the televangelists--remember Jimmy Bakker?--who encourage their followers to believe that if they've got money it's because God approves of 'em.
Oh Lord, woncha buy me a Mercedes Benz? |
