Economics is a Matter of the Heart

For where your treasure is there your heart will be also.

—Jesus of Nazareth

The Tzoltzil indigenous group in Chiapas, Mexico have a way of greeting that says, “How is your heart today?”  They often reflect on the condition of one’s own heart as well as the heart of another. For them all of life stems from the heart as each of their daily activities must be done “from the heart.”  Whether that is caring for the children as a way of preparing the way for future generations, planting seed, harvesting corn or coffee and working in cooperation with others for the benefit of the whole community.

Lest I be misunderstood, I want to make clear right from the beginning that the title of this entry has nothing to do with the common mis-perception that nothing can be accomplished in the economic realm without first a heart change. It is not a chronological order I am proposing here but rather a kairos order of things meaning that everything is connected and things happen together.  It is a holistic (or integral we say in Spanish) way of seeing and doing things.

Jesus didn’t stop with the phrase in the title.  He continued to say many pointed things in various ways about economics. He called out the rich young ruler for not wanting to follow him because of his heart condition manifested in his unwillingness to give up his treasure. He called a rich tax collector named Zaccheus to repentance which for him meant not only reparations but re-distribution of his own wealth. Finally, he told a very disturbing story about life after death where the tables were turned for a very rich man and a beggar.

Back to Chiapas and the Indigenous with whom I have had contact over the past decade. JEM has sponsored annual “eye-opening” trips to visit indigenous communities believing that has we engage others in very different contexts from our own we are able to see anew, undergo a heart change and begin to live differently.  One of these eye-opening experiences for Lee, the founder of JEM, was to recognize that the way indigenous peoples live together is more faithful to the idea of the Jubilee we read about in our Bible.  In fact, it just may be that “Indigenous Economics” pre-dates our own biblical text.  As Abram was called to leave his home to be able to learn a new way of living in a new land full of promise so Moses left the palace of Pharaoh to spend years herding sheep to one day be called to a ministry of liberation.

We in JEM make much of many of the terms used here in our workshops, publications, website and immersions into different cultural contexts. To live for future generations, in an inter-connected way with others and the Earth, perceiving things differently and working for the liberation from all that enslaves we seek to model, inviting others to join us.  It is not an easy path to follow as we are up against gigantic forces of domination that put obstacles in the way.  We draw strength from others who have gone before as well as the indigenous of Chiapas, who despite setbacks in their own journey continue to persevere calling others to a life of faithful resistance and hopeful living.  We invite you to join us by visiting our website, listening to some podcasts, writing to us of your own journey and stepping out into a new world that is forming in Chiapas, Mexico.