Buckle up, leaders, this one is going to be a little different.
I recently read Brooke Harrington’s excellent book Offshore: Stealth Wealth and the New Colonialism. The murky world of the super-rich hiding and laundering money through offshore accounts was exposed when the Panama Papers were leaked nine years ago by nearly four-hundred investigative journalists in over a hundred world-wide publications.
Following came more sweeping exposés with the Paradise and Pandora Papers. It revealed politicians on every side of the aisle in a variety of countries, along with pop stars and celebrities, CEOs and oligarchs, major companies and industries, prime ministers and kings, all laundering their money in obtuse but “legal” ways.
Harrington points out how it benefits a cadre of the super-rich who get the benefits of their respective countries while sticking them with the bill. She makes the case that it undermines democracies—it’s a form of colonization, not for any specific country, but for an “invisible empire of a few thousand billionaires.” The widening gap between the rich and the poor has reached an unprecedented scale. Back in 2016, the Boston Globe quoted Oxfam president Raymond Offenheiser:
“Tax havens are at the core of a global system that allows large corporations and wealthy individuals to avoid paying their fair share, depriving governments, rich and poor, of the resources they need to provide vital public services and tackle rising inequality.”
Politicians have avoided tackling the offshore dilemma…and it’s obvious why. The influence of money in the U.S. political complex is well known; the Citizens United decision unleashed super-PACs and declared “dark money” legal.
But the current inclusion of the richest person in the world as a non-security-cleared, non-elected decision-making and policy-shaping “official” at the highest level of government is the most public declaration of the marriage of politics and the super-rich. Elon Musk’s $290 million donation in the election was staggering—of course there’s quid pro quo. This should sound alarm bells for folks of any political stripe.
Think about this: Forbes recently estimated Musk’s wealth at $426 billion dollars. To put that in perspective, he could give away over $1.1 million every day for one-thousand years. It’s a mind-numbing, staggering amount.
Or, he could spend $1.3 million dollars every single hour until he’s 90.
To see the wealthiest super-billionaires in America paraded in the front rows of any inauguration should cause us to scratch our heads. This isn’t a Republican or Democrat or Libertarian issue—it’s a potential oligarchical threat to democracy.
But here’s my wonderment from another angle: is it way overdue for the Church to make a prophetic call? To warn the super-rich that there is the reality of a final judgment? Regardless of all their wealth and power, their souls are in danger? We all face a toll booth at the end, and Jesus put it simply: it’s extremely hard for the wealthy to enter the Kingdom of Heaven. Shouldn’t we be shouting from the rooftops to those in power, to warn them prophetically of the demands of eternity?
We are approaching a potential French Revolution-style wealth-gap and injustices meltdown…and the scriptures are filled with warnings of wealth accumulation and abuse. James’ letter in the New Testament should be a current clarion call…and in light of him being the very brother of Jesus, it feels oddly weighty:
A final word to you arrogant rich: Take some lessons in lament. You’ll need buckets for the tears when the crash comes upon you. Your money is corrupt and your fine clothes stink. Your greedy luxuries are a cancer in your gut, destroying your life from within. You thought you were piling up wealth. What you’ve piled up is judgment. All the workers you’ve exploited and cheated cry out for judgment. The groans of the workers you used and abused are a roar in the ears of the Master Avenger. You’ve looted the earth and lived it up. But all you’ll have to show for it is a fatter than usual corpse. JAMES 5:1-5 THE MESSAGE
Is calling this out not one of the prophetic roles of leaders in the Church?
Dave Workman | The Elemental Group
Every healthy organization is marked by four essential traits: Integrity, Passion, Servanthood, and Imagination. With a practitioner perspective, author Dave Workman offers common sense guidance and tools to maximize leadership. Filled with insight, humor, and reflective exercises, this is an indispensable exploration of these four universal values. Check out Elemental Leaders: Four Essentials Every Leader Needs...and Every Church Must Have.
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