Compare And Contrast Hyper And Karl Marx
Zach Dykstra
Core 145
Dr. Mark McCarthy, Professor
29 March, 2017
Poverty in the eyes of Karl Marx and Abraham Kuyper Karl Marx and Abraham Kuyper have an issue with how society has allowed poverty and class separation to exist throughout history. Kuyper, coming from a Christian belief, believes that sin is the ultimate root of the problem and the way to resolve this issue is a wide spread of Christianity. Marx, coming from an atheist belief, sees capitalism and the government as the source of the problem of poverty. The bourgeoisie, the upper class, has throughout history abused the proletariat, the lower class, by not properly sharing private property and capital. Karl Marx and Abraham Kuyper seek the same result in the ending of poverty …show more content…
Kuyper agrees that distribution of wealth is not fit to end poverty but does not blame wealth the way Marx does. Kuyper sees the fault in the sinful nature of humans as the problem of poverty, not the desire for wealth. In the eyes of Kuyper, a person who is Christian and strives to serve God will give of their wealth to the poor out of compassion for those who are not blessed with money as they are. “In his heart Jesus harbored no hatred for the rich, but rather deep compassion for their pitiable condition” (Kuyper, 31). Kuyper uses the idea that Jesus did not hate the rich for being rich; rather, Jesus pitied the sinful nature in which they valued their capital more than the heavenly riches they could receive if they were to trade their earthy riches for heavenly …show more content…
Marx and Kuyper both strive to see a solution to poverty. Marx believes that society needs to be centralized through a government that will equally distribute capital to each person. Kuyper believes that society needs to centralize around God. Both men agree that society needs to be centralized and that the separation between the two ideas comes from their religions. “But Communism abolishes eternal truths, it abolishes, all religion, and all morality, instead of constituting them on a new basis: it therefore acts in contradiction to all past historical experience” (Marx, 33-34). The argument Marx makes for communism is that it erases all faith in humanity and relies on government to be the solution to the problem of poverty. Kuyper believing that the sinful nature of mankind is to blame sees the solution being in the power of the people and a reformation in religious thought. No matter the government in charge, Kuyper argues “Rules alone will not cure our sick society; the medicine must also reach the heart of rich and poor” (Kuyper,
Core 145
Dr. Mark McCarthy, Professor
29 March, 2017
Poverty in the eyes of Karl Marx and Abraham Kuyper Karl Marx and Abraham Kuyper have an issue with how society has allowed poverty and class separation to exist throughout history. Kuyper, coming from a Christian belief, believes that sin is the ultimate root of the problem and the way to resolve this issue is a wide spread of Christianity. Marx, coming from an atheist belief, sees capitalism and the government as the source of the problem of poverty. The bourgeoisie, the upper class, has throughout history abused the proletariat, the lower class, by not properly sharing private property and capital. Karl Marx and Abraham Kuyper seek the same result in the ending of poverty …show more content…
Kuyper agrees that distribution of wealth is not fit to end poverty but does not blame wealth the way Marx does. Kuyper sees the fault in the sinful nature of humans as the problem of poverty, not the desire for wealth. In the eyes of Kuyper, a person who is Christian and strives to serve God will give of their wealth to the poor out of compassion for those who are not blessed with money as they are. “In his heart Jesus harbored no hatred for the rich, but rather deep compassion for their pitiable condition” (Kuyper, 31). Kuyper uses the idea that Jesus did not hate the rich for being rich; rather, Jesus pitied the sinful nature in which they valued their capital more than the heavenly riches they could receive if they were to trade their earthy riches for heavenly …show more content…
Marx and Kuyper both strive to see a solution to poverty. Marx believes that society needs to be centralized through a government that will equally distribute capital to each person. Kuyper believes that society needs to centralize around God. Both men agree that society needs to be centralized and that the separation between the two ideas comes from their religions. “But Communism abolishes eternal truths, it abolishes, all religion, and all morality, instead of constituting them on a new basis: it therefore acts in contradiction to all past historical experience” (Marx, 33-34). The argument Marx makes for communism is that it erases all faith in humanity and relies on government to be the solution to the problem of poverty. Kuyper believing that the sinful nature of mankind is to blame sees the solution being in the power of the people and a reformation in religious thought. No matter the government in charge, Kuyper argues “Rules alone will not cure our sick society; the medicine must also reach the heart of rich and poor” (Kuyper,