Where is Moral Decay Found: Government or Business?

"In this growing -- we fear it must be said rapid -- decay of virtue and integrity in legislative halls, in some quarters even in courts of justice, and in leading financial circles, the most portentous evils are opening before us. Can they be arrested? The answer to this question depends upon another. Have we vital Christianity enough among us to check the progress of moral decay? Is there that fear of God and love of truth and right among our countrymen, which will insist on honesty and integrity in the administration of public affairs and in the conduct of financial corporations and commercial enterprises?"

- William Henry Green, Conflict and Triumph: The Argument of the Book of Job Unfolded (1999, Banner of Truth Trust), p. 17. William Henry Green (1825-1900), a linguist and Old Testament scholar, and was the chair of Biblical and Oriental Literature at Princeton Theological Seminary from 1851 to 1900.

I like in this quote because Dr. Green applies the need to have virtue and integrity in both government ("the administration of public affairs") and business ("the conduct of financial corporations and commercial enterprises"). It has been rightly said before that politics is downstream from culture, and Dr. Green notes the need for vital Christianity in our culture.

Too often, contemporary politics distorts the Christian message, such that conservatives decry big government and liberals decry big business. Each is a biased view. Dr. Green properly applies the standards of honesty and integrity to both government and business, and notes that all individuals need the eternal foundation of authentic faith in Christ.