Martti Muukkonen, ThD, MSS:

Religious Roots of European Welfare Models

Abstract

• Gösta Esping-Andersen's division of European welfare regimes to social-democratic Nordic, liberal Anglo-Saxon and conservative Central European could be named as Lutheran, Anglican-Calvinistic and Catholic, as well.

• This paper examines, first, how the European welfare institutions emerged in Byzantion from where they diffused to the West. Second, the paper gives general view how the tension between the Oriental co-operative thinking and Hellene competitive thinking can be seen through the history of European poverty. Third, the paper gives an overview how the Catholic, Lutheran and Anglican-Calvinistic social ethics were formulated and how they influenced their respective societies. finally, the paper discusses how the European integration and globalisation might lead to reformulation of the social ethics of these churches.

• “What has been will be again, what has been done will be done again; there is nothing new under the sun.” (Eccl. 1:9)

Welfare paths in the West

Two polarities

• Oriental thinking (gemeinschaft)

• Greek thinking (gesellschaft)

• Harmonised in Christianity

Oriental thinking

• A human as servant of gods• ”House”-metaphor• Paterfamilia has a responsibility to ”protect, feed and

clothe”• God as the ultimate paterfamilia -> City-god (=temple)

responsible for the welfare of the whole population• Emphasis on the needs of the most poor and vulnerable

(especially widows, orphans and strangers)• Subsidiarity principle• Organic co-operation (gemeinschaft)

Greek thinking

• Human as free and independent• Competition between houses• Philia and reciprocity• Paterfamilia responsible for his philoi (=his

”own”)• Co-operation through temporal alliances

(gesellschaft)• Welfare for the citizens (=10% of popul.)• Slaves have no human rights

Harmonisation of thinking

• Interpretation of the Bible with Plato – later with Aristotle

• Philanthropos – thinking

• Philanthropy directed to the most poor instead of citizens

Welfare path

• First welfare institutions in Byzantion• Models copied to the west• Monasteries as safe havens in the midst of

turbulence• Wikings ”pacified” Europe in the 11th-12th

centuries and created some status quo• 12-13th centuries as boom of monasteries• Feodalism as reciprocity (protection and

leadership in change of submission)

Catholic welfare thinking

• Thomas Aquinas cemented Catholic welfare thinking

• Every man has his/her telos

• Poor exist so that rich can make good deeds

• Philoi-thinking = help for the peer-group

• Poor-relief belongs to the church

• Deserving poor (widows, orphans, ill, old)

Reformation

• Luther emphasised ad fontes – thinking = Bible instead of Plato and Aristotle

• ”There should be no poor among you”• Re-structuring of poor legislation of German cities –>

City councils responsible of the funds• When some cities refused -> Ecclesiastical welfare

foundations• Fear of ”self-righteousness” -> high taxes do not give

”credits” for heaven-place• Welfare is the responsibility of the society• Alliance of Bible and Greek classics ended -> separate

paths

Lutheran path

• Pietism took education as the tool for eliminating poverty• Halle educated administrators to Prussia and Denmark

-> first welfare states• High literate level in Lutheran countries• Parishes acted as municipalities and responsible for the

poor care• Later separation of parishes and municipalities• Small elite, strong peasantry -> Greek thinking

suppressed under Oriental thinking• Socialism another stream of oriental thinking ->

strenthened the Lutheran welfare paradigm• Social democrats in Sweden led the development of

Nordic folkhem (people’s home)

Anglican-Calvinistic path in Britain

• Statutes of Laborers of Edward III in 1349 • Statutes of Elizabeth I in 1601 • Elimination of poverty• Parishes responsible of the poor care• Strong elite• Greek thinking in elite education• Speenhamland-episode -> 1834 New Poor Law -> elimination of

”deserving poor”-thinking• Tension between elite’s Greek thinking and lower classes’ Oriental

thinking• The Great Awakening• Rise of the Labour movement• Methodism legitimated Labour movement• Rise of voluntary associations• Social Gospel and Student Christian Movement

Puritanism in America

• Founding fathers as religious refugees• Kingdom of God in America• Greek and Roman classics as curriculum for elites ->

competitive thinking• Allergy to state and state-church• Emphasis on voluntary associations and foundations• Noblisse obligé thinking among elite -> philanthropy as

basis of the welfare• Welfare capitalism up to 1930´s• State involvement in funding the welfare since 1940’s• NPOs as welfare service producers

Contemporary trends

• Americal models through exchange students in American universities and through globalisation process

• Catholic models through EU and subsidiarity principle

• Struggle to save Nordic welfare model