Following up on yesterday’s post, how exactly do Republicans who believe in both capitalism and revealed religion reconcile the two? For the CDs and the Reactionaries, the answer is quite different.
For a CD, capitalism is embraced, not as an end in itself, but as a mechanism that creates wealth, which can then be redistributed by the government in the interests of a just society. The CD believes in a robust welfare state; a regulated capitalist economy is the device that makes it possible.
Religious Reactionaries, on the other hand, tend to believe that worldly prosperity is a sign of righteousness and God’s favor. For them, therefore, there is no conflict between capitalism and religion; the poor and unfortunate get what they deserve, and there is no reason for the government to bail them out.