Accountability and Economics

What Does the Book of Mormon Say About Inequality? Series

The Book of Mormon contains some surprising insights concerning economic inequality.  This series explores several topics addressed by the LDS scripture and its insights for today.

This article part of a chapter on the teachings of the Book of Mormon concerning inequality, organized in order to deconstruct the prosperity gospel and other modern bad ideas.  If you haven't already, take a look at the introduction to this chapter which explains what I mean by 'prosperity gospel', otherwise enjoy and feel free to join in the discussion.

The Prosperity Gospel, and other related bad ideas, suppose that because all people have 'free agency' - or a spiritual power of self-determination over one's own destiny- people can choose their economic fate.  If someone ends up in poverty, they caused it, and can use their agency to pull themselves out of poverty.  They are accountable for their fate - and only they can fix it.  Inequality then is simply the consequence of people's choices, and a phenomenon that ultimately can't be helped through society and government.   

In the last article on agency, I addressed how the concept of agency in the Book of Mormon is very different from this modern interpretation of 'free agency' - ultimately rejecting the conclusions of the prosperity gospel.  Book of Mormon 'agency' does not refer to the freedom of choice in every circumstance, but during special decisions for which God has granted specific knowledge of good and evil, leading to eternal consequences.  

This article will continue this conversation by looking at a related principle to agency - accountability.  I will attempt to use the Book of Mormon to answer the complicated question of whose fault is inequality?  And to what extent individuals are accountable in economic circumstances.   These questions are important because they provide the foundation for very different schools of thought on how to deal with these issues today.

Let's take a look at what the Book of Mormon teaches about accountability, and how it contests the prosperity gospel viewpoint.

Book of Mormon Accountability

The Book of Mormon message on spiritual accountability is essentially the same as its message on agency.  

We are accountable for our actions when we have a knowledge of good and evil, and when we have the freedom to choose.  Thus, when the spiritual gifts of knowledge and agency are granted for those special decisions of great worth, we also have accountability for our actions with that agency.

For those that do not have knowledge granted, they are ignorant and not accountable for their actions.  Take a look at the words of King Benjamin: 

11 For behold, and also his blood atoneth for the sins of those who have fallen by the transgression of Adam, who have died not knowing the will of God concerning them, or who have ignorantly sinned.

12 But wo, wo unto him who knoweth that he rebelleth against God! For salvation cometh to none such except it be through repentance and faith on the Lord Jesus Christ.
13 And the Lord God hath sent his holy prophets among all the children of men, to declare these things to every kindred, nation, and tongue, that thereby whosoever should believe that Christ should come, the same might receive remission of their sins, and rejoice with exceedingly great joy, even as though he had already come among them. ...  

20 And moreover, I say unto you, that the time shall come when the knowledge of a Savior shall spread throughout every nation, kindred, tongue, and people. 

21 And behold, when that time cometh, none shall be found blameless before God, except it be little children, only through repentance and faith on the name of the Lord God Omnipotent.

King Benjamin suggests that one day everyone will have a knowledge of Jesus, and of good and evil, and at that time only those incapable of understanding that knowledge will be blameless.  But until then there are many people who are just as ignorant and innocent as little children.

Similarly, Jacob in 2 Nephi 9 states: 

14 Wherefore, [after the resurrection] we shall have a perfect knowledge of all our guilt, and our uncleanness, and our nakedness; and the righteous shall have a perfect knowledge of their enjoyment, and their righteousness, being clothed with purity, yea, even with the robe of righteousness.  
15 And it shall come to pass that when all men shall have passed from this first death unto life, insomuch as they have become immortal, they must appear before the judgment-seat of the Holy One of Israel; and then cometh the judgment, and then must they be judged according to the holy judgment of God. ... 

22 And he suffereth this that the resurrection might pass upon all men, that all might stand before him at the great and judgment day.

23 And he commandeth all men that they must repent, and be baptized in his name, having perfect faith in the Holy One of Israel, or they cannot be saved in the kingdom of God.

24 And if they will not repent and believe in his name, and be baptized in his name, and endure to the end, they must be damned... 

25 Wherefore, he has given a law; and where there is no law given there is no punishment; and where there is no punishment there is no condemnation...

In order to be judged, we will eventually have all knowledge in the resurrection.  Until then, if a law is not given to an individual there is no condemnation, or accountability.

What these passages mean is that in order to be accountable to a law, one must have spiritual knowledge of that law imparted.

For example, in Jacob 3:7, Alma 17:14-16 & 60:32, and Helaman 15:4, negative qualities of the Lamanites are described, but it is acknowledged that the Lamanites are ignorant, just following the 'traditions of their fathers'.  The Lamanites committed iniquities, including stealing, priestcrafts, and murders - and were a 'lazy and idolatrous' people - and yet the Lord points out in these passages that accountability for these things is actually on the ancestors and leaders of the Lamanites, who knowingly led their people astray, and not the Lamanites in the present.

In order to be spiritually accountable for one's economic circumstance, there must be spiritual laws related to that circumstance, and those laws must be revealed to the individual; only then can there be spiritual accountability.

The Book of Mormon affirms that several aspects of gospel knowledge are related to economic circumstance, at least the prosperity of a society if not the individual - including hard work, equity and justice, the sharing of resources with the less fortunate, etc.

But as we discussed in the articles on What is Prosperity, Economics of Wealth, and Agency and Economics, obedience to these qualities does not necessarily mean that an individual prospers independently, but that a society prospers because collectively they work hard and share their resources to those whose hard work does not happen pay off as much as others.  Furthermore, sometimes wicked societies and individuals can become wealthy, and it is not at all a sign of their righteousness, but it just happens.

God's solution to poverty and inequality is not to teach individuals the Gospel, and then to independently bless each righteous person with wealth according to their righteousness; but instead to teach a society the Gospel, including the requirement to share your resources with those in need, and to meet the needs of individuals through all his people obeying economic commandments.

So, does the Book of Mormon claim that poverty is under an individual's spiritual accountability?

Theoretically maybe.  Perhaps an individual could be spiritually taught to do some action that would lead to material wealth, and if they were not to follow the counsel then they would be responsible for any resulting poverty from the lack of that action.

But ultimately there is no evidence in the book of God ever giving such counsel.  Instead, He expects his society to take care of the poor, "that they may be rich like unto you" (Jacob 2).  There is never a time that the poor are taught any principle of the Gospel with any intent of curing them of their poverty.  His solution to poverty is simply to teach His people to share.

Thus, when God teaches his people to share their resources with the poor, and indeed to end poverty by making the poor "rich like unto you" (Jacob 2), or to at least administer to them according to their "wants and needs" (Mosiah 18), then it is society that is accountable for any perpetuating poverty.

In order to ensure that His people act to correct poverty without pride, judgment, or envying of the poor, the Lord teaches His people not to judge - ultimately making determining accountability irrelevant.  We will explore this more closely in the next article.

What About Accountability for Non Spiritual Actions?

All of the above discussion focused on spiritual accountability, for which the Book of Mormon has a lot to say, but spiritual accountability should not be confused with natural consequences for actions.  There are consequences to actions regardless of spiritual knowledge.  An oven is still going to burn regardless of whether someone knows it will or not.

Furthermore, there is a certain amount of accountability for actions we expect in our society for everyone, regardless of whether someone knows or cares about Jesus, regardless of what they have been taught, and even certain expectations for children (which Benjamin describes, at least spiritually, as "blameless").

Like the word 'agency', the Book of Mormon version of 'accountability' strictly speaks to the spiritual side of things.  Concerning this general concept of accountability, the Book of Mormon is mostly silent.

However, in the historical portions of the Book of Mormon that we discussed in the first chapter, it is clear that the God of the Book of Mormon is displeased with inequality and iniquity - the forces that cause poverty and inequality in the Book - and He is displeased regardless of whether or not his people have been taught that such actions are wrong (although God does often does instruct his prophets to teach the people it is wrong, and give them a chance to repent).

This suggests that there are some general expectations God has for all people in regards to the way they treat one another - especially economically - with or without specifically being instructed.

For example, we talked about the Lamanites above - God put accountability for their actions on the ancestors of the Lamanites, but He was nevertheless still displeased with their state:

Helaman 15:4 But behold my brethren, the Lamanites hath he hated because their deeds have been evil continually, and this because of the iniquity of the tradition of their fathers. But behold, salvation hath come unto them through the preaching of the Nephites; and for this intent hath the Lord prolonged their days. 

However, it should be noted that similar indignation and displeasure is ever afforded to the poor in the Book of Mormon - either before or after the Gospel is preached, as attested to in the article on Poverty and the Poor.

So, are there expectations that a society can reasonably and justifiably have concerning the productivity and responsibility of their poor?

Yes of course, so long as there is no spiritual judgment of the poor, and so long as the expectations do not "grind upon the faces of the poor" (2 Nephi 26:30).

Let's explore this more fully in the article on Self-Reliance.