Religion and Economics in the Middle Ages

Chapter 10 of Debt by David Graeber examines the connections between religion, politics, and trade in several major civilizations during the Middle Ages. One of the major themes throughout this chapter is how religion has had a major influence on how people are permitted to trade. In the case of Christianity, it was generally considered immoral to lend money to anyone during this time period. In Islam, while it is a very similar religion to Christianity, had very different views on the morality of trade and loaning money, and merchants had a much more prestigious position in society. It seems logical that religion, which tends to be a major influence on how people conceptualize morality, is also very influential on how people share and trade their economic resources.

Another interesting concept that Graeber emphasizes in this chapter is how the widespread use of paper money changed how people began to use and conceptualize currency. Money had been used in the form of coins for centuries before, but when paper money was used it became more divisible, portable, and accessible to everyone. Paper money, along with religions which tended to encourage trade and travel, were some of the major factors which contributed to more communication between civilizations around the world. It appears that the world has been going through the process of globalization long before the time of the industrial revolution. One question to think about after reading this chapter is: How much does religion (especially Christianity) influence economic and political practices in the U.S. today?