05 - 06 Feb 2010 - Christians reflectioon on 2007-2010 financial crisis...

05 eb 2010
This really really ancient friend - Flora Lai met up with me in Sham Shui Po that Friday night.  We had dinner in TCT cafe, then dessert in HK dessert near Mong Kong Langham place.  We spent three hours chatting none stop about our previous life in Westwing School, Clifton High School....  It was indeed good!

06 Feb 2010
Open day in Cheung Chau Alliance Bible Seminary School.  We had the honour to met Ca Chair, my long time good friend/ brother in Southampton, who is currently studying his second year there.  David and I also had the houour to meet the CEO of Fortis (David YF Yu) to gave a talk on Finance title - A Christian's reflection on the 2007-2010 Financial crisis.  Below is the short presentation.

Impact of the Financial crisis
-Banking crisis
-Plunging asset price
-Rising unemployment
-Soring fiscal commitment / deficit
-Replacement of government / oficial

Events prompting the crisis
-US housing bubble
   -Loan incentives
   -Low interest rate
   -large inflow o foreign funds
   -liquidity
   -mortgage frauds
-Financialization (CDO, MBS, ARM)
-Rating agency /modelling
-Commodity bubble
-Government/ deregulation

Financializaztion
Dead donkey.  A farmer promised to sell a donkey to a young business man at a price of 100 dollars.  However, before the donkey got sold, it died.  So the farmer told the business man that donkey died.  The business man said nevermind, sell me the donkey still and I can sell it out.  So the business set up a raffle tickets by selling them at 10 dollars each and sold to 11 people.  The thing He told the rafflers are that ticket no. 1 can get the donkey.  So ticket no. 1 person came to collect it, and realised he had won a dead donkey.  The business man then told him, don't worry, I will give you two dollars back and you can also keep the donkey.  This is how the finance company make money. 

!The business nowadays are not capital based, but finacialization method based!  This is why problems comes.

Remecial action
-Central banksproviding funds to encourage lending
-Bailing out key financial institutions
-Economics stimulus programs
-New control measures
-Public Relations

Are the remedial actions the bes means of restoring economic 'health'?
-The implicit belief that unleashed appetite and consumption represent 'health' is delusional
-The remedial actions continuethe basic bad habits we have develped, premised upon the beli that deeper debt preduces greater growth
-The moral dimension o the crisis is not tackled

A deeper crisis - Moral crisis
-'Greed is good' - Manager's captalism
-Sound ethical standards are discarded as outmoded 'Good guys finish last'.  Individual and corporate cultures not guided by principles and purposes beyond 'short term profits and economic terms.'
-Freedom is defined negatively - the absence of constraint.  Consumption, massive personal and collective debt are manifestations of 'unleasehd appetite' in the name of freedom.

A christian's stance on wealth
-Greed alienates us from God
-The earth is the Lord's, and everything in it, the world, and all who live in it' (Psalm 24:1).  Our ultimate good consists in being rightly related to Him, not to any o the things His world contains.
-We must conform fully to te image o Christ, whatever that may demand of us.
-Christians are commanded 'to be rich in good deeds, and to be generous and willing to share' (1 Tim 6:18).  Sharing should be the default mode for Christians.

Biblical teaching
-The Talents -the servant rewarded is the one who ulitilizes that money as a tool to be utilized in promoting whatever God's goals are.
-The Eye o the Needle - money is not evil.  It's very difficult not to yield to the temptations o money and make it our god, but doesn't mean it can't be done.
-Utilize the economic system and money and conduct our vocation consisten with our underlying faith values

Biblical teaching
-Path of the righteous - Proverbs 4:18-19
The path of the righteous is like the first glea o dawn, shining ever brighter till the ull light o day.  But the way of the wicked is like deep darkness; they do not know what makes them stumble.
-Golden Rule - Matthew 7:12
So in everything, do to others what you would have them do to you, for this sums up the Law and the Prophets.

A more moral captalism
-The conomic system s part of God's plan
- The vision of captalism is to lift the poor out o poverty and human sufering that's prevalentin the world.  Until all are lifted, the task is not done.
-Putting the stability of the entire system above one's own person al gain
-God is in the details.  The more perfectly we do our - the more God is honoured.

Observation
-Challenging ethical and moral issues o the modern economy
-Many financial/business persons have ailed, thus church support is crucial
-Few seem to understand the moral dimention or have sympathy for the calling of business, and encourage business as a Christian calling
-Let's be prepared to provide guidance regarding the unique opportunities, restraints, and temptations o the businesspersons' calling.

After attending the above talk, we listened a talk on 'Creat happy little readers'.  Teaching adults how to give their children the books, with cartoons that their child like, colour books, huge words on one large and meaningful.  I just know that after lisstening to this talk, God's great wisdom on bring up children is greatly needed!