Cash Values: Money and the Erosion of Meaning in Today's Society

by Craig M. Gay

Few would doubt the central role of money today. It is the hub around which much of the modern world turns, particularly in those places impacted by capitalism. Add to this the fact that the use and abuse of money has frequently been addressed by Scripture and by notable figures in church tradition and, clearly, money is an aspect of contemporary society deserving of serious Christian reflection.In this new volume by Craig Gay considers with wisdom and aplomb the impact of money in personal and social life. Considering the insights of a number of classical and contemporary social theorists, Gay shows the duplicity of a monetary capitalism is without question the most productive economic system ever devised, yet the market system also fosters a subtle nihilism that tends to empty the world of substance and meaning. Money also lurks behind many of the perplexing social and cultural problems so often associated with capitalist development. Gaybs analysis encourages readers to rediscover meanings and values that transcend bcash valuesb and that, therefore, might in turn serve to discipline the market economybs hold on the modern mind.

110 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2004

About the author

Craig M. Gay (PhD, Boston University) is professor of interdisciplinary studies at Regent College in Vancouver, Canada. He is the author of a variety of books, including Dialogue, Catalogue and Monologue: Personal, Impersonal and Depersonalizing Ways to Use Words; Cash Values: The Value of Money and the Nature of Worth; The Way of the (Modern) World: Or, Why It's Tempting to Live as If God Doesn't Exist; and With Liberty and Justice for Whom? The Recent Evangelical Debate Over Capitalism.

Gay has contributed chapters to a number of collections on the subjects of modernity, secularization, economic ethics, and technology, and his articles and reviews have appeared in Christian Scholar's Review, American Journal of Sociology, Crux, and Markets & Morality.