The Anti-Greed Gospel: How Greed Fuels Racism and What the Church Can Do About It - w/ Dr. Malcolm Foley

Voxology

Philosophy, Society & Culture, Religion & Spirituality

4.8 • 1.1K Ratings

🗓️ 31 March 2025

⏱️ 77 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

Unpacking the intersection of economics, race, and faith, Mike and Tim sit down with historian and theologian Dr. Malcolm Foley to explore the dangerous roots of racism in greed and how Christian communities can resist the power of money—biblically referred to as "Mammon." With incisive insight, emotional clarity, and a sense of urgency, Malcolm walks us through the key thesis of his new book, "The Anti-Greed Gospel: Why the Love of Money is the Root of Racism and How the Church Can Create a New Way Forward."

This challenging yet hopeful episode invites listeners to reimagine how the church can actively defang race as a category of oppression by confronting institutional greed, building communities of economic justice, and aligning more deeply with the Kingdom vision of Jesus.

Key Takeaways: • Greed as the Engine of Racism – Race didn't create injustice; it was manufactured to justify domination and economic exploitation. • Defanging Race – Why we must neither ignore nor celebrate race, but neutralize its power through kingdom-shaped communities of justice and equity. • Economic Justice as Gospel Witness – How the early church's radical sharing (Acts 2 & 4) unveils God's economic blueprint for the body of Christ. • Solidarity over Paternalism – Why generosity must evolve into shared life, mutual care, and practical redistribution of resources. • Institutional Implications – What churches (and podcast listeners!) can begin doing now to embody anti-greed practices and become agents of equity and reconciliation.

Guest Highlights: Dr. Malcolm Foley – Author of "The Anti-Greed Gospel," Baylor University's Special Advisor to the President for Equity and Campus Engagement, and pastor of Mosaic Waco. Malcolm brings real theological depth, social awareness, and pastoral vision to his call for dismantling the idolatry of Mammon encountered both in society and within the institutional church.

Resources Mentioned: • "The Anti-Greed Gospel" by Dr. Malcolm Foley – Brazos Press • "God's Reign and the End of Empires" by Antonio Gonzalez • "Money and Possessions" by Walter Brueggemann • Revelation 3:14–22 – Jesus's message to the lukewarm church in Laodicea • Acts 2:42–47, 4:32–35 – The economic witness of the early church • Matthew 6:24 – "You cannot serve both God and Mammon"

Be part of the anti-greed conversation and join us in rethinking how the church can resist Mammon and embrace its calling as a community of justice and love.

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As always, we encourage and would love discussion as we pursue. Feel free to email in questions to hello@voxpodcast.com, and to engage the conversation on Facebook and Instagram.

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Learn more about the Voxology Podcast

Subscribe on iTunes or Spotify

Support the Voxology Podcast on Patreon

The Voxology Spotify channel can be found here: Voxology Radio

Follow Mike on Twitter: www.twitter.com/mikeerre

Music in this episode by Timothy John Stafford

Instagram & Twitter: @GoneTimothy

As always, we encourage and would love discussion as we pursue. Feel free to email in questions to hello@voxpodcast.com, and to engage the conversation on Facebook and Instagram.

We're on YouTube (if you're into that kinda thing): VOXOLOGY TV.

Our Merch Store! ETSY

Learn more about the Voxology Podcast

Subscribe on iTunes or Spotify

Support the Voxology Podcast on Patreon

The Voxology Spotify channel can be found here: Voxology Radio

Follow Mike on Twitter: www.twitter.com/mikeerre

Music in this episode by Timothy John Stafford

Instagram & Twitter: @GoneTimothy

Transcript

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0:00.0	Hey everybody. Welcome to Voxology Podcast. We're so delighted that you would tune in. And this is the 501st episode. Officially, as we discussed, we're not counting anymore, but man, the 5001st Legion of
0:24.1	Stormtroopers has a really significant role in Star Wars. And so the 5001st Voxology podcast feels
0:31.1	like it's a big deal too. Yeah. So today, we have some lamenting to do.
0:38.5	It's like a Star Wars reference of the day for, they'll get the other one a little bit later.
0:43.1	They will get the other one. We have a, we have a interview today with an historian named Dr. Malcolm Foley.
0:50.1	And he was on the Holy Post. But I got a copy of his book called The Anti-Greed Gospel.
0:56.4	And, oh, man, does that thing dog-eared?
0:59.9	Wow.
1:01.1	And in our conversation, he is a delightful, delightful person.
1:05.0	I mean, just incredible smile, laughter.
1:08.9	But the things he's saying are really significant these days.
1:14.3	And as Tim kind of points out in the interview,
1:16.9	they're super ripe because we get into DEI stuff
1:21.0	and,
1:21.5	and,
1:21.6	you know,
1:22.3	just all the things that are happening around these sorts of conversations
1:26.0	about race and greed.
1:28.0	And it's really, man, I was super, there's one big point that he makes that I just had never
1:36.7	occurred.
1:38.2	And, you know, I hate that I'm learning this stuff.
1:39.9	There's other little things like what I was thinking about that we didn't talk about
	...

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