The Relationship Between Religious Belief and Economic Behavior

LDS Perspective

From the earliest days of the Restoration, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints has taught that religious belief and economic behavior are fundamentally inseparable aspects of discipleship. Revelation established that the Lord’s work requires temporal means, and consequently, economic systems themselves constitute part of the restored gospel rather than merely secular concerns. In 1831, revelations instituted the “law of consecration and stewardship,” instructing members to devote their property to further the Lord’s work and alleviate poverty, thereby establishing that economic resources are consecrated gifts to be managed according to spiritual principles rather than private possessions to be accumulated for individual gain alone. Throughout the Church’s history, economic pra

Historical Perspective

The relationship between religious belief and economic behavior represents one of the most enduring intersections of sociology and economics, originating with Max Weber’s foundational thesis that ascetic Protestantism—particularly Calvinist traditions—created the psychological preconditions for modern capitalism. Weber argued that the "Protestant ethic" fostered rational economic conduct through doctrines emphasizing hard work, thrift, delayed gratification, and the notion of a "calling" that sanctified secular labor. This framework suggested that religious beliefs could function as independent variables shaping economic systems, not merely as epiphenomena of material conditions. Contemporary scholarship has both refined and challenged this thesis, demonstrating that while Protestant regio