著者

笠原 俊彦

出版者

長崎大学

雑誌

經營と經濟 : 長崎工業經營専門學校大東亞經濟研究所年報 (ISSN:02869101)

巻号頁・発行日

vol.83, no.1, pp.21-56, 2003-06-25

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Acconding to Weber, the Calvinistic pastor in his practice changed the idea of calling in its specific aspect while he was managing the idea in the doctrine and also in the original religious mind of its beliver: in making the idea of calling acceptable to rank and file, the pastor dropped from it the non-or even anti-profit moment and added in this place the con-profit one, thus directing the tremendous energy of the religious mind towards moulding the spirit of the modern capitalism as the ideal of ascetic ethic in the worldly life. The idea of calling so revised is found 'ideal-typically' in English Puritanism, especially in the work of Baxter. He stressed the ceaseless lure of wealth to moral corruption and neglection of ascetic life. However, though his hostility to property was much more strong and strict than that of Calvin himeself, Baxter's doubt was directed not to wealth as it was but to its degrading effect on morality, to idleness and enjoyment of life and resulting resignation of the efforts to holly life for the glory of God. For Baxter the toil in one's calling was on the one hand the means for asceticism : it was the prominent guard against all the temptation to unclean life ; it was on the other just the divine purpose of human life. A specific job as a calling was given to each person secretely by God, so it was his duty to search for this and work hard in this to contribute to the rational formation of society and to the 'common best' in order to be pleased bv God. The liberation from the old restriction and the freedom of the selection of one's job, which Luther could not had admitted, exerted then the amazing influence on constituting the rational labour system both in business and society as a whole. This idea of Barter familiar with utilitarianism shows a peculiar religious aspect, when he sets on it the motives of stableness and of order or method of one's job as his calling, - the motives which lead to the appreciation of the modern professinals. And the more methodically one's ascetic labour is executed the more it yields profit as its result, so became the profit to be used as a measure with practical importance of the degree of one's service to God, and then profit-making to be the very duty of a Puritan as a steward entrusted the assets of God, - the religious appreciation of profit-making, the brilliant glory for business man, which was the strong support of the ethic for the spirit of the modern capitalism.