I feel like being an affiliate is something of a greedy thing. It’s great getting the commission checks, but the cutthroat environment to succeed doesn’t make me feel so comfortable with my religious upbringing.
Well, I am not clergy, so I don’t think I am the most appropriate to address this sort of question. Also, the answer here may well vary significantly depending on your faith.
However, I asked a similar question a while back to my Pastor. I had asked him:
How do you view business/capitalism in the context of Christianity? I was thinking that strictly speaking, business is largely about survival of the fittest and getting rid of the weakest link, rather than assisting them. That said, it almost seems like Christianity is more in line with socialism, but so many devout Christians are capitalists.
Here is what he had to say in response:
You are absolutely right that Christianity seems to be more in line with socialism than capitalism. However, socialism also encourages the lack of motivation. And if we are indeed gifted by the Lord with health and ability, what right do we have to languish?
Also, fundamentally, if you have nothing, how can you assist those unable to fend for themselves? The true victims of this world are the sick in mind and body and the children of those in such state.
I like the term ‘benevolent capitalism.’ To me that means we seek to be as productive as we can with our lives ad ensure that this productivity is dedicated to alleviate the suffering of those not able to care for self. With this, we ought not to give the people too much fish; but teach them where the fish are and how to fish for themselves.