“Ye Shall Know Them by Their Fruits”: Prosperity and Institutional Religion in Europe and the Americas

Jason Garcia Portilla

doi:10.3390/rel10060362

Abstract

Low competitiveness is a common denominator of historically Roman Catholic countries. In contrast, historically Protestant countries generally perform better in education, social progress, and competitiveness. Jesus Christ described the true and false prophets coming on his behalf, as follows: “Ye shall know them by their fruits”. Inspired by this parable, this paper explores the relations between religious systems (‘prophets’) and social prosperity (‘fruits’). It asks how Protestantism influences prosperity as compared to Roman Catholicism in Europe and the Americas. Most empirical studies have hitherto disregarded the institutional influence of religion. Taking the work of Max Weber as their starting point, they have instead emphasised the cultural linkage between religious adherents and prosperity. This paper tests various correlational models and draws on a comprehensive conceptual framework to understand the institutional influence of religion on prosperity in Europe and the Americas. It argues that the uneven contributions of Roman Catholicism and Protestantism to prosperity are grounded in their different historical and institutional foundations and in the theologies that are pervasive in their countries of influence.

Highlights

IntroductionHistorical evidence shows that institutions are shaped by cultural variables and vice-versa (Acemoglu and Robinson 2012; Inglehart and Baker 2000; Alesina and Giuliano 2015)
Institutions play a crucial role in the prosperity of societies
Conclusions for Competitiveness in Europe and the Americas In Europe and the Americas, the combination of variables that are found in Models 4 and 5 largely explains Global Competitiveness Index (GCI) variability in the following order of importance: Environmental Performance Index (EPI)

Summary

Introduction

Historical evidence shows that institutions are shaped by cultural variables and vice-versa (Acemoglu and Robinson 2012; Inglehart and Baker 2000; Alesina and Giuliano 2015). At least two dimensions of religion’s influence on prosperity are worth close attention: the institutional and the cultural Most empirical works studying religion as a key determiner of prosperity have merely paid scant attention to the institutional effects of religion. Instead, they have mainly concentrated on the cultural influence of religious affiliations (often using the proportion of adherents as a sole indicator of religion) (Acemoglu et al 2001; La Porta et al 1999; Hofstede 2001)

Methods

Results

Conclusion