The Meaning of Social Credit
By: Socred, B.A., SCMP
Many people ask, “what is Social Credit?” A full explanation would probably require several volumes of information. Most people are looking for a simple explanation to this question. The simplest explanation can be found by analyzing the two words that comprise the concept – Social and Credit.
The word Social can be defined as: of or relating to society or its organization. I believe this is the most useful definition of the word social as it pertains to Social Credit. Oftentimes, people assume that Social Credit has something to do with socialism because it contains the word social. This would mean that anything that uses the word social is socialism, and anything that is not socialism is anti-social. Of course, this assumption is absurd, and Social Credit has nothing to do with socialism. The word social in the term Social Credit merely implies that the term relates to society and its organization. It does not imply anything about the ownership of the means of production. In fact, Social Crediters advocate the private ownership of the means of production in most cases, because this method of production is often the most efficient. Social Crediters are concerned only with the most efficient means of production and do not see this as a philosophical issue but a pragmatic one. If other methods of production are more efficient in certain instances, then Social Crediters would advocate these methods, so long as people always had the freedom to contract out of any method of production or association. True economic freedom as it pertains to production is the ability to contract out of associations and does not have anything to do with the ownership of the means of production.
The second word in Social Credit – credit – derives from the Latin word “credo”, which means to believe, or have faith. As a consequence, we could say that the term Social Credit literally means faithful relations relating to society and its organization, and I believe this is the most accurate definition of the term Social Credit at an abstract level. In today’s world, most money is credit which is created by private commercial banks through loans to businesses and individuals. As C.H. Douglas (the originator of the Social Credit concept) once said, “the essential quality of money is that people have faith in it”. And Jesus said, “Verily I say unto you, If ye have faith, and doubt not, ye shall not only do this which is done to the fig tree, but also if ye shall say unto this mountain, Be thou removed, and be thou cast into the sea; it shall be done.” Today, if we had enough credit we could remove a mountain and put it in the sea. If the essential quality of money is faith in it, then this precludes any physical qualities of money as being essential to it. Throughout its history, money has been composed of cowrie shells, leather discs, precious metals, paper or an electronic ledger entry in a bank account.
Some people argue that all money should be comprised of gold. These people advocate a social organization that lacks faithful dealings between people in society. Like the golden calf worshippers of old, these people only have faith in gold; not in God or their fellow man. They believe that money’s “value” is dependent on its physical composition. But in reality, one cannot eat or drink gold. What gives money its value is people’s faith in it. If people accept money, whether the money is made of gold, paper, or electronic numbers in a bank account, in exchange for the things we truly do value (food, shelter, clothing, luxury goods etc.), then money serves its fundamental purpose. Money’s physical composition is irrelevant. Money has no value in and of itself: it is only faith that gives it value. Advocates of a gold standard, whether they are aware of it or not, advocate a faithless society (which is oftentimes why you will see “survivalists”, or those people waiting and hoping for the destruction of society, advocating this type of money). The only physical aspect of money that is of any importance is its ease of use. In today’s world, debit and credit cards likely serve this purpose most readily (cash and coin are being used less often as time progresses). Social Crediters know and understand that society can only flourish when there is faith amongst men in God and between themselves. However, there are always forces trying to destroy that faith, or the Social Credit.
In conclusion, Social Credit can be defined as faithful dealings as they relate to society, or faithful dealings between men. It is the scientific study of these dealings and how that faith can be used to maximize individual well-being. Douglas once wrote, “systems were made for men, and not men for systems, and the interest of man, which is self-development, is above all systems, whether theological, political or economic”. The primary interest of Social Crediters is man’s self-development through faithful dealings between each other. Ultimately, it is the scientific study of individual self-development in economics, politics and theology.
