Perhaps soon, all over the world, we will start to put our faith in Bitcoin instead of fiat.
This is an opinion editorial by Phil Snyder, an educator who teaches blockchain, Bitcoin, and all things media at the University of Houston.
Who hasn’t laughed at least a little when first reading a sign behind a checkout counter, adorned with that timeless wit and wisdom, “In God We Trust; Everyone else pays cash”? Perhaps soon, around the world, wherever merchants accept bitcoin, we will begin to see “In God We Trust; Everyone else pays Bitcoin.”
You should appreciate the irony that the fiat dollar we’ve lost trust in still declares its own religious faith imprinted on every little piece of the Federal Reserve’s fun paper tokens and metal slugs. We are also expected to believe that this counterfeit currency is “backed by the full faith and credit of the United States Government” as stated in the FDIC and from the NCUA official teller signatures, along with their promise to insure deposits up to $250,000. Unsurprisingly, a derivative of this statement can be seen here and there online, such as “In Bitcoin We Trust” memes. Also, ironically then, we trust Bitcoin’s “trustless” protocol.
The phrase “In God We Trust” has a long history of use in America, with its official origins found in the Civil War to boost morale and proclaim the Union’s trust in the God of the Bible, a claim the South also shared! It finally became the official motto of the United States in 1955 when the 84th Congress passed a joint resolution and it was signed by President Eisenhower. For Christians, faith and trust are closely related to each other and are almost synonymous in some contexts. We trust God to save us from our state of spiritual death through faith in Christ’s sacrifice, which he imparts to our inner being by his grace.
Bitcoiners yearn for a future of world peace, prosperity and brotherhood, the sooner the better. But with or without Bitcoin, that’s not going to happen any sooner than what Christians call “the millennial kingdom”, which is the return of Christ to rule and reign over the universe he created right here on earth. And, as the current signs of the times seem to indicate, we probably won’t have to wait much longer.
I see Bitcoin as one of those signs of the times. Even an earthly kingdom ruled by God is likely to require some sort of monetary system, and in my opinion, Bitcoin does the job perfectly. Probably the closest example we have of what this kingdom will look like is in the Biblical narrative of King David. The Bible describes Jesus both literally and figuratively.”son of david”, which means that he is the last heir to the Davidic dynasty. The entire ancient world became subject to the rule of David as the majestic and victorious, yet humble, king of Israel. This is a harbinger of the millennial reign of Christ.
Solomon, as direct heir to the throne of David is said to have “he made silver and gold as common as stones in Jerusalem…” This points to a complete transformation of the economic system of the time and prophesies the future, as Bitcoin renders all other forms of money obsolete. In addition, we can point early church history, when “…there was no needy among them. Because from time to time those who had land or houses sold them, they brought the money from the sales, and they put it at the feet of the apostles, and it was distributed to everyone who had need.”
I believe that many of the early adopters of Bitcoin, whose fortunes will surpass even those of the Rothschilds and Rockefellers, will be moved by the Holy Spirit to donate huge sums in bitcoin to those in need around the world, thus realizing another biblical description:: “All believers were one in heart and mind. No one claimed that any of his possessions were theirs, but they shared everything they had.”
This is not like modern liberation theology or some religious form of communism, but a fair fairness that no modern, waking socialism could even match, because it is ordained by God himself.
Bitcoiners must learn patience, which comes with developing a low time preference that engenders and complements the virtues of thrift, strong work ethic, integrity, faithfulness, and love of God and neighbor. The Bible also has a lot to say about this.
TO poem on time and temporal preference, presumably written by King Solomon, reads thus:
“There is a time for everything,
and a season for every activity under the heavens:
time to be born and time to die
a time to plant and a time to uproot,
a time to kill and a time to heal,
a time to tear down and a time to build,
time to cry and time to laugh
a time to cry and a time to dance,
A time to scatter stones and a time to gather them,
A time to embrace and a time to refrain from embracing,
A time to seek and a time to surrender
a time to keep and a time to throw away,
a time to tear and a time to mend,
a time to be silent and a time to speak,
time to love and time to hate
A time for war and a time for peace.”
Opportunely we could add: “Time to HODL and time to give away”.
“For what will man profit if he gains the whole world, and loses his soul?”
This is a guest post by Phil Snyder. Opinions expressed are entirely their own and do not necessarily reflect those of BTC Inc or Bitcoin Magazine.
