Communism.

Just a word? An idea? A belief?

Communism is a word that has affected the world we live in, in more ways than we could
ever imagine; an idea that has formed entire political parties and has changed the course of
history. Communism is the idea, theory, or system of organisation in which all property is
owned by the community and is distributed according to each person’s need and ability. In
theory communism is the system where everyone has exactly what they need. No more and
no less. But as Albert Einstein said in one of his famous quotes, “in theory, theory and
practice are the same thing. In practice they are not.” In other words Albert Einstein was
saying that in our minds the idea and the practice of the ideal of communism are the same
thing. However, in reality they are not. Today we will be looking at what communism is, it’s
results, and why it is wrong according to the Bible.

What exactly is communism? In reality very few people fully understand the results and
implications of communism. In communism we find five main characteristics.

The first one is classless society: A classless society is where there are no differences
between the rich and the poor. As stated in the Communist manifesto Communism seeks to
destroy the supposed conflict between the rich owners and the poor workers which keeps
the rich in power and the poor in poverty.

The second characteristic of communism is common ownership of all resources: Common

ownership of all resources in short means that everyone in the country has an equal amount
of resources and possessions. All the resources are equally distributed throughout the
country according to each individual’s needs and abilities.

The third characteristic of communism is the abolishment of private property: When private
companies enter production, they tend to focus more on profit. As their earning capacity
increases, their quality of life changes, resulting in dramatic lifestyle changes. For example
people who’s lives change drastically will often live in luxury and be above the other so
called classes in society. Obviously, this will be different for those who do not have money.
Therefore, abolishing private property is an essential characteristic of communist ideology in
order to maintain the supposed equality.

The fourth characteristic of communism is social equality: Much like the first characteristic
that we looked like, this characteristic seeks to abolish the differences between rich and
poor. In other words, an egalitarian society in which there are no differences or
discrimination between the rich and the poor.

The fifth and final characteristic of communism is its resistance against democracy.
Democracy involves the liberty to enter private organisations or players into the market,
among other things. Communist ideology does not accept privatisation as it is a deterrent in
the path of a classless society. Communism in China is an example where they oppose the
idea of democracy.
These are the five characteristic of communism that distinguish it from other governing
systems in the world.

What are the results of communism? There is a distinct pattern that can be seen in
countries that are ruled by communist governments. Unfortunately this pattern is not a
good one. This pattern is one of poverty, violence, and disorder. Collectively, communist
states killed as many as 100 million people, more than all other repressive regimes
combined during the same time period. By far the biggest toll arose from communist efforts
to collectivise agriculture and eliminate independent property-owning peasants. In China
alone, Mao Zedong’s Great Leap Forward to communism led to a man-made famine which
resulted in 45 million people perishing – the single biggest episode of mass murder in all of
world history. In the Soviet Union, Joseph Stalin’s collectivisation, from which China got it’s
ideas, took some 6 to 10 million lives. Mass famines occurred in many other communist
regimes, ranging from North Korea to Ethiopia. In each of these cases, communist rulers
were well aware that their policies and ideology were causing mass death, and in each they
persisted nonetheless, often because they considered the extermination of “Kulak”
peasants an means to a better end rather than a bug.

The injustices of communism were not limited to mass murder alone. No, communism went
above and beyond that. Even those fortunate enough to survive still were subjected to
severe repression, loss of freedom of speech, freedom of religion, loss of property rights,
including violations of freedom, and the criminalisation of ordinary economic activity. No
previous tyranny sought such complete control over nearly every aspect of people’s lives.
This makes Communism the apex of tyranny.

While collectivisation was the primary source of death in communist countries there were
still others. Millions of people died a horrible death in slave labour camps, such as the
USSR’s Gulag system. To add to all this many others were killed in more conventional mass
executions, such as those of Stalin’s Great Purge, and the “Killing Fields” of Cambodia.

Why is communism wrong? If all the topics that I have already addressed are not enough to
have convinced you then let me proceed to show you from the Bible why communism is a
corrupt and evil system of government. Communism believes that there is no God. In psalm
14:1 it says, “The fool says in his heart, “There is no God.” They are corrupt, they do
abominable deeds; there is none who does good.” From this verse we can see that when
men reject God they become foolish and corrupt. This is exactly what we see in
communism.

In conclusion, today we looked at what communism is, what it’s results are, and why it is
wrong according to the Bible. Communism is supposed to be a system of equality and
freedom. However, communism achieves the exact opposite. It is a system that involves
severe repression, loss of freedom of speech, loss freedom of religion, loss of property
rights, violations of freedom, and the criminalisation of ordinary economic activity.
Communist countries have collectively killed over 100 Million people. To put that into
perspective that is almost double South Africa’s population. Men such as Stalin would just
murder people for no reason what so ever as was seen in his Great Purge. It also makes hard
work useless because no one can thrive in a communist society. Communism is also wrong
according to the Bible for many reasons but notably for its denial of a God. We saw that
Communism is the pinnacle of tyranny and is the worst form of government ever created.