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When did Christians decide charging interest was OK?

Everyone knows that Jews were/are resented for being moneylenders, and Islamic finance does not involve interest. When and why did Christians decide that interest was just not a religous issue? Sorry!!-I wasn't looking to offend anyone, I was just wondering if there was an edict etc. at some point or it was just a de facto type deal. That's all!

Public Comments

1. When, against their prayers, money growing trees didn't appear as ordered.
2. coz there religion is changed everyday look at the bible its writen by many people and they say its the word of GOD
3. No one works for free. Not even slaves.
4. I dont know...when did we?
5. well as I said before... Christians are taking from Scriptures only what is convenient for them to believe..Other important staff is ignored if it is not important for thei society
6. The Renaissance was when usury became more common in Christian Europe. It was necessary to move money from those who had it to those who needed it to invest.
7. Good question. Seems it doesn't jive with what Christ was all about.
8. christians follow their desires and leave what they dont like
9. Could it be that the moneylenders are not Christian?
10. Just SHUT UP... WHO CARES..... U SUCK.... YOUR DUMB QUESTION IS AN INSULT TO ANY EDUCATED PERSON.... WOW YOU ARE SO COOL!!!!! Everyone Knows you are resented for you ignorance...... and you are of no INTEREST..
11. Christianity is just a big scheme to make money.
12. How do you know that it was a Christian that started charging interest? And charging interest on what? I tithe to my hurch but they don't charge interest. I've borrowed one month's worth of rent from my church and I paid it back 3 months later without interest. Who are these Christians you are referring to and on what are they charging interest? Please be more specific.
13. about 1600's in england
14. What's your source for claiming that Christians decided charging interest was OK? This question asserts a point that it's not providing evidence for. Are you sure it wasn't banks that were established as non-religious entities that decided to enact interest fees and charges? There's no such thing as a "Christian bank" last time I looked. Additional comments: There were no other replies to this question when I started to type the first part of my answer above, so please accept apologies from me and others here if we misunderstood your intent in asking this question. As for my interest-free two cents, I think Sandylynn's answer below is the best one on here so far.
15. It was necessary politically during an economic slump, so it was "decided" that usury was no longer a sin. Stuff like that happens a lot.
16. Since their lending institutes stopped bring in more money than was taken out. They just extended the idea of giving ten percent to anything connected with the church further.
17. The interest or usury that was forbidden could be described as more like gouging ones eyeballs out for payment. Moderate interest for a genuine service should not be considered the same as it was in biblical times. If it wasn't for banking the majority of people including myself would never be able to afford a car or a home.
18. I don't charge interest.
19. their usual hypocrytical selves.to get in on the act ,even though it was against their doctrine,
20. What makes you aim this question at Christians? Don't people of all faiths and non-faiths charge and pay interest - especially in this day and time and especially in capitalistic countries?
21. the church just ignores this sin. it never got officially removed. the christians that charge interest are just hypocrites but why not. they are hypocrites in everything they do. why should usury be any different?
22. The Bible has charging interest in it. Jesus Himself, spoke of it. Read the parable of the talents Matthew 25:14-30. Interest is refereed to in verse 27. There evidently such a thing as charging interest in Jesus day because He speaks of it in this verse..
23. Usury is generally understood in the Bible as any interest on a loan, whether in money or in wheat or other commodities. Modern usage has confined the meaning of the word to an unlawful interest. The law of God prohibits rigorous imposing of interest or exacting it, or a return of a loan without regard to the condition of the borrower; whether poverty occasioned his borrowing, or a visible prospect of gain by employing the borrowed goods. The Hebrews were plainly commanded in Exodus 22:25, etc, not to receive interest for money from any that borrowed for necessity, as in the case in Nehemiah 5:5-7 (taken from Cruden's Complete Concordance, Hendrickson Publishers). So, according to what is understood about Christians receiving interest for money loaned, I think this explains that it is, in certain circumstances, Scripturally acceptable to do so, saying that no more interest than necessary be charged, if at all. Also, the ability of the borrower to pay back the loan & the interest is to be taken into thought also, and adjusted accordingly. It sounds like you have a personal story to tell. I wish you would have taken your statement a little further, and not just lumped all Christians together. We are NOT all the same, just like in your own religion not all are the same. My attitude is this, that God owns everything I have, so that when I borrow out my stuff, it's actually God's. I let Him worry about whether or not I get it back. <*)))><