Article III: Of the Expense of the Institutions for the Instruction of People of All Ages explained

What happens

Themes in this chapter

• Self-Interest and the Invisible Hand

  Smith argues that clergy motivated by self-interest (voluntary contributions) are more industrious than those with guaranteed incomes, illustrating how self-interest drives effort and innovation in religious instruction.

• Role of Government

  The chapter discusses the civil magistrate's role in persecuting religious adversaries and the state's use of church revenues, highlighting the intersection of religious institutions and government authority.

• Wealth and Money

  Smith analyzes the economic impact of church wealth, noting that richer churches leave less for state defense, and compares the modest endowment of the Church of Scotland with its effective outcomes.

Characters to notice

• The Teacher

  Teachers of religious doctrine, whose exertion depends on whether they rely on voluntary contributions or fixed stipends.

• The Romans

  Referenced in the context of the clergy's historical power and the fall of the Roman Empire.

• The Tartars

  Used as a metaphor for active, hardy invaders compared to the indolent established clergy.

• The Chinese

  Mentioned in the context of historical examples of clergy power and state relations.

• The Greeks

  Referenced in the historical discussion of clergy influence and ancient societies.

Key passages

• “The teachers of the doctrine which contains this instruction, in the same manner as other teachers, may either depend altogether for their subsistence upon the voluntary contributions of their hearers; or they may derive it from some other fund to which the law of their country may entitle them; such as a landed estate, a tithe or land tax, an established salary or stipend. Their exertion, their zeal and industry, are likely to be much greater in the former situation than in the latter.”

  Religious teachers, like other educators, can be supported either by voluntary donations from their audience or by fixed sources like land, tithes, or salaries. Those who rely on voluntary contributions tend to be more diligent and enthusiastic.

  Smith contrasts the incentive structures for clergy based on their funding source.

• “The clergy of an established and well-endowed religion frequently become men of learning and elegance, who possess all the virtues of gentlemen, or which can recommend them to the esteem of gentlemen; but they are apt gradually to lose the qualities, both good and bad, which gave them authority and influence with the inferior ranks of people.”

  Clergy with secure incomes often become refined and scholarly, admired by the upper classes, but they tend to lose the traits that once made them influential among common people.

  Smith observes that established clergy become disconnected from the masses.

• “The revenue of every established church, such parts of it excepted as may arise from particular lands or manors, is a branch, it ought to be observed, of the general revenue of the state, which is thus diverted to a purpose very different from the defence of the state.”

  Church revenues, aside from those from specific lands, are part of the state's overall income that is redirected away from national defense.

  Smith highlights the opportunity cost of funding the church instead of the state.

• “It may be laid down as a certain maxim, that, all other things being supposed equal, the richer the church, the poorer must necessarily be, either the sovereign on the one hand, or the people on the other; and, in all cases, the less able must the state be to defend itself.”

  As a general rule, if the church is wealthier, then either the ruler or the people are poorer, and the state is less capable of self-defense.

  Smith asserts a direct trade-off between church wealth and state capacity.

• “In the state in which things were through the greater part of Europe during the tenth, eleventh, twelfth, and thirteenth centuries, and for some time both before and after that period, the constitution of the church of Rome may be considered as the most formidable combination that ever was formed against the authority and security of civil government, as well as against the liberty, reason, and happiness of mankind.”

  During the medieval period, the Roman Catholic Church was the most powerful alliance ever created against civil government, freedom, reason, and human well-being.

  Smith criticizes the historical political power of the Church.