The Protestant Ethic and the Spirit of Capitalism

Throughout The Protestant Ethic and the Spirit of Capitalism, Weber traces the development of the notion of a “vocational calling.” The idea of having a calling, or a specific career, has become central to modern-day capitalist society. Such a phrase suggests that one’s identity and one’s work are closely intertwined, as if one is uniquely suited to performing one’s job. Weber argues that this notion of the calling traces its origins to the Protestant Reformation and the writings of Martin Luther. In so doing, he argues that our contemporary secular attitudes toward work and career have been deeply molded by Protestant religious ideas.

Weber begins his analysis of Protestantism’s approach to work in Chapter 3, where he discusses Luther’s notion of the vocational calling. According to Weber, prior to Luther’s usage of the term “calling,” “there had been no trace of this expression earlier, either in secularized literature or in sermons” (39). Luther’s conception of the calling was deeply connected to his notion of what Weber calls “this-worldly work” (40). Luther’s teachings emphasized that Christians could have a direct, individual relationship with God and find spirituality and holiness in their day-to-day life. In turn, Luther elevated the notion of work so that it was no longer simply a task that one did to sustain oneself, but rather one of the chief ways to fulfill God’s divine will. Luther ultimately turned work in a vocational calling into an ethical and religious duty for each believer, presenting it as “a special command of God to that person” (43).

However, Luther’s notion of the calling was in some ways antithetical to how it is understood within capitalism, as Luther did not believe that an individual should seek to change their calling or their social position in life. In Chapter 4, Weber shifts to discuss “ascetic Protestantism,” such as Calvinism. Calvinist preachers saw within the notion of a vocational calling a chance to quell believers’ anxiety stemming from the Calvinist doctrine of predestination. Believers were advised to devote themselves ceaselessly to their work so as to gain certainty that they had been chosen by God for eternal salvation. Later Protestant preachers, such as the Puritan theologian Richard Baxter, further developed this notion of the calling. While Baxter saw work as an ethical good, he was critical of “the resting upon one’s possessions and the enjoyment of wealth” (104). Such teachings ultimately formed a moral ethic in which believers sought to work and earn as much money as possible, all while leading an ascetic lifestyle in which one refrains from spending one’s wealth or living off of it.