First there was the buzz noting which stores would be needling their way into the untouchable 24 Thanksgiving hours by opening for business that day. This tapped core beliefs of both shoppers and workers. An unwritten moral line wriggled. Facebook posts by folks boycotting the retail infringement appeared regularly during November.
Invoking MC Hammer's famous refrain of "U Can't Touch This," the Thanksgiving purists let it be known their day was not up for sale. I didn't post or demand my intentions be heard, but Thanksgiving remained an indoor home event (so much so that my Black Friday imperative became "Get Outdoors Day" with a long walk at a local park with my daughters.)
Then the Shop Local Saturday followed, steering shoppers to buy gifts at local businesses. I recall bragging in years past how most of my holiday shopping could be done by clicks on Amazon - oh the ease and savings just a touch away. This year I am making the effort to find nearby answers to gift questions thanks to 'shop locally' reminders.
Cyber Monday exploded in my inbox with deals to stretch Black Friday further. I'm not an economist, but how much does our consumerism benefit us in the long run?
What is it all worth? What's the currency we're using to get the value we desire? Are we trading some emotional currency for physical stuff? What happens when worth and value clash?
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| The Bay Psalm Book, printed 1640. |
The price tag, while steep, is just part of what makes this notable. The decision to sell the rare book addresses both worth and value. And, as with all good stories, this one has intriguing points of view.
Old South Church in Boston sold one of two books it owns. (It is believed that only 11 copies exist.) Why sell it? According to the Times article, "the congregation voted last year to sell one copy to pay for ministries and repairs to the church’s 1875 building."
Senior Minister The Reverend Dr. Nancy S. Taylor noted following the book's sale, "We're not in the business of being a museum; we're not in the business of being a library...what is our business is mission in the city of Boston." Selling the book has worth to the church and its community.
But it's value - an intangible to some - was great enough for the church historian and longtime member to resign in protest of the sale. While the congregation voted 9-1 in favor of putting a book up for auction, dissent came from those who valued history first.
Old South's pedigree places it as Ben Franklin's baptismal church and includes Samuel Adams and Richard Dawes (who rode with Paul Revere) as former congregation members. This is not your average bear.
The intersection of worth and value marked the place where the book became either a type of commodity or a treasure. In the language of education, History was trumped by Economics. In some ways those on opposing sides of the debate held true to their view of what the book primarily represents: to the historian, it is a precious piece of history which is church property; to the church leaders it is a means to an end of serving the community. I land on the side of Economics because the church still owns another copy of the rare book. If #2 ever comes up for auction, perhaps the debate over its worth will have even greater intensity.
The book's new owner, David M. Rubenstein plans lend the book to libraries around the country, eventually naming one to house it. He has no interest in keeping the famed item at home. In biblical terms, there's no light left under a bushel here.
While preciously rare books of psalms have no place on my holiday shopping list, the value of what I am giving this season is shaded by more thought about my intention. Wrestling with worth and value makes me uncomfortable. I think this is an invaluable thing.
Link to the NYTimes article on Sotheby's auction: http://www.nytimes.com/2013/11/27/nyregion/book-published-in-1640-makes-record-sale-at-auction.html?_r=0
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