<P> In the book, Weber wrote that capitalism in Northern Europe evolved when the Protestant (particularly Calvinist) ethic influenced large numbers of people to engage in work in the secular world, developing their own enterprises and engaging in trade and the accumulation of wealth for investment . In other words, the Protestant work ethic was an important force behind the unplanned and uncoordinated emergence of modern capitalism . In his book, apart from Calvinists, Weber also discusses Lutherans (especially Pietists, but also notes differences between traditional Lutherans and Calvinists), Methodists, Baptists, Quakers, and Moravians (specifically referring to the Herrnhut - based community under Count von Zinzendorf's spiritual lead). </P> <P> In 1998, the International Sociological Association listed this work as the fourth most important sociological book of the 20th century . It is the 8th most cited book in the social sciences published before 1950 . </P> <P> Although not a detailed study of Protestantism but rather an introduction to Weber's later studies of interaction between various religious ideas and economics (The Religion of China: Confucianism and Taoism, The Religion of India: The Sociology of Hinduism and Buddhism, and Ancient Judaism), The Protestant Ethic and the Spirit of Capitalism argues that Puritan ethics and ideas influenced the development of capitalism . The' spirit of capitalism' does not refer to the spirit in the metaphysical sense but rather a set of values, the spirit of hard work and progress . </P> <P> Religious devotion, Weber argues, is usually accompanied by a rejection of worldly affairs, including the pursuit of wealth and possessions . To illustrate his theory, Weber quotes the ethical writings of Benjamin Franklin: </P>

The idea of hard work became a central factor in the development of the