Wealth

"Rich people want a God who tells them they deserve success; poor people want a God who will make them rich." -- Timothy Keller (?) or Mark Oppenheimer, When American Faith Transcended Differences, NY Times, April 18, 2012

Wealth Can Be A Spiritual Burden

"The truth is that people are frightened of being poor because they have no faith in Him who promised to provide all things needful to those who seek the kingdom of God (cf. Matt. 6:33). It is this fear that spurs them, even when they are endowed with all things, and it prevents them from ever freeing themselves from this sickly and baneful desire. They go on amassing wealth, loading themselves with a worthless burden or, rather, enclosing themselves while still living in a most absurd kind of tomb." -- St. Gregory Palamas, To the Most Reverend Nun Xenia no. 32, Philokalia Vol. 4 edited by Palmer, Sherrard and Ware; Faber and Faber pg. 305, 14th century

Enslaved by Wealth

"The property of the wealthy holds them in chains . . . which shackle their courage and choke their faith and hamper their judgment and throttle their souls. They think of themselves as owners, whereas it is they rather who are owned: enslaved as they are to their own property, they are not the masters of their money but its slaves." -- St. Cyprian, 300 A.D.

Life is not Possessions

"...how many of us become irritated and lose their temper when they are deprived, not of their last coin, but only of some small part of by no means their last property! How much agitation, anger, bile, bitter reproaches, murmuring, sometimes even curses! Righteous God! Can this dross called money, or this food and drink produce such storms in our Christian souls, in us who know the words of our sweetest Savior? 'Take no thought for your life, what you shall eat or what you shall drink; nor yet for your body what you shall put on. Behold the birds of the air, they sow not, neither do they reap, nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feeds them. But seek first the Kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added unto you' (Mt. 6:25, 26, 33). Or: 'A man's life does not consist in the abundance of the things which he possesses' (Lk. 12:15)." -- St. John of Kronstadt

Overcoming the Temptation of Greed

"Last night my wife and I ate in a local diner. When we were seated, I noticed a 5 dollar bill on the floor. I was sorely tempted to put it in my pocket. I picked it up and when the waiter came, I gave it to him, telling him where I saw it. When it came time to pay our bill, the waiter came and told us it had already been paid. Someone at another table saw what I did and paid for our small meal. I was blessed, and felt the terrible weight of the temptation to pocket the money. We are always surrounded by a great cloud of witnesses. Some few of them are seated at a nearby table." -- Fr. Stephen Freeman, Facebook post, 16 June, 2015

Spiritual Duties Of The Wealthy

"The rich usually imagine that if they do not physically rob the poor, they are committing no sin. But the sin of the rich consists in not sharing their wealth with the poor. In fact, the rich person who keeps all his wealth for himself, is committing a form of robbery. The reason is that, in truth, all wealth comes from God, and so belongs to everyone equally. The proof of this is all around us. Look at the succulent fruits which the trees and bushes produce. Look at the fertile soil which yields each year such an abundant harvest. Look at the sweet grapes on the vine which give us wine to drink. The rich may claim that they own many fields in which fruits and grain grow, but it is God who causes seeds to sprout and mature. The duty of the rich is to share the harvest of their fields with all who work in them, and with all in need." -- St. John Chrysostom, On Living Simply.

There Is No Salvation for the Rich apart from the Poor

"Some might argue that this is not an effective or proper way to organize a society for the needs of the poor. That, doubtless, is true. But this is not about the construction of a social net – it is the construction of a Christian heart. That heart, if rightly taught, will know that there is no salvation for the rich apart from the poor. I will repeat that: there is no salvation for the rich apart from the poor. Nothing could be more clear in the gospels." -- Fr. Stephen Freeman, [1]

Vanities Lead to Nothing Good

"'Vanity of vanities, all is vanity.' But someone might say, 'if these things are all vain and vanity, why have they come into being? If they are God's works, how are they vain?' And there is great debate about this. But listen, beloved: he did not say that the works of God are vain, far from it! ... 'Vanity of vanities' refers to splendid houses, enormous and inflated wealth, herds of slaves strutting about the market, conceit, vainglory, arrogance and boastfulness. All these things are vain. Such things are not created by God but are of our own creating. Why are they vain? They lead to nothing good." -- St. John Chrysostom, Homily on Ephesians 12.4.17

Who is wealthy? Who is poor?

"An ancient story tells of the two neighbors, King Ahab and a poor man, Naboth (1 Kings 21). Which of these do we consider the poorer, which the richer: the one who had been endowed with a king's measure of wealth, insatiable and unsatisfied with his wealth, who longed for the little vineyard of the poor man; or the other, heartily despising a "king's fortune of much gold" and imperial wealth, who was satisfied with his vineyard? Does he not seem richer and more a king, since he had enough for himself and regulated his desires so that he wanted nothing that belonged to others? But was he not very poor whose gold was of no account, while he considered the other's vines of priceless value? Understand why he was so very poor: because riches amassed unjustly are disgorged, but the root of the righteous remains and flourishes like a palm tree." -- St. Ambrose, Letter 55 (38)

Alms Go To God

"It is the poor man who holds out his hand, but it is God Himself who receives whatever you give to the poor." -- St. John Chrysostom

Cheerfulness in Giving

" Cheerfulness consists in not regarding things as our own, but as entrusted to us by God for the benefit of our fellow servants. It consists in scattering them abroad generously with joy and magnanimity, not reluctantly or under compulsion." -- St Symeon the New Theologian

Grave Clothes Have No Pockets

"When I hear that there is great poverty and misery, I hurt a lot and I cannot pray. I'm not saying when you have two tunics, you should give one. This is unusual and difficult for most. But if you want to be called Christian and have the good things of God, why sweat and fight for material goods and not do charity and good works? You are building your foundation on sand, whoever has a lot of money and manages it selfishly, oblivious to the poverty and misery of his fellow man. Did you ever see grave clothes with pockets? All stays here. Only good works go to heaven. You know why there are wars? For the money. Because the rich cannot put a bridle on greed, and the poor do not wish to acquire the necessary, but envy the riches and glory of the rich. Your pockets should always be open to allow the money to leave towards those in need. It is scandalous that there are pockets full of money and for them to be stitched." -- Elder Paisios, "Four Hours With Father Paisios", by Tasos Mihalas

We Put Gold Necklaces on Ourselves, and Even Our Pets, but Neglect Our Lord

"The text, 'God so loved the world,' shows such an intensity of love. For great indeed and infinite is the distance between the two. The immortal, the infinite majesty without beginning or end loved those who were but dust and ashes, who were loaded with ten thousand sins but remained ungrateful even as they constantly offended him. This is who he 'loved.' For God did not give a servant, or an angel or even an archangel 'but his only begotten Son.' And yet no one would show such anxiety even for his own child as God did for his ungrateful servants.

"He laid down his life for us and poured forth his precious blood for our sakes-even though there is nothing good in us-while we do not even pour out our money for our own sake and neglect him who died for us when he is naked and a stranger. We put gold necklaces on ourselves and even on our pets but neglect our Lord who goes about naked and passes from door to door. He gladly goes hungry so that you may be fed; naked so that he may provide you with the materials for a garment of incorruption, yet we will not even give up any of our own food or clothing for him. These things I say continually, and I will not cease to say them, not so much because I care for the poor but because I care for your souls." -- St. John Chrysostom, Homilies on the Gospel of John 27.2-3.

Money Can't Buy Everything

"Like everybody else, people who are religious, who are in touch with the sacramental life of the Church, want continuous improvements in their lives. So they devote themselves to bettering their standard of living and to acquiring material goods for themselves and their nearest and dearest. Most of them, though, don't want to forget God, and continue to observe the Gospel commandments.

"But a danger lurks here: people might start thinking that the wealth they have accumulated is a sign of God's favour towards them. That's what they thought in the time of the Old Testament. And even today, notions like this are held by many Christians, such as Protestant confessions which interpret the Old Testament according to the letter. There are even those who think that, just as their wealth can provide a host of material goods, they can ensure the salvation of their souls through financial power.

"It would seem that this was roughly what the prominent citizen in today's Gospel extract (Luke 18, 18-27) believed. He approached Jesus and asked Him what he should do to gain eternal life. But the Lord, Who reads people's hearts, realized what the man was about. So when he addressed Christ as "good", Jesus would have none of it and told him that God alone is good. In other words, He realized that this person didn't see Him as God, but as a human being Who would justify his choices for him. That's what he wanted and that's what he sought from Christ. He wanted the conversation to be overheard and for everyone present to know that he was righteous and had guaranteed his salvation.

"So when Christ told him to follow the commandments of the Law, he felt relieved. He said he'd never violated them. But it's not impossible that this was because of his secular power. He may well have been so comfortable that he'd never had the need to violate one of the ordinances of the Mosaic Law. Indeed, some interpretations of this Law provided for the possibility to "buy off" some of one's religious obligations.

"This is why the Lord added that the man was lacking something. He told him he had to sell all his possessions and give the proceeds to the poor. The words of the Lord made the man very sad, because he was exceedingly rich. It's quite clear: God demands everything of a person. He wants people's souls, devoid of the self-interest of this life. The rich man makes his decision straight away: he prefers earthly goods to eternal life. He's not prepared to forego his pleasures in favour of what had, but two minutes before, seemed to be his overriding interest.

"Immediately afterwards, Christ explains exactly what is at stake. It's very difficult, if not impossible for a rich person to enter the Kingdom of Heaven. These people are so tied to their wealth that they're unwilling to give any of it up, even for such an enticing prospect. Those who were listening became aware that attachment to material goods is a danger that affects everyone, rich and poor alike, and quickly asked Him: "Who, then can be saved?".

"But our merciful God will not leave anyone in despair. He loves His creatures and won't allow them to be lost. He wishes to live with them eternally, and this is why He consoles them: what people can't do alone, they can achieve with the love of God. So don't concern yourselves with your goods and don't boast of your virtue. Keep your hope in God and His love, and all the rest will be taken care of by Divine Providence." -- Metropolitan Barnabas of Neapolis and Stavroupolis, John Lucas' Daily Readings, November 27, 2013

The Prosperity Gospel is Dangerous

"This is exactly what the 'Gospel of Prosperity' makes our Lord into -- a crucified shop-a-holic Who died for our finances so we could freely spend." -- Walter Tomaszewski. Friend of Steve Robinson on Facebook, 09/25/2014

Chrysostom on the Prosperity Gospel

"You, too, when you are about to perform any duty for God, expect manifold dangers, punishments, deaths. Don't be surprised or disturbed if such things happen. For it is said, 'My Son, if you come to serve the Lord, prepare your soul for temptation.' For surely no one choosing to fight, expects to carry off the crown without wounds! And you, therefore, who have decided to wage full combat with the devil, don't think to pursue such a life without danger, expecting luxury instead! God has not pledged to you his recompense and promise for this life. These splendid things await you in the future life! Be glad and rejoice then, if when you have yourself done any good action, you receive evil in return ... inasmuch as your suffering is the source of a higher recompense!" -- St. Chrysostom, Homilies on the Statues 1.30

We Own Nothing

"As freely as God gives increase to our efforts, we are encouraged to give it away (Matt.10). We receive from God by His grace and mercy because we really have nothing of our own to claim. Now, if ownership, selfishness and greed are not an issue, it becomes quite easy to let go and give away. We have no reason to keep things for ourselves. This is the upside down economics of the Kingdom--we have nothing, we keep nothing but we manage Kingdom resources to maximize the results. Generosity becomes a lifestyle. The ease of giving away replaces the greed of clinging on to things. The fear of not having enough is replaced by the confidence that we have more than enough to survive and the excesses don't belong to us. We may manage them, but we don't own them. We have open hands to receive and to give away. We cling to nothing. We hold nothing tightly. We own nothing. We only strive to increase the value of what belongs to God. This gives others access to wealth that they otherwise would not enjoy." -- John Rademaker, The Ruin of a Capitalist, [2]

Today is Ours; Tomorrow is Someone Else's

"We don't have here on earth a permanent and lasting home and city, with deep longing we desire the future, the celestial Jerusalem. Vain are all earthly goods. In your heart always have one desire. To aquire the heavens, the eternal good things. All the earthly goods are provisional and deceptive. Today is ours. Tomorrow will be owned by someone else." -- St. Spyridon

Empathy for the Poor

"Here is what we seek: a compassion that can stand in awe at what the poor have to carry rather than stand in judgment at how they carry it." -- Fr. Gregory Boyle, From his book, Tattoos on the Heart

When You See Someone In Need

"When you see someone in need, do not run away, but think to yourself, if that were you, would you want to be treated like that?" -- St. John Chrysostom, Commentary on 1 John 3:17

The Way is Hard but the Yoke is Easy

"If the road is narrow and difficult, how can it be that 'My yoke is easy and my burden is light'? He says difficult because of the nature of the trials but easy because of the willingness of the travelers. It is possible for even what is unendurable by nature to become light when we accept it with eagerness. Remember that the apostles who had been scourged returned rejoicing that they had been found worthy to be dishonored for the name of the Lord." -- St. John Chrysostom, On Lazarus and the Rich Man 3.

See Also

Let us put blame, not on created things, but on the corrupted will in Sin