“There is enough in the world for everyone’s need, but not enough for everyone’s greed” says Frank Buchman. Every time I see a commercial of World Vision or other Christian organizations that serve the less privileged people in Africa, India and other third world nations I am much moved and often wonder if anything could be done about this problem. Honestly most of the times this desire to make a difference does not last long because I justify myself that this is too big a problem for me to be tackling. Recently I was reading about Greed, and was stuck with some very powerful thoughts. Greed could be generally defined as ‘an intense and misdirected desire or ambition to possess or acquire for self”.
For many of us who live in the land of abundance, this is not a sin, it is not even considered wrong, instead we now live in a world where we have idolized greed and use all kinds of glamorous names that make it look fashionable and desirable. Being wealthy is not wrong in itself, but glorifying the desire for wealth is terrible. As Westerners we are privileged and blessed to have things, but the addiction to things can make us very disabled. Rich Mullins nailed it when he said “It’s a cultural disability in America that we worship pleasure, leisure, and affluence”. Greed is a universal problem and is strongly rooted in our sinful nature; watch how quickly a child learns the word ‘mine’. It’s unfortunate that many of us are stuck with that self-centered world view for the rest of our life. It is said that “we grab what we can, while we can, however we can, and then sit on the ‘can’.”
“It’s a cultural disability in America that we worship pleasure, leisure, and affluence”- Rich Mullins
Those who suffer from greed never are satisfied with what they have acquired or already possess. Listen to the conclusion of the wisest man on earth “Whoever loves money never has money enough; whoever loves wealth is never satisfied with his income. This too is vanity” (Ecclesiastes 5:10). The problem with greed is that it is an addiction and you are caught in a vicious circle of acquiring things and then are concerned about protecting things you have acquired. You need to acquire more to protect what you have already acquired and so goes the wheel. Remember the guy about whom Jesus talked in Luke 12, he wanted to acquire more and when he got more, he was worried about storing this extra acquisition. Greed not only enslaves the individual but also destroys the harmony of life on earth.
“we grab what we can, while we can, however we can, and then hold on to it hard.”
Someone said “Greed is the acquisition of a desirable good by one person or a group beyond need; resulting in unequal distribution to the point that others are deprived.” In the words of Thomas Aquinas “it is a sin directly against one’s neighbor, since one man cannot over-abound in external riches, without another man lacking them…”. I do not intend to accuse any of us as greedy, but I do think each of us needs to examine our heart constantly to keep away greed. Because it may just start as a small legitimate desire or wish and if we are not careful we will soon become slaves to this monster. Leo Tolstoy is one of my favorite short story writers. His story “How much does a man need?” is probably one of the greatest short stories written in the 19th century. It is a powerful depiction of the futility of man’s greed.
“There was a peasant named Pahom who lived on a small piece of land with his wife, children and some farm animals. He complained that he did not have enough land and was never content. Someone told Pahom about the country of the Bashkirs where one could get a lot of land for nothing, so he immediately left to the country of plenty. The chief Bashkir told him that all the land Pahom could cover on foot in a day would be his; the only catch in the deal was that he had to be back at his starting point by sundown. The next day early in the morning Pahom put his money on the cap and started to walk towards the East for a long distance, and then he dug a hole to mark the corner. The further he went, he found the area too nice to lose, and he decided to walk faster so that he can cover more land. He was getting tired but the land seemed getting better and better, and so he started to walk faster and faster, he quickened his pace and as the sun began to sink low in the sky he began to run.
He finally saw the Bashkirs were waving their hands, telling him to hurry. Pahom’s heart was beating fast and his lungs were ready to pop. He gathered all his energy to sprint to the cap, fell forward and touched it with his hands. He won! But Pahom remained lying on the ground. His servant went only to find that Pahom was dead. And all the land that Pahom needed measured less than six feet from his head to his heels.” Let’s ask this question often “How much does a man need?” Remember the warning of Jesus in Lk 12:15 “Watch out! Be on your guard against all kinds of greed; a man’s life does not consist in the abundance of his possessions”.
“Watch out! Be on your guard against all kinds of greed; a man’s life does not consist in the abundance of his possessions” – Jesus
– – Author: Rev. Francis Burgula – –
