Money and Evil
In nomine Patris, et Filii, et Spiritus Sancti. Amen
The words “money”, “wealthy”, and “rich” conjures up a plethora of images, opinions and emotions. Some loathe those words. Some hate them. Others enjoy and seek them. This entry is rather personal to me. Until I read it in Robert Kiyosaki’s Rich Dad series, I never gave a thought of either words or getting rich.
Let’s begin with the common misconception: people say that the Bible blames money as the root of all evil. Below is the extract from St. Paul’s First Letter to St. Timothy that is commonly being misquoted:-
Certainly, the love of money is the root of all kinds of evil. Some people who have set their hearts on getting rich have wandered away from the Christian faith and have caused themselves a lot of grief. (1 Timothy 6:10, GNB)
Throughout the four Holy Gospels, there are accounts where Jesus lashes out at the rich and wealthy. But you should not assume that He is anti-rich and anti-wealthy. In fact, Jesus had used money and gold in a number of Parables. My favourite: the Parable of the Traveller and his Three Servants (Mat 25:14-30, GNB).
In summary, this parable illustrates a rich man who gave three of his servants some gold according to their ability. He then went away for quite some time. When he returned and met the servants, two of them return the gold coins twice the number they had received. They were both praised and celebrated by the man. The third servant, however, returned the same 1,000 gold coins he received. When the man left, this servant dug up a hole and hid it. Unfortunately, the third servant was scolded by the man and banished from the estate.
Good job! You’re a good and faithful servant! You proved that you could be trusted with a small amount. I will put you in charge of a large amount. Come and share your master’s happiness.
The words uttered by the man.
Applying the lesson to reality:-
God created the world and its inhabitants, including Humankind. In this world, He gave us resources which we ought to use. Resources which include gold, diamonds, land and money. When we use it, the idea is for the betterment of the whole of Humankind. In fact, God does not expect us to sit down and wait for Him to send food and water. There are many warnings against sloth!
The sin here is not having or collecting money. Is it wrong for us to collect money to build a church? Is it sinful to collect money to pay and maintain our missionaries? Why would God make it sinful for us to collect money to buy Bibles? Evidently accumulation of wealth could not be a sin per se.
What the Bible teaches us is to be wary of the love of money. This “love” is the cause of all evil. Because of this love, people are willing to kill, to rape, to sell their body, to cheat and to be come an animal so terrible that nothing in the animal kingdom can describe it. The love of money creates a monster out of us.
I’m not saying that everyone must be rich. What I’m trying to convey is: money is just a tool. A tool which you can use to build or destroy. A tool indifferent from knives, fire, water, stone and iron.
While being rich is not mandatory, it is definitely sinful to not use the skills God gave us. In fact, not using it is no different from being lazy – just like the third servant. An elaboration on this is another entry. (“,)
What do you think? Is money the root of all evil? Or is it the love of money which is the root of all evil?
