Greed and our soul?

[marica_mandic]

Greed is an excessive desire to possess goods, status or power.
What is a normal desire, to possess goods just necessary for living?
What if I have 1 million dollar is that mean that I am without sin only if I give that to another who do not have for eat, church has also property.

 

[Nelka]

Greed is an excessive desire to possess goods, status or power.

Correct.

What is a normal desire, to possess goods just necessary for living?

Correct.

What if I have 1 million dollar is that mean that I am without sin only if I give that to another who do not have for eat, church has also property.

Matthew 19:21 Jesus said, ‘If you wish to be perfect, go and sell your possessions and give the money to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; then come, follow me.’

 

[marica_mandic]

Correct.

Correct.

Matthew 19:21 Jesus said, ‘If you wish to be perfect, go and sell your possessions and give the money to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; then come, follow me.’

Thanks . That is the trust in God, when I do not have property and I belive that He care about me and I do not have fear of egzistence.

 

[Sailor_Kenshin]

Correct.

Correct.

Matthew 19:21 Jesus said, ‘If you wish to be perfect, go and sell your possessions and give the money to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; then come, follow me.’

Don’t take that literally, and don’t take it to apply across the board to everyone.

People don’t stop to think that goods represent jobs, and a decent way to make a living. You buy a car, you become the employer of probably hundreds of people.

We are NOT all called to live in radical poverty or mere subsistence level. Some have children and aged parents to provide for. Some have a wider circle to help and influence.

The Church wisely does not demand everyone live at a subsistence leve, nor put a dollar amount on what is ‘good.’

 

[Hecares]

God has given each of us gifts. Some have the gift to teach, some the gift to cook, some the gift to make money, some the gift to preach, and so on. We are all called to share our gifts with those they can help. To share does not mean to give all. In fact most of the gifts we can’t give entirely to others.

Much is expected of those who have received many gifts, but that is something they need to work out with their consciences and God, and maybe with a confessor or spiritual director. The number 10% comes to mind as an example of what we should give. That is what we should tithe to the Church. I don’t recall an amount being set for charitable giving.

 

[svid2]

Correct.

Correct.

Matthew 19:21 Jesus said, ‘If you wish to be perfect, go and sell your possessions and give the money to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; then come, follow me.’

Upon hearing this verse, Francis of Assisi did as our Lord commanded. He’s a canonized saint.

 

[Sailor_Kenshin]

I appreciate this sentiment:

"If you have food in your fridge, clothes on your back, a roof over your head and a place to sleep, you are richer than 75% of the world.

If you have money in your bank, your wallet, and some spare change, you are among 8% of the world’s wealthy.

If you woke up this morning with more health than illness, you are more blessed than the million people who will not survive this week.

If you have never experienced the danger of battle, the agony of imprisonment or torture or the horrible pangs of starvation, you are luckier than 500 million people alive and suffering.

If you can read this message, you are more fortunate than 3 billion people in the world who cannot read at all."

 

[Hecares]

Thanks . That is the trust in God, when I do not have property and I belive that He care about me and I do not have fear of egzistence.

I always trust that God will provide. However, I think we have to do what we can to provide for ourselves and others. There is an American saying that God helps those who help themselves. I think that means to do what you can and trust that God will take care of the rest.

I am not good at giving locations in the Bible, but I usually remember ideas pretty well. In the Acts of the Apostles, there was a time when people quit working and remained idle while they waited for the second coming. When the apostles found out about them, they said that those who do not work should not eat.

St. Paul worked as a tentmaker. Wherever he went he worked to provide for his own needs and also preached the gospel. He tells the people in one of his epistles that he has never asked for support from them.

 

[Sailor_Kenshin]

If everyone sold off all possessions and became itinerant preachers, who would feed the poor? Clothe them? Provide for anyone?

Greed is a human tendency. It’s almost a survival instinct— to hoard against famine. Like any of the seven deadly sins it has to be fought. But people seem to define greed as anyone who has one golf club and five dollars more than they do. How is that useful?

Half of the Catholics I’ve met are anything-goes, we-need-women-priests types; the other half tell you that you are a heretic and should be burnt at the stake if you attend a NO Mass.

I give up.

 

[Nelka]

If everyone sold off all possessions and became itinerant preachers, who would feed the poor? Clothe them? Provide for anyone?

Greed is a human tendency. It’s almost a survival instinct— to hoard against famine. Like any of the seven deadly sins it has to be fought. But people seem to define greed as anyone who has one golf club and five dollars more than they do. How is that useful?

Half of the Catholics I’ve met are anything-goes, we-need-women-priests types; the other half tell you that you are a heretic and should be burnt at the stake if you attend a NO Mass.

I give up.

So billionaires are hoarding in case of a famine?

Jesus wasn’t asking people to starve to death.
He wanted people to do away with all that money.

What is the point in having £20 billion in the bank and not spending it?

Why does a single man need ten super luxury cars?

Some people win millions on the lottery and the following week buy more tickets.

I knew someone at work who won £12,000 on the lottery, that’s like a years wages, he was angry that he didn’t win the jackpot.

Our managers at work gave themselves a decent payrise and a bigger annual bonus. Afterwards they told the rest of us that the company didn’t have enough money for us to have a 1% payrise.

Greed?

We aren’t talking about people who have a few quid more, the super rich.

 

[Lost_Wanderer]

So billionaires are hoarding in case of a famine?

Jesus wasn’t asking people to starve to death.
He wanted people to do away with all that money.

What is the point in having £20 billion in the bank and not spending it?

You can never tell just how fast money can be spent and you can never underestimate the dollar value of a lot of things.

If I had that much money in the bank, I’d sure be quite cautious on how to spend/invest it.

It may seem easy to give all that money to the poor but that’s only until you see the nasty societal complex that creates them in the first place.

 

[Nelka]

You can never tell just how fast money can be spent./QUOTE]

Is that a justification for keeping £20 billion in your bank? With all that interest?

I couldn’t do it.

You can’t take it with you.

 

[Lost_Wanderer]

Is that a justification for keeping £20 billion in your bank? With all that interest?

I couldn’t do it.

You can’t take it with you.

I never said keeping but you should be wise enough to know that throwing it away to charity isn’t the best idea.

I often wondered if people ever thought of actually reflecting on the question, “What would I do with £20 billion?”

Do you even have any idea how much math is involved? Remember, not everybody has an Accounting degree. There are so many, many ways one can spend that money with varying degrees of wastefulness vs well spent.

It’s actually much simpler to think about what to do with, let’s say, 2 bucks and a few quarters seeing as how your options become significantly reduced.

 

[Nelka]

It’s actually much simpler to think about what to do with, let’s say, 2 bucks and a few quarters seeing as how your options become significantly reduced.

Good point.

I would never want to be rich, not like that although I don’t like being poor either.

As long as I have my house, the rest can come and go. (Talking about possessions not family).

 

[francisca]

Being greedy has nothing to do with being rich.

One maybe poor and greedy.

 

[Sailor_Kenshin]

So billionaires are hoarding in case of a famine?

Jesus wasn’t asking people to starve to death.
He wanted people to do away with all that money.

What is the point in having £20 billion in the bank and not spending it?

Why does a single man need ten super luxury cars?

Some people win millions on the lottery and the following week buy more tickets.

I knew someone at work who won £12,000 on the lottery, that’s like a years wages, he was angry that he didn’t win the jackpot.

Our managers at work gave themselves a decent payrise and a bigger annual bonus. Afterwards they told the rest of us that the company didn’t have enough money for us to have a 1% payrise.

Greed?

We aren’t talking about people who have a few quid more, the super rich.

I don’t think you understand large-scale economics. I don’t think your reply is addressing any of my concerns.

Please show me exactly where and how Jesus ‘wanted us to do away with money.’

And please explain how an individual’s reaction to not winning the lottery he wanted, have ANY effect whatever on what other people may or may not licitly own?

And why even bring it up? The Church rightly condemns class envy and COVETING.

 

[Hecares]

I don’t think you understand large-scale economics. I don’t think your reply is addressing any of my concerns.

Please show me exactly where and how Jesus ‘wanted us to do away with money.’

And please explain how an individual’s reaction to not winning the lottery he wanted, have ANY effect whatever on what other people may or may not licitly own?

And why even bring it up? The Church rightly condemns class envy and COVETING.

It seems to me that the reaction described to winning the lottery and the pay raises given by upper management to themselves do demonstrate a greedy attitude. People want more for themselves even if it is at the expense of other people, and they never seem to get enough.

The issue of dealing with money is very complex. On the one hand we need to keep enough to keep ourselves healthy and safe and on the other we need to share our gifts including money with those who have less. I am retired. How much money will it require for me to survive for however many years God wants me to stay on this earth?

Another issue that bothers me is that there are so many people who have nothing because of the way they live. Do I really help someone if I give them money and they spend it on alcohol, cigarettes, and drugs while their children still go hungry?

There is a lot to think about and pray about. We all need to make decisions according to our consciences, and let others do the same. We don’t know enough about anyone else to be able to judge their greed or lack thereof.

 

[Sailor_Kenshin]

So billionaires are hoarding in case of a famine?

Jesus wasn’t asking people to starve to death.
He wanted people to do away with all that money.

What is the point in having £20 billion in the bank and not spending it?

Why does a single man need ten super luxury cars?

Some people win millions on the lottery and the following week buy more tickets.

I knew someone at work who won £12,000 on the lottery, that’s like a years wages, he was angry that he didn’t win the jackpot.

Our managers at work gave themselves a decent payrise and a bigger annual bonus. Afterwards they told the rest of us that the company didn’t have enough money for us to have a 1% payrise.

Greed?

We aren’t talking about people who have a few quid more, the super rich.

Let me ask again:

So you say a rich man buys ten cars. And you take issue with that fact.

Where did that money go?

It went into the pockets of the workers who produced those cars. Those purchases could have supported hundreds of people AND their families in terms of daily bread.

Do you suppose the rich keep their money under a mattress? Money in the bank (and you claim to know how much people have; where is your proof?) isn’t just there to look pretty. It can be used as collateral for investments, to create more jobs for the poor you claim to care about.

Beware of condemning wealth itself. This is like condemning the priesthood itself because a tiny minority of priests went wrong.