Is it a sin to want to be wealthy?

[Trad_Catholic_1]

Jesus and his family were skilled artisans. They built houses and furniture and other products made of wood.

Definitely not poor.

this is simply not true. Carpentry in 1st century Judea was a very humble trade. Not as it is today. As you would know if you studied the period.

However, that aside, perhaps you can direct me to a verse in scripture that reads “blessed are the wealthy”?

 

[Agnieszka]

My question would be how many Catholics actually donate 10% ?

IF our average is less than 3% my guess is that very, very few even come close. No wonder why Mary tells us very very few go directly to Heaven.

There was a protestant minister interviewed recenly and he had a very interesting practice. Every year he and his wife had been increasing their donations to his church. He started at 10% and each year he increased it by 1% He is up to donating 31% of his income. That is pretty impressive !

thats a really good idea, yeah i dont think many catholics give alot, we should be giving so much more.

 

[Maranatha]

BTW people have asked about wealthy saints, yes there were wealthy saints, but they didnt die wealthy, they died as nuns. I think when you have wealth, or when born into privilege (most of the USA) then there is a greater weight on you to ask why you were born into that and why you werent born an African kid in Sierra Leone.

While that is true for most wealthy people that have become saints, there are others like St. Louis IX who died King of France. He was one of the wealthiest people of his day.

 

[Agnieszka]

wow, didnt know that one, thanks!

 

[undeserving]

Questions posed by Fr Dubey at the end of his book:-
Am I in love with God?if not why not
Do I consider myself a stranger, a nomad, a pilgrim on earth or am I very much at home?Am I experiencing a serious prayer life?
Am I something of a relativist, that is do I tend to consider contradictory opinions as equally valid or equally unvalid?Have I thought enough of this matter?
Do I take positions and cling to them even if I have studied the pros and cons?
Do I see how my sinfullness and my symapthies colour what I hold in religous and moral matters?
Am I humble enough to accept the doctrine of the Church jesus Himself established to speak in His name?Coul;d I explain to an enquirer why evangelical poverty is not dirt, destitution or miserliness or mere availability or insensitivity to beauty?Have I read sufficiently well the documented lives of the Saints that I may know how they typically think and act how they heroically concretise the Gosepl?
D
How do I stand regarding the worlds basic values- prestige, comfort, power,plesure, sexual excitement success and money?
Do I rationalise my lack of factual frugality on the plea that I am sufficiently detached from what I have?How can I prove to myself that I am poor oiin Spirit?
Am I happy when at times circumstances require me to go wthout a necessity?
Am I aware that sharing with the needy is a condition for possessing a living faith(Jas2:14-17) and therefore of being in a state of Grace?(jn3:17-18)
is my concern for the dire destitution of the millions abstract or does it change my manner of living?

Many more hard questions, but I’ve posted the importent ones.

 

[Sandi]

If it is, I’m guilty

I would LOVE to have unlimited piles of money so I could help out my family, donate to charity, do good works, and have a little toy or two for myself. I don’t think there’s anything wrong with that as long as the desire for wealth doesn’t get in the way of what’s really important in life.

 

[Trad_Catholic_1]

If it is, I’m guilty

I would LOVE to have unlimited piles of money so I could help out my family, donate to charity, do good works, and have a little toy or two for myself. I don’t think there’s anything wrong with that as long as the desire for wealth doesn’t get in the way of what’s really important in life.

There’s often a lot of talk about superannuation and planning for the future and retirement. One superannuation industry expert was being interviewed on radio in Sydney.

The superannuation expert was arguing along these lines: “We need to think about the future. We need to look after our futures. The population is aging, we won’t be able to afford the pension for everyone. Therefore, you need to think about the future … your future … and make sure you prepare properly.”

The interviewer replied: “Humm, yes, it’s a very important point you make - the importance of thinking about he future … and preparing for the future … and living rightly now … in the light of the future. Have you thought about your future … and what will happen after you die?”

There was a long pause. The superannuation industry expert was completely flawed … had no idea what to say.

The interviewer said to him: “Well, you should think about the future, You should think about what will happen after you die.”

If the superannuation industry expert was to decide there was no life after death, then there would be nothing else to live for other than himself. He might as well ‘eat, drink and be merry for tomorrow we die’, following the adage that ‘he who dies with the most - wins’. But it is a pretty unsatisfactory, pathetic, selfish existence.

Christ demonstrated to us that there is life after death by rising from the dead himself. It is a fact in history that He died on the cross two thousand years ago and then rose to life again. Jesus Christ has conquered death and now gives new life.

Jesus is crystal clear in saying to the superannuation expert that we are conscious after our death. There are two alternative states of existence. Jesus says people either are in ‘heaven’ or ‘hell’. The picture that Jesus paints of heaven is of people enjoying permanent relationship with God. The picture of hell is one of relational agony, as those there are permanently aware of the relationship that they are missing out on.

It is through the resurrection of Jesus Christ that we are given new birth into a living hope of an ‘eternal superannuation’ which can never perish, spoil or fade. This ‘eternal superannuation’ is the wonderful permanent relationship with Him.

Jesus tells us not to live foolishly for ourselves, not giving a thought to the future. But to live for God, recognising that there will come a time of death and accountability before God.

The question is will we accept the death of Christ that pays for our rebellion against God, and trust that His resurrection guarantees us a life after death with Him?

Yours in Christ

Paul

 

[newf]

There is absolutely NOTHING wrong with being wealthy.
There is nothing wrong with the desire to be wealthy, either, as long as it doesn’t get in the way of what is important, as Sandi said.

What is important is that we love God and each other, not money or weath. On the other hand, we can use wealth to show our love to God and each other.

 

[Trad_Catholic_1]

There is absolutely NOTHING wrong with being wealthy.
There is nothing wrong with the desire to be wealthy, either, as long as it doesn’t get in the way of what is important, as Sandi said.

What is important is that we love God and each other, not money or weath. On the other hand, we can use wealth to show our love to God and each other.

Well, I don’t think it matters to God how much wealth one has. And philanthropy is not the exclusive preserve of Christianity. However, he who has much, then much will be expected, if the tale of the widow’s mite is anything to go by.

We are only on earth for a finite amount of time. One can either use that time to accumulate wealth on earth, or wealth in the hereafter. The choice is yours.

We must all work out our salvation with fear and trembling—not fear lest God should fail us, but fear lest by our negligence we should abandon Christ and fall away into sin.

Yours in Christ

Paul

 

[newf]

I think there might be a misunderstanding here…there are people who are gifted by God with making money…they don’t sit around saying ‘wow, how can I make the most amount of $$ at the price of my soul’. They may be gifted in an industry that pays more than most and they give to help others.

It’s not be poor and be holy or be rich and be damned.

 

[Trad_Catholic_1]

I think there might be a misunderstanding here…there are people who are gifted by God with making money…they don’t sit around saying ‘wow, how can I make the most amount of $$ at the price of my soul’. They may be gifted in an industry that pays more than most and they give to help others.

It’s not be poor and be holy or be rich and be damned.

No misunderstanding. As I have already stated: he who has much, then much will be expected, if the tale of the widow’s mite is anything to go by.

And…

We must all work out our salvation with fear and trembling—not fear lest God should fail us, but fear lest by our negligence we should abandon Christ and fall away into sin.

We fight against sin, the world and the devil. It is not a question of whether there are people who are gifted by God with making money. One could argue there are people who are gifted by God with producing food. But one does not assume therefore that over-eating is not bad because we’re feeding the hungry.

I agree that many Godly people are personally wealthy, but wealth while providing material comfort and security remains a very dangerous thing because of what it breeds. People will kill over it. Personally, I think it is wiser not to have anything to do with it at all if possible.

forgive me if I appear to be uncharitably taking a moral stance against you on this issue. It is not my intention.

Yours in Christ

Paul

 

[newf]

I agree that many Godly people are personally wealthy, but wealth while providing material comfort and security remains a very dangerous thing because of what it breeds. People will kill over it. Personally, I think it is wiser not to have anything to do with it at all if possible.

First of all, I don’t think you are being uncharitable, no problem there.

But maybe you are not called to be wealthy because you are not equipped to handle it…many people handle it badly, that is true. But that doesn’t make being wealthy the problem, it is the heart of the person that is the problem. There are poor people with very bad hearts, too…it’s not a matter of wealth.

We are all a part of the body of Christ. Some of us are a hand, others a leg…we have very different functions. It is understandable that a hand would not want to wear a boot…it makes no sense. Just like maybe for you, Trad, it is understandable that you just don’t want to deal with wealth, it’s not your calling. You seem to have a heart for teaching others about working out salvation with fear and trembling. Someone else may be called to share their wealth… But we all have our place and we all work together for the good of the body.

 

[aboverubies]

And as to why I want wealth? Well, I want to make more money, so that I can quit my part time job and be a full time mother again. Also, if we had more money coming in, it would mean my husband won’t have to work so much if any overtime every week so that he can spend more time with me and the kids instead of being a slave to his job just so we can pay the bills. We have blessed with two children and want to have at least two more . We have seriously considered homeschooling and would like to do it, but it would be very hard with our current circumstances.

These are just a few of the many reasons. I guess it just comes down to having more freedom to do what we would like in life, instead of always spending time working just to pay the bills. My passion is my family, and if I can be with them and spend time with them, then money is just a means to that end.

Hope I made some sense

No great advice on wealth from me I’m afraid. I just wanted to say that these are Godly desires and that I pray that God blesses you with what you need to carry them out. I have very similar desires…I could have written some of these sentences myself. Except for one in another post…Math has never been my friend!

 

[wcknight]

I think a major problem with America is that most of it’s people are striving for material comforts, and this in itself leads us further away from God.

The American dream is to buy whatever is 'necessary, and every THING produced is touted as a dire necessity. The entire economic system is centered on acquiring more and more things, a house, a car, and at least one of every item imaginable.

It’s fine to desire food and shelter, but our society promotes excess, comfort and diversions. We see the Donald Trumps and Bill Gates of the world and we all aspire to their levels of wealth. We all want to be millionaires and tycoons, instead of saints like Mother Theresa and Mother Seton.

There may have been a few rich saints, but the vast majority were poor or lowly. Many relied solely on the generousity of the Almighty.

Even our pasttimes are diversions from what we probably should be doing. We spend our spare time, with tv, movies, sports and all kinds of leisure. BUT the saints spent their time in prayer, helping the poor, working or suffering. God was always in the mind and hearts, while most of our time is being pulled away from God.

For many of the saints, they had very few attachements to this world. They focused in trying to be detached and not concerned about whether their team made it to the Super Bowl or to the playoffs.

I’m very much a product of this society, I spent the weekend rooting for my favorite sports team, shopping or tv. Most of my weekend was a diversion, only mass was my concession to God. I focus more on my golf swing or my bowling than I do on trying to discern the will of God. I may not be actively involved in serious sin, but my attention is rooted on earth and not on Heaven.

While not actually evil, I think our society does an even better job of diverting our attention from God. It is very very subtle and probably much more dangerous. In mordern society, Satan is using comfort and pleasure in more subtle ways. We are being addicted to worldly things without our even being aware of it.

I’ve been reading a book on the life of St. Gerald Majella, and his life is so very different than anything we know. Granted he is an extreme example that even the holiest saint would be hard to match. The fact that his focus was always on God for his entire life tells us that our focus should be more on God and less on this life. IF we want to end up in the same place as he and all the other saints are, then we need to be more God focused and less world focused.

The more we let the world pull our attention away from God, the further away from Heaven we will be. IF I spent half the amount of time in Church as I did in front of the tv, I would be a saint several times over.

 

[Al_Masetti]

There have been vastly differing understandings of “wealth”.

One thread of thought says that wealth is anything more than the most modest of food, clothing and shelter.

Another says that “wealth” doesn’t kick in until the person has a converted airliner as his or her personal transport.

On the other hand, merely claiming that anything above and beyond food, clothing and shelter is wealth does not allow saving up for a “rainy day”. People need to put money away for their one-day hopeful retirement … or to be less pleasant, for when they are either infirm and nobody wants to hire them anymore or for when they are no longer able to work.

In some other posts, it was suggested that folks might need to amass in the vicinity of $1 million. Maybe less, depending on the cost of living where they live and if they have access to pension money or Social Security. Maybe more, depending on a variety of factors.

That means making strenuous efforts at saving and investing, both in terms of putting money away AND learning how to invest.

 

[Agnieszka]

I think a major problem with America is that most of it’s people are striving for material comforts, and this in itself leads us further away from God.

The American dream is to buy whatever is 'necessary, and every THING produced is touted as a dire necessity. The entire economic system is centered on acquiring more and more things, a house, a car, and at least one of every item imaginable.

It’s fine to desire food and shelter, but our society promotes excess, comfort and diversions. We see the Donald Trumps and Bill Gates of the world and we all aspire to their levels of wealth. We all want to be millionaires and tycoons, instead of saints like Mother Theresa and Mother Seton.

There may have been a few rich saints, but the vast majority were poor or lowly. Many relied solely on the generousity of the Almighty.

Even our pasttimes are diversions from what we probably should be doing. We spend our spare time, with tv, movies, sports and all kinds of leisure. BUT the saints spent their time in prayer, helping the poor, working or suffering. God was always in the mind and hearts, while most of our time is being pulled away from God.

For many of the saints, they had very few attachements to this world. They focused in trying to be detached and not concerned about whether their team made it to the Super Bowl or to the playoffs.

I’m very much a product of this society, I spent the weekend rooting for my favorite sports team, shopping or tv. Most of my weekend was a diversion, only mass was my concession to God. I focus more on my golf swing or my bowling than I do on trying to discern the will of God. I may not be actively involved in serious sin, but my attention is rooted on earth and not on Heaven.

While not actually evil, I think our society does an even better job of diverting our attention from God. It is very very subtle and probably much more dangerous. In mordern society, Satan is using comfort and pleasure in more subtle ways. We are being addicted to worldly things without our even being aware of it.

I’ve been reading a book on the life of St. Gerald Majella, and his life is so very different than anything we know. Granted he is an extreme example that even the holiest saint would be hard to match. The fact that his focus was always on God for his entire life tells us that our focus should be more on God and less on this life. IF we want to end up in the same place as he and all the other saints are, then we need to be more God focused and less world focused.

The more we let the world pull our attention away from God, the further away from Heaven we will be. IF I spent half the amount of time in Church as I did in front of the tv, I would be a saint several times over.

I agree, what a brilliant post.

We live in a world where it is ok to be lukewarm, where as long as we remain in our own selfish existence and dont do anything to offend God then we are ok. Most people dont truly believe, or they may believe but they dont love Him. As Christians we should be showing everyone who Christ is. Imagine if all Catholics took the vows of poverty and served the Lord, served the poor. What a different place the world would be now.

 

[Sandi]

Then you are a fool.

What a kind and charitable post. And you call yourself Christian…much less Catholic. You make Jesus ashamed of you.

 

[Al_Masetti]

Just to provide a bit of balance to the discussion:

I will go out on a limb and state that the United States is also the home of more voluntary spirit than any other country in the world.

More Americans volunteer to help, to do stuff, than any other group on the planet.

More Americans engage in private voluntary anonymous philanthropy than any other nationality. There have been criticisms that Americans don’t give as much as other countries… but those it compiled the numbers deliberately omitted private giving.

Some Americans do it with religious motivations and some do it with humanitarian motivations. Maybe some are merely altruistic.

Look around you and take note of all the non-governmental volunteerism; and tally it up