Money

“Deep down we all yearn for the true life in Christ, whether we are rich and poor, men or women, slaves or masters (1 Tim 6:19). For this reason, Christ Jesus enlightened His apostles to understand both the spiritual pitfalls and the potentials for good inherent in material wealth.” (Dynamis 12/23/2021)

“Wealth can be a terrible burden or temptation to many. Wealth, as the aphorism says, is a good servant but bad master. Unfortunately, many submit themselves and their goals to the tyrant wealth…Wealth in and of itself is not the problem – the love of money, however, is the root of all evil (1 Timothy 6:10). Prosperity can be a gift from God, a gift given to some so that they might provide to those less fortunate.” (Fr. Ted Bobosh)

“The ninth Sunday of Saint Luke and the Gospel reading again revolves around the great temptation of the misuse of wealth. The parable of the foolish rich man is well-known and, at the same time, of enduring interest to everyone, not only to those who have a lot of money. The man …was so rich that he didn’t have room to store all his wealth and goods…his sole interest in life was to acquire more and more goods. He was the type of man who, instead of being in love with the beauty of life, was someone with a life-long passion for an abundance of material goods. The poor man was under the illusion that, by hoarding wealth, he was storing up happiness. This kind of concern really is a sickness….it’s an erosion of the soul because of which, instead of people working in order to live a decent life, they live and work in order to make profits. The rich man in the Gospel isn’t merely rich; he’s completely devoted to and absorbed in how to become even richer. He’s the personification of a person whose sole interest is money and worldly goods.” (Protopresbyter Nikolaos Patsalos)

“Anyone who combines wealth with wrong desires has mixed a deadly combination. In such a case, to lose the wealth would be a healthy alternative. To make the soul pure—that is, poor and bare—we need to focus on the next words of the Savior, ‘Come, follow me.‘ (Mark. 10:21) He becomes the way to the pure in heart. God’s grace finds no entrance into the impure soul. And the soul that is rich in desires, entangled with affection for the things of the world, is impure. Yet, some people are able to hold their gold, silver, houses, and other possessions simply as the gifts of God. They use their things to minister for the salvation of men. They thereby return them to God, who gave them. They know that they possess them more for the sake of their brothers than for themselves. They are the masters of their belongings, not the slaves of their possessions. They don’t carry their belongings around in their soul, nor do they plan their life around their things. Instead, they are always laboring at some good, divinely inspired activity.” (St. Clement of Alexandria)

“What then? Did not many avoid death by paying money? Certainly, but they did not get free from sin and in fact they prepared for themselves a life much worse than death. Therefore let us not put our confidence in wealth but in virtue. Indeed when justice comes to deadly sins, people are taken away by death. Would they not rather receive profit from being righteous than from treasures amassed on the earth, “where [as Mt 6:19 says,] they grow rusty and moth-eaten, and thieves break in to steal them?” Thus, justice not only saves those who possess it but also leads many others to desire it, and . . . transports them from death to eternal immortality.” (St. John Chrysostom)

“Money is a good servant but a bad master. We can employ it for the good of others, or we can let it master our thoughts and desires. We can use it in our short lives on earth to accomplish great things for others and for eternal rewards. Or we can attempt to keep control of it in our lives which are passing away and have nothing in the world to come.” (Fr. Ted Bobosh)

“While some are called to live a life of absolute poverty, the majority of us must meet our family and social responsibilities through earning a living. Christ does not condemn prudence, only avarice. We know when our necessary care over our wealth has become avarice when it begins to create anxiety; all of us should watch for the signs of this developing in our hearts.” (Father Spyridon Baily)

“The majority of us enjoy goods, satisfactions, and pleasures unknown to the rest of the world. Yes, there are those we call wealthy, which gives us the feeling that we are not truly rich. But honestly, by the standard of most people on earth we are quite rich, well fed, and comfortable…What about the goods that God has placed in our hands? Grave and eternal danger may overtake us in our material well-being, even though our riches may be limited, and our pleasures constrained. May God reveal our true spiritual condition to us! The material things we possess can either help us grow toward the grace of God or turn us away from the true life in Christ…By choosing to seek and apply God’s grace, we may learn how to handle the good things of this life in the way of the Lord.” (Dynamis 10/5/2020)

“…you worship money and things—if they are where you tap real meaning in life—then you will never have enough. Never feel you have enough. It’s the truth. Worship your own body and beauty and allure and you will always feel ugly, and when time and age start showing, you will die a million deaths before they finally plant you. On one level, we all know this stuff already—it’s been codified as myths, proverbs, clichés, bromides, epigrams, parables: the skeleton of every great story. The trick is keeping the truth up front in daily consciousness.” (James Smith)

“The reason why a rich man can hardly be saved, according to Jesus, is because when one has possessions, he wants to keep them, and gather still more. For the “delight in riches chokes the word of God, and so it proves unfruitful” in man’s heart (Mt 13.22, Mk 4.19, Lk 8.14). According to the apostle Paul, the “love of money”—not money itself—is the “root of all evils.”… The apostle himself collected money for the poor and greatly praised those who were generous in giving…The spiritual person must share what he has with the poor. He must do so cheerfully and not reluctantly, secretly and not for the praise of men. He also must do so, as the poor widow in the gospel, not out of his abundance, but out of his need…Giving alms, therefore, must be a sacrificial act if it has any spiritual worth.” (Fr. Thomas Hopko)

“Many years before the Lord took flesh and dwelt among us, the Prophet David perceived the grave danger in wealth, warning, “If riches flow in, set not your hearts thereon” (Ps 61:10). Wherever our heart is fixed – whatever matter delights it, whatever goal is foremost in its yearning – becomes the compass guiding our whole life. As the Lord Jesus says, “Where your treasure is, there your heart will be also” (Mt 6:21). Why, then, does Christ focus on riches in particular? He warns three times that wealth makes it difficult “to enter the kingdom of God” (Mk 10:23, 24, 25). Is there something inherently wrong with wealth in and of itself? Not at all! The danger of riches lies in how the heart orients itself to them. For fickle-hearted mankind, riches repeatedly prove to be a stumbling block, the shoals upon which many have wrecked themselves in this life and for the age to come.” (Dynamis 1/24/2020)

"We know and understand that at the creation of the world, God looked upon it and said that it was good. Adam and Eve in the Garden had an ascetic command: to fast from the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil. Only when they broke the fast, misusing the creation, did they find themselves separated from God. Therefore, it is not the creation that is to be rejected but the misuse of it, just as it is not food which is bad, but gluttony; it is not money that is evil, but greed for it. This ascetic ethos of the Church applies equally for all people and is exemplified in monasticism." (Archimandrite Sergius)

"When Jesus encountered a rich young man He invited him to give away his wealth for the sake of the Kingdom of God, but even the enthusiasm which brought him to Jesus disappeared at such a request. We should be aware that though this man had much material wealth, for others it may be other kinds of possessions which we hindrances to following Christ. For some it may be intelligence, physical beauty or certain talents they feel they have. Many of us possess things we value too highly, things we cling to that we need to let go of or that we need to put to the service of God." (Father Spyridon Baily)

“Many others think…: Why waste money on splendid churches and religious devotion when there are so many people in need? But throughout its history, the Church has always stressed the importance of both religious devotion and charity. Both are pleasing to God if they are done in a spirit of love.” (Archimandrite Vassilios Papavassiliou)

"We should remember that at the crucifixion the Roman soldiers cast lots for Christ’s robe because it was of such a high quality and they didn’t want to divide it up. Christ was not making a display of His wealth (it may have been a gift from a wealthy disciple) but neither did He wander round in rags trying to prove how other worldly or spiritual He was." (Father Spyridon Baily)

"The ladder of the spiritual life leads downwards rather than up (or it leads us back to where we already are). The lives of the saints are replete with those who abandoned wealth in order to become poor and find God. I can think of no stories in which a saint acquired wealth in order to enter the Kingdom. I do not think it is necessary for everyone to abandon what they have and head to the deserts. It is sufficient, in my experience, to simply practice mercy, kindness and generosity where you are, and to bear your own failings and incompetence with patience. And, though this sounds easy, it is more than most are willing to do.” (Father Stephen Freeman)

“Seeing material wealth instead of men’s hearts can seduce us into believing that possessions are the result of wisdom. Awash in such a falsehood, we can easily become “lifted up and . . . forget the Lord your God” (Dt 8:14), who establishes us in true life through Christ. We may easily become haughty because of material riches, for wealth gives temporal power to those who possess it, tempting them to believe that they are superior or more important than others. Thus, Saint Paul advises the wealthy not to “trust in uncertain riches but in the living God, who gives us richly all things to enjoy” (1 Tim 6:17).” (Dynamis 11/29/2018)

“The problem with money and having enough of it to be very comfortable is just that – comfort. The problem with comfort based on having enough is that we can develop a false sense of peace and well-being, meaning that we think we have a healthy spirituality and relationship and knowledge of God, but it is too much a product of a false sense of security. Just ask anyone who considers themselves persons of faith and who have had enough money and good health and then have a major financial or health crisis. The way they will describe their relationship and knowledge of God before and after will be very different.” (Sacramental Living Blog) "If we place our hope in anything but God it is idolatry. If we believe that we will gain peace of heart if only we could win the lottery or somehow amass a big enough bank balance, then we have placed our faith in money and made it our idol." (Father Spyridon Baily)

“First and foremost, let us trust in the living God, whether we are rich or poor. When we trust in Him, we are free to enjoy and do good with whatever He has given us, regardless of whether we are great or small among men (1 Tim 6:18).” (Dynamis 11/29/2018)

“Christ tells us, “Where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.” This seems to flip our modern understanding. We would normally suggest that someone should “put their money where their heart is.” Christ, instead, tells us that your heart will always follow your money. That is a very serious statement, indeed…It is not the value of the money that will matter – but the value and power your money has over your heart. Your heart will be wherever you put your money.” (Father Stephen Freeman)

“What is it about giving money to the Church that upsets folks? It probably has little to do with actual giving and even less to do with money itself. Giving in the Church causes controversy and attracts the attention of parishioners because this subject touches us in a fundamental way: right in the place where we fear for our survival. Our money, resources, time, and possessions make us feel secure. Money and possessions should not only be recognized as tools to help us in life; they also serve as a spiritual diagnostic of our real loves and our deeply held values.” (Father Barnabas Powell)

“The point is clear; our duty as Christians created in the image and likeness of God is to be careful with our approach toward money, and to serve others through the generous offering of our financial resources in proportion to whatever earthly blessings God has bestowed upon us, for such is a form of service that is truly liberating. In contrast, the destructive forces of greed can take enormous tolls upon the souls of both victim and, even more so, the victimizer. Here, the admonitory words of the Lord to His disciples indeed continue speak to us, 'Take heed, and beware of all greed; for a man’s life does not consist in the abundance of his possessions.' (Luke 12:15).” (Archbishop Demetrios)

“There will come a time when not the persecutions but money and the goods of this world will take people far from God. Then many more souls will be lost than in the time of the persecutions.” (St. Seraphim of Viritsa)

“The only thing that survives after death is our soul. Thus we need to be thinking of the state of our souls at all times. As we work toward accumulating earthly treasures, we need to be putting treasure in heaven.” (Fr. Stavros N. Akrotirianakis)

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