Roots

Jesus said to his disciples: “I tell you, make friends for yourselves with dishonest wealth, so that when it fails, you will be welcomed into eternal dwellings. The person who is trustworthy in very small matters is also trustworthy in great ones; and the person who is dishonest in very small matters is also dishonest in great ones. If, therefore, you are not trustworthy with dishonest wealth, who will trust you with true wealth? If you are not trustworthy with what belongs to another, who will give you what is yours?

No servant can serve two masters. He will either hate one and love the other, or be devoted to one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and mammon.” The Pharisees, who loved money, heard all these things and sneered at him. And he said to them, “You justify yourselves in the sight of others, but God knows your hearts; for what is of human esteem is an abomination in the sight of God.” (Luke 16:9-15)

Money – mammon – is the root of all evil. Mammon is defined as “wealth regarded as an evil influence or false object of worship and devotion. It was taken by medieval writers as the name of the devil of covetousness and revived in this sense by Milton: ‘others have forsaken Mammon in search of something on a more spiritual plane’”

According to Paul in 1 Timothy 6-10, “Whoever teaches something different and does not agree with the sound words of, our Lord Jesus Christ and the religious teaching is conceited, understanding nothing, and has a morbid disposition for arguments and verbal disputes. 

From these come envy, rivalry, insults, evil suspicions, and mutual friction among people with corrupted minds, who are deprived of the truth, supposing religion to be a means of gain. Indeed, religion with contentment is a great gain. For we brought nothing into the world, just as we shall not be able to take anything out of it. If we have food and clothing, we shall be content with that. 

Those who want to be rich are falling into temptation and into a trap and into many foolish and harmful desires, which plunge them into ruin and destruction. For the love of money is the root of all evils, and some people in their desire for it have strayed from the faith and have pierced themselves with many pains.”  

So, who do we serve: God or Mammon?  Have we fallen into temptation by wanting to be rich at the expense of our faith?  Have we pierced ourselves with many pains?  Are we Catholics guilty of “envy, rivalry, insults, evil suspicions, and mutual friction among people with corrupted minds” all because we seek wealth?  

Of course, money is needed.  We just must make sure whatever roots do take hold due to money, grow into many-branched trees bearing much good fruit.  Otherwise, we become “abominations in the sight of God.”

Deacon David Pierce