Sin to be rich. Such statements are sometimes encountered. But meanwhile, it is not wealth itself that is sinful. The attachment to money and material wealth is sinful.
If a person, working absolutely honestly, distributes all his substantial means, generously sacrifices to monasteries and temples, helps those in need, what is the sin of his income?
But in the case of love of money - quite the opposite. What does love of money mean? We’ll talk about this now.
Definition
Loving money is a love of money. So intrusive, bordering on insanity. Moreover, the passion of money-loving can be present both among the rich and the poor. And if everything is clear with the first, how can one who has no money forever be connected with loving love?
The answer to this question will be given below. And now I would like to remind our readers that loving money is a great sin. Many troubles come from him.
Poor and Gold
What is love of money, we now know. This is an indefatigable thirst for wealth, attachment to it. But the question arises: what does poverty have to do with it? Everything is simple. A poor person suffering from this passion loves money. But loves, as an unattainable object. You know, there is such a love for a person: they sigh for him, adore him, envy those with whom he is close. And they understand that they themselves will never be near this person.
So it is with money. The poor man begins to envy those who are richer than him. Sigh and think about how bad his life is. To grumble why he has no money, and nothing, but this one has something. As a result, this poor man becomes angry and very envious. His whole life does not take place in labor and prayer, but in a murmur and envy.
Probably each of us is sometimes envious. For example, you look at photos on Instagram and you see that a former classmate drives a chic foreign car. And his child is dressed in expensive clothes, and he himself looks great. And you have a Soviet machine, you work at a factory, and rest is not in hot countries, but in the country. At best, you go to Turkey once a year.
It becomes somehow offensive. Why be offended? And most importantly - to Whom? To God who gives us as much as we need? In the fridge is a pot of soup, a pan with a second, fruits and sweets. Can a poor person afford such food? So you are no longer a beggar. Does the son walk with a good phone, despite the fact that dad works at the factory? The children of the poor hardly have any phones. Good health? Thank God. Do not grumble - you are rich. Some may only dream about what you have.
Is wealth a sin?
We found out what love of money is. Now let's think, is it a sin to be rich?
Let's start with how this wealth is earned. Let's say two businessmen live. One business is honest. And the second one dodges, searches for "left" sources of income, offends his employees with wages, their working conditions are slavish. And at the same time, this businessman thinks only of profit. What kind of beggar is there to give or just needing help? He was tired of red caviar for breakfast, give diamond. And my wife needs a new car. And not for three million, but for six.
The first businessman has no "left" income. Workers pay a good salary, cares about comfortable working conditions for them. It eats simply, does not chase expensive cars, the tenth apartment or the fifteenth mansion. He donates money to the church, helps those who need it. A part of the money is given to the orphanage, making sure that these funds reach the children, rather than settle in the pocket of the employees.
It seems like two people, two businessmen. Only the first is not attached to material wealth, and the second suffers from loving love. Wealth is not useful to him, and will not bring anything good.
Loving love is mistrust
The Holy Fathers write that loving love is the root of all evil. Why is that? Because the loving person is passionate. And this passion of love of wealth and money owns it.
And one more, the most important point. Loving money is not trusting God. The Lord says that we do not worry about tomorrow. He will feed himself. A man who is chasing after more and more material wealth, fearing to lose them, tells God that he does not believe him. He does not believe in the possibility of the Lord to give food to every person.
Passion for wealth in Orthodoxy
What is love of money in Orthodoxy? This is one of the eight main passions. Loving money is the antithesis of love. A person cannot love someone and anything if he is obsessed with money. Even if such a person seems outwardly devout, goes to the temple, visits holy places, what's the use of this?
Such a pilgrim comes to serve, and a beggar stands at the gate of the temple. A man pretends not to see him and quickly passes by. And in the church she won’t buy a candle, nor a note for her loved ones. He imagines that being present at the service, he prays for the whole world. But this is not so. Holy devotees pray for the whole world. On Mount Athos, for example, or on Valaam. Which stay at night in prayer, rest on a chair to rest. And we? What kind of prayer books are we? God forbid, once a week, on Sundays we get out to church. And run past the poor.
Why are so many troubles caused by money? Not so much because of their presence, but from greed to them. Because the loving man becomes blind. He sees nothing but money. He hates those who, in his opinion, want to deprive him of material wealth. If such a person is pointed out to his mortal state, he will hate the one who does it.
This is the case with a window and a mirror. One wise man was asked why the sin of love of money is terrible. He led the questioner to the window and asked to describe what he sees. The man described the beautiful autumn nature outside the window. Then the sage led him to a silver mirror and asked the same question. To which the answer was given: I see myself. The sage smiled and said that there were only a few grams of silver, and you could not see anything except yourself.
So is the loving man. He no longer sees anything except his needs for money.
Money and children
What is love of money, we now know. And how do money affect children? It is no secret that the current generation competes among themselves in wealth. Who has a cell phone more expensive, and the "cooler". Children laugh at poorer comrades, with such shameful friends. The child is three years old, and mom and dad already bought a tablet for him. But another is not three years old, so he is trying to be baptized correctly in the temple and knows who God is.
What will grow out of a child who can afford to laugh at the poorer? Or a loving man, or a waster. Major, in modern language. In both cases, it is grief for parents. In the first, there is a chance that the elderly mother and father will have to live their age in a special house. In the second, the child is completely irresponsible and expects that in which case, dad will buy him back. Buy off for the time being. Only before God, no money will help. Everyone will answer for their "exploits."
What to do if a child begins to show a passion for loving love? Inspire him with other values. To inculcate that there are much higher blessings than material ones. For example, a three-year-old child who knows who God is is unlikely to be complex because he is poorer than his peers. If he is from a wealthy family, sincerely believing, then he will not laugh at those who are poorer. On the contrary, it will protect such a comrade from mockery and attacks.
Summarize
We found out what love of money means. Let's highlight the main aspects:
Loving money is one of the eight main passions.
Its essence is a painful attachment to money and material values. To love silver, that is, to love money.
When a person suffers from this passion, for him there is nothing else but the thirst for more and more profit. He is not up to God. Instead of God, money is on the mind.
If such a person goes to the temple, then his faith is empty. The point of breaking your forehead in prayer when you pass by a beggar without noticing him?
Wealth is not a sin. It is a sin to be fed up with them and think only about how to get money.
A child who grows up in a loving family is unlikely to become a good person. He has been replaced by concepts since childhood.
Conclusion
Readers now know what kind of sin it is - love of money. Being rich is not bad. It’s bad when not only do you have. And chase after the big, no matter what.