THE TRUTH WE SEE

My sermon is coming together nicely, but I'm still feeling a bit intimidated by the task. My work on this topic, both biblically and historically, has been very personally rewarding even though a lot of what I've uncovered won't actually make it into the sermon. But that's part of why I thought it would be fun to put some of those things here on the blog. Today's thoughts come from a great early theologian from around the turn of the 3rd century, Clement of Alexandria.

As the gospel spread during the early centuries of the church’s existence, there were some Christians who interpreted the words of Jesus regarding the difficulty of a rich person entering the kingdom to mean that all who were rich were excluded from the salvation available in Christ. In response to the turmoil such an interpretation caused, Clement of Alexandria composed his treatise Who is the Rich Man that Shall Be Saved? Clement insisted that the attainment of salvation does not depend upon external matters, such as wealth or poverty, but on the internal condition of the soul. The soul, therefore, must be purified of all disorders which distract it from God. Passionate attachments, such as the attraction of possessions, are among the foremost to be removed. According to Clement, it was not wealth but one’s attitude towards wealth that was destructive. He writes, “He [the rich man] is to banish those attitudes towards wealth that permeate his whole life, his desires, interests, and anxiety. These things become the thorns choking the seed of a true life.”

For Clement, the wealth of the rich was in fact of great benefit if they could overcome this passionate attachment to their possessions. The value of possessions lay in their employment as “alms,” gifts given to provide for the poor. Early Christians had a heightened sensitivity of the need to care for the poor through the giving of alms. Clement writes, “Therefore, we must not throw away the riches that benefit not only ourselves but our neighbors as well. They are possessions because they are possessed, and they are goods because they are good and provided by God to help all people. They are under our control, and we are to use them just as others use materials and instruments in their trade. An instrument, used with skill, produces a work of art…. Wealth is such an instrument. It can be used rightly to produce justice.” He goes on then to address those who have wealth, saying, “Do not regret your possessions, but destroy the passions of your soul that hinder you from using your wealth wisely. Then you may become virtuous and good and use your possessions in the most beneficial ways. The rejection of wealth and selling of one’s possessions is to be understood as the rejection and elimination of the soul’s passions…. It is difficult to keep ourselves from becoming enticed by and dependent upon the life style that affluence offers, but it is not impossible. Even when surrounded by affluence we may distance ourselves from its effects and accept salvation. We center our minds on those things taught by God and strive for eternal life by using our possessions properly and with a sense of indifference toward them.”

I'm in the midst of the incredibly complicated task of trying to make sense of Jesus' words concerning wealth and poverty in Luke 6:17-26 for a 21st century affluent suburban mega-church. What was I thinking when I accepted this invitation?

In pulling things together for this sermon I've revisited some research I did a few years ago on wealth and poverty in the early church. I thought I'd do a series of posts to put some of that stuff here in order to see what sort of reactions I might get or at least to stimulate folks who read this to think about these things.

Many writers in the early church discussed issues of wealth and poverty. In its earliest days the church was made up of predominantly poor members, but over time more affluent people began to seek membership in the community of faith. Care for the poor remained a priority of the early church. One of the earliest Christian apologists, Aristides of Athens, appealed to Christian charity in his defense of the faith presented to the emperor:

"They walk in all humility and kindness, and falsehood is not found among them, and they love one another. They despise not the widow, and grieve not the orphan. He that has distributes liberally to him that does not. If they see a stranger, they bring him under their roof, and rejoice over him, as it were their own brother; for they call themselves brethren, not after the flesh, but after the spirit and in God; but when one of their poor passes away from the world, and any of them see him, the he provides for his burial according to his ability; and if they hear of any of their number is imprisoned or oppressed for the name of their Messiah, all of them provide for his needs, and if it is possible that he may be delivered, they deliver him. And if there is among them a man that is poor and needy, and they do not have an abundance of necessities, they fast two or three days that they may supply the needy with their necessary food."

Not exactly the way we “defend the faith” these days is it?