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Dialogue Volume 3 Issue 3 July 2001 The subject: Money People who want
to get rich fall into temptation and a trap and into many foolish
and harmful desires that plunge [people] into ruin and destruction.
For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil. Some people,
eager for money, have wandered from the faith and pierced themselves
with many griefs. But you, [follower] of God, flee from all this,
and pursue righteousness, godliness, faith, love, endurance and
gentleness. 1 Timothy 6:9-11. The verses above are full of radical stuff when they are read in the good old U.S. of A. Christians argue themselves out of taking them seriously all the time. You’d think we’d all had a class on "How to Be American and Still Convince Yourself You Listen to the Bible on the Subject of Money, Ever." This issue of the Dialogue tries to help us listen, if we dare. As we listen, some of us will be learning the spiritual disciplines of money. They aren’t all about doing without, living in community, or creatively sharing with the poor and developing opportunity with them. They are also about balancing a checkbook and being conscious of how we spend. They are also about seeing ourselves as trustees for resources God has given us and learning an investment—in-the-kingdom-of-God strategy. They are also about having a job that considers someone else’s needs as well as our own and making purchases and contracts that don’t use every scrap of what we’ve got on what we, alone, want. As we listen, some of us will be learning the math of funding our church’s mission. For instance, here is a word problem for you. If 170 Circle of Hopers all gave a tithe (10%) of their income to the Common Fund they use to fuel their ministry, take care of the needy among them and generate compassion and truth-telling all over the world, how much would that fund receive in a year? Say each person makes only $20,000 a year. Say a good third of them are unable to give anything at all. What would be our income? 114 X 2000 = $228,000. That’s way over double what we expect to receive this year. It is amazing how much opportunity we would have if we got together and shared a portion of our money, isn’t it? If there is any one thing that an American Christian (one of the richest people the world has ever known) should know about, it is money. If we can learn the disciplines, do the math, and SHARE, just imagine what will become of us! Ed.– Rod White
When the prosperous man on a dark but star-lit night drives comfortably in his carriage and has the lanterns lighted, aye, then he is safe, he fears no difficulty, he carries his light with him, and it is not dark close around him; but precisely because he has the lanterns lighted, and has a strong light close to him, precisely for this reason he cannot see the stars, for his lights obscure the stars, which the poor peasant driving without lights can see gloriously in the dark but starry night. So those deceived ones live in temporal existence: either, occupied with the necessities of life, they are too busy to avail themselves of the view, or in their prosperity and good days they have, as it were, lanterns lighted, and close about them everything is so satisfactory, so pleasant, so comfortable - but the view is lacking, the prospect, the view of the stars. One of the dangers in considering the topic of simplicity is that we can err is two directions. We can romanticize poverty and assume that if we had little we would have a simple life. As the parable points out, we humans find much to distract us from a view of life that is full and rich and being occupied with getting what we need as poverty often demands is not the guarantee of simple, contented living. But for many of us who read the Dialogue, the greater threat is from having more not less. We have lanterns to light and much more. In fact we have so much more that we do not even know that what might heal us is a simple view of the stars. As we discussed this the other night at one of the Circle classes on our assets, the group was quick to point out that we tend to fill our lives up with things and people in the hope that it will feel full. It often leaves us feeling empty instead. It's not that we don't know how to be entertained. There's media everywhere that promises to occupy us, but there's a component of purpose and pleasure that remains illusive for too many of us. My take on this is that we suffer from feeling out of touch in some authentic way with ourselves. We settle for being busy or entertained and respond to the flood of promises that we will be fulfilled if only we have or do this or that. In essence we shift the focus of our searching away from meaning and turn it to something more tangible. In the frenzy of our search, we are distanced from our true selves and we lack the kinds of experiences that open us up to seeing beyond the little ring of light we can keep lit around us. So how might we reconnect with ourselves? Each individual has her own unique story that explains how she has disconnected, but it seemed helpful the other night in our discussion to consider a few general points for the sake of discussion. When each of us was born, we were completely dependent creatures. The human infant remains dependent on his caregivers longer than any other species on the planet. As we matured through the care of those around us, we became more able to supply various things for ourselves. Forgive me for pointing out the negative here, but human beings seem to focus on negative aspects of their experience. People generally report that they remember criticism far more easily than praise. Couples therapy researchers tell us that negative comments that couples make to each other carry far more weight in terms of the relational dynamics than do positive comments. We take in the negative. I suggest to you, that because of this, we have taken in the negative about our earliest care, as well, and we have formed ourselves around a desperate search to fill up what we experienced as missing. We have deeply rooted images of ourselves and others that are so difficult to bear that we store them away outside of our conscious awareness. We represent ourselves, even to ourselves, as something other than what we actually believe we are. Psychologically we can't bear the pain of the deeper reality so we create new images of ourselves that continue the desperate search to fill in what is missing. But this search seems to our quick (sometimes shallow) thinking to be nothing desperate at all. So we are set up for all the advertisers who aim their ads at creating desire and need in us and get us thinking and feeling and (they hope) behaving in line with what they tell us we must have or do. We crowd our lives with this sort of seeking to have and do and we lose sight of the stars. Jesus understood this problem and process. He communicated the heart of this to Martha one day when she was frantic in her attempts to produce a suitable meal for Him and His friends. Martha's sister Mary was sitting listening to Jesus talk about life. Mary was neglecting her "duty" to produce a meal and instead obeying a higher duty to take in the meaning of life when the opportunity presented itself to her in the Person of Jesus. Martha sticks to her plan and her custom of preparing the food. With each task she feels more overwhelmed and more disconnected from what she wants to have happen in her life. She finally says something to Jesus and to Mary. She gets mad and blows up because her plan wasn't working. Jesus speaks directly to the sort of living we all do when He spoke to Martha even though our pursuits may not look exactly like Martha doing her "duty." We have other strategies to get what we think we must have but we feel a similar desperation. Jesus says to Martha, "only one thing is needed. Mary has chosen what is better." (Luke 10). In some older translations of the Bible He says Mary "wills one thing" and Jesus affirms that. Mary pays attention not to the media of her time telling her what experiences she must have (being praised by men for cooking well or being hard-working, etc.), but to the opportunity to connect with the One who is Life-giving. Mary resists the pressure to buoy up her self-esteem by winning approval from others around her by showing off all the great stuff she has in her house or by demonstrating her skill as cook, housecleaner, etc. Instead she focuses on one thing: she simply listens to the source of her life. Will she ever work again? We know she does. Will she lose track of this simplicity of willing one thing and be distracted and take up the frantic search to fill herself? We know she does that, too. But here is this glorious moment when she gets it. She sees the stars. Jesus is beckoning Martha to join Mary outside the circle of her own attempts at making life happen. It's a rather abrupt message. Stop it, Martha! You are doing things, thinking things and feeling things that are not necessary. Simplicity has something to do with understanding our confusion about who we are and what we can do. It is giving up the exhausting pursuit to get more in the subtle ways we have arranged for that. It is waiting instead of getting. It is doing without some of what our plan says we must get in order to hear from within about what is truly valuable, helpful, holy. It is not deprivation, but development. It is cleaning house in order to live in a beautiful space rather than staying cramped in a congested room. Gwen White Let’s Be More Like Barnabas We are a body that is defined by community. We worship in community on Sunday evenings. We gather in community in our cell groups. Many of us live in community. Notice all of the verbs: worship, gather, live. These are all active verbs. Community cannot exist without action. Action, however is not just physical, rather it is spiritual, emotional, and also financial. It is the action of opening ourselves up so that the line between our individuality blurs with the collective conscience that is created by our community. We have done a good job in sharing our physical, spiritual and emotional lives with each other. Cell groups, friendships, living arrangements, and the public meeting facilitate this sharing. However, too often the community that we have created in these areas does not extend to our wallets or our checkbooks. Too many of us view this aspect of our lives as personal and private, rather than corporate. We tend to shudder at the question, "So how much do you earn?" There is no doubt that much of this privacy stems from the culture of individualism that is so pervasive in our culture. Much of it comes from the models that were provided to us by our parents. However, whatever its origin, a view that "my money is my money" is destructive to the very community that many of us hold dear. As Christians we are called to share our lives together, all of our lives. We are called to pool our resources for the good and the benefit of the community. We do it, not because we feel like we have to, but rather because as a part of the community of Circle of Hope we are committed to a vision that is larger than ourselves. We are committed to being a new creation in Jesus Christ that is not bound by the traditions of this world. Too many of us have been shackled by the values of capitalism that tell us to accumulate and consume. Culture tells us that we are valuable if we earn a lot of money, drive SUVs, live in large houses in the suburbs, and rack up high credit card debt. Many of my law school colleagues will be earning over $100,000 next year. This is common knowledge throughout much of the law school, however the topic of salaries and perks is not discussed. I am frequently chastised by my colleagues for pointing out the obscenity of these salaries. I am chastised, in part because they know I am right, but also because there is myth that this information should remain private. We are addicted to privacy. However, as a church we cannot be addicted to notions of privacy. We cannot continue to believe in the myth that "the way I spend my money is personal, it is private." To do so gives the impression that it only affects you as an individual. However, as many of us saw just a few months ago, the way that we spend our money affects us all; it affects our community. Many of you know about the financial problems that Circle was having at the beginning of this year. For the time being we have averted the crisis, however, we will be back there shortly if we corporately don’t change our giving habits. I know that money is powerful. For many of us it evokes images of guilt, shame, pride, or a whole host of other destructive behaviors. However, merely because it can be powerful, does not mean that we should not deal with it. You may be asking where is he going with this? Quite frankly, I am not sure, but I think that that the Bible has some good lessons about wealth. The Book of Acts talks openly about the believers "having everything in common," and "distributing to each as anyone had need." (See, Acts 4:32, 35). Was this communism? I doubt very much that the early church was setting up an economic system. However, they surely were responding to the needs of their community. They were responding to each other in Christlike compassion. Acts 4:37-5:11, also teaches us about Barnabas, Ananias and Sapphira. The core lesson (at least in my opinion) to be learned from these stories is that how we hold assets, be it houses, money, prestige, speaks volumes about our values. Barnabas converted his land that he owned into a cash gift for the needy believers (4:36-37). He let go of his money, laying it at the apostle’s feet to be administered by them. By contrast, Ananias and Sapphira practiced a similar transaction for the same need, but lied about it (5:1-2). Apparently they wanted to look good among the believers but also wanted to personally hold onto some of their possessions. What can we learn from this? I think that God calls us as believers to hold our resources lightly. After all everything that we have comes from Him. He gives it to us as a trust to be managed for His benefit, not as a treasure to be hoarded for ours. So what am I saying? I am saying that as a community we need to be more like Barnabas. We need to let go of the notion that the way we manage our money is a private affair. We are a community. As a community we have been entrusted with a large number of resources. These resources are not ours as individuals, in fact they are not even ours as a community. Rather, they are God’s resources that He has entrusted to us to manage and to share. I could go on for pages and pages about this topic. It is something that I am passionate about, but quite frankly I am also frightened about. However, the bottom line is that I trust God, and I trust this community. Acts 4:32-33 says, "Now the multitude of those who believed were of one heart and one soul, neither did anyone say that any of the things that he possessed was his own, but they had all things in common. And with great power the apostles gave witness to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus." In a world that values possession of wealth as the supreme goal, we as a Body should constantly be striving to be more like Baranabas, and in so doing we will continue to be a great witness to the resurrection of Jesus Christ. Patrick Cicero Starving Mammon Reflections from Our Study of Money and Community I don’t like jumping into debates about political ideology. They polarize us. They keep us in the world of concepts. So rather than giving a case against capitalism (there are plenty of good ones out there already), I want us to be drawn more deeply into the magnetic and dangerous love of the Gospels. As we read those narratives, it is important to note that Jesus gives money a name: MAMMON. Money is not simply bartering currency. Money is a personified power, a very alive and seductive "being" that absorbs and enslaves the Children of God. Because of the dangers of that bondage, I want us to try to figure out what it means to be reborn into a new Family. It is a citywide and worldwide family in which some of our sisters and brothers are literally starving while others of us have money in a bank. That fact demands a response. But as we talk about what our response should be, it is also my desire to allow for "multidimensional discipleship." I want us to recognize that we do not all respond to the call of Jesus in the same way (but we must respond). Rich Mullins said it like this, A lot of people are all into this ‘born again’ thing and say that to inherit eternal life you have to be born again. Yes, Jesus says that to one guy, Nicodemus. But if you tell me I have to be born again, I can tell you that you have to sell all you have and give it to the poor. Jesus says that to one guy too. So each of us must discern the nudging of the Spirit in our midst, personally, perhaps as a biological family, and of course as the Family of God. The idea of family is central to a biblical understanding of money. That is especially clear when we look at the first Christians. In the early Church, for one person to have more than they needed while someone else was without was THEFT. For one person to have the capacity to feed the starving and not do so was MURDER. Imagine in our own biological families -- if one family member, say the father, was grubbing it up and had food in his pantry, and yet his daughter was starving... is this not murder? How much more should this be true in the Family of the Reborn? When we Christians care for each other, we are caring for our own flesh and blood, our own Body, the Body of Christ. When we starve one another (intentionally or unintentionally — "when did we see you...?" Mt. 25), we starve our own family, and the Body of Jesus, and so our sisters and brothers groan. In fact, it is recorded about the early Church, that if someone came to a household in need of food and they did not have enough (which was often the case), then the entire community would fast until there was enough for everyone to eat. What a testimony to the contemporary Church family! While the Gospel call is obviously an daunting call to suffer with others, it is also a vision of hope for a new way of life. This hope is not simply a hope of some future Kingdom when we die. I am convinced that Jesus came not so much to prepare us to die, but to teach us to live, to truly live the Kingdom of God into reality on earth as it is in heaven. In that light, verses like this one from Mark take new meaning: ÿ’No one who has left home or brothers or sisters or mother or father or children or fields for me and the gospel will fail to receive a hundred times as much IN THIS PRESENT AGE (homes, brothers... fields and with them persecutions) and in the age to come eternal life" (Mark 10:29-30). I believe this is very literal. As we discover this new way of life and discover how to share all things in common, a wild multiplication of resources ensues. When I, along with ten others, give up "my" house, I suddenly have nine new homes. Now ten people have ten houses. It is an exponential multiplication. As I leave my biological family, I now have hundreds of mothers and brothers. It is a new way that stands in offensive opposition to everything that is temporal and of this world. This multiplication also happens in regards to time. For instance, when our household (we call it "the simple way") gets a vanful of donations, we can unload it ten times faster as a community than I could alone. And the only way that we could, practically and spiritually, do all the things we do (feeding people, spending time with kids, rehabbing houses, gardening...) is by having a community of folks surrounding a common vision and way of life (more than just a sum of our parts). I am not trying to idealize the way we live in community. It is hard and painful. There are times when it seems like it would be easier to do life alone (I like the old quote: "I know you are strong enough to do it alone, but are you strong enough to do it together?"). But community is what we have been created for. The Bible is a story of community -- from when it is not good for the first human to be alone (needed a helper), to the new community created amongst the refugees and slaves in Israel, to the apostles (never sent out alone), and, of course, clear up to the early Church in Acts. We are created in the image of God, a Trinity, a plurality of oneness. Here at Circle, this crazy journey into community continues to express itself in a wild continuum of ways, from the deep to the mundane: cells, intentional communities, joint childcare, shared rents, life partnerships, community gardens, carpools. And yet there is so much more out there for us. Sometimes what we are doing seems wild and extraordinary -- but this is more revealing of the ubiquitous apathy of western Christianity than it is of the true radical nature of our discipleship. We have so much to learn from other communities such as the base communities in Latin America, the Catholic workers, and particularly from the Poor among us -- since poverty demands community to survive. Poor people do not have to "intentionally" choose community; their survival demands interdependence, creative resistance, and alternative structures (this is why they are blessed "for theirs is the Kingdom of God"). It is past time for us to think of deeper ways of experiencing community, of bartering and trading skills and creations, of making our own products and food, of using the trash and wreckage of the consumptive world to create things that bring life and beauty. We must keep dreaming of alternative structures, such as new ways of sharing medical expenses and accident costs so that those things which are at least inconsistent and at most heretical to the Gospel (such as insurance and savings accounts) become superfluous and fade into nonexistence as we usher in the reign of God. Shane Claiborne
Some of our "proverbs" that relate to our money We are always involved in a dialogue as we build a system of trusting relationships in which we can live a life of safety and daring. What follows are a few of the proverbs we have decided to collect over the years that say something about how we handle our money. Do you still think that are worth keeping as statements to guide our common life? If not, let’s delete them, or tell the truth better as we reposition ourselves this fall and draw a new map to where God is leading.
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