Theos-Talk Archives (April 1997 Message tl00164)

Liesel,

I agree. Money and temporary things are supports for our life in the physical
world. There is nothing inherently wrong with them and they should be used in
good stewardship, in enjoyment, and with gratitude. False austerity is just
another fanaticism. Why make war on the body, when we were given bodies to
use?

St. Paul's words were meant, I think, to caution against looking on money as
something other than a support, i.e., and end in itself. When gathering things
is what you pursue for it's own sake, it leads to all sorts of possessivism,
greed, selfishness, wars - and ultimately lack of inner development.