For an example to follow, go back to the beginning of the Sermon on the Mount, to Matt 5: 3-5, the poor in spirit, those who mourn, and those who are meek, the so called anawim. Who are the anawim whom Jesus called blessed? They are the poor who trusted in God. http://faithmag.com/faithmag/column2.asp?ArticleID=524 How do the anawim serve as an example to us in dealing with this "no two masters" issue? Pope Benedict in Jesus of Nazareth Vol 1 ("J.O.N. I") writes about the these humble poor, who are prominent in the history of Israel. Most of God's people in exile in Babylon and coming out of exile were poor. Israel recognizes that its poverty is what brings it close to God. J.O.N. I at page 75.
Second, for more insight into the anawim, look at the Psalms. Here from Steve Kimes and the Anawim Christian Community out of Portland, Oregon are six passages from the Psalms which describe the hopes and aspirations of God's humble poor. htttp://www.nowheretolayhishead.org/anawimscriptures.html
Third, Pope Benedict cites Mary and Joseph, Simeon and Anna, Zechariah and Elizabeth, the shepherds of Bethlehem, and the Twelve whom Jesus called as examples of these poor who were looking to God for deliverance. Matthew's gospel starts with these beautiful believers. J.O.N. I at page 75.
The anawim whom we see in these examples from the Bible know that they have nothing to give to God. They are the poor in spirit who cry out to God for his mercy and help. For the message of Jesus to get through to a person, he must be broken in this way. God is my only hope. And he will help me.
Back to this passage of Matt 6:24-34 for one more point made by Jesus. Jesus calls God "your heavenly Father" who takes care of the birds in the sky. He says, "Are you not more important than they?" As we struggle to shake off the demands of mammon, it helps to look to God as a heavenly Father who, if He cares for the birds of the air, surely will take care of us. Meditate on the beautiful examples of the humble poor from the history of Israel, and whom we see praying in the Psalms, and also picture the humble people from the opening chapters of Matt., who are Mary and Joseph, Simeon and Anna, Zechariah and Elizabeth, and the shepherds of Bethlehem. Here is a clear theme from this Matt. 6 passage: God is very close, a Father to his children. These children are the poor in spirit who come to Him with nothing but their empty hands. And He alone (and not mammon) is the master. But Jesus reminds us in Matt 6 that He is an unusual kind of master in that culture where the masters had slaves. Yes, he is our master, but he is also our Father.
All of this still leaves at least one question unanswered for me. How much potential spiritual capital comes from being poor? Those of us who are not poor have a duty to do justice, and fight poverty, which is a grinding and miserable thing, and we see from Luke chapter 6 that oppression of the poor by the rich bothered Jesus greatly. Notwithstanding that, the Pope beautifully offers us the anawim, who couple their poverty with piety, as a model for us to follow. J.O.N. I at page 75. Jesus reached out to theanawim, and I picture the blind and the lepers in particular. There is this connection between poverty and blessings from God, but there is some mystery to it. The anawim is a thick area of study, where amateurs like myself can quickly get in over our heads. Pope Benedict certainly has a handle on this, and the same can be said for Fr. Stanley and Fr. Brown, whose writings will come up in the next post. I don't have an answer to the question which I pose here, but one thing from the gospels is for sure. Being rich is spiritually hazardous.
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A version of this post first appeared here June 23, 2012
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