Day Twenty-Five

Day Twenty-Five // March 25 // Greed

“He who is not contented with what he has, would not be contented with what he would like to have.” – Socrates –

When the beautiful fruit of generosity spoils, we are left with one of the ugliest words in our language: greed. It evokes images of Ebenezer Scrooge alone and freezing on Christmas Eve, too tight to share in the holiday. Or maybe the one we see is billionaire Howard Hughes who ended his days as a miserable recluse, fearful that others were out to get him. The word greed comes from the Greek word meaning “to have more.” Greed is that little voice within us that nags, “You ought to have more.”

One day, when Abraham Lincoln practiced law in Springfield, Illinois, he met a neighbor on the street. Lincoln was holding two of his sons, one in each arm. Both boys were wailing and crying. “Mr. Lincoln,” the

neighbor asked, “what’s the matter with your boys?” “The same thing that’s the matter with the world,” Lincoln answered. “I have three walnuts. And each wants two.” Greed is that state of mind that constantly wants more.

And it is insidious because it comes masked with good intentions. We want to provide for our families. We don’t want to be dependent. We want to be secure. But in chasing the good, we fail to see when we cross the line into greed. We start to feel entitled. We start to look down on others who don’t “work as hard as we do.” We start to justify our lifestyles. Douglas Beyer writes, “Greed has been renamed, ‘enterprise.’ It swaggers forth proclaiming a new virtue called, ‘profit motive.’ It looks so clever and sophisticated that nobody can believe that its heart is cold and calculating.”

There is only one remedy for greed: generosity. Church Father John Chrysostom said, “God has invested capital with you. It is not your property, but a loan made by Him, made to give you opportunity to exercise mercy to those who are in need.” When we share with others, we recognize that what we have is not ours. We start to notice human needs and to soften our hearts to try to help. And although greed might seek what is right, generosity always seeks what is good.