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Is money and wealth evil?


nec209

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Is having money and wealth a sin? Did God hate money and wealth? Only, Only I say Only people that have millions or billions of money that it becomes a sin at that point.

How much money did God what people to have? Some point it becomes evil what does the church say?

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8 minutes ago, iNow said:

Whatever lie they want which keeps people subservient 

Unless I’m missing some thing I don’t see the church or religion speaking out about millionaires or billionaires.

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1 hour ago, nec209 said:

Is having money and wealth a sin? Did God hate money and wealth?

The Christian god's son thought it might be easier to thread a needle with a camel than for a rich person to get into Heaven. Can't see how a "Christian" feels good about amassing enormous personal wealth while fellow people starve. 

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5 minutes ago, Phi for All said:

The Christian god's son thought it might be easier to thread a needle with a camel than for a rich person to get into Heaven. Can't see how a "Christian" feels good about amassing enormous personal wealth while fellow people starve. 

I’m not sure what the Bible says or the church teaching. But I would think if it is sin than the church would be speaking out about millionaires or billionaires. But I don’t see them doing that.

It would be pretty shocking a God would think it is okay to have millionaires or billionaires in this would and you have homeless people and poor people in the world.

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Money and wealth don't necessarily make people evil.
But it is much easier for unscrupulous, corrupt ,evil people to gain wealth and riches.

The two sets definitely overlap significantly, but it is hard to say which causes which.

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51 minutes ago, nec209 said:

It does not say if having money or wealth is sinful.  

"Having money" isn't the same as being a millionaire or a billionaire, is it? There are plenty of stories in the Bible about fair business transactions. Being "rich" is mentioned as bad, and being a moneylender was also bad. I don't think just having some money was thought to be evil.

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3 hours ago, Externet said:

Correct.  Does not think, nor say anything either.  Nor act, nor write, nor feel, nor show, nor...

Religion does not say why God does not communicate with people or show it self to the world, It more a believe system that people have. 

Also Religion does say why God could not communicate with people and needed some one like Jesus why all powerful God needed some one like Jesus.

When people pray why God does not answer back. 

May be the answer is there is no God.

13 hours ago, Phi for All said:

"Having money" isn't the same as being a millionaire or a billionaire, is it? There are plenty of stories in the Bible about fair business transactions. Being "rich" is mentioned as bad, and being a moneylender was also bad. I don't think just having some money was thought to be evil.

The think is I don’t see the catholic church speaking out about millionaires or a billionaires.

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9 minutes ago, nec209 said:

I don’t see the catholic church speaking out about millionaires or a billionaires

It’s really about what to prioritize since there are only a limited number of hours in the day. As may be obvious already, much of their time is already allocated to covering up child rape and protecting those who engage in it. 

On another note, the church is one of the wealthiest organizations on the planet so remaining silent is an issue of self-interest. 

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3 minutes ago, iNow said:

It’s really about what to prioritize since there are only a limited number of hours in the day. As may be obvious already, much of their time is already allocated to covering up child rape and protecting those who engage in it. 

On another note, the church is one of the wealthiest organizations on the planet so remaining silent is an issue of self-interest. 

The church owns 177M acres of land across the globe, dwarfed only by the British Royal Family at 6.6B acres. King Charles owns 1/6 of the surface of the Earth.

21 minutes ago, nec209 said:

The think is I don’t see the catholic church speaking out about millionaires or a billionaires.

None of these organizations are about to start bitching about wealthy people. Are you somehow expecting modern Christian leadership to actually practice the teachings of Jesus? I'm not sure if the Church has ever been much interested in attracting worshipers through example.

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2 hours ago, iNow said:

It’s really about what to prioritize since there are only a limited number of hours in the day. As may be obvious already, much of their time is already allocated to covering up child rape and protecting those who engage in it. 

On another note, the church is one of the wealthiest organizations on the planet so remaining silent is an issue of self-interest. 

Has the church ever spoken out about rich people? Have millionaires or a billionaires ever at any point been sin?

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2 hours ago, nec209 said:

Has the church ever spoken out about rich people? Have millionaires or a billionaires ever at any point been sin?

Hey, are we done with this conversation? You're repeating yourself. 

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51 minutes ago, iNow said:

There’s no polite way for me to tell you that I think your questions are ridiculous 

Well it seems people are very brain dead here and don’t want to have any intellect discussion.  But on other forums people have debated if the church was left. Some people say yes at times the church was left and some say the church was very conservative. Some say Jesus was very left, others say no he did not speak out about money and wealth.


Here is on snip bit other forum.

 

Here's a few selected points I know about this topic from reading, but it is a controversial topic and I am not an expert nor a Catholic.

There's lots of information and discussion and debate online about the Bible's attitudes to wealth, equality and its relation to contemporary ideas of left and right -- such as this video produced by a left-wing Catholic Was Jesus Christ A Socialist Revolutionary?. There are probably lots of resources on this from vastly differing perspectives.

Historically, the Catholic church was obviously involved in very non-progressive things like burning of women for being witches and the burning of heretics, banning of books and there is probably much more dark history to look into.

However, perhaps paradoxically, the catholic church has sometimes aligned with progressive ideas. Even as early as the 16th century, some priests like Bartolome les Casas campaigned against the oppression of slaves and indigenous people in Spain's Latin American colonies.

Towards the end of the 19th century, the pope issued a letter to try and address the issues caused by industrialisation and the rise of industrial capitalism and socialism. This was the beginning of a programme called catholic social teaching.

"The origin of modern CST is generally accepted as being Leo XIII 1891, when Pope Leo XIII published the celebrated encyclical-letter Rerum Novarum (on the new things), in which he spoke in favor of justice in contracts and wages, humane working conditions, and freedom to create and manage workers associations" - Encyclopedia of Business Ethics

"In an open letter to all Catholics, Pope Leo XIII addressed the conditions of the working classes, the relationships between labor and capital, as well as government and its citizens. The letter supported the rights of labor to form unions, rejected socialism as well as unrestricted capitalism, while affirming the right to private property. Pope Leo XIII also maintained that the role of government is to promote social justice through the protection of rights, while the Church must work to teach correct social principles and ensure class harmony. He restated the Church's long-standing teaching regarding the crucial importance of private property rights, but recognized that the free operation of market forces must be tempered by moral considerations." - Online Blurb

In the 1960s and 1970s, Liberation Theology movement began in Latin America where catholic priests resisted dictatorships and tried to empower the poor: "It sought to apply religious faith by aiding the poor and oppressed through involvement in political and civic affairs. It stressed both heightened awareness of the “sinful” socioeconomic structures that caused social inequities and active participation in changing those structures."  - Encylopedia Britannica https://www.britannica.com/topic/liberation-theology.  This even resulted in getting into a bit of trouble with the Vatican for getting too close to Marxism.
 

——————

And you going to reply to me with those pathetic one liner replies?

Here start here, it is a controversial topic and here video produced by a left-wing Catholic Was Jesus Christ A Socialist Revolutionary?

And you going to rely to me with your pathetic knowledge about politics and religion teaching. Learn politics and religion before replying to people post in this forum.

Can you show me a passage in the Bible saying money and wealth is sin? I don't Think you can? Can you show me passage of Jesus speaking out about the rich?

If you going to reply to people post than educate your self about the topic because you know nothing about politics and religion.

Why do other message boards can have discuss about this but not here? Are you a liberal that thinks the church are all conservatives or false views that Jesus was a hippie or far left? That pathetic nonsense?

Can you post some sources? So we can find out if Jesus spoke out about the rich and if that is sin and the stands on the church? At times the church was left but today it is now far right? So we can get picture on stands on the church?

Because the more I read on this I’m getting conflicting information. MAY be if you read more on this you would get that information but you are too lazy to read more about it and think you know it all. TYPICAL of some liberals.

 

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Borrowed from the web:

https://search.brave.com/search?q=bible+poor+and+wealthy&source=web&summary=1&summary_og=6e01674f017725f638e097

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Bible poor and wealthy

The Bible presents a nuanced view of poverty and wealth, emphasizing that both are under God’s sovereignty (1 Samuel 2:7). Here are some key insights:

  • God’s equality: Proverbs 22:2 declares that “the rich and the poor meet together: Jehovah is the maker of them all.” This verse highlights that both the wealthy and the poor are created by God and have equal value in His eyes.
  • No distinction: The Bible does not teach that poverty or wealth is inherently sinful or blessed. Rather, it emphasizes that both are neutral, and it is how one uses their resources that matters (Matthew 25:14-30).
  • Responsibility to the poor: The Bible consistently calls believers to care for the poor and vulnerable (Deuteronomy 15:7-11, Psalm 41:1-3, James 1:27). This is seen as a demonstration of faith and obedience to God’s commands.
  • Warning against wealth’s dangers: The Bible warns against the dangers of wealth, such as arrogance (1 Timothy 6:17) and a lack of spiritual focus (Matthew 19:23-24). Jesus taught that it is difficult for the rich to enter the kingdom of God due to their attachment to material possessions (Mark 10:23-25).
  • God’s provision: The Bible affirms that God provides for both the rich and the poor (Psalm 104:28, Matthew 6:25-34). It encourages believers to trust in God’s provision, rather than relying solely on their wealth or poverty.

Key Verses

  • 1 Samuel 2:7 - “The Lord makes poor and rich; He brings low, He also exalts.”
  • Proverbs 22:2 - “The rich and the poor meet together: Jehovah is the maker of them all.”
  • James 2:2-5 - “My Christian brothers, our Lord Jesus Christ is the Lord of shining-greatness. Since your trust is in Him, do not look on one person as more important than another. What if a man comes into your church wearing a gold ring and good clothes? And at the same time a poor man comes wearing old clothes…”

Scriptural Perspectives on Poverty and Prosperity

The Bible presents a nuanced view of poverty and wealth, highlighting both their positive and negative aspects.

Poverty

  • God is concerned with the poor and needy (Psalm 72:12-13, Proverbs 31:8-9)
  • Poverty can be a result of God’s humbling or testing (1 Samuel 2:7, Job 5:7)
  • The poor can be rich in faith and spiritual wealth (Matthew 5:3, Luke 12:15)
  • Examples of poor individuals who trusted and served God include Job, David, and the widow who offered her last meal to Elijah (Job 1:1, 1 Samuel 20:42, 1 Kings 17:8-16)

Wealth

  • Wealth can be a blessing from God, indicating His pleasure and favor (Deuteronomy 28:1-8, Genesis 13:2, 1 Kings 10:23)
  • However, wealth can also lead to pride, greed, and spiritual decay (Proverbs 30:8-9, Luke 12:15)
  • The Bible warns against the dangers of wealth and materialism, encouraging believers to use their resources wisely and generously (Matthew 6:19-20, Luke 12:15, 1 Timothy 6:17-19)

Key Principles

  • God is the one who gives and takes away wealth (Job 1:21, 1 Samuel 2:7)
  • Wealth is not an indicator of one’s standing with God (Psalm 73, Jeremiah 12:1)
  • True riches come from a right relationship with God, not from material possessions (Matthew 6:33, Luke 12:15)

In conclusion, the Bible presents a balanced view of poverty and wealth, emphasizing the importance of faith, generosity, and a right relationship with God, regardless of one’s economic circumstances.

Conclusion

The Bible presents a balanced view of poverty and wealth, emphasizing God’s sovereignty, equality, and provision for all people. While wealth can be a blessing, it also carries risks, and believers are called to use their resources responsibly and to care for the poor and vulnerable. Ultimately, our trust and focus should be on God, rather than our material circumstances.

Religion refers to the poor of spirit, not in material wealth

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Posted (edited)

Reading that post above seems like God created both the poor and the rich and both are being cared by God?

But by that stands it seems God is okay with class hierarchy and the poor and ultra rich?

 

This verse highlights that both the wealthy and the poor are created by God and have equal value in His eyes.
 

So here you go God is okay with both the poor and wealthy and both equal value in his eye?

  • No distinction: The Bible does not teach that poverty or wealth is inherently sinful or blessed. Rather, it emphasizes that both are neutral, and it is how one uses their resources that matters (Matthew 25:14-30).
     

Here you go so God is okay with this world.

 

Edited by nec209
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