Wealth does not confer virtue – and never has.
Every spiritual tradition in the world – Buddhist, Christian, Jewish, Hindu, Muslim, Confucian and the many Indigenous spiritual teachings – has made that clear.
Buddhism teaches: “Amassing wealth for its own sake is condemned… When wealth is not shared and is used only to satisfy one's own selfish aims, it leads to resentment in society.” Further: “If a person uses money for selfishness and desires too much money, then it causes suffering to himself and to others”
Christianity similarly states: “The love of money is a root of all kinds of evils. It is through this craving that some have wandered away from the faith… be on your guard against all covetousness, for one's life does not consist in the abundance of his possessions”.
Islam says: “Whoever is wealthy in his heart will not be harmed no matter what happens in the world. Whoever is impoverished in his heart will not be satisfied no matter how much he has in the world. Verily, he will only be harmed by the greed of his own soul.”
Judaism is explicit: “In Judaism, morality matters more than money… if you are fortunate enough to have wealth you are obligated by Jewish law to share it with those who are in need.”
The famous Chinese spiritual master Confucius said: “Wealth and honor are things that all people desire, and yet unless they are acquired in the proper way, I will not abide them.” He identified “ren” as a virtue “denoting the good feeling a virtuous human experiences when being altruistic.”
Indigenous spiritual traditions have a particularly strong emphasis on reciprocity and sharing material wealth. Though variable in some details, Indigenous teachings have a common approach to wealth. “Most Indigenous languages do not have a word for ‘wealth’. Instead, they have words that convey living reciprocally… Indigenous wealth is shared: when we have access to shared wealth, we can restore the health of our communities and nations.”
Importantly, Indigenous spirituality recognizes a sacred quality in all life forms.
What is at the core of all traditions is that wealth is acceptable to pursue in terms of a person’s basic needs (and the needs of their family and close friends). Beyond that, it has no intrinsic value except as an instrument to do good in the world – to help meet those same basic needs for others, and bring happiness and fulfillment into their lives too.
Anyone who outwardly or formally espouses a religious tradition or perspective but uses wealth for personal aggrandizement, dominance over others or to steal from others – including the myriad other life forms besides human – is no longer a sincere practitioner of that tradition. He or she is wearing a spiritual cloak to mask an unhealthy and destructive way of acting in the world.
The only hope for our species is to acknowledge that we share Planet Earth with all humans and other life forms, and that our collective well-being can only be ensured by sharing its gifts.
Warren Bell is a long-time family physician in Salmon Arm with a consuming interest and involvement in community and global affairs.
