In today’s first reading, St. Paul gives us one of the most quoted lines in all of Scripture today: “The love of money is the root of all evils.” It’s important to notice that he does not say money itself is evil. Money is a tool, something necessary for daily life; life is too complex for a barter system.
At the beginning of this passage, the author warns against those who treat religion as a way of personal gain—using faith to acquire status, comfort, or wealth. For the most part, in our parishes and communities, this is not where most of us fall. Few people come to Mass in hopes of making money. Most are here out of love for God, a desire for prayer, and the need for grace.
But then we go out into the world and go to work … if we are not able to earn it the old fashioned way: inherit it … or win the Powerball lottery.
Consider the family that wants to send their kids to Catholic elementary school. The family is making a choice about money. Assume you have three kids. The tuition at our parish elementary school will be just shy of $20,000 per year for all three kids – and trust me the parish school is not a profit center. Think about the math: three kids, 8 years… that’s $160,000. But you love your kids and want a Catholic education for them. That is just one part of modern life’s demands for money. There is the house, transportation, clothing, insurance, college, perhaps your own student loans, … and you know the list.
Love of money is not the driving force, but the choices we make – all of them good and with good intention – can become like the siren’s call luring us into the rocky shoal waters where our heart begins to cling to money. Is it love of money? Maybe, maybe not. But has it distorted our relationships, corroded our values, and begun to draw us away from God in that we depend on ourselves far more than trust in God. That is not something easily discerned.
The love of money can still quietly take root in us. It shows itself in anxiety over possessions, in envy of what others have, in the subtle belief that security comes from our bank account rather than from God. It can show itself in the temptation to work or consume without limits, leaving little space for relationships, prayer, or service. More things to discern.
Perhaps here is a good measuring stick. Paul’s advice is: “Pursue righteousness, devotion, faith, love, patience, and gentleness. Compete well for the faith. Lay hold of eternal life.” Did that describe you? Part of you? We are all pursuing something. If not these, then what?
Most are here out of love for God, a desire for prayer, and the need for grace. This must fuel our pursuit of life and carry beyond the walls of the Church. It needs to shape how we work, how we use resources, how we treat others. In a world where money often defines worth, Christians are called to witness that true wealth is found in integrity, in generosity, and in love. When we choose honesty at work, when we resist greed in business, when we share what we have with those in need, we are living out Paul’s admonition. When we decide the house we have is enough, a staycation is better than a week at Disney, and in all the choices we make, then we are competing well for the faith.
So today we hear both a warning and a promise. The warning is that love of money, even disguised, if unchecked, can pull us away from God. The promise is that if we set our hearts on Christ, we will find in Him a treasure no thief can steal and no moth destroy: eternal life with God.
The Exhortation to the Apostles | James Tissot | ca. 1890 | Brooklyn Museum NYC | PD-US