May 23, 2013

It is no Sin to Have Wealth …

Posted by johnmangels under Monasticism, Personal | Tags: , , , , |
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I’m attracted to money and the things that money can bring into my life.  I think most of us are.  Most of my life I was paid for my work.  It may not have been my main motivation.  I had another career started, once upon a time, that promised to be more lucrative.  Money has not been my primary motivator in discerning a call.  But I don’t think I would have done the work that I did most of my life if I had not been paid a living wage.

There was a time when my furniture consisted of a fold up mattress, a lamp for reading and some crates to hold books, and my clothing was limited and pretty much all hand me down or thrift shop (except athletic shoes) and I was perfectly happy.  Today I want (possibly even need) a comfortable bed to sleep in and a comfortable chair to read in, and my stuff (which once fit into a VW bug) easily fills a home.  That is a problem in retirement:  how do I move my old office into my home?

I found myself thinking about this after reading (in Celtic Daily Prayer):  “It is no sin to have wealth, but it is sinful to be attracted to wealth. (more…)

 

September 19, 2012

Acceptance, Contentment and Rejoicing

Posted by johnmangels under Looking for God | Tags: , , , , |
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It’s been too long since I posted!

Anyway, today (in my supplemental office readings) I read a poem (couldn’t figure out the author, but it’s from Celtic Daily Prayer) part of which goes like this:

Help me to find my happiness
in my acceptance
of what is Your purpose for me …
in the awareness
of Your presence in my spirit.

Then I came across this (from the Tao Te Ching as quoted in Chittister’s The Rule of Benedict):

Be content with what you have;
rejoice in the way things are,
When you realize there is nothing lacking
the whole world belongs to you.

I’m still wrestling with retirement.

I’m doing a lot of (more…)