GREED

Greed is identified as a sin of excess desire for wealth and pursuit of material possessions. It is a never ending hunger. It can sometimes be identified as avarice or covetousness. We see that throughout history that money is the source of Greed.

However, money is not the only thing that Greed concentrates on. Some acts of this sin can be scavenging, theft, gambling, hoarding, and cheating. Greed can also bring out behaviors such as disloyalty, deliberate, betrayal, treason, and bribery. So, Greed is an act that brings out a behavior which leads to our downfall.

This can be seen in the Roman empire, where they would invade, conquer, and charge the people taxes. However, the local people were in charge of collecting and giving the taxes to the Roman government. But the tax collectors were not paid, plus they have to go house to house, so no room for another job. To earn money, they would make the tax higher to get any source of income. That is why tax collectors are so hated and identified as betrayers. In a way they betrayed their own people so they could have money-GREED.



Another prime example of Greed being destructive is the myth of Midas. A king named Midas was able to have his wish answered by a God. His response was he wanted whatever he touched to be turned to gold. First he was ecstatic that he had more wealth than ever. However, he turn his food to hard metal and drink to golden blocks. Unable to satisfy his hunger and thirst, he accidentally turned his daughter to gold. Curse his gift he prayed for his wish to be reversed. The God told him to go the the river and wash in the water. He put his daughter in the water and was overjoyed that she was not gold anymore. From then on, he hated wealth and live a more peaceful life. This story shows that wealth can be a joy but a curse to our being.

The Bible also displays some strong examples of Greed. Jesus mentions throughout the New Testament to not be held down by materialistic needs. A classic example is when Jesus is in the temple and seems to be going on a rampage. What made this holy man get as angry as this? He was angry at the money changers who were openly sinning in the house of the Lord. The money changers role was to change currency into Roman currency. However they would charge a fee and get more money than what was exchanged. Greed is what happen in the house of the Lord which made Jesus so furious. The other classic example was Judas who sold Jesus for 30 pieces of silver. However, his ultimate reward was in Hell.

In Dante's Divine Comedy, the greedy shove huge weights which signifies the gold that they try to take. Further down, priest who made profit from their duties like salvation, confessions, or forgiveness were buried with their legs out and feet on fire. The opposite of a baptism where the feet are immerse in water and water pour/dip on the head. At the lowest levels  is filled with traitors, where Judas is chewed in eternal damnation by Satan. However, for those who could be saved in Purgatory, lie face down repeating a verse. They are unable to turn their eyes which gives the illustrations of their attachment to the earth. Many of these people were tempted by the sin Greed, especially by the devil.

The devil for this sin was named Mammon, who is the enemy of charity and destroyer of peace. Before, people thought he was part of gluttony and injustice. He can also be described as a wolf-which were associated with Greed during the Middle ages. Because of Greed presence there is a saying that the love of money is the root of evil in 1 Timothy 6:10.

The reason why Greed is so deadly because it is a murder. The greedy are those who keep what should have been given to the poor. As a result, they are killing those who should have lived from their plenty. In the end, it really cuts us off from people. This is how damaging Greed is, do you see it impacting your life?

We are humans and we can not avoid sin. Greed is a sin that is ever present in my life. Personally, this is the worst for me. I would be greedy with money, food, my room, etc. I get irritable when people do not respect my things. Even a touch without my permission would get me on a rampage. However, because of my Greed, it put a strain on my relationship with my sibling and I hated when people come over. But this is so unchristian like. Jesus wants us to have communion, gather and help each other. Because of this sin, I did not want to help others and ignore those who needed me. But I changed after learning more of myself and Jesus.

We need to realize that we can't earn enough to be good so we need to ask for forgiveness. Also do little things that matter, because the kindness we do or refuse is given to Jesus. For those ready for the next step, look at the Heavenly Virtues, Charity, the opposite of Greed. This means we have to be generous-readiness to give something you have to someone. A way we mostly think is that we own things. But in reality we don't, cause everything is God's. As a result, we need to share. A challenge for us is find something that you are holding on and release it. If all of this is impossible ask God, why not go to our Father for help.