The times. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1897-1901, 1900-04-30
TIE GREED FOR WEALTH
Rev. John P. Peters Sermon at
Epiphany p. E. Church.
4 Christian Conception of Life Neccs-
sary to Unite Capital and Labor in
pies of a Jniqae Organization set
Forth-LcssOns From the Bible.

day mornings services at Epiphany Prot
estant Episcopal Church. For the text OF
his sermon he took Isaiah VS.: Woe unto
them that join house TO house, that lay
field to field, till there be no place, that
they may be placed alone in the midst
of the earth" DR.. Peters said, in part, as
fellows:
1T was a time OF considerable outward
prosperity in Judea, and a time of cor
ruption of morals and manners, owing TO
the increase of wealth. Isaiah and his
contemporary. Micah. both found thg well
fare of the State in danger, through the
accumulation of large means in the hands
of a few. According to Isaiah, along with
this accumulation of wealth in the hands
of few individuals went the corruption
| of Justice
Both prophets foresee in this greed for
wealth and the methods pursued in ac-
! curing wealth, ruin to the State. a half
century earlier. when the Kingdom OF
Israel was at the height of its power,
! Amos had seen in the greed and luxury OF
the mobiles and wealthy men OF Samarla a
menace TO the welfare of the State; and
now Israel was decadent, about to vanish
from the face of the earth. and the same
| fate threatened Judea from the same
cause.-the greed and the luxury o the
wealthy, the oppress ion of the pJ,r and
the perversion of law and justice BY the
wealthy in their greed for wealth. or in
their indulglng of their luxurious desires
1t is a story with which we are familiar
in many lands. The story of the growth
of wealth: great distinctions between
classes in consequence of the uneven dis
tribution of wealth. the greed and luxury
of one class. the poverty and oppression
of the other: the corruption of the entire
body polite, the fail of the State.
Dangers of Wealth.
Let US turn to the New Testament. Our
Lords words with regard to the dangers
of wealth to the individual, as recorded
in St Luke. are extreme, not to say ex-
travagant 1T is harder fer a rich man TO
enter the kingdom OF heaven than for a
camel to pass through the eye Of needle
Again. we have the story OF Lazarus ard
Dives.
Again. turning TO the account of tie
rich young man that wished to know what
he should DO that he might enter the king |
dom of heaven. Our Iord's counsel OF per-
lection to him was that Re should sell all
he had and give it to the poor and then |
come and follow him But this the young |
man was not ready to Go. for he was very |
rich New, note the effect Of this sort CT
teaching upon early discipline. We are
told in the fourth chapter OF the book OF |
the Acts thai they had To personal, phi |
vate property. Each one scld all that e !
had and all lived out OF a common purse. /
There was communism pure and simple. !
rs this essential to Christianity? What |
does cur Lo.1 meang by such sayings as /
re made usesur7 With regard to wealth. /
Before we try to ans wer these questio2s
let US turn back a moment to the 0,d
Testament. How are we to interpret tie I
denunciations By tire prophets OF those
men who accumulated large SUMS, :
laying field to field and house 10 house.
until they rad a monopoly, to use cur
modern term; that they might be o-e.
10 UEe the expression OF tie text. JeAish
legislators aud Jewish prophets alike u
sist L. on the Brotherhood Ct the men
Of IsTat
IN. Brotherhood eff Jews.
Christianity took up the Jewish theory !
of the brotherhood of Jews with one an
other ana applied it to mankind. II dropped
attempted to enforce that BROTHERHOOD
AID put in their place the one great law
OF love. Cur Lord lays down as the Law
OF the nobility. the arist5cIacy of his
kingdom. the law of service. He illus
trated he meaning CT this law on the last
night Of his life By taking the pace OF a
slave. ard. Girded with a towel about his
loins, washed the feet OF the apostles, who
were disputing among themselves as TO
Y no should be the greatest in the king
dom. teaching them that he who was tie
servant CT all was greatest. Now. it
must be perfectly clear to anyone t. at
the man NhCse life is devoted to the az
cumulatiUr of wealth. the oa!an who lives
in luxury, served By all the appliances OF
wealth. 90 not take the true Christian /
view Of life. because their lives are rot
lives of service.
Are we. then. to say that all wealth
must be held in common. as the disciples
Of Jerusalem at first did? Are we to re- !
gard wealth in itself as evil? TOls.oy ad-
TOcateS as the true expression of Chris
ianity a condition which we ordinarily re- l
gard a condition of barbarism. No
money, no luxury, each person working :
With his hands 10 produce what is needed
,or maintenance. Is that truly the idea t
Of Christ? Is that VIVA he meant by his I
condemnation of wealth? think not. The a
progress of the race is dependent on the I
development and satisfaction of those in /
itincts AMI aspirations which God has put I
n our ri ire. We cannot and should not I [
De conten. merely to toll with our hands 5
o obtain from the earth food enough to | v
sat. clothing enough to protect us and a
Keep Is warm, and houses TO shelter us. a
Man is a beast until he desires and / I
eeks TO obtain luxuries. He cannot be c
content merely to fill his belly with food t
lie must desire that that food be dainty .
'aricd well-served. He cannot be con-
ent merely to cover his body with cloth
ag enough to keep him warm. He must %
esre to make that clothing ornamental, -
beautiful in fibre and form and color 1t n
5 not enough that he should build house a.
o shelter him. He must seek to make j,
hat house pleasant to lock upon a thing y
f beauty. 1t is part and condition of :.
lis higher nature that he should strive h
fter luxuries. Bal luxuries of any sort is
INVOLVE a certain accumulation of wealth al
IN the other hand. all are agreed that =
here is a point at which luxury ceases to q
e good and wealth becomes an injury to | y
ne individual. When is that point reached? 8
low are we to determine what is good | s
luxury and what evil luxury? What ac- &
Of wealth is good and which is Z
ad? K
1T seems to me that by placing our
.ord's denunclatiOn of wealth side by side F.
18th his exaitation of service we shall find q
is true meaning. He goes to the root of q
hings. He lays down a principle. To s
eek for yourself is evil. Wealth is wicked y
lst in so far il represents that self =