Spiritual Empowerment for Single People IV

THE EVANGELICAL COUNSELS II - The Vow of Poverty

The pain suffered in losing material treasures by choice is very profitable if offered up for the good of souls; if it is borne patiently and cheerfully, and offered as a penance for one's sins, it is of incalculable value. To this day, I try to part constantly with things I become attached to, for the sake of others, to follow Christ with the greatest possible fidelity - not just things I no longer want, but in fact, things I long to keep - anything from prayer cards, which I used to have a fixation on, to money (I try not to save inordinate amounts), to time, to anything I am clinging to, unless it continues to be of use to my soul, mind or body.

We don't know what happened to that rich young man; perhaps Jesus' words were particularly hard for him, since then they were so new. But with hindsight, let us see that sharing is not sacrifice or generosity, but simple justice. If the world is not kind to the poor, the sick and the homeless, we must be. It is our duty.

The alarming disparity in the amount of possessions between the rich and the poor in today's society demands this justice. If there were no billionaires, because all of them kept only a reasonable amount, no one would starve in this entire world. If everything were spread around equally, everyone would be comfortable, if not wealthy.

As a single person, one may have no community with which to share, and thus be required to own some things. But in the end, are not all things, including our very selves, God's possessions, anyway? We simply borrow everything we have, because we can keep nothing in the end. Possession by human beings is an illusion. All things belong to God. We demonstrate this truth in our ability and willingness to give freely to others. Once or more, when I was down to pennies at the end of the month, I gave them all to the collection plate, because I lacked nothing. I did that to imitate the widow in the gospels who won God's favor by giving her last penny. In God we trust.

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In the Love of Christ,

Miss Victoria A. Howard, Anchoress