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Wealth, happiness and Tita Cory

Sunday, 01 August 2010 00:00


In “How Much Land Does a Man Need?” Tolstoy tells the story of the peasant Pahóm who thought his happiness lay in acquiring more land. Through dint of hard work and shrewdness he amasses more and more land. Yet unsatisfied, he negotiates with the Bashkirs who make him an unusual offer: for a thousand rubles, he will own whatever land he encircles by walking on foot from sunrise to sunset. Compelled by greed, he stakes out as large a piece of land as possible. But as the sun is about to set, he realizes he is far from his starting point. He rushes towards his starting point and does arrive before the sun sets, but alas, due to sheer exhaustion, drops dead. The Bashkirs bury him in a grave six feet long and six feet deep.

On the one hand, the readings today forewarn us against avarice, against identifying our happiness with material abundance. On the other hand, Jesus does not literally command us to give up all our possessions and embrace destitution, for God wills fullness of life for all.

Deplorable Poverty. Creation is the work of the Trinity and is God’s gift to humanity. The bounty of the earth is meant to provide for all and to be shared by all. The superabundance of the earth tells us that God desires fullness of life for all. Hence, hunger, poverty and inequity are enemies of God. This is not the poverty that Jesus inspires; rather, this is the poverty the follower of Christ combats.

Thus the disgust and indignation over the NFA’s over-importation of rice stockpiled to the brim, and possibly rotting, in NFA warehouses, while around 4 million Filipino families (or 20% of the total number of Filipino families) have experienced hunger at least once during the past three months, according to the Social Weather Station, dated July 21, 2010. Such want amidst wanton waste would probably have elicited from Jesus’ lips, “Woe to you, NFA and other government officials.”

Commendable Poverty. Poverty only becomes a virtue when it is freely embraced for the sake of higher values, such as expressing solidarity with the poor and dispossessed, or repudiating our materialism and consumerism, or witnessing to trust in God’s providence. Poverty in itself is not a virtue, but the reason for embracing poverty can be. Hence, while poverty that is imposed is dehumanizing, poverty that is freely-embraced is humanizing. This is the kind of poverty that Jesus endorses.

Not all of us are called to embrace the radical poverty of the Missionary of Charities of Mother Theresa, whose sisters only have two of those distinctively blue-striped religious habit, based on the Indian sari. While one is worn, the other is washed. Very few of us would freely choose such a radically austere way of life. But, amidst our materialism, greed and vanities, we are all called to embrace a lifestyle of simplicity, not a lifestyle of destitution or of excess. And we may do so because of higher values, whether they be secular—so as to minimize the exploitation of the earth—or religious—so as to express my dependence on and trust in God.

Sinful Wealth? Is wealth per se sinful? An object is neither intrinsically good nor evil. Its usage is that which is either moral or immoral. Morality therefore concerns persons in their free decisions and actions, often with regard their usage of the things around them. For instance, a gun in itself is neither good nor bad. Shooting someone due to hatred is grievously sinful, but the same act of shooting another person out of self-defense exempts the person from subjective guilt. The usage of a gun can thus either destroy or save life. The usage can do good or cause harm. Therefore, in itself, it is neither moral nor immoral.

Similarly, wealth in itself is amoral—neither good nor bad. Its manner of acquisition and usage is that which determines its morality. Thus the furor over the President Noy’s enumeration of the numerous perks and bonuses of the directors of the MWSS, while the pension of retirees and the loans of the MWSS have not been fully paid. Despite the justification of Macra Cruz, MWSS OIC, of the legality of all the bonuses the board members have granted themselves, people intuit the immorality of their self-aggrandizement. Something is reeking and is giving us a bitter aftertaste.

Good Wealth. Thus, because a thing in itself is amoral, wealth is good or evil depending on its acquisition and usage. Wealth that is stolen is immoral. So, too, is wealth—amidst poverty and starvation—that is not shared. On the other hand, riches that is used to alleviate the suffering of others is good wealth. Riches, then, is only good when it is used in a good manner, when it is used for a good purpose.

Today we commemorate the first death anniversary of our beloved Tita Cory. Born into an aristocratic family, she lived a simple lifestyle, wearing her signature yellow dresses, some of which, if I may say so, looked liked dasters from the tiangge. Thrust into the highest office of the land, she was embarrassed by the perks and privileges of being president and the niceties, gestures of respect and affection, offered her after her tenure. During the many memorial Masses for Ninoy at Manila Memorial, she would insist, “When I die, please no more Masses and gatherings for me.” She never liked being fussed about. Even in her death bed, as her daughters would assist her every move, she would goad them, “Umuwi na ako. Attend to your families. Do not worry about me.” The last time I spoke to her, amidst her excruciating pain, she agonizingly whispered, “Thank you for everything. Please thank everyone for me.”

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