Christianity

Biblical Teachings

Christianity inherited from Judaism an understanding of the right use of goods as founded on the Exodus: God's liberation of the Israelites from Egypt; leading them to the Promised Land “flowing [Page 159]with milk and honey” (Ex 3:8). This experience of liberation and gift grounded a positive evaluation of all creation. The land's bounty was celebrated in a rich cycle of agricultural feasts and temple sacrifice. The quotidian details of production and consumption were sacralized in a temporality of labor and Sabbath, in restrictions on harvest and ownership (gleaning, Jubilee), and in a detailed system of slaughter and dietary regulations. The challenge of the prophets rests on this foundation of goodness and gift. Wealth can be idolatrous, tempting humans to trust in their own power rather than God. Riches become sinful when they are not shared in the community, especially with the poor.

Jesus preached during the first-century Roman occupation of Judea. His central theme: the Kingdom of God—a nonviolent order of love and generosity—was an inversion of the imperial order. The poor and hungry are blessed, while woe is pronounced on the rich and well fed (Lk 6:20–24).

Riches were equated with the unjust economic order of the time. In one parable, a servant about to be fired colludes with his master's debtors to discount their debts. Jesus praises him for using unrighteous mammon to build relationships. No concern is shown for the master defrauded of his unrighteous gains (Lk 16:1–9).

True wealth is not found in riches. Sharing with the needy is “treasure in heaven” (Mt 6:19–21). Jesus counsels a rich young man to sell all that he has and give to the poor. When the man departs in sorrow, Jesus observes it is easier for the rich to pass “through the eye of a needle” than to enter the Kingdom of God. God makes possible this seemingly impossible call to discipleship (Mk 10:23).

Consumption also figures positively in the Gospels. Jesus was accused of being a drunkard and eating with sinners. A lavish banquet is one of his most repeated images of God's kingdom. The Christian ritual of the Eucharist reenacts Jesus' final meal: his offering of bread and wine to his disciples as his own body and blood. This positions bodily consumption at the heart of divine and human communion.

Members of the community in Jerusalem sold their possessions, sharing the proceeds with all according to need (Acts 2:44). The apostle Paul criticized the distortion of the Eucharistic meals by class differences. Some went hungry while others got drunk (1 Cor 11:22). The Letter to Timothy condemns those who use religious authority for material gain. “The love of money is the root of all evil” (1 Tm 6:10).

Early Church

Early Christian preaching wrestled with these demanding teachings. In the second century, Clement of Alexandria softened Jesus's exhortation to the rich young man: The commandment “sell what you have and give to the poor” is not to be taken literally, but as a call for spiritual detachment from wealth and for its proper use to supply the needs of the poor. John Chrysostom, writing in the fourth century, was more rigorous: God distributed resources equally in creation. Thus, private property is either theft or it is inheritance. To withhold aid from the needy is further robbery. Greed is idolatry that fractures relationships. Almsgiving is not merely the restoration of justice but also of community.

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