Can God and Mammon Work Together?

For many the love of money is indeed the root of all evil. Under this worldview, greed is the expression of a lack of a healthy limit on the amount of wealth a person needs to pursue happiness. Preachers can damn avarice and slam their fists on the pulpit all they want, while The New York Times publishes persuasive articles about the greed of the big banks, but these actions by themselves will likely do little to move the needle on an evolutionary legacy that has developed into a fundamental aspect of human nature. Observant parents first notice this when their grateful and giving babies suddenly shift into toddlers whose perceived lack of resources triggers overcompensation: prompted by scenes such as a toy in the corner of the room that becomes extremely valuable only after another child takes an interest in it. Some children are more receptive to lessons in sharing, gratitude, and how to set limits on their own desires. But for a multitude of reasons, this sometimes Sisyphean task fails to stem budding greed—particularly when a child’s environment sends precisely the opposite messages that reinforce greed as a necessary value for survival. One way to erode and hopefully break the hold this cycle of greed has on children is to teach them to give back to their communities—to be generous with their neighbors, both near and far.