One of the dreariest tasks of a parish priest is to stand up and ask for money.
One can almost hear the moans of the parishioners and hear them thinking, "Here we go again. Father’s always asking for money. All he ever thinks about is money."
This complaint is more accurately aimed at the complainer. Father Frugal — like most priests — loathes asking for money. It is the grudging parishioner — Mr. Cashback — who is always thinking of money; otherwise, he wouldn’t be grumbling about it.
During this season of Lent, we stop and remind ourselves that almsgiving is one of the three expectations for a good Lent — along with fasting and prayer. A request to give one’s money away is most painful because the request for alms is about far more than money.
Money itself is not the issue. It’s not money. It’s what money buys: security, prestige, power, control — and, most of all, power over oneself and one’s decisions.
If we gave up our money, we’d have to trust in God instead of our bank account, and that is the real test.
Father Frugal does not ask for money for himself. He also does not ask for money because the church needs a new roof or the boiler needs to be repaired. He doesn’t even ask for money to feed the hungry, educate the children and clothe the naked.
Yes, indeed, all those things need to be paid for, but the good priest asks for money not for himself or for the church roof or for the school or to feed starving children. He asks for money to save your soul.
It is really quite simple: You cannot get into heaven if you worship some other god; you cannot serve God and money.
This simplest of Sunday school lessons is somehow the one most difficult to understand: If you wish to get into heaven, you will — sooner or later — have to overcome your love of money.
You thought the priest was asking for money so he could have control over you. In fact, the good priest asks for your money not so he can have control over you, but so that your money will not have control over you.
He does not ask for money to enslave you, but to set you free.
When we give sacrificially, we tell our money who’s boss. We take control of the money rather than the money taking control of us.
It is all too easy to be possessed by our possessions and all too easy to forget that if we are possessed by anything other than the Holy Spirit we are possessed by a kind of demon. And the way to exorcise the demon of greed and the false idol called mammon is to give money away.
What we cannot see is that most of us are hooked on money just as certainly and demonically as a drug addict is addicted or an alcoholic is dependent. Drugs and booze make them feel good about themselves and their world. Drugs and booze give them an artificial high.
The same goes with money. It makes us feel good about ourselves and the world, and, like any other artificial stimulant, the high soon fades, and we need more and more and will never be satisfied.
Giving alms is like giving up a drug, and it is just as difficult.
But just like giving up a drug, the practical effect of sacrificial giving is an authentic freedom. When we give alms, we are breaking the chains that bind us, and we not only experience spiritual freedom, but we experience a new freedom from financial worry. Furthermore, in a paradoxically practical way, by giving freely and sacrificially, we end up being more prosperous than before.
The person who gives alms generously does not become poorer; he becomes richer. He becomes richer because he has started to learn the value of everything rather than the price of everything. He becomes richer because he grows in self-respect and honor.
He sees clearly what really matters and what does not matter. When he gives his money away, he also gives away the worldly viewpoint that made him greedy and reliant on the false god of money for his security. Furthermore, he not only becomes rich in real values and honest principles. He also becomes more wealthy: He has more money — not less.
This is how it works: When we give generously — I mean: really generously — we shift our values. Our mind is changed. We come to realize that we do not need so much.
The old car we have will do. Soon, we don’t care so much about the clothes we needed to impress people and the extra luxuries we needed to reassure ourselves and build our self-esteem.
By giving generously, we become more content, and we really do need less. The sooner we realize we have enough, the sooner we have enough. We used to seek happiness in buying stuff. Now we don’t need to.
Consequently, we are not only happy and more prosperous spiritually and mentally, but we also have more disposable income.
Being a disciple of Jesus Christ means that we must leave all and follow him. This is not just a cute Bible story. Neither is it an optional extra. This is not one of many ways to follow him. It is the way to follow him. Sooner or later, in one way or another, Jesus Christ will demand that we leave all to follow him. It’s part of the deal.
Part of leaving all for the first disciples was to leave their livelihoods — their capital investment of their fishing boats and nets and their careers. When we are called to give alms during Lent, this is part of the radical discipleship we are called to.
Until Catholics in the United States learn this lesson, the Church will continue to be ineffectual, weak and complacent. As long as American Catholics continue to rely on cash rather than Christ, the Church will be a sleeping giant.
Finally, every action of sacrifice releases spiritual power into the world. Through sacrifice, God’s grace is poured out, and great things are accomplished.
They are accomplished not just because good people now have the money to do God’s work; they are accomplished because, through the sacrifice of giving alms, human will aligns to God’s will.
Pride and the worship of mammon is broken, and God’s great and loving power is unleashed on a dark and needy world.
Father Dwight Longenecker’s latest book is
The Quest for the Creed. Connect to his blog, browse his books and contact him through his website,
DwightLongenecker.com.
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“He becomes richer because he has started to learn the value of everything rather than the price of everything.”
Great statement!
I was listening to a secular radio show the other day on the subject of the end of 16th century scientific materialism for the way people think today. The man speaking went on to say, ‘we fill our lives with meaningless reality programs or going to the mall to buy stuff we don’t need with money we don’t have.’ I’d say that’s a fair assessment of where we are at as a people in the good old USA.Your article above speaks to the alternative to this living death and needs to be included in all the discussions about the so called new evangelism. People outside the church are looking for real alternatives, but when we speak down to them, condemn them, judge them, talk and act superior to them, we shoot ourselves in the foot.People would listen to this type of clear presentation.
As a convert to Catholicism, I’ve noticed that Evangelicals tend to be much less apologetic about asking for money and are higher in their expectations. Many Evangelicals see it as a moral duty to give 10% of their income away.
Technically, tithing is an Old Testament expectation and the New Testament expectation is to give according to your means. But what we often lose sight of is that our “necessities” generally grow to match our income. Thus couples who make $40k a year and couples who make $200k a year both feel that they can’t afford to give away more than 2-3% of their income. A house that costs 3x what you make in a year, 2 cars that are replaced every 5 years, private school, etc.—these all become “necessities” and “a reasonable standard of living.”
People find ways to afford what is genuinely important to them. It’s just a matter of making tithing one of those things for you.
Hmmm… I agree with up to the point where you say you become rich when you learn to live on less. Actually, the more you give, the more you get. Cast your bread upon the waters and it shall be returned unto you. And why is it important to get more back? So you’ll have more to give. Here’s an example: a few years ago I gave a homeless newspaper vendor $100 I was planning to spend on Christmas presents. A week later, I received a tip of $120 on a $30 walking tour (I am a tour guide). I got my money back—with interest. So I had more to give away—which I do—to my church, to my pastor to send overseas to missions, etc. It’s very simple. Everyone ought to try it.
Father, make no judgement about Catholics’ almsgiving based on whether people give to the parish. Almsgiving is a private affair and many, many Catholics (yours truly included) do not give to parishes and dioceses because of the waste that is often so apparent. Money given at the parish level travels to the diocese which then travels to the USCCB to fund all kinds of wasteful bureacracies. It is much better to give alms to charities that give a complete accounting of where the dollars go.
@Anonymous—wow, how wrong you are. Let’s say that everyone in the parish took your type of ‘lack of charity’ to the parish and no one at all donated to the parish…what would happen? The lights would go out, the heat and/or AC would go out, the roof would collapse and the parish would all-in-all be destroyed. Proclaiming that you must know where every dollar of yours goes to, would that mean that you must see to believe as well? We walk by faith and not by sight…plus, it’s tough to see in church when all the lights go out! Sounds like you have your own agenda with the Church and that you have a tremendous amount of trust issues…Christ can take care of those…you just have to have faith and trust.
I try to give generously to our Parish, but we also give to other charities (Catholic) like Food for the Poor, etc. I also like giving to Catholic Charities, especially if there’s a disaster here in the U.S. But, I don’t like to feel forced to give to other various collections the Church has, especially the USBB one, because I don’t know where the money is being spent on.
Also, in a previous parish for their building fund they practically pressured people in pledging certain amounts, even visiting their homes. We’re seniors, and like anyone else live on a limited income. I would rather give to give what we can (even if it hurts). But pressuring people is bad. Any sales person can tell you that.
So our almsgiving will most likely not go the the CRS but Catholic Charities and other ones helping the poor this Lent, and don’t forget the people begging on street corners. They may spend the money on booze, but thats between God and them.
Ananymous- what a sad justification for choosing not to support your parish and your pastor, as well as the greater church. My pastor, who is from India, said (privately) that his poor Indian parishioners give a far greater percentage of their income than Americans do Time, treasure and talent—we are asked to share what we have, all of which , by the way, is a gift from God.
And Ii have to ask: Why are you a member of a church you don’t trust?
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