Word to the Wise
Tuesday, September 23, 2008 - St. Pio of Pietralcino (Padre Pio, capuchin)
[Proverbs 21:1-6, 10-13 and Luke 8:19-21]Whoever makes a fortune by a lying tongue is chasing a bubble over deadly snares........
The saying from the Book of Proverbs just quoted made me think of the rash of financial scandals that has rocked the country over the past few years. There is considerable irony in the whole thing since those who believe most strongly in the capitalistic system are the ones who most strongly oppose government interference. But when things go badly, where do these same believers turn to? Yep, the government! It makes me think of a statement by a bemused father about his daughter who recently graduated from college, went out on her own and soon moved back in with her parents. He said to me: "She wants to go out and set the world on fire but she keeps coming home for matches." Whatever one may think about the current collapse of seemingly rock-solid financial institutions, I see some very biblical lessons about where our real trust should be. There are some legislators in Congress who are making it clear that any rescue of these institutions must be accompanied by a corresponding sacrifice in the enormous compensation being paid to the CEO's of those very institutions! Greed is greed! It appears that more than one of these CEO's and their institutions have been "chasing a bubble over deadly snares" and now want to escape responsibility. It's a bit like the gospel image. They want the Lord to calm the storm, bail out the boat, and stay out of the boat without holding them responsible for setting sail in a leaky boat on a stormy sea! A lot of people are going to lose their homes because of the irresponsible lending practices that are at issue. I hope there is some help for them! AMEN
config
view
logs
3840.0 KB
63 ms
4
