A man asked Jesus, “What must I do to inherit eternal life?” Jesus answered, “You know the commandments.” The man replied, “Yes Teacher, all of these I have observed from my youth.” Jesus looked at him and loved him, “You are lacking in one thing. Go, sell what you have, and give to the poor and you will have treasure in heaven; then come, follow me.” His face fell, and he went away sad, for he had many possessions. Jesus “said to his disciples, ‘How hard it is for those who have wealth to enter the kingdom of God!” I say again, “How hard it is.” “It is easier for a camel to pass through the eye of a needle than for one who is rich to enter the kingdom of God.”
It was a fundamental belief for the capitalists who heled write the Old Testament and remains a fundamental belief still – the rich are rich and have value because they are good, their wealth being the sign of their goodness, a just reward from God. Conversely, the poor are poor and are devalued because they are bad, their poverty being the sign of their badness, a just curse from God. When Jesus says it is basically impossible for a rich person to be One with God, it is an absolutely stunning reversal of THE fundamental belief capitalists use to shape the world in their favor. Most of us work in the capitalist value system and may even be bosses in it. Doing so does not make us capitalists. We seek and earn a profit, which means to progress forward, for a good life; costs for food, housing, schooling, the arts, and such. Capitalists have stolen the word profit to use for themselves as they have stolen much else. Capitalists do not seek and earn a profit. Capitalists seek and steal plunder. Plunder means to loot. Capitalists loot humanity and our resources so that we struggle mightily to pay for the high costs they place on such living expenses as food and housing. Capitalists are not workers but plunder the work of others. Capitalists are people who use other people as property, for capital gain, whether as slaves or as indentured wage laborers. Capitalists are centi-billionaires, of which there are 9 across the world, like Jeff Bezos who is denying workers unions; like Elon Musk and Mark Zuckerberg whose lawyers and lobbyists are destroying any ability to hold them accountable for their stealing of government subsidies (Tesla 2.8 billion, Meta 1.1 billion – Open Secrets) and their stealing of truth. Capitalists have been shaping our value system since well before Jesus. His words needling the rich are not for a particular time but for all time. According to Oxfam, which recently released their state of the financial world report, the world’s top 1% own more wealth than 95% of all humanity because they keep stealing from common people.
And then, there is the 99% that includes people like Madeline Pendleton. Madeline grew up poor in a culture forcing us in the 99% into survival living. She was determined to progress forward, profit. She did so amidst many difficulties devised by the capitalist system to keep her poor. Her most serious difficulty was the 2008 bank entitlement theft. She then suffered through the suicide of her partner who did not see any other way out of his financial troubles. She knows “capitalism leaves us with few options for survival.” Madeline tells her story of surviving but more so of thriving in her recently released book, I Survived Capitalism and All I Got Was This Lousy T-Shirt. It includes her realization that “capitalism was literally killing the people she loved.” She knew “there had to be a better way.” She helped create that better way as a small business owner who does not plunder people for capital gain. Instead, she builds team work for shared revenue profits. She created a business “wherein people had ownership and agency.” Everyone is invested, physically, financially, which means “no one needs supervision because everyone knows we are in this together.” She pays employees and herself the same wage and all have health care. What Madeline built was the opposite of capitalism which destroys community care because it schemes for plunder. She built an economy – “oikos” care of the home – a “business rooted in an ethos of community care.” Madeline, accused of being annoyingly anti-American, includes in every chapter a “Capitalism Survival Skill.” For example, ‘How to Budget,’ ‘How to Get a Job,’ ‘How to Navigate College,’ ‘How to Buy a House.’ She is providing the skills to others who, like her, are devalued by capitalists so they can be used and abused for capital gain. Madeline is helping people on Jesus’ Way, and needling the rich as she does so.
Prayer: Beautiful Spirit, all things are possible.
Question: How do I design my life so as to not take advantage but to create equality?
October 13, 2024 Mark 10:17-30 Twenty Eighth Sunday in Ordinary Time