Amos and Mammon

Amos 8:4-12
I Timothy 2:1-7
Luke 16:1-13

Some of our Christian worship practices go back to the Jewish synagogue before the time of Jesus, in particular, the lectionary and sermon. On the sabbath, a portion from the Torah scroll, the first 5 books, would be read, one after another, so that every verse would be read in the course of a year. Those who attended regularly would hear the whole Torah. Then, there would be a special celebration when the scroll would be rewound to the beginning, ready for another year.

The Christian lectionary uses a similar idea with some differences. First, it jumps around in order to match the holidays of the church year. Also, the Christian lectionary draws from the whole Bible, not just five books. As a result, shorter passages are chosen, and most of the Bible is omitted.

I notice that some of the more embarrassing passages that might upset a modern congregation are never used. For example, our epistle lesson stops before the verses ordering women to keep silent.

When the Church of South India was formed 60 years ago, it revived the tradition of having 4 selections every Sunday, OT, Ps., NT Epistle and Gospel. That custom gradually spread to the west and is now used in the Common Lectionary which is followed by the UCC, Methodists, Lutherans, Catholics and other mainline churches.

The sermon also originated in the Jewish synagogue. It evolved because the Scripture was always read in Hebrew. As Jews spread around the world and more and more of them lost their fluency in Hebrew, someone would paraphrase it in the local language. The paraphrase became longer and longer, and the sermon was born. The rabbi would draw lessons from the passage for the contemporary audience.

I am only half-joking when I say that the sermon is unnecessary, now that we have translations in our own language.

Actually, the sermon is still useful and still popular. But I wonder what would happen if the professional merely explained the historical and linguistic background of a passage and then asked the congregation, "What does it mean for you, today?" The congregation is just as qualified to answer that question as the clergy person.

That may be more detail than you wanted to know.  However, I wanted to explain why I usually have more than one scripture reading. I figure that way that people will be able to benefit from the service even if the sermon is a failure. The scripture, after all, is more important than any sermon.

This Sunday, the lectionary gives two alternatives for the OT lesson. Both are powerful passages, but I have chosen to use the Amos selection. In fact, I want to refer to the whole book; Amos is not a long book, 10-15 pages in most translations. You could read the whole book in less than an hour this afternoon. You won't recognize all the place names, but I think you will be inspired by the prophet's passion.

As much as any prophet in the Hebrew Bible, Amos is a prophet of justice. In the opening chapters, he condemns Israel's various neighbors for their sins. Then, he surprises his audience by turning his attention to his own people:

"For three transgressions of Israel and for four, I will not revoke the punishment; because they sell the righteous for silver, and the needy for a pair of sandals -- they who trample the head of the poor into the dust of the earth, and push the afflicted out of the way; . . . they lay themselves down beside every altar on garments taken in pledge; and in the house of their God they drink wine bought with fines they imposed" (2:6-8).

Let's translate that into more modern language. A modern Amos might say, "For three transgressions of Russia and for four, I will not revoke the punishment, because they allowed oligarchs to amass huge wealth by their political connections, while the elderly cannot survive on their pensions."

"For three transgressions of Saddam Hussein and for four, I will not revoke the punishment, because he killed and tortured his own people. He siphoned off UN oil-for-peace money that was intended to provide food and medicine."

"For three transgressions of the Taliban and for four, I will not revoke the punishment, because they harbored al-Qaeda terrorists."

Then, "For three transgressions of America and for four, I will not revoke the punishment, because they want the benefits of government without paying for them, so they add to the national debt for their unborn grandchildren. And because the number of Americans without health insurance increases every year.1  And 80% of the uninsured are in working families. They have the right to vote, but more people vote for the American Idol than for president."

"Idol," an interesting choice of words.

Amos has a lot to say about the relationship between justice and religion. Over and over, he says that without justice, our religious practices are a waste of time. They are even an insult to God. Amos complained not only that many of his contemporaries oppressed the weak, but they also covered themselves with a religious veneer. They are zealous in their outward devotion, but that is not what God wants.

In chapter 5, God says, "I hate, I despise your festivals, and I take no delight in your solemn assemblies. Even though you offer me your burnt offerings and grain offerings, I will not accept them. . . . Take away from me the noise of your songs. I will not listen to the melody of your harps. But let justice roll down like waters and righteousness like an ever-flowing stream" (Amos 5:21-24).

Prophecy is often confused with predicting the future, but notice the spelling, "pro," not "pre." "Pro" here means "on behalf of." The prophet speaks in God's name, on behalf of God.

I mention this because Amos promises the complete destruction of Israel, which does come to pass some 30 years later, when the Assyrians destroy the northern kingdom and deport the Israelites to other parts of their empire, where they become the so-called ten lost tribes of Israel. However, it is hard for me to believe that Amos had some sort of crystal ball that allowed him to predict the future. Rather, his insights grew out of his understanding of Israel's covenant with God.

Amos delivered his oracles at a period of great prosperity in Israel, much like ours. It was easy for them to believe that their comfortable lives were a reward from God for their good behavior. After all, they had been practicing all the rituals faithfully. They showed up for all the church meetings on time.

However, their prosperity was not distributed equally. Much of it was built on the backs of the poor.

Before Amos, no one made a distinction between the ethical requirements of the covenant and the religious requirements.  Amos does.2  That inevitably involves him in the politics of his day.  He insists that religion and morality and foreign policy cannot be isolated from one another.

Worship is not valid worship if the worshipper is practicing injustice. He did not mean that worship is wrong, that festivals and solemn assemblies are wrong. But worship without justice is irrelevant. Worship without justice is blasphemy.

Notice, too, that Amos is not saying that wealth or prosperity are wrong. The Israelites believed that material prosperity is a blessing from God. Amos isn't asking them to renounce it. Rather, he is asking that it be shared.<o:p> </o:p>

Wealth is exactly like worship in that respect. It is wrong only when it is associated with injustice.

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<o:p></o:p>So it is that Amos's words in our passage are addressed to those who trample on the needy (8:4). No golden parachutes for the executives while they eliminate pensions and healthcare for the custodians.<o:p> </o:p>

"We will make the ephah small and the shekel great, and practice deceit with false balances" (8:5). Buy low and sell high. Make products wherever the labor costs are lowest. Then, mark up the price, and sell as high as you can, so the shareholders will enjoy a bigger dividend.<o:p> </o:p>

Our passage seems to assume that earthquakes and eclipses are a punishment from God. We don't need to share that assumption, but I was reminded recently of Thomas Jefferson's words, "I tremble for my country when I reflect that God is just, and that his justice will not sleep forever."<o:p> </o:p>

The Economic Policy Institute, a Washington think-tank, says that 30 years ago, the top 100 chief executive officers in America earned an average of $1.3 million dollars. That came to 39 times the pay of the average worker. Then, in 2004, it was $37.5 million, over 1,000 times the pay of the average worker.3  That is the kind of inequality that upset Amos so much 28 centuries ago.<o:p> </o:p>

I quote statistics more than Amos did. But Bill Moyers, at the UCC General Synod, said that, "The mark of a deeply educated person is the ability to be deeply moved by statistics."

And we have our own local version of greed run amok with the Crisp and Cole revelations. They have not yet had their day in court, and I do not want to prejudge. More important, that would miss the point anyway.

It is too easy to point the finger at the extreme examples. The excesses of the Leona Helmsleys of the world only magnify our own consumerist values. As someone said last Sunday, just look at the ads in the Sunday paper for all the "stuff" we don't need. Pogo is still correct:  "We have met the enemy, and he is us." That includes me. I like my 3-bedroom, 2-bath home -- for 3 people. I can criticize the media for flooding us with sex and pseudo-news the antics of celebrities, but they know very well what it is that we want to read.<o:p> </o:p>

Crisp and Cole made the front pages, but how many other Americans were glad for the chance to buy more house than they could afford? Now, 1 out of every 247 houses in California is in default. The Associated Press recently reported that 37% of American homeowners spend more than 30% of their income on housing. In California, more than half of homeowners must do so, 51.8%.5 And these numbers ignore renters and the homeless.<o:p> </o:p>

When we turn to Luke, we notice that this whole chapter is filled with warnings about wealth. The last few verses about Lazarus and the rich man put Lazarus, who had been a beggar, in heaven instead of the rich man (16:19-31).<o:p> </o:p>

Our strange story is often called "The Unjust Steward" or, more recently, "The Dishonest Manager."  The manager is fired, so he cooks the books to make his master's debtors indebted to him. He changes the dates on the stock options in order to cheat the IRS. Maybe he is afraid that he will join the ranks of the unemployed.<o:p> </o:p>

Then -- lo and behold -- his boss praises him for his shrewdness. Perhaps this parable was confusing from the beginning, but verse 9 makes it clear that the point is not to be dishonest with other people's money. Rather, what happens here and now is less important than our eternal home. The long run is always more important than short-term gain.<o:p> </o:p>

The next verses correct possible misinterpretations.  "If you are trustworthy with little things, you will be trustworthy with the big ones." The implication is that even little things matter. Every choice is important.<o:p> </o:p>

And the last sentence makes what is perhaps the most important lesson. There is nothing wrong with wealth.  Amos never said there was anything wrong with wealth. What is wrong is making a god of wealth. Older translations say, "You cannot serve God and mammon," using the Aramaic word for money that Jesus would have used, and they often capitalize Mammon as if it were the name of a god. The problem is not the dollar, but the Almighty Dollar.

1. Currently 47 million.  For a 2004 analysis, see Health Coverage in America published by the Alliance for Health Reform, www.usc.edu/crcc/health/coverage.html.<o:p> </o:p>
2. Gerhard von Rad, OT Theology, II, 135f., 400f.<o:p></o:p>
3. "Special Report:  Meritocracy in America, Ever Higher Society, Ever Harder to Ascend," The Economist, January 1, 2005, p. 22.
4. Wikipedia, "Leona Helmsley."
5. Associated Press, September 13, 2007; figures from US Census Bureau<o:p>
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