Covetousness in Orthodoxy, the meaning of the word, why this quality is considered a sin

The concept of “covetousness” is not often used in modern Russian and is outdated. The word means a passion for wealth, a person’s desire for hoarding, which harms spiritual development. It has an overtly negative connotation. To fully understand the term, it is necessary to turn to its interpretation by numerous Christian sources, since it is closely related to the concept of sin.

Words and phrases suitable for replacement

It is easier to assimilate new information through synonyms, but something tells me that replacements of the object of study will also have to be interpreted, but this does not matter. Here is the list:

love of money;
selfishness;
love of money;
passion for profit;
unhealthy consumerism.

The love of money is an outdated synonym for the phrase “love of money.”

"One but fiery passion"

We are, of course, talking about covetousness - this is what holds up today’s world, its axis. There is nothing wrong with living well. Problems begin when a person seeks luxury.

But it is difficult to judge a modern Russian for his extensive desires. On the one hand, there is a big world where people are constantly getting richer and enjoying life. The gossip column does not allow us to forget how poor we are. Even middle class people in Russia are poor compared to Hollywood stars. On the other hand, a Russian person has a Soviet past behind him, which frightens him with its shadow and forces him to move forward and earn more and more.

The Bible on Covetousness

Let's also talk about what covetousness is in the Bible. The Word of God does not leave this problem aside and reveals the concept, correlating it with similar vices:

Love of money and covetousness. Anyone who is an idolater (covetous) “will not be an heir of the Kingdom of God,” and the love of money is the root of all other vices.
Bribery, extortion. They come from the very heart of a person and defile his soul. These qualities are accomplices of greed. Those who take bribes and are covetous are wicked people, unrighteous, “will not inherit the Kingdom of God.”
Avarice (greed). She is capable of taking away vitality (and life itself) from “those hungry for other people’s goods.”
Stinginess. “He who sows sparingly” will only reap a sparing harvest. It differs from greed only in that it preserves and protects its own good. And those who love to give are loved by God.
Selfishness. A sin that requires punishment from God. For all clergy, the absence of selfish thoughts is a mandatory feature.
Envy. The Bible says that if an envious person “hastens to riches,” poverty will surely overtake him.
Selfishness. The feeling is “not of this world”, not given to man by the Father.
Gluttony. The love of silver will not lead to satiety, and the love of wealth will not benefit a person (“the eyes of men are insatiable”). The Bible calls the constant desire to get rich or receive other benefits vanity: “And this is vanity and an evil deed.”

It is also written in the Bible that those people who guard their hands from bribes and “despise self-interest” will “dwell on high places.” And they will always have the bread and water necessary for life.

Wedge with wedge

Covetousness is a passion for profit, but does a person have a way out of the situation, because times do not choose? True, but pathological uncreative aspirations can be opposed to a productive line of behavior. For example, do not think about how good it is to be rich and famous or how wonderful it would be to get rich, but think about your calling, your abilities and talents. In other words, try to find yourself in life. And then, you see, capital will not keep you waiting, but you need to think not about them, but about life, creative tasks.

Of course, from the outside it may seem that millionaires are enjoying life. Let's take football players, for example. Nowadays only the lazy or frail do not dream of turning their feet to sports, but this was not always the case. 20 years ago, football had not yet become a business, and when modest young men began their ascent, they did not know what the game would ultimately bring them. They simply chose their path by working hard every day.

Everyone should remember this. Money does not fall from the sky if a person starts something from scratch and has neither influential relatives nor rich parents. You have to aim above money, you have to set yourself extreme goals. Moreover, we already know what “covetousness” means, so you don’t have to waste time on it.

What it is

For a more accurate interpretation, one should refer to the etymology and text of Holy Scripture.

Origin of the word

The term is taken from the Church Slavonic language, formed from two words: “lyubo” and “acquire”.

“Acquire” according to the explanatory dictionary of T.F. Efremova means:

To make money, to acquire (money, property), showing greed.
To achieve, to achieve something (fame).
Deliver, bring to someone (respect).

The phrase “love of acquisitiveness” translates the Greek word πλεονεξία (pleonexia), which is found in various places in the New Testament. This is how the term appeared in Russian.

Gobsek

Honore de Balzac made the image of Gobsek immortal - another classic example of covetousness and hoarding. Using the example of the main character, we see how natural talents, honesty, and nobility can be ruined due to acquisitiveness and profit.

Gobsek is a wealthy moneylender who has amassed millions. His greed is such that he leads a very modest lifestyle, denying himself everything. He excluded his relatives from his life only so as not to share his wealth with them. All thoughts are absorbed exclusively by profit. The hero is detached from God and from earthly desires, he is terrible and ominous.

In essence, this is how a person became an obsessed “guardian” of accumulated wealth. His soul is dead, and Gobsek considers gold the only reliable “earthly good” worth striving for. Thus, in his work, Honore de Balzac showed the destructive power of money and showed his understanding of what the word “covetousness” means.

How to deal with sin

The problem can be solved by the experience of Orthodox saints, who in practice help everyone who wants to get rid of vice. Saint John Chrysostom believes that the most important thing is to want deliverance from sin, because everything depends on a person’s desire. It is difficult to abandon any vice, but realizing the error of your ways can greatly help with this.

Necessary actions for healing:

Realize that this passion brings only destruction to the soul.
Accept your fall and realize your helplessness in the face of vice.
Ask the Lord for mercy and strength to leave sinful passion.
Correct your mistakes and ways.
Return the fraudulently obtained money to those from whom it was taken.
Pray for forgiveness.

Getting rid of quality

To get rid of this sin, you need to admit its presence, repent and convince yourself of the need to get rid of it. After this, you need to change your way of thinking, learn to share with your neighbors, distract yourself from the desire to accumulate and change your social circle. To combat the problem, you can contact a psychologist.

The sin of covetousness has existed for many centuries and is an integral part of the characters of many people. The Bible and other religious sources consider this phenomenon to be the basis of unseemly actions that lead an individual away from God’s commandments. To overcome covetousness, painstaking spiritual work and a struggle with one’s own vices are necessary.

"Judas" Golovlev

The clearest example of a covetous person in Russian literature is Porfiry Golovlev in Saltykov-Shchedrin’s work “The Golovlev Lords.” The nickname “Judas” was not given to him by chance; it hints at the personal qualities of the hero of the work. Porfiry had other nicknames: “Nettle”, “Bloodsucker”.

For the sake of acquisitiveness and profit, Porfiry Golovlev pretended and adapted to circumstances from childhood. He was helpful to his domineering mother and denounced his brothers. From an early age, he “reconciled” himself to future profit, and when he grew up, he was able to rob his siblings and make his own mother a hanger-on. And Judas did not spare his children: he did not help with money, he refused, he threw them out of his life.

Cynicism, heartlessness, hypocrisy, deceit, love of money are the qualities that Saltykov-Shchedrin endowed Judushka with. The writer, in his characteristic manner, caustically and sharply described the human vice - the sin of covetousness.

Edifying Sermon

The Evangelical Christian Baptist Church also expressed its attitude towards vice. Having created one of his sermons - a sermon on greed (ECB). Covetousness is a key subject of discussion in it.

The sermon says that in our time, a large amount of information comes from everywhere: from the media, television programs about money, about the desire to earn it, about ways to achieve financial heights. This is what leads to covetousness among the younger generation.

An increasing number of people, due to the thirst for profit, forget about other people, sometimes dependent on them. They allow faulty planes to fly into the sky and put more passengers on ships than they can accommodate.

The thirst for profit should not destroy human lives - the key idea of the sermon. Covetousness is something that “clouds a person’s mind and sometimes prevents him from thinking sensibly.”

Saints about covetousness

In the Holy Scriptures, the sin of covetousness is recognized as one of the most serious , killing the soul and alienating the covetous from God. Therefore, the Christian heritage - numerous writings of the Holy Fathers - devotes a lot of space to this sin in its sermons, writings and instructions. They explore in sufficient detail and depth the reasons for the emergence of this passion, how it grows and kills a person, and how and by what means to fight covetousness.

John Chrysostom calls this passion unnatural, and it arises from the desire for glory - vanity and carelessness.
Anthony the Great says that covetousness is born from lies, forgetfulness of mortal memory and the fear of God.
Abba Isaiah calls this passion the mother of all evil.
Ephraim the Syrian says that the covetous is alien to love; on the contrary, he hates his neighbor.
Gregory of Nyssa points out the lack of peace among those who have enslaved themselves to this passion. They will never be peaceful, calm and happy with what they have and what happens to them.
John Climacus defines a covetous person as a person bound hand and foot. Like a person who is unable not only to walk, but also to move.
Ambrose of Milan believes that people groan and suffer more from covetous people and covetous people than from foreign invaders during wars.
Neil of Sinai says that covetous people are never joyful, they are in constant sadness from too much care and worries.

How to defeat this passion, how to get rid of it? Here, too, the experience of Christian saints is very useful, who not only studied in detail the effects of this or that passion, sin on the human soul, but also in practice helped and are helping those who want to get rid of them.

Saint John Chrysostom believes that the main thing is to want this deliverance. Everything, he believes, depends on desire, just as one wished to voluntarily fall under this passion, one can also get rid of it through desire. And then you need to do things that are opposite to this passion. Loved to collect, start distributing, look around, find those in need and help them. Thus you will lay the foundation for deliverance. In general, doing things opposite to what you did in sin is a method useful in the fight against many other passions and sins. Then find the measure of using what is necessary, only what is really needed for life, and stop caring about more, do not care about it.

The main thing where you need to start fighting with any passion is to ask for God’s help in this , to pray and ask the Mother of God and the saints. Without God’s help, without these prayers, not only will we not be able to get rid of passion, but we won’t even be able to lift a finger.

Beware of excess

What does this have to do with the synonym for covetousness? It's pretty simple. The entire machine of Western civilization works for the needs of a person with “fattened” needs, this is especially noticeable in America. The way of life clearly demonstrates this: the consumption of water and food. But the most obvious thing is pillows for the bedroom. Americans love a huge number of pillows that do not play any functional role; they are used only as a decorative element.

Of course, it would be easiest to illustrate the love of ownership using the example of new models of phones and other equipment that are released every year, which people are forced to buy with the help of marketing, but this is a little banal.

Evening prayers: what do we repent of?

The lyrics excite the senses, pour elixir into the soul and have no expiration date. Good luck with your creative experiments!

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Next, we must consider negligence, under which heading there are three points: 1) whether negligence is a special sin; 2) what virtue is it opposite to; 3) whether neglect is a mortal sin.