|
Then Jesus called the twelve together and gave them
power and authority over all demons and to cure
diseases. And he sent them out to proclaim the kingdom
of God and to heal. He said to them, 'Take nothing for
your journey, no staff, nor bag, nor bread, nor money —
not even an extra tunic.” (Luke 9:1–3)
I sat down at
the computer to write this article but got distracted
shopping online. I need a new dress to wear to a wedding
later this summer.
I’m writing on
faith and consumption because as a pastor and a
Christian, I care about how greed and consumerism affect
our spiritual health. I understand that “life abundant”
and “stuff abundant” are not the same thing. I also take
seriously the charge to love God’s creation, and our
current rate of consumption is choking the earth.
But the
embarrassing truth is that I’m also writing this article
on faith and consumption because the extra money will
help me afford that new dress.
I want to
follow Jesus, and I believe that Jesus had good reasons
for sending his disciples out into the world with only
one tunic. By contrast, I have seven dresses hanging in
my closet and still don’t have a thing to wear.
And that’s a
problem.
Maybe your
problem isn’t clothes but gadgets, vacations, furniture,
golf clubs, or that irresistible piece of chocolate
cake. We all know it’s not good for us, but most of us
have some consumptive habit we just can’t break.
Now I could
hit you over the head with 47 reasons why
over-consumption is bad, but you’ve heard them all
before. And that would just make me wallow in the kind
of guilt that only retail therapy can alleviate.
Sometimes.
Maybe,
instead, the better approach is reflecting on Jesus’
directive to the disciples and imagining why going with
only one tunic was good for them — and might be good for
us.
1. It’s good
for your relationships with others.
When I was in high
school, I borrowed my prom dress from a friend. I only
needed it for one evening and didn’t have a lot of spare
cash. She wasn’t wearing it and had plenty of other prom
dresses. It made perfect sense.
By borrowing
rather than buying a dress, I got more than a dress. I
got a memorable experience with a friend as we searched
through her closet and goofed around together. And she
got something too: She got a chance to practice
generosity and to feel good about helping me out. Our
friendship deepened.
One tunic
instead of two? The disciples who only had one tunic had
to rely on the good graces of other people. They had to
ask for something to wear while they did their laundry.
Their poverty and dependence were real. But their hosts
got the opportunity to practice hospitality, and they
all experienced the give and take of human
relationships.
When we have
less, we have to depend on one another to fill in the
gaps. If we can lean on one another for the little
things — a dress, a meal, a ride somewhere — we develop
relationships that help us depend on one another through
the big things too. Those disciples built relationships
out of their poverty. We can too.
2. It’s good
for your relationship with yourself.
Consumption is
often driven more by lack of self-worth than by actual
material need. Am I wanting a new dress or am I really
wanting to cover up something else?
There’s
nothing wrong with wanting to be look good, have a
lovely home, or improve your golf swing. But you can
probably look good, have a lovely home, and develop a
decent golf swing without buying a single new thing. And
if you buy clothes to cover up your own sense of
ugliness, decorations to distract you from your unease
in your surroundings, or golf clubs to compensate for
feeling like a klutz, it’s counterproductive.
One tunic
instead of two? If you always wear the same few things,
something other than the clothes you wear begins to
define you. In the case of the disciples, it was the
gospel that they wanted people to see — not the nice new
suit or the stylish new sofa — the gospel, given to them
to preach despite their personal inadequacies.
The
accumulation of stuff easily masks who we really are and
clouds our ability to shine God’s love into the world.
With less stuff, we discover more of ourselves to love
and to offer.
3. It’s good
for your relationship with the rest of creation.
Everything we consume has an impact on other living
things. We can’t help that, but we can choose to limit
the extent of that impact. Most of us are so far removed
from the environmental impact of our consumption that it
is hard to factor the effects on the earth into our
decisions. If I were to discover that my favorite plot
of land was going to be bulldozed to make a cotton field
so I can have another dress, I’m betting my desire for
that dress would disappear.
One tunic
instead of two? By only wearing one tunic the disciples
were “living green,” even if at that time in history
over-consumption of the earth’s resources wasn’t on
anyone’s mind yet. They also had less to worry about.
The disciples weren’t preoccupied with taking care of
their stuff, and that allowed them time to build
relationships with their hosts.
The earth is
our host. If we get to know and love the ground that
provides our food and clothing and receives our waste,
we might be less inclined to consume without care. You
want to go to the mall because you’re bored? Go for a
walk outside instead. See what happens.
4. It’s good
for your relationship with God.
Throughout the Bible,
sages and prophets and Jesus himself recommend fasting
as a way to deepen our relationship with God. You can’t
fast and consume at the same time. There is something
about breaking the chain of intake that allows us to tap
into that great source of all being, God.
One tunic
instead of two? The one tunic was a constant reminder to
the disciples of their real source and ground, their
mission and their message. With only one tunic, they
became vulnerable not only to the graces of their hosts
but to the power of God at work in their lives.
Only one
tunic? It’s a challenge to someone like me. If buying a
new dress will really make me happy and free me from
worrying about how I look so I can enjoy my family and
friends, then I’m going to buy it and get on with the
day. But then for the next wedding, I’m going to try to
let go of the need for another dress and spend time with
the people I love rather than shopping. I’d rather have
an outdated tunic, a beautiful set of relationships, a
healthy earth, and the deep knowledge of God’s power
than the other way around. Wouldn’t you?
The Rev.
Sarah Scherschligt is associate pastor of Prince of
Peace Lutheran Church in Gaithersburg, Maryland.
Share a comment
Share this article |
