Lord, our Lord, how majestic is your name in all the earth! You have set your glory in the heavens. Through the praise of children and infants you have established a stronghold against your enemies, to silence the foe and the avenger. When I consider your heavens, the work of your fingers, the moon and the stars, which you have set in place, what is mankind that you are mindful of them, human beings that you care for them? You have made them a little lower than the angels and crowned them with glory and honor. You made them rulers over the works of your hands; you put everything under their feet: all flocks and herds, and the animals of the wild, the birds in the sky, and the fish in the sea, all that swim the paths of the seas. Lord, our Lord, how majestic is your name in all the earth! Psalm 8
“When [God] had bestowed the greatest of graces on man, as though he were His dearest and nearest friend, He gave him everything in the world, so that no one would be without the necessities of life and the good life. One of these is the means of providing pleasure the abundance of the earth’s fruits; another is the knowledge of the secrets of heaven, which inflames the mind with love for his fellow men and longing for virtue by which we can reach the summit of divine mysteries. Both are most excellent to have, as a king of the elements, the use of the sea, and to have all the world’s wealth subject to him creatures of air, land and water; to abound in all things without labor or want in the image and likeness of the adorable Creator, living in the greatest plenty, opening a way and advancing along a path by which to reach the palace of heaven.”
Ambrose of Milan (c. 339-397) in Letter 43 to Horontianus containing “Answers to questions on Creation” (FC 26.254-264). Ambrose is the second of the Four Doctors of the Western Church that we will explore on the topic of abundance.
Don’t miss the idea Ambrose sets forth that’s consistent with the Apostolic Fathers and continues in the mind of the Four Doctors of the Western Church: “He gave him everything in the world, so that no one would be without the necessities of life and the good life.” Our role atop creation comes with responsibilities!
God’s design is that the material and spiritual abundance He provides is enjoyed and shared by all. Foolish are those who store it up for themselves. Hear this as a warning, lest you meet Jesus having handled wealth otherwise! He fixed us as the crown of creation to steward spiritual and material wealth according to His purposes. “Keeping” is not an option!
Speaking of “keeping”… that’s an operative word in a recent Soulcare Anchoress post by my wife, Jenni. It’s simply entitled “Money” and uses the word “keeping” in a profound way. Read the post for yourself, and I especially commend it to all those who wonder what the wife of the Generosity Monk thinks about money. It’s a “must-read” post!
As for me, I’m privileged to host Think Tank 2018 with senior administrators of 13 seminaries at Fuller Theological Seminary this week in Pasadena, California (pictured above). Each school has an abundance mentality! Keeping nothing back, they share best practices with each other so that all schools flourish for equipping of men and women for lives of ministry and service.