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| Chapter XXII. That one who actually has no money may still be deemed covetous.
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Chapter XXII.
That one who actually has no money may still be deemed
covetous.
For it is possible even
for one who has no money to be by no means free from the malady of
covetousness, and for the blessing of penury to do him no good, because
he has not been able to root out the sin of cupidity: delighting in the
advantages of poverty, not in the merit of the virtue, and satisfied
with the burden of necessity, not without coldness of heart. For just
as the word of the gospel declares of those who are not defiled in
body, that they are adulterers in heart;902
so
it is possible that those who are in no way pressed down with the
weight of money may be condemned with the covetous in disposition and
intent. For it was the opportunity of possessing which was wanting in
their case, and not the will for it: which latter is always crowned by
God, rather than compulsion. And so we must use all diligence lest the
fruits of our labours should be destroyed to no purpose. For it is a
wretched thing to have endured the effects of poverty and want, but to
have lost their fruits, through the fault of a shattered
will.E.C.F. INDEX & SEARCH
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