I first heard the clever term, ‘affluenza’ from a fantastic short film created by World Vision’s youth branch called Stir (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KFZz6ICzpjI&feature=related ). Yesterday I read an article in the Herald about a guy who has written a book about affluenza (http://www.smh.com.au/lifestyle/people/privileged-and-a-pain-how-to-cure-affluenza-20101230-19are.html ). While the book focusses on the super-rich and how the wealth seems to become a curse to their family and future generations I think that there is a warning there for all of us in western society.
I was shocked a few weeks ago to hear another term for the first time, actually a phrase, it was, ‘diseases of affluence’. I heard it in a serious context but at first I thought it was a joke. Then I read the list of these diseases – obesity, type 2 diabetes, and some forms of alcoholism, heart disease, asthma, allergies, cancer and mental illnesses. As you can imagine these sicknesses don't tend to occur as often in the developing world where people live on less than $2 a day.
Turns out being rich can ruin your family and make you sick. It’s enough to make you want to take a vow of poverty! Being as affluent as we are should come with a warning. As a society it doesn’t help if we buy into enjoying our excess and then have to pay more to keep our health system afloat.
The answer is as simple as what I am always telling my young children and as complex as the feelings I have when I open my wallet. We need to share. We have been blessed with more than we need. This means we are blessed to be in a position to share it with others.
St. Paul in the Bible put it this way when he encouraged the church in Corinth to help out the Macedonians who were struggling, “At the present time your plenty will supply what they need, so in turn their plenty will supply what you need. Then there will be equality.”
Sounds like a fair exchange. Share my plenty and all the risks that go with it for better health, family, society and even a better world.
Do you have any ideas for 2011 about how you can share your excess?
I love this Post. Brilliant. One of the most ridiculous arguments I hear to compassion, is that by doing something our own standard of living will decrease. It would do us a world of good if perhaps that happened. Though Peter Singer (Author of "The Life you can Change"), Tends to think that we could end poverty and not affect our own prosperity much at all.
ReplyDeleteKiva is great as we can all lend $25 to add to a micro-loan to get someone out of poverty. They pay it back and you can lend it again! This is so great as your money grows and you can continue to help more and more people! Now that's investment I like!
ReplyDeletehttp://www.kiva.org/