Stuff

Today we commemorate Job - the man who lost everything in a test to see whether he would deride and put aside God - he didn't.

It seems cruel but somehow familiar that someone should be brought low to test their faith - whether Job was a real person or whether he is a meta-narrative for human experience is, of course, open to debate. He certainly acts as a parable - that even in the most extreme of times we can hold on to the most important thing we have - our faith.

Jesus talks about a similar thing in the Gospel today. The link may not be immediately obvious because we are used to a kind of Prosperity Theology - that if we are generous with stuff we will get more. But I am not sure it is really that simple - kindness and justice reap their own rewards which go far beyond the material.

I am not sure how Job kept going without bitterness - many people who hit bottom develop an anger and start to blame God or other people - and this is normal. This wears at the fibers of their being and, eventually, at the threads of society. If we believe in humanity as God's precious creation we cannot simply ignore those on its margins, even if they seem dangerously out of control.

So Jesus says simply: love, mercy, justice - we are called to exercise those divine attributes which we so often call upon. It really is very little to do with stuff - it may involve material goods and money but our hearts have to be set upon the whole person and upon their restoration into wholeness and the image of God.

Somehow Job managed to hang onto his image as God's creation - even in the most dire of circumstances and he got a fairy-tale ending with his riches restored. In this Christian life the reward is eternal love, mercy and justice from the Throne of Grace and anything else is a most generous bonus.