Archbishop of Canterbury warns against greed for power
Rowan Williams believes society should prepare for death instead of focusing on material needs
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Sunday, 23, Mar 2008 07:34
The archbishop of Canterbury has warned against countries' greed for oil, power, and territory in his Easter sermon.
Dr Rowan Williams told worshippers at Canterbury Cathedral to let go of "selfish, controlling, greedy habits" and instead prepare for the afterlife.
Dr Williams said the "comforts and luxuries" we take for granted could not be sustained forever, and we live in a culture where thoughts of death are "too painful to manage".
"Individuals live in anxious and acquisitive ways, seizing what they can to provide a security that is bound to dissolve, because they are going to die," the archbishop said.
"Societies or nations do the same. Whether it is the individual grabbing the things of this world in just the repetitive, frustrating sameness that we have seen to be already in fact the mark of an inner deadness.
"Or the greed of societies that assume there will always be enough to meet their desires - enough oil, enough power, enough territory - the same fantasy is at work.
"We shan't really die. We as individuals can't contemplate an end to our acquiring, and we as a culture can't imagine that this civilisation, like all others, will collapse and that what we take for granted about our comforts and luxuries simply can't be sustained indefinitely.
"To all this, the church says, sombrely, don't be deceived: night must fall."
His comments mirror those of the Bishop of Rochester, Michael Nazir-Ali. In his Easter message in today's Sunday Times, Dr Ali said high earners should switch their desires "to make a quick buck" to sharing their wealth.
"The turmoil in the markets is almost certainly the result of such forces. Those with power need to ensure that the poor are not disproportionately affected," Dr Nazir-Ali explained.
"What is required is a change of heart, of disposition, of attitude.
"From possessiveness we need to move to gratitude for what we have, from 'cutting corners' to make a quick buck to that integrity for which business in this country was celebrated, and from mere accumulation of wealth to a generosity of spirit.
"When that happens, hedge fund managers and directors of companies can indeed go into the kingdom of heaven ahead of the chief priests and elders."