From his commentary on Matthew. (Thanks to Jim for his series of posts on the commentary. I'm trying not to spend so much money on books, so have not yet bought a copy)
"The parable
of the sower is not often considered by those concerned with the loss
of the church's status and membership in Europe and America, but it is
hard to imagine a text more relevant to the situation of churches in
the West. Why we are dying seems very simple. It is hard to be a
disciple and be rich. Surely, we may think, it cannot be that simple,
but Jesus certainly seems to think that it is that simple. The lure of
wealth and the cares of the world produced by wealth quite simply
darken and choke our imaginations. As a result, the church falls prey
to the deepest enemy of the gospel - sentimentality. The gospel becomes
a formula for "giving our lives meaning" without judgment. (Page 129)
'Possessed by possession, we desire to act in the world, often on behalf of the poor, without having to lose our possessions...A church that is shrinking in membership may actually be a church in which the soil of the gospel is being prepared in which deeper roots are possible. (Page 130)
As Hauerwas is prone to do, he gets to core of the issue - christian discipleship and wealth don't mix. It reminds me of one of my favourite Hauerwas quotes 'discipleship is quite simply extended training in being dispossessed. To become followers of Jesus means that we must, like him, be dispossessed of all that we think gives us power over our own lives and the lives of others' (The Peaceable Kingdom, 1983, 86)
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