Clement of Alexandria, The Instructor 6

Wealth, therefore, must be accepted in a worthy manner and shared generously, not in a mercenary or boastful spirit. We must not let the love of beauty turn into self-love and ignorance, or someone may say of us: his horse is worth fifteen talents, or his estate, or his servant, or his gold, yet he himself is valued at only three copper coins. Look at once at the world of women and the servants of masters; you will find them indistinguishable from purchased silver. Their masters — not in their walk, not in their glance, not in their speech — so closely resemble their slaves. They are even distinguished by being weaker than their servants and by having been reared more sickly. This doctrine, then, is best to sing in every circumstance: the good man, being prudent and just, stores up his wealth in heaven. By selling his earthly possessions and giving to the poor, he finds the imperishable treasure where no moth destroys and no thief breaks in (Matt 6:19-20). He is truly blessed, even if he is small, weak, and insignificant, and he truly possesses the greatest wealth. But if someone is richer than Cinuras and Midas, yet is unjust and arrogant — like the man who revels in purple and fine linen and despises Lazarus (Luke 16:19-21) — he is wretched, lives miserably, and will not live. To me, wealth seems like a reptile: if a person does not know how to handle it safely, it will coil around his hand and bite from the harmless tip of its tail. Wealth is also dangerous when it slips away, whether from experienced or inexperienced handling, and bites, unless someone uses it with superior wisdom so that, with the incantation of the Word, he may tame the beast and himself remain unharmed. Yet, as it appears, the rich man who has acquired the most valuable things is alone in his ignorance. The most valuable things are not stone, not silver, not clothing, not bodily beauty, but virtue — which is the Word handed down through the Paedagogus for training. This Word renounces luxury, calls self-sufficiency as its servant, and praises the frugality born of prudence, saying, "Receive instruction, and not silver, and knowledge rather than choice gold" (Prov 8:10). And again: "I am more valuable than gold and precious stone and silver; for my fruits are better than choice silver" (Prov 8:19). If we must distinguish, let the rich man be the one with many possessions, burdened with gold like a soiled money-bag, but let the just man be the dignified one, since dignity is order in the proper arrangement of management and measured distribution. "For there are those who sow and reap more," concerning whom it is written: "He scattered abroad, he gave to the poor; his righteousness endures forever" (Ps 112:9; 2 Cor 9:9). So it is not the one who has and keeps, but the one who shares, who is rich; and it is giving, not possession, that shows the blessed person. The fruit of the soul is generosity; therefore true wealth resides in the soul. Indeed, good things belong only to the good, and the good are the Christians. A foolish or unrestrained person neither perceives what is good nor can possess it; therefore only Christians possess good things. Nothing is more valuable than these good things; therefore these alone are the rich. For true wealth is righteousness and the Word, more precious than all treasure — not increasing from flocks and fields, but given by God. It is inalienable wealth (the soul is its only treasury), the best possession for the one who has it, making a person blessed in truth. For whoever desires nothing that is not in his power, obtains what he does desire, and also receives from God whatever he asks for rightly — how is this person not rich in many things and all things, possessing the eternal treasure, God? "To the one who asks, it will be given, and to the one who knocks, it will be opened" (Matt 7:7-8). If God denies nothing, all things become the possession of the God-revering person.