 May/Summer 2001 (XXXIX 3) |
here is probably no line from Scripture more familiar to anyone associated with the Christian tradition than the first line of the 23rd Psalm. It says simply, “The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want.”
Hearing these words may affect us in all sorts of ways. Brought forward most often at times when we need comfort, like funerals, this Psalm may evoke a wide range of emotions. Or the words may be too familiar, so they are words we do not really hear no matter how they are offered.
Yet, it occurs to me that in this very familiar line from the Psalm we have a statement of faith that – if we fully live into it – challenges the most basic assumptions and dynamics of the larger culture in which we live. Think about it. What would be the effect on our lives, and on the surrounding society, if we became people who really and truly “did not want”? What would happen if this were true of the millions of people who call themselves Christians?
We live in a larger economy and society built on “want”! We are constantly encouraged by a myriad of surrounding forces and dynamics to want more, to want whatever we do not have – no matter what we already have. The advertising industry in the United States spends more than $1,000 per year for every man, woman and child to encourage us to buy whatever we don’t have, and then to want even more. The purpose of much of the advertising we see is not to convey accurate information about some product or service; but rather to create an image of that commodity that will convince us we need it, and our lives cannot be complete without it, even if that had never occurred to us and could not possibly be true.
Our entire economic structure is built around the premise that the fundamental purpose of human beings is to produce and consume. Our economic system now depends, in fact, on reinforcing people’s “wants” – their sense they lack something – and even creating new wants where someone might have otherwise been satisfied with what they have, because the strength of the economy depends on people buying more.
Thus, one of the most important "economic indicators" that economists and investors look at is the “index of consumer confidence.” This is a measure of how willing people are to spend more, even go deeper into debt, to buy more things. The question is how willing are we to use our money to pursue more material goods (and services) – e.g., to purchase a better car, a greener lawn, or our "dream vacation" – rather than saving that money, or giving it to a good cause? The assumption is that the more willing we are to immediately indulge our desires, however frivolous or selfish they may be, the healthier our economy and our society will be. This is the culture of want.
But do we really believe this? Is it really true? If not what is the alternative?
The alternative is pointed to in that familiar line from the Psalm. The alternative which we as people of faith are offered, and can offer others, is to recognize that when we live in a way that truly trusts in God’s care for us, we will not want. (Different translations render this phrase, “we shall not be in want” or “we shall lack nothing.”) We can recognize that a life of wholeness and joy forms around our being thankful for and willing to share what we have; not perpetually lusting after and chasing everything else.
In the vision of faith and life we are given here and elsewhere in the Psalms, the fundamental purpose of human existence is to become the persons we were created to be “in the image of God,” beings who are creative, caring and living in harmony with all the rest of God’s creation. Moreover, as such we will become beings who create and sustain communities where all persons’ real needs are answered. These would be communities where we recognize that the deepest needs each one of us has are to be known and loved, accepted for who we are and appreciated for whatever we have to contribute to those communities.
Certainly we all have needs for food, clothing and shelter, and for learning and beauty and joy as well. Caring and creative communities must meet those needs too. But we need to distinguish, again, between real needs and our unfettered and sometimes selfish wants. Studying the environment as well as the Scriptures shows us that this perpetual striving to create an ever richer material, consumer society will eventually – perhaps sooner rather than later – destroy all of life and creation.
John Woolman frequently spoke of God, the Christ, the Holy Spirit, as “the True Shepherd.” The Psalmist, in those most familiar of lines, tells us that if we would really accept that, and really entrust ourselves to the care of the True Shepherd, we would lack nothing. If we could do that we would “enrich” our lives in ways far deeper and fuller than we (or Madison Avenue) could possibly imagine.
If we let our trust in and experience of God’s profound love for us shape and center our lives, what would our lives look like? A radical and prophetic vision of life and faith in such a familiar line – “the Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want.”
Last modified: Wednesday, February 18, 2004 at 08:18 AM