Spending Money...

What's up with people spending their money on things that they dont need?

Dont they realize that there are poor people in this world that needs help? Yes, we may help them spiritually (its effective) but the best thing for them is to help them financially. It's what they need though. I'm not saying that we must give them money and just go away. I'm saying that instead of spending your money on lavishness or unnecessary things, why not spend them on things with a cause?

Spending your money on luxuries is sinful.

Luxury is a relative term but it could be defined as spending on unnecessary or expensive things. Necessary things also becomes a luxury when you can satisfy the same need at a substantially lesser cost.

Let me Give you examples...

• Suppose you want to satisfy your need in buying a cellephone. You saw a cellephone with a cost of 1,000 pesos, but you spent 10,000 pesos for a sophisticated one. This is what I may call Luxury.
• Suppose you want to have a vacation worth 500,000 pesos. But your friend or relative needs money to renovate his old house, or needs money for an expensive but necessary operation for his old sick mother. If you pursue to your vacation, that is luxury and therefore sinful. Because the money for your vacation could solve the basic needs of the people around you.
• Suppose that you spent your money in a very expensive car worth millions and a house also worth millions. These spending, for me are very serious mortal sins because the money used to buy the car and a house could lessen poverty. And when you are in a society with big unemployment, the money spent could help make jobs.

As a catholic, we must spend our money with necessity. Pope John XXIII said, "it is the compelling duty of a Christian to calculate what is superfluous by the measure of the needs of others"

Living a simple life is good...

Having a simple car
Having a simple house
Having a simple cellphone

and Having a simple life...

Christ Himself is just a simple guy even during his public ministry. Even if He is famous during that time for making extra-ordinary things, He was still just a simple guy.

We must imitate Christ and have a simple life.