Dogs Exchanging Bones

Finding our greatness not in guns, gold or glory but in the poor  

Amos 8:4-6, 9-12  

Hear this, you who trample upon the needy and destroy the poor of the land! “When will the new moon be over,” you ask, “that we may sell our grain, and the sabbath, that we may display the wheat?” We will diminish the containers for measuring, add to the weights, and fix our scales for cheating! We will buy the lowly man for silver, and the poor man for a pair of sandals; even the refuse of the wheat we will sell!”   

          How do you measure the greatness of any nation: it is in their guns, or in their gold, or in their glory? Communist Russia clearly believes their greatness is symbolized in “guns” – their military superiority to all other nations. This is why they waged the Cold War against the United States; and they still do. Or, maybe it’s gold. In 1776, the Scottish economist, Adam Smith, wrote his revolutionary book called, “The Wealth of Nations,” arguing for “gold” as the symbolic standard for greatness. He wrote humorously, “Man is an animal that makes bargains: no other animal does this – no dog exchanges bones with another.” In other words, making more money should measure our greatness. Or is it glory? The Roman Empire was supposedly started by two brothers, Romulus and Remus. They were born in 771 BC, the sons of a human mother, Rhea Silvia, and Mars, the god of war. That is, the roots of Rome purportedly had divine origins, so of course, they were destined for glory!   

          In contrast to guns, and gold and glory, however, you have the founding of the United States of America. At the feet of the Statue of Liberty, the ostensible symbol of our country, Lady Liberty says, “Give me your tired, your poor, your huddled masses yearning to be free, the wretched refuse of your teeming shores. Send these, the homeless, tempest-tossed to me: I lift my lamp besides the golden door.” In other words, the greatness of our nation lies precisely in how we welcome the poor. Yes, we too enjoy having guns and gold and glory to be sure, but our true greatness is guaranteed by our love for the poor.   

          In the first reading today, the prophet Amos takes aim at what should be the cause of Israel’s greatness, but sadly it isn’t, namely, their care for the less fortunate. Amos says, “Hear this, you who trample upon the needy and destroy the poor of the land.” And Amos goes on to predict the dire consequences in store for a nation who boasts of its guns and gold and glory instead of taking care of the poor. That is, the way God himself measures a people’s greatness is their love for the needy.   

          This weekend we begin the festivities of July 4th, Independence Day, and the foundation of our own nation. Do we still believe in the poem of Emma Lazarus that the poor should be our priority and our pride, or have we, like other nations, begun to believe that greatness lies in guns, gold and glory? Fortunately, several signs show me that the poor are still our priority. Whenever there is some humanitarian crisis – say a natural disaster – the U.S. is the first to respond with aid. Whenever oppressive regimes kill and control their people, the U.S. does not stand idly by. Within our own borders we constantly fight for the marginalized – the elderly, the immigrants, the unborn, anyone who does not enjoy basic human rights. In other words, we don’t want Amos to take aim at us; we don’t want to “trample upon the needy and destroy the poor of the land.”

          Pope Saint John Paul II said, “A society will be judged on the basis of how it treats its weakest members.” Our great love for the poor is the reason we celebrate Independence Day; that should be the grounds of our greatness, not dogs exchanging bones.   

          Praised be Jesus Christ!