Author: Brian S. Rosner
Publisher: Eerdmans
ISBN: 9780802833747
214 pages, paperback.

Several years ago I lived near a medium-sized city that was scheduled to get a new shopping mall. The area already had two or three of the typical 1980s shoe box malls, but the new one was supposed to be as high above them as they were over the older strip malls. Finally the grand opening day for the new marketplace came, and like thousands of others we made the journey up to the city to see what all the fuss was about. As the multi-story mall rose into view around a bend in the highway, I knew that I had seen its form before. It took only a moment for the recognition to kick in. It was a cathedral. This new, state-of-the art shopping complex had the shape and architectural elements of a medieval house of God. That this was intentional seemed as undeniable as the message it conveyed: this was a place of worship where modern-day supplicants could come to serve, adore, and show their trust in the god of their greed.

In Greed and Idolatry: The Origin and Meaning of a Biblical Metaphor, Brian Rosner wants to uncover what’s so bad about the kind of greed that drives modern men to build temples to money and consumption. More specifically, he seeks to unpack one of the strangest metaphors in the New Testament: Paul’s statement that greed is idolatry (Ephesians 5:5, Colossians 3:5). Why would Paul equate these two things that seem to us to have little direct connection?

In our time greed has become a “respectable sin” (to use the title of Jerry Bridge’s newest book*), even among Christians. Believers and non-believers alike have a sense that greed is bad, but they would be hard pressed to explain exactly why. In any event, most probably don’t see it as high on the scale of “badness” as more flamboyant sins such as sexual immorality, abortion, or murder. After all, greed doesn’t really hurt anyone, except perhaps the greedy person himself, right? On the other side of the equation, idolatry seems to us to be a quaint but queer practice of pre-scientific cultures. Not our problem.

To unlock Paul’s curious equation, Brian Rosner employs all the tools of biblical theology combined with historical research. After surveying the various ways in which the phrase “greed is idolatry” has been interpreted by theologians down the centuries, Rosner turns to an intensive tracing of both the subject and predicate of that phrase in Jewish and early Christian writings, both biblical and non-canonical. He then surveys the surrounding territory of both terms, revealing the fulness of what they meant to first century readers and hearers. Finally, he links all this together to propose that Paul’s statement was an intentionally brash metaphor meant to shock his audience into understanding that greed is far more terrible a sin than they may have thought. It is nothing less than a direct affront to the One True God who alone deserves to be loved, served, and trusted.

Rosner’s book serves as a model of biblical theology done well in service to the church. By uncovering the impact of an odd phrase on its first century audience, he also reveals why we ought to take greed much more seriously in our day. While one might wish that he spent some time spelling out possible implications of his findings for Christian involvement in economics, social justice, and even personal finance, perhaps it is best for us to work those out on our own. Rosner has laid bare the sin; each of us must determine where that sin has subtly overtaken us.

As an aside, anyone who has found insight and help in the teachings of the Christian Counseling and Educational Foundation (CCEF) associated with Westminster Theological Seminary should pay attention to this book and its implications for CCEF’s core teaching that idolatry is at the heart of many of our miseries. Greed as Idolatry points the way to how biblical theology can serve such insights by providing their theological foundation.

Brian Rosner starts this book with a quote from John Calvin concerning the greedy person as idolater: “Indeed, this matter is well worth dealing with at greater length.” This reviewer is very glad that Dr. Rosner decided to take up Calvin’s challenge. - Mark W. Traphagen

*Bridges, curiously enough, does not list greed as one of the “respectable sins” in his book. It is this reviewers opinion that Rosner’s book demonstrates why it should be considered the chief of respectable sins.

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This entry was posted on Monday, October 8th, 2007 at 10:58 pm and is filed under Bible, BookBags, Discipleship, Reviews, Theology. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.