It’s easy to say that Gordon Gekko, the character played by Michael Douglas in Wall Street, was wrong when he declared that “greed is good” – too easy by far. If we simply define greed as the desire for more of something than is needed, than of course it is easy to sit back and declare others’ desires for those things which we don’t want, or in quantities beyond our desire, as sinful expressions of greed. But that is simply the use of moral language to tell others that because we don’t want those things, they shouldn’t either, and that seems just a little arrogant to me. Not to mention that religious and moral arrogance are every bit as deadly, especially in today’s world, as greed is.
But if we understand that greed is the desire for that which suits our needs but comes at a cost so high, whether to ourselves, others, or the world, that we fear we may be “overpaying,” then the answer is that it may be not only justifiable, but genuinely sacred. And that dilemma has been with us since the time of God, the original “greedy” character. Yes, greedy.
The very fact of creation proves that greed can be good. If God is infinite, all knowing, and all powerful, then why did S/He create a universe? Certainly not out of need in the obvious sense. And so, by the simplistic and self-validating definition that is typically used, the very creation of the world is a profound act of divine greed, i.e. the pursuit of that which is not needed. In which case, a greedy God has made a greedy world filled with greedy people in that greedy divine image, and there can never be a religiously or morally justifiable kind of greed…or it all is and we have nothing about which to worry.
Or, we come to appreciate that whether out of love, desire, or loneliness, all of which are explored in Jewish tradition, God’s greed for life, for the world to come into existence, and for human beings in particular, called forth a world that did not “need” to exist, but I am certainly glad that it does. And right from the start, according to Genesis, God wonders if this was such a great idea, and continues wrestling with that question throughout the story. But that wondering is the key to a morally justifiable kind of greed.
Rather than simply drawing a bright line behind which all desire is acceptable, and beyond which it is not, we can entertain our greed as long as we keep asking about its price and who is paying it. We can be greedy for life, i.e. asking for more than others might need, as long as we ask about how much pain we or a loved one needs to endure in order to be alive for one more day. We can be greedy for money, i.e. more than our neighbor might even dream of, as long as we ask the cost of its acquisition to both others and ourselves.
The issue is not the moral or religious justification of greed. The issue is how our moral codes and religious systems remind us that nothing is free, that someone always pays, and that we should be open and honest about that at all times.
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