Today, in a continuation from the letter of James, we hear James criticize the rich. But, if we delve deeply into the message of today’s reading, we see how according to James, the real sin of the rich is not just that they store wealth for themselves, but that they have become wealthy at the expense of others who were deprived of their most basic needs. Specifically, James mentions the wages that the rich withhold from the workers who harvest the fields of the rich. I was reading an article about an electric car company Tesla. Back in 2016, Elon Musk, the founder of the company, was worth $16 million. Today, his estimated wealth is over $190 billion. At the same time, his company just laid off 10% of its work force and the problem of homelessness in California is getting worse and worse each year. Many working people have a hard time making basic needs. At the same time, Elan Musk’s wealth has been accumulated with the help of a lot of subsidies from American taxpayers and governmental policies that have favored his company. Pope Francis and many other popes have spoken about the rights of workers and the importance of the dignity of work. Our reading from James today gives us a lot to think about in the reality of our world.
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