|
Share the article on
this page with a friend.
Click
here.
|
|
IS IT A
SIN TO BE IN DEBT?
I have never
heard a question about debt asked in a worthiness interview,
and certainly this article is in no position to declare
what is and what is not a sin.* But
excessive debt and sin have a lot of similarities.
[Note: There
are some good reasons for wise borrowing. Few of us would own a home without taking out a mortgage, for example. This
article is aimed at the unwise borrowing that has reached
epidemic proportions in the country and among Church members.]
WHETHER IT IS A SIN OR NOT, DEBT
IS A PROBLEM IN THE CHURCH
The debt issue is not one that just affects non-members. There
is evidence this problem is actually more serious among
Church members than in the world at large!
The most depressing article I have ever read in the LDS
Church News appeared August 3, 2002 written by Shaun
D. Stahle. The headline was Irony of Leading Nation in Bankruptcy
Filings. The article contained the following
paragraph.
“Many Americans
and members of the Church are drowning in a sea of
debt. Roughly one home in 34.5 [in Utah] will file for
bankruptcy this year, making Utah the insolvency capital
of the
nation.
Nationally, one in 69 homes will file."
I must confess I truly can not understand exactly why Latter-day
Saints are more likely (let alone twice as likely) to file
bankruptcy than the Nation as a whole.
HAVE WE
BEEN COMMANDED BY GOD TO Avoid EXCESSIVE DEBT?
God’s commandments are given to us through prophets. Prophets also give us general counsel. Not all of this counsel may be recognized
as canonized commandments, the breaking of which could
jeopardize our standing in the Church. However,
each of us should ask how often we must hear the same counsel
over and over before we should recognize it as a commandment? Shouldn’t
we personally recognize it as a commandment even
if it is not a question asked by priesthood leaders
in
a worthiness
interview?
Modern prophets and apostles have repeatedly counseled members
of the Church to avoid excessive debt. I
do not have any statistics suggesting that the frequency
of such counsel is increasing, but it is certain that President
Hinckley has been clear and emphatic about warning Latter-day
Saints to avoid excessive debt.
FAILURE
TO LOOK AT THE LONG-TERM CONSEQUENCES
A characteristic of sin is the temptation to participate in
some activity right now. The
emotion of the moment causes us to ignore the long-term
consequences. The immediate activity may be fun. But the
long-term consequences may include lost freedom, stressed
and injured relationships, anxiety and misery to name just
a few.
Piling up debt is the same thing. We see something we want right now. The emotion of the moment causes us to ignore the long-term consequences. Having
what we want to buy right now may be fun. But
the long-term consequences will reduce our future financial
freedom, it may stress and injure valued relationships,
it can cause anxiety and misery, to name just a few.
“Buy now – pay later” is
such an accepted notion in society that finance companies
and retailers use it as an advertising slogan. That
advertising slogan is supposed to convince people they
should not wait to purchase the things they want. Unfortunately,
it has worked! One of the characteristics of modern American
culture is an idea that we should have whatever we want
and have it right now. The
idea of denying ourselves for the moment and actually working
for what we want seems somehow old fashioned. In
fact, another advertising slogan I have heard in recent
years says something like, “Get the credit you deserve.” Or “Get
the [product] you deserve with no payments until next
year.” Deserve!? What does that mean? “You deserve.” Why do you or I deserve anything we haven’t
worked for?
“Buy now – pay later” is not a new concept and it is not exclusive
to debt. Sinners
have been using this concept in one form or another for
thousands of years.
And there shall also be many which shall say: Eat, drink,
and be merry; nevertheless, fear God--he will justify in
committing a little sin; yea, lie a little, take advantage
of one because of his words, dig a pit for thy neighbor;
there is no harm in this; and do all these things, for
tomorrow we die; and if it so be that we are guilty, God
will beat us with a few stripes, and at last we shall be
saved in the kingdom of God.
2 Nephi
28:8 [Between
559 and 545 B.C.]
SMALL BEGINNINGS
BECOME BINDING HABITS
No one starts with a huge life altering sin. It always starts small. For example, no drug addict started by main
lining heroine. The
drug addiction started with something small like an innocent
sip of beer. No convicted bank robber began by holding
up a bank. It started
with something small like stealing lunch money at school.
It starts small. It
is fun and exciting. In
the early stages the pattern can be easily reversed and
the activity forgotten. But soon the pattern of sin takes
on a momentum of its own. The person loses control. In
fact, frequently the sin becomes such a habit it requires
more transgression just to support the habit.
Using debt to live beyond our means follows the exact same
pattern. The first
time a person uses their new credit card to buy gas does
not constitute a financial crisis. Even the first time some less-than-necessary-indulgence
is purchased with borrowed money does not doom the individual
to a lifetime of financial self-destruction. But, for many, borrowing does become a habit. Soon
more credit is necessary to support the debt that already
exists. For example,
if a person is making mortgage payments, car payments,
entertainment center payments and credit card payments,
the personal cash flow is so restricted that when a real
need develops, such as an illness, the person has no choice
but to plunge further into debt.
When a person commits sin, they put themselves at risk for
the pleasure of the moment. Violations
of morality can destroy marriages and health. Violations
of honesty can lead to loss of trust and freedom. Violations of health laws can lead to addictions
and illness. There
is no violation of God’s commandments that does not
put the sinner at physical and emotional risk. And
that is just measuring the effects that will occur in mortality.
When a person plunges into debt unwisely, they put themselves
at risk for the pleasure of the moment. Excessive debt can injure just about every part of a person’s life. Many
marriages have been ruined because of financial strains. Financial
stress can destroy a person’s physical and emotional
health. People who have heavy debts can be lead into
dishonesty, gambling and addictions. Even
a person’s spirituality can be affected in many ways. For example, there is a correlation between
people who have excessive debts and people who quit paying
tithing. (Although that is exactly the wrong thing
to do.) And that
is just measuring the effects that will occur in mortality.
I do not know what the effects of excessive debts are in
the life after. Presumably,
since we can not take the toys we bought with the credit
cards with us, we can’t take the debts either. But
leaving your loved ones with your financial mess when you
die is probably not a good way to enter the spirit world.
SIN AND
EXCESSIVE BORROWING HAVE A LOT IN COMMON
-
Temptation to do or acquire something that will be fun for
the moment.
-
Lack
of discipline and self-control to say “No!
-
Future regret and enslavement.
-
Often
a long and painful period as a direct result of giving
into
the temptation.
THE REPENTANCE
OR RECOVERY PROCESSES ARE ALSO SIMILAR
· Recognition. Whether
a sinful habit, or a borrowing habit, we must first recognize
it for what it is and admit to ourselves that we must change.
· Confession. Sin must
be confessed to the Lord at a minimum. For
more serious sins, we must confess to those we
have injured and to priesthood authorities. Confession
is a more important step than we often believe. Not
only does it take great humility, which is tangible
proof of recognition, but it brings others who
can help us into
the equation. We probably need confession of our borrowing
transgressions too. It
never hurts to go to the Lord, of course. But
in cases of severe debt we may need to go to a
lot of other people too. We may need to seek the help of a credit counselor. We
may need to go to the institutions from whom we
have borrowed and basically confess that we have
been out of control
and seek to work with them more responsibly in
the future. Frequently, people have a difficult time ending
sinful patterns because they believe they can handle
it themselves. Frequently, people have a difficult time ending
unwise borrowing patterns because they believe
they can handle it by themselves.
· Restitution. When
we are guilty of sin we must make every effort to restore
to those we have injured. With
excessive borrowing we need to repay, with interest, what
we have borrowed. Filing bankruptcy may be legal but it rarely satisfies the spiritual
requirements for restitution.
· Refrain. This is a
matter of self-control whether the issue is a sinful practice
or a borrowing practice. We
can help ourselves by eliminating the sources of temptation
in our lives. Alcoholics should avoid meeting friends in bars. Creditoholics should cut up their credit cards.
In many ways the results of this repentance process have the
same wonderful effect. We
have all known people (including ourselves) who have successfully
repented of some serious transgression. The
peace and joy that follows is wonderful. A
person freeing themselves of excessive debt also experiences
a peace and joy that is wonderful.
If the wages of sin is [spiritual] death, then the wages of
debt is financial death.
*Missionaries
must be free of debt before they leave for their missions
and the Brethren want to know that people that are called
to substantial leadership positions are individuals of
good character and high financial integrity.
|
|
|
About
the Author:
|
Richard
P. Halverson
Meridian Financial Editor |
Richard
P. Halverson is a founding partner of the investment company Great
Northern Capital. He received his Bachelor of Science degree in
Banking and Finance from the University of Utah and a Master of
Business Administration degree from Harvard University where he
was named a Baker Scholar. He
served on the following committees for the Association of Investment
Management and Research (AIMR): as a member of The Standards and
Practices Committee, 1981-1990; as a member and chairman of the
Professional Conduct Committee, 1982-1993; as chairman of the Ethics
Awareness and Education Committee, 1993-1996. In
1994, he received the Daniel J. Forrestall III Leadership Award
from The Association for Investment Management and Research (AIMR)
for his work in the area of ethics in the investment profession.
He first
became interested in personal finance while serving as a Bishop.
During the day he worked in the world of billion dollar finance,
but during the evenings he found himself immersed in the more difficult
world of family finance. This led him to write the book Financial
Freedom. He is also a contributing author to the McGraw Hill
Real Estate Handbook and Smart Money Magazine. He claims to be proof
that you can be in the investment business and still not get rich!
He resides in Minnesota and is the father of seven children.
|
|
What
do you think?
|
|
|
|
Related
Articles:
|
|
Money
Wise Article Archive
|
Format
for Print
Click
here
|
|
|
|
