From our CCL event held on 21/08/2024 in Marcus Loane Hall at Moore Theological College. Slides (2 MB PDF). Event handout (1.3 MB PDF).
Speaker: Michael Jensen.
MC: Peter Orr.
The world is becoming wealthier and wealthier. Since the turn of the century, the net worth of many countries in the West and in Asia has tripled, poverty rates have fallen, and life expectancy has increased by more than six years.
At the same time, the divide between rich and poor has increased, with the richest one per cent owning almost fifty per cent of all the world’s wealth. Five to ten per cent of people still live in extreme poverty, even in the most affluent nations. Furthermore, while money can buy happiness, it can only do so up to a certain point, and wealthier people are more likely to be less generous and less kind to others.
How should Christians think about affluence? Is material prosperity a blessing or a curse, or both? Given the state of the world and income inequality, what are we to do with the riches God has given us? At our August 2024 event, Michael Jensen, rector of St Mark’s Anglican Darling Point, helped us see our earthly treasure the way our heavenly Father does.
Read the transcript of this event
