After years of public quarrels amongst the siblings as to who should and shouldn’t share in the family fortune, Susanna was awarded a sizable judgment after which she vowed to never speak to her family again. She died at the age of 58 with little to show of the family wealth, and buried without a single family member in attendance.
     Jacob knew that every year from the age of 18 and on he would be collecting a large sum of money following a successful lawsuit launched on his behalf following the misdiagnosis of his father’s medical condition. Jacob burned through so much of the money on car accessories and restaurant meals following his birthday each year he had to struggle in the remaining months to earn money to live on while waiting for the next payout.
     He was born to a wealthy family in the village of Patara on the Mediterranean Sea. He was an only child who lost both parents during an epidemic while he was still young. Upon inheriting their fortune he set about using the money to assist the needy, the sick and the suffering and he became known throughout the land for his generosity. He was Bishop of Myra in the 4th century and was also known as Nikolaos the Wonderworker. Today he is acknowledged around the world as Saint Nicholas.
     Stories of his generosity have been told since the 5th century and he has been revered for his compassion and care to those in need. In the 1100’s French nuns began giving candy and gifts to needy children on December 6, a day which is known as St. Nicholas Feast Day.
     A lot of wealthy people do an incredible amount of good with their money. A lot of less wealthy people do as well. At all points along that spectrum each one of us determines how to best use the money at our disposal. I was struck by the story of a woman interviewed several years ago in a featured article about the working poor. This woman dreamed of one day being able to buy a tube of lipstick--a luxury she couldn’t afford in her extremely tight daily budget. She saved coins for months and finally had enough to purchase the brand name and shade she had been anticipating for so long. However as she walked into the department store she was greeted by the sight of one of the many charities that collects money for people in need during the Christmas season. It struck her that the money she was intending to use to buy lipstick could provide bread and milk for a family who might otherwise go without. She never got to the make-up counter but instead gave away what little she had, knowing that the difference the milk could be to a family would make her feel far better than any lipstick ever could.
     It may be fun to imagine inheriting a fortune or stumbling into great wealth and picturing all we could do with that money. Perhaps as part of that scenario we think about all the people we could help since we’d have the resources to do so. But we don’t need to come into millions to make a difference. We simply need to do it out of what we have--whatever that may be.
     What caused Saint Nicholas to give away what he inherited while others made different decisions is all about the attitude to which money is approached. If we function from a sense of entitlement we’re likely to focus on self and what money can do for us. If we operate from a perspective that our resources are like tools in our hands, we will focus on what that money can do in being a blessing to others.
           Some amongst us can build schools or expand hospitals. Some can give cans of food or shovel a sidewalk. It’s not the level of giving that matters but the spirit behind it. The reason the Feast of St. Nicholas is celebrated all over the world hundreds of years after his death is not that he inherited a fortune, but that he lived his life motivated by compassion and was determined to care for those around him. We can all live like that. Doing so isn’t dictated by dollars in our banks but by the spirit of generosity in our hearts. That’s my outlook.
