# Seeking God, finding God: the danger of envy
*2009-03-11*

> Bill Young reflects on the story of Joseph and his brothers to explore how envy can strip away our humanity and the importance of finding contentment.

## The destructive nature of envy

Sibling rivalry is as old as the story of Cain and Abel. Envy is one of those deeply human emotions that will always be part of the human condition. There will always be someone more gifted, more talented, or luckier than you. Most of us laughed years ago at our siblings' lines about who Mom loved best, because in our hearts, we always wondered if that was true.

## The callousness of the brothers

Today's story about Joseph reminds us how destructive envy can be. What is most chilling is the callousness of the brothers. They put their brother into a dry well, planning to abandon him to die of thirst and starvation. Rather than have his blood on their hands, they took the first step in murdering their brother, and their only reaction to their decision was to sit down and eat lunch.

## Losing our humanity

Anger and rage rob us of reason, but envy can rob us of our humanity. Envy blocks compassion, justice, and some of the finest human emotions. When we allow ourselves to be miserable because of another's good fortune, it is easy to see that person as directly responsible for our misery. Somehow, that excuses inhumane treatment.

## The antidote of contentment

The only antidote is contentment. Life is not fair; there will always be others with more. How foolish are we when we let that inescapable fact rob us of our pleasure in who we are and what we have?

*We must strive for contentment in ourselves to prevent envy from robbing us of our humanity and our joy.*