Babylon was the center of ancient civilization. Its inhabitants were rich and prosperous and considered their city as the seat of life itself. In their affluence and hubris, they decided to build a tower that will reach up to the heavens so that they might come upon even bigger and greater riches. God confounded their pride by inflicting them with a Babel of languages, thus ending their efforts in confusion and miscommunication.
Modern man wants his own Tower of Babel. He builds higher and bigger buildings, more and more impressive and innovative products and technologies. He creates and accumulates more and more wealth. Yet in the midst of this wealth and plenty, there is unrelenting emptiness and loneliness in more people. In the midst of affluence and conspicuous luxury, there is unending want and poverty. With more and better tools of communication and connection, never had there been so much divisions, misunderstandings and confusion.
I might not be serving wealth nor mammon. But I might be building my own tower to isolate and insulate myself against the messy world I live in. I just want my little corner of the world and remain uninvolved with the pain and sorrow of others, with those who are hungry and poor. I have enough troubles of my own to be troubled by the troubles of others.
Yet, as I try to take the words of Christ seriously, I feel compelled to go out of myself and seek Him in the others that come into my life. Serving Christ is serving Him in and through others. I have to come down from my tower and get my hands and feet dirty in this messy world we live in. Let me build instead a tower that will be a beacon of love and service.
No slave can serve two masters; for a slave will either hate the one and love the other, or be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and wealth.’
Luke 16:10-13