You shall not covet your neighbor's goods

(CEV) “The Poem of the Man-God,”, Vol. 1, p. 709

Jesus says: “God gives everybody what is necessary. That is the truth. What is necessary to man? Pomp? A large number of servants? Countless fields? Banquets lasting from sunset to dawn? No. All that is necessary to man is a roof, a loaf, a garment. The indispensable to live.”

“Look around yourselves. Who are the happiest and the healthiest? Who enjoys a healthy tranquil old age? Fast living people? No. Those who live and work honestly and wish honest things.

They are not poisoned by lust and thus they are strong. They are not intoxicated by orgies and are thus agile. They are not consumed by the poison of jealousy and are thus cheerful. Who instead craves to possess more and more, kills his own peace and has no joy, grows old precociously, consumed by envy and abuses.”

“I could link the commandment: “You shall not steal” to the other one: “You shall not covet what belongs to your neighbor”. In fact an immoderate longing urges one to steal. The step between the two is a very short one. Is every desire an unlawful one? I do not mean that.

The father of a family who works in the fields or in a workshop and wishes to gain what is necessary to secure food for his family, most certainly does not commit a sin. On the contrary he fulfills his duty of a father. Who instead craves only to enjoy more and takes possession of what belongs to other people to have a better time, commits a sin.”

“Envy! What is to covet other people’s property but avarice and envy? My dear children, envy separates man from God and unites him to Satan. Do you not remember that Lucifer was the first one to covet what did not belong to him? He was the most beautiful of the archangels and enjoyed the vision of God. He should have been happy with that. He envied God, wanted to be God and became a demon. The first demon.

Another instance: Adam and Eve had been given everything, they enjoyed the earthly paradise and God’s friendship, blessed with the gifts of grace which God had granted them. They should have been satisfied with that. They envied God’s knowledge of good and evil and were driven out of Eden and became disliked by God. The first sinners.

A third instance: Cain envied Abel’s friendship with the Lord. And he became the first killer. Mary, the sister of Aaron and Moses, envied her brother and became the first leper in the history of Israel.

I could lead you step by step through the whole history of the people of God, and you would see that immoderate longing made men sinners and brought the country calamity. Because the sins of the individuals accumulate and bring disasters to the country, exactly as grains of sand, piling up throughout centuries, cause landslides which overwhelm villages and their inhabitants.

I have often cited little children as an instance, because they are simple and trustful. Today I say to you: imitate birds in their freedom from desires. Look. It is now winter. There is little food in the orchards. Do they worry about hoarding it in summer? No, they do not. They trust in the Lord. They know that they will always be able to catch for their little crops a small worm, a little grain, a crumb, a small spider, a little fly floating on water.

They know that there will always be a warm chimney-top or a flock of wool to shelter them in winter, and they know as well that when the time comes when they will need hay for their nests and more food for their little ones, there will be sweet-smelling hay in the fields and juicy food in the orchards and in the furrows, and the air and the soil will be rich in insects. And they slowly sing: “Thank You, Creator, for what You give us and will give us”, and they are ready to sing hosannas at the top of their voices when they will enjoy the company of their mates during the mating season and they see their offspring multiply.”

Is there a happier creature than a bird? And what is its intelligence as compared to the intelligence of man? A chip of silica compared with a mountain. But it teaches you a lesson. I solemnly tell you that who lives without any impure desires possesses the joy of a bird. He trusts in God, feels that God is his Father. He smiles at the rising day and at the falling night, because he knows that the sun is his friend and night his nourishment. He looks at men without malice and is not afraid of their vengeance, because he does not harm them in any way.

He is not afraid for his health or his sleep, because he knows that an honest life prevents diseases and grants a peaceful rest. And finally he is not afraid of death, because he knows that, since he always acted well, God can but smile at him. Also a king dies. And a rich man dies. A sceptre will not avert death, neither can money buy immortality. As before the King of kings and the Lord of lords crowns and money are ridiculous things, a life lived according to the Law is the only thing of value!”

Maria Valtorta: The Poem of The Man-God

Evaluation of the Work of Maria Valtorta by Padre Livio Fanzaga, Catholic priest (Radio Maria):
“So I would say just that, dear friends, because I read The Poem of the Man-God, three times, 5 volumes ( CEV, ed), and then I am able to evaluate it in its complexity and its value, I feel like saying, dear friends, I do not know any more commentary on the Gospel more orthodox, more uplifting, more stimulating than this, and I would like, dear friends, that all of you would accept the invitation from the Virgin Mary to read this books because it’s all true (They do not contain errors against faith and morals of the Catholic Church…) . Then read these books, my dear friends, because we would surely gain great benefits for your souls. It is not difficult to get them, and they do not cost a lot, 5 books that can be for you an indispensable spiritual nourishment”

Content taken from the works of Maria Valtorta with the permission of the “Centro Editoriale Valtortiano Srl”- Viale Piscicelli, 89/91 – 03036 Isola del Liri, (FR – Italy), which has all the rights upon Valtorta’s Works.