The other day I was reading Spiritual Economics: The Principles and Process of True Prosperity by Eric Butterworth, and came upon the original definitions of some important terms.

– “affluence”: an abundant flow”
– “prosperity”: “according to hope, moving forward hopefully”
– “wealth”: “well-being”

I knew that these are not the meanings in today’s culture and this morning embarked on a bit of research with the hope of being proved wrong.

Here’s what I found:

“affluence”:
Merriam-Webster: “abundance of property: wealth”
Encarta: “having an abundance of material wealth”

“prosperity”:
Merriam-Webster: “the condition of being successful or thriving; especially: economic well-being”
Encarta: “success: the condition of enjoying wealth, success, or good fortune”

“wealth”:
Merriam-Webster: “abundance of valuable material possessions or resources”
Encarta: “state of having much money: the state of having plenty of money or possessions”

It is no wonder that our society is in the shape it is ethically, financially, etc. The western world especially has moved drastically away from a spiritual focus to an excessive material focus in how we live our life and conduct our relationships.

I want the peace, joy, and love, that is my divine birthright and I know I cannot experience them by following these modern definitions of “affluence”, “prosperity”, and “wealth”. I’m sticking with the practice of the original meanings in my own life – and, I’m glad to observe that more and more people are too.