Wisdom of the apostle James: Your riches have decayed, and you clothes have been eaten by moths. James 5:2

The apostle James was part of the Church of Jerusalem and an important epistle bearing his name is attributed to him. This letter written by James is one of the few epistles not attributed to Paul, along with the epistles written by the apostles Peter and John. The letter of James is not addressed to a particular Church or person, but is rather a short discourse aimed at teaching some spiritual issues about Christian faith and wisdom such as the importance of living and listening to the word, faith and works, and the characteristics of charity.
And among other things, James addressed in his epistle, on a topic already warned by Jesus, the danger of riches. The apostle probably noticed on some journey that in some churches outside Jerusalem faith was practiced according to whether one was rich or poor. Divisions of this kind in an institution like the Church, which is an institution guided by the Holy Spirit, are not admissible. The truth is that riches are deceptive and their search and eagerness can lead men into error, as Jesus taught in his parable about the rich fool (Luke 12:16-21), or as Jesus warned when a rich young man asked him about how to get the spiritual gift of eternal life (Mark 10:17-23).
This is why the apostle James, to warn the new Christians who lived in wealth, wrote them a few brief words in his letter: "Pay attention to this if you're rich. Cry and moan about the misery that is coming to you. Your riches have decayed, and your clothes have been eaten by moths" James 5:1-2. In a figurative sense, James repeated in other words the misfortunes that Jesus taught in the Sermon on the Mount and that are expressed in the Gospel of Luke (Luke 6:24-26). And James taught these words with the intention of teaching that riches are not an impregnable fortress. True wisdom, as taught by the apostle, lies in humility, because, as the apostle expressed in his epistle, there is a truth that cannot be ignored: "If the Lord wants us to, we will live and carry out our plans" James 4:15. The words of the apostle James are therefore a brief summary of how to live according to divine law, in order to attain the true good, which is the gift of eternal life.

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