15 driving debt

My daughter turned 15 last Sunday.  On Tuesday she began Drivers Ed.  On Wednesday we opened a checking account for her.  She has asked about buying a car.  

A few years ago, she and her friends bestowed upon me the title, “Funky Youth Pastor” which she assured me was a high honor.  Given that, I hereinbelow give my sermon about turning 15, driving, and debt.  

The word “mortgage” is derived from the Old French word “morgage”, which directly translates to “dead pledge”.  This is not entirely morbid.  In the early 1600s Sir Edward Coke, a barrister in England explained, “And it seemeth, that the cause why it is called mortgage is, for that it is doubtful whether the feoffor will pay at the day limited such sum or not: and if he doth not pay, then the land which is put in pledge upon condition for the payment of the money, is taken from him for ever, and so dead to him upon condition. And if he doth pay the money, then the pledge is dead as to the tenant.”  In other words, a mortgage is “dead” when either the debt is paid or the payment fails.  

Debt is not a death sentence but it carries a high cost.  In fact, each of the monotheistic religions – Judaism, Christianity, and Muslim – have scripture which forbade interest.  

The Quran, verse 275, says that interest – the payment upon debt – is forbidden:

“Those who consume interest cannot stand [on the Day of Resurrection] except as one stands who is being beaten by Satan into insanity. That is because they say, “Trade is [just] like interest.” But Allāh has permitted trade and has forbidden interest. So whoever has received an admonition from his Lord and desists may have what is past, and his affair rests with Allāh. But whoever returns [to dealing in interest or usury] – those are the companions of the Fire; they will abide eternally therein.”

In the Hebraic tradition, Deuteronomy 23:19-20, says that interest is not forbidden but it is restricted:

“Do not charge a fellow Israelite interest, whether on money or food or anything else that may earn interest. You may charge a foreigner interest, but not a fellow Israelite, so that the Lord your God may bless you in everything you put your hand to in the land you are entering to possess.”

Within the Christian tradition, in the early Middle Ages, it seems this scripture was taken to mean that Christians could not handle money but those of the Jewish faith could.  And given that the Jewish people could neither own land, nor join a Guild to learn a trade, they became facile at handling money.  But money was of Caesar’s realm, not God’s, and a schism was laid, then codified into law in 1745 when Pope Benedict issued his Vix Pervenit that condemned the practice of charging interest on loans as usury.  

The words of the prophets have fallen on deaf ears.  In January 2024 U.S. consumer debt – credit cards, students loans, auto loans, mortgages and payday loans – totaled $17.37 trillion dollars, and the median credit card interest rate is currently 24.37%.  The gross federal debt of the United States has surpassed $34 trillion dollars.  We are intoxicated with credit.  

It was not always this way.  In July of 1979 USA President Jimmy Carter gave his “Malaise” speech, speaking to the nation “…about a fundamental threat to American democracy…to worship self-indulgence and consumption.”

“It is a crisis that strikes at the very heart and soul and spirit of our national will. We can see this crisis in the growing doubt about the meaning of our own lives and in the loss of a unity of purpose for our nation.  In a nation that was proud of hard work, strong families, close-knit communities, and our faith in God, too many of us now tend to worship self-indulgence and consumption. Human identity is no longer defined by what one does, but by what one owns. But we’ve discovered that owning things and consuming things does not satisfy our longing for meaning. We’ve learned that piling up material goods cannot fill the emptiness of lives which have no confidence or purpose.”

He had the decency to admit, “This is not a message of happiness or reassurance, but it is the truth and it is a warning.”  No one wanted to hear that message. Jimmy Carter consistently ranks among the least respected of US Presidents and he lost in a landslide in the 1980 election.  

Carter’s prophecy went ignored and twenty-one years later, the man from Kennebunkport, President George W. Bush would address the nation in September 2001 and encourage continued consumption. 

Following the devastation of 9-11 he said, “And one of the great goals of this nation’s war is…to tell the traveling public:  Get on board. Do your business around the country.  Fly and enjoy America’s great destination spots.  Get down to Disney World in Florida.  Take your families and enjoy life, the way we want it to be enjoyed.”

My child, at the age of 18 you will be legally able to enter a contract and borrow money.  We will then advise but no longer control your decisions.  Certainly there is a car in your future and my goal now is to give you clarity to guide your decisions. 

The auto website Edmunds reported in October 2023 that the average new car payment had reached an all-time high of $736 per month.  The average cost of used cars was $29,328.  As options and panache increase so too does the cost; always consider whether your purchase and obligations are sustainable.  There is a wisdom in frugal simplicity.  

And keep in mind what Ghandi said, “Live simply so that others may simply live.”  This quote is available on a bumper sticker.  Maybe put that on your first car?