“Now God saw all that had been made, and it was very good. And there was evening and there was morning; the sixth day.” (Genesis 1:31). While many people question the accuracy of the biblical description of creation, there is no doubt a new economic world was recently created in about six days, and no one can truthfully say “and it was very good.” The media and some political leaders are blaming widespread “greed” to explain the economic chaos. Gee, really? The Jewish tradition provides a vivid example of greed and how its seductive power can blind us to reality and paralyze us from achieving purposeful goals.

(Rabbi Rudin, the American Jewish Committee’s senior interreligious adviser, is the author of “The Baptizing of America: The Religious Right’s Plans for the Rest of Us.”)