Wall Street Trader Becomes a Monk | Sojourners

Wall Street Trader Becomes a Monk

Saint Isaac of Syria said, "This life has been given to you for repentance. Do not waste it on vain pursuits." And at least one trader has exchanged the vanity of Wall Street for a life of penance and prayer. Perhaps the monastic discipline of holding loosely to the things of this world (if at all) is a good model in this time of crisis and uncertainty. From the Telegraph:

Hristo Mishkov had a successful career as a broker on the Nasdaq stock exchange in New York until he decided to give it all up to return to his native Bulgaria. His radical change of circumstances may start to look appealing to the tens of thousands of finance sector employees who face the bleak prospect of losing their jobs. ...

"Many people ... in the world do not realise that they have not earned the food they eat, that they take without giving," said Mr. Mishkov, 32, who worked for Karoll, one of Bulgaria's leading brokerages.

"But if someone consumes more than they have earned, it means someone else is starving."

Abayea Pelt is the office manager and receptionist for Sojourners.