I wrote this brief article for this week's parish bulletin. This one is slightly longer than what appeared in print. The readings for the two Sundays mentioned in the article are here and here.
The past two weekends (the 25th and 26th Sundays in Ordinary Time, Cycle C), the readings at Sunday mass have paired a first reading from the prophet Amos with a parable from the Gospel of Luke. Together, these two pairs of readings illustrate two different ways the well-off in our world maintain an unjust economic status quo: by actively exploiting the poor; and by passively ignoring them.
Last week’s pair of readings focused on businesspeople who prosper by cheating and exploiting the poor. The Amos passage provides a catalog of how the poor are exploited, while the Gospel story of the dishonest steward implies that he exploited the debtor status of the master's tenants by collecting from them more than the master was owed, and keeping the margin for his personal profit.
In this week’s pair of readings, the focus shifts to the wealthy who live in luxury and ease while remaining inattentive to the crises and calamities which befall neighbors who are less fortunate.
In this week’s Gospel story, the rich man lived a life of extravagant comfort
while ignoring poor, suffering Lazarus who literally lay at the rich man’s door. The rich man might have stepped over (or even
trod upon!) Lazarus every time he left his house, but apparently did nothing to
ease Lazarus’s afflictions.
After death, the fates of the two men are reversed. That should get our attention - perhaps it should even terrify us! Jesus’s message is both straightforward and discomfiting
to those who prosper in this world: we must be attentive to the poor in our
midst. All of us, but especially those
of us who have been given gifts of wealth, must not accept the current divides and
outcomes between rich and poor as “givens” which can’t be improved. All of us, but especially those of us who
have been blessed with material prosperity, have a moral responsibility to use our
gifts to aid those who, regardless of the circumstances and root causes, aren’t
sufficiently well-off to shield themselves from earthly life’s misfortunes.
The poor and needy are all around us, but often we don’t have
eyes to see them. The world teaches us
to look past them and step over them. Even
our zoning laws relegate the poor to isolated zones in our cities and suburbs, where they are out of sight and out of mind. “The kingdom
of God is at hand!”, Jesus proclaimed. That kingdom isn’t just far away – it is
breaking into our lives here on earth, too.
God’s kingdom is an alternative way of living which corrects injustices
in this sinful world. As citizens of God’s
kingdom, there is much we can do, individually and collectively, to help those
in need. Let us heed this Gospel
imperative by being generous with those who are less fortunate. When we work to correct economic injustices,
we are helping God’s kingdom to break in around us.
Good one, Jim. But people need to realize that giving to charity, while needed, isn’t enough. They need to support government POLICIES that will help the poor, ranging from extra resources for early childhood education, programs for children of parents who don’t speak English, after school programs, education for special needs children, subsidized childcare for poor families with infants, and toddlers, free good quality preschool programs, universal healthcare of some kind, policies to build affordable housing in suburban neighborhoods, etc, etc, etc. All of this costs money and that money comes from taxes. So they need to be willing to pay the taxes needed to help those living on the margins.
ReplyDeleteHi Anne - when I'm wearing my deacon hat (not that, as far as I know, there is such a thing as deacon headware), I don't prescribe specific policies or government programs. I did call for collective and individual action. That could include government programs, private assistance, or all of the above. Our people need to work out those specifics.
DeleteOK, Deacon. However, as a deacon, you COULD start a program at your parish that focuses on Catholic Social Justice Teachings, as Jean mentions in her comment. Or you COULD run a series on them in the bulletin, or parish newsletter. In my experience, very few Catholic parishes ever even mention the church's social justice teachings - which are very well developed - thorough and concise, with a very long history.
DeleteIf Catholics ever really listened to the gospels, they would probably not vote for Jesus - his teachings would be called "socialist". All those alleged Catholics in Congress and in Governors' mansions around the country have clearly not paid the slightest bit of attention to the Catholic Church's Social Justice Teachings, nor to the gospels. Unfortunately, that seems to include a majority of the Catholic bishops in the US and a majority of priests - and, dare I say it? - perhaps even a majority of the deacons.
You are an exception, Jim. I see a growing awareness of the structural inequities in our country (fixable only through changes in policies) in your comments . You can figure out a way while ducking charges of being too "political". But I can't help but wonder why only abortion, gay marriage and maybe one or two other political topics are acceptable to mention from parish pulpits, while the teachings of Jesus himself are often skipped over or given very un-challenging interpretations.
Delete"However, as a deacon, you COULD start a program at your parish that focuses on Catholic Social Justice Teachings, as Jean mentions in her comment. Or you COULD run a series on them in the bulletin, or parish newsletter."
DeleteTrue - it's a good idea!
I don't know how much deacons obsess over sexual sins, abortion et al in their homilies. Sometimes, ministers are the most myopic of persons for understanding what goes on outside our own parish, because we're tethered to it every single weekend for liturgical stuff. The only homilies we hear are the ones preached in our own parishes (or written/given by ourselves). That said, I've definitely heard a few deacons give rip-roaring anti-abortion homilies when I've traveled. I remember once, when visiting some relatives, I told my aunt that I thought a deacon at her parish spoke out pretty strongly and directly about abortion. She rolled her eyes and said, "Yes, but it's all he ever talks about".
In my own preaching, I tend to preach most of all about family topics. But I've had single adults pointedly remind me that not everyone in the parish is married with children.
Frankly, most of us deacons weren't chosen for being learned, although all of us (I hope!) received some academic formation. In the Chicago Archdiocese, priests get much more formation than we did. They go to school full-time for four years. They might have an individual course on each of the four Gospels, whereas we deacons had a one-semester class on the entire New Testament. If I hadn't continued to read, think, discuss and pray over the last nearly-20 years, I'd probably have forgotten nearly everything they taught us. We're supposed to do continuing education, but the requirement is pretty minimal (satisfied by attending a symposium or convention once or twice a year), and a lot of the guys don't show up for those.
Amos is my favorite prophet. He goes to the heart of the matter. His list of ways the poor are oppressed are valid today. What is staggering now are the climate catastrophe's victims of drought and famine in the Sudan. I am definitely not poor. But I could be if the System starts to collapse. The great gap between Lazarus and Dives started out with Dives making himself unconnected to the poor. I shouldn't think of the poor as being over there. I should think of them as being the same. And yes, this goes way beyond charity. This is justice.
ReplyDeleteStanley - re: the climate: I was thinking of the crazy storms. Today's daily newspaper had separate news items reporting hurricanes, typhoons and/or monsoons hitting the Caribbean, Florida, the Canadian Maritimes, Alaska and the Philippines. If not precisely the four corners of the world, that's still many areas which are geographically dispersed, all being hit by storm systems.
DeleteAttribution of climate events to climate change, how much, is a whole scientific field now. I usually refrain from blaming specific events on CO2 until I hear from the climatologists. Especially regarding storms and tornadoes which are complex tricky phenomena. But the flooding and droughts seem to be more obvious to the average person. The Sudan. Southeast USA. Europe this past summer. Unprecedented if not rare seems to be happening more often.
DeleteCheck out Phyllis Zagano's piece on NCR today about how climate issues are aggravating the refugee crisis: https://www.ncronline.org/news/earthbeat/candidates-and-climate-unspoken-forces-behind-migrants-marthas-vineyard
DeleteI found it a bit hard to connect the dots between climate change and Venezuelan immigrants. But no question that climate change will increase migration. Climate change has forced Central American coffee workers into overcrowded cities where they can't find work. Storms of increasing frequency and intensity have destroyed infrastructure and created cholera outbreaks in places like Haiti. There was a story about residents in American territories in the Pacific leaving in droves. Rising water levels and sali nation of fresh water supplies may be at play.
DeleteA million years ago, I ran across a Buddhist proverb that the highest form of charity is to build a society in which charity is not needed. I think Catholic social justice is in line with this idea.
ReplyDeleteBut most American Catholics are Americans first. People are poor because they are lazy and stupid. So we toss them a few gift cards, dump a Christmas basket on their porch, maybe put a few cheap cans of soup in the food pantry collection, and mark our yearly fire insurance paid.
I think everything is easier when unburdened with the very concept of private property. The American Indians got along without it.
DeleteI read onetime that Europeans in Africa took umbrage when some tribesman (Bushmen?) would take a gift from them without so much as a thank you. Turns out that they expect giving and taking to be natural, normal, and unexceptional.
I guess sharing is the best kind of charity.
Jean - the highest form of charity is to build a society in which charity is not needed
ReplyDeleteThank you, Jean, that quote says it all.
Is this communism? If so, it's the kind I like.
ReplyDeletehttps://youtu.be/hZL7TqSeDus
I don't prescribe specific policies or government programs. I did call for collective and individual action. That could include government programs, private assistance, or all of the above
ReplyDeleteThe mental health field is a good example of the full spectrum of help that is needed.
No matter how wealthy a person might be, they quickly come to the limits of their resources when dealing with a mentally ill family member. The president of the Lucas County Mental Health Board husband was very wealthy; he held some lucrative patents. They had actually built an apartment complex so that their mentally ill son would have a place to live a “normal” life with other people even though he periodically trashed his apartment.
They got involved with the mental health system when they realized they would have to build the equivalent of a mini-mental health system just to take care of their son. More is needed than private money and private initiative.
On the other hand, public initiatives can go terribly wrong. The history of public mental hospitals is a good example. I suspect they might have originally been built much like many prisons are today to satisfy the money-making needs of the wealthy. The brother of one of Ohio recent Governors was a builder of prisons in this state. Psychiatric hospitals did keep the mentally ill “safe” from the rest of society and the rest of society safe from them. However, one sociological classic, “Asylums” is about the terrible distortions that occur in all “total institutions” such as prisons, the military, monasteries, where one has only one identity and has to perform that identity 24/7.
Yes, government can and should be part of the solution, but it can easily become part of the problem.
There is evidence that the poor much prefer the personal charity of neighbors to dealing with public institutions, including large non- profits like Catholic Charities. They like things like the Saint Vincent DePaul society, and parish food pantries where they deal with volunteers, and can interact with them in a non-bureaucratic manner.
The mentally ill need personal support networks, not all of whom are mentally ill or mental health professionals. They need sufficient personal autonomy where they can have sufficient choices in their lives. When he was asked what he wanted in the public mental health system, one consumer replied “Not the most expensive system, nor even one with all the latest best practices, but one that I have helped shape and know will be there when I need it.” I thought that was very wise. In fact, I could say the same thing about most of the institutions that have been important in my life such as parishes and higher education.
Jack - I suppose one of the great problems for those with mental illness is an inability to form and sustain healthy relationships, do you agree? I'm thinking of the homeless neighbors we assist in our Outreach ministry. Most of them have burned through all the favors they can expect from friends and family (and in some case have burned bridges with them, as well). If anyone in a potential support network was willing to put up with their presence and company, they would at least have a spare bed or couch to sleep on. Some do this: will stay with an adult child for a few months, e.g. during the cold winter months, and then go off on their own for the warmer periods of the year.
DeleteI don't know whether any of you saw the Frances McDormand film "Nomadland" which one a bunch of awards last year. In my view, it paints a picture (some documentary, some fictional) of one form of homeless lifestyle. I don't recall whether her character had any diagnosed mental illness issues, but there was something about her that wouldn't settle down and stay in one place. The support they try to provide one another (partly out of friendship, partly to survive); the perpetual issues with vehicles breaking down; the occasional periods of work in low-rung jobs: these are all characteristics we see in homeless folks in this area as well.
DeleteI am very skeptical that the poor prefer to rely on family and neighbors.
DeleteSpeaking only for myself (we are just a few thousand dollars a year above the poverty level), having to beg from neighbors or go to a food bank makes me feel sick inside. A Bridge card (we don't have one yet, but will need one when savings runs out in two years) allows you to shop at a normal store and use it like a credit card. No one has to know.
It is shameful to be poor, and that shame is exacerbated when people that you know know the extent of your problem. In addition, accepting help from people you know lets you in for their comments, advice. You also start to feel, and certainly will be made to feel, like a burden if you need more than a one-time handout.
Jim, yes, I saw that movie after our book club read the book for one of our selections. In the book it gave a little more background on the main character. In her past she had some alcohol problems, and romantic relationships hadn't worked out well for her. But she was a kind and generous person. Her dream was to have an "earth house", kind of an off-the-grid thing. The author of the book had "embedded" with the itinerant community and even worked some of the transient jobs. That's dedication to one's art! If you liked the movie, I recommend the book.
DeleteJean, yeah, I agree with you that most of us would prefer not to get charity from people we know. The Mormons might have it figured out a little better, they help members in trouble, who then expect to "pay it forward" to others who need help.
Yes, I saw the movie. Perhaps I need to read the book to better understand McDormand's character. I sort of accepted it as a variation in human preference. Some people want a big home with a swimming pool (I don't). Some people want to be rootless. I see both as hyperindividualistic and unattractive. I didn't see either McDormand's character or her rooted sister as sympathetic. However, both are understandable products of our society.
DeleteThe Boy has a lot of stories from his neighborhood. He caught the covid from giving a woman in his complex a ride to get her car out of police impoundment in Flint. She was coughing incessantly and ranting about the unfairness of cops.
DeleteShe was "between jobs" and gave him $5 and a joint for gas. He told her he didn't smoke dope because of his asthma. She said, "Dude, just crumble it up and put it in a pudding cup!"
He let her know a few days later that he tested positive for covid and offered her a home test and a few masks.
She declined saying she "didn't believe in that sh*t."
He said he cut the conversation short before she launched into her theory about the gummint tracking people.
There is a whole lot more involved with using policy to correct injustices in the structures of our economy than just dealing with mental illness and homelessness, Jim. The conservatives who currently run Catholic parishes seem to deliberately avoid educating their congregations about Catholic Social Justice teachings. It should be included in standard parish educational offerings for the kids AND for the adults. They usually have some kind of Social Concerns group that runs thanksgiving basket, soup kitchen support, etc, but never mention social justice. It’s all charity focused not policy focused. At my previous Catholic parish it was called the Social Justice Committee and it included a strong focus on Catholic Social Justice teaching using resources available to all at the USCCB. The point was to educate the congregation about the need to support public policy initiatives to promote a more just economic infrastructure in our country not just the charity programs.
ReplyDelete