On poverty and the like

I'm having a really great conversation with my older, conservative, Southern Baptist pastor Uncle. It's actually quite civil and stimulating. Here is one of my recent responses:


You know, I don't really think that we can eliminate poverty. Its existence is a consequence of our fallen state. As Christians, (or humans for that matter) we will never be able to eradicate suffering of all/any form. It's part of the challenge that we have of living of the "right now" and the "not yet" redemption of Christ. We are justified, we are being sanctified, but as part of creation, we are "not yet" what God intended us to be, and social ills such as poverty are a part of that.

However, on the same note, just because we can not fully realize the alleviation of suffering, God does not excuse us from trying to address such problems. References to poverty and serving the poor occur about 3000 times throughout the Bible. Poverty and the poor are close to the heart of God it seems. Therefore addressing the poor should be the heart's desire of the (global) body of Christ. I do think that the developed world does need to own up, that we as individuals need to accept as well, some responsibility for the impoverished status of many nations. Our industrialized wealth has come from exploiting the peoples and resources of many other cultures/nations/people. If we eliminated slave labor, sweatshops, the past gains of slavery, so and and so forth, most people of the developed world could not afford to live the same disposable lifestyle of comfort that we now enjoy. If that $5 sweatshirt were made by people paid a living wage that would provide for the bare necessities, it wouldn't cost only $5 and I wouldn't be able to have at least 5 of those sweatshirts in my closet.

The rich (and I think that includes me and you..and most people we know in the States/Western Europe) do not have to realize the real cost of the things that we purchase, use, spend because we are so far removed from the production. And it is this building of wealth on the backs of others that I think should move Christians to see that this is not Godly. God does not forbid wealth, but it should not be built on the backs of others or at the expense of others.

It is a myth that there is unlimited wealth to be had, as we are beginning to realize by our lack of physical resources. Our global market place effectively cripples certain countries from participating on equal footing mainly because of international debt. You probably know this already, but these high interest loans are offered to countries who have no other means of supporting themselves. This often is during a disaster, emergency, or other event. These loans are highly unregulated and often fall into the hands of the corrupt ruling, wealthy officials (like in Honduras). Here is a link that describes it way better than I can http://www.osjspm.org/debt.htm


Forgiving these debts is far from a panacea. But it could help stop the trend of the growing gap between the developed nations and the developing ones that are stuck in a rut of poverty. I also don't think that making developing nations into nations like the U.S. or the EU is a good idea either. It's actually impossible. Because, while making up only four percent of the world's population, the U.S. operates one third of its automobiles. U.S. citizens consume one quarter of the world's global energy supply. Therefore, other nations can not move out of their poverty without great sacrifice on the part of those of us who have economic and political power. To not be actively keeping other people in poverty, we will have to sacrifice our standard of living. The western world needs to become less spoiled and demanding, the developing world deserves clean drinking water, decent shelter, food, healthcare, and vaccines as much as I do. (Not that I deserve anything, but you know what i mean...) I'm not looking for some communistic shangrila, but if our nation is so "predominantly" Christian as many like to claim (which I"m not sure this is an accurate claim) then Christians should bear in mind their impact on others when living their lives.

I think that the efforts that your church is making in Honduras and in your community are fantastic. If only every church would do so. But as you said, "But all of that is a drop in the bucket compared to what is needed. And the needs of Honduras are a very small percentage of the staggering needs of the world." That is why I think more than charity is needed. Charity is a wonderful thing, but we are also called to justice. I wish, no I pray, that the Church could address poverty in such a comprehensive way. My opinion is that doing so will require questioning our governing bodies, structures, institutions and to move beyond these structures as the Church. For us it will be a costly and painful thing to do if we do it with the heart and dedication asked of us by God. It will require that we no longer think of ourselves first as Americans, but as Christians. The direct association of the two is (my opinion, here) a profanity of what true dedication to Christ is. If my calling by Christ is limited because I"m seeking to protect the interest of my country, then I have my allegiances wrong.

What plans are there to deal with the other glaring needs of the human race after we eliminate poverty? How do we deal a death blow to our propensity for greed, injustice, hatred, racism and the like? Is poverty the worst of these ailments?

Well, it actually appears that poverty and injustice are often one and the same and are the result of greed, hatred, and racism. It is no coincidence that people of color are disproportionately affected by poverty. We will not overcome poverty without dismantling racism in our society. We should commit ourselves to racial justice and reconciliation in our personal lives, our congregations, our neighborhoods, and in the very structures of our society. We will not overcome poverty with economic solutions alone, but also through rebuilding the bonds of healthier families and supportive communities, which hold our society together, and especially through nurturing and raising our children.

Now that I've got a poorly written sermon here, I will say that some of the organizations that I link to are idealistic. However, the Church (especially in America) has been negligient in this area. With the exception of some social gospel movements, we have largely ignored God's calling to serve the "least of these." (Evangelicals in particular have done a horrible job of this compared to Catholics/Mainline Protestants). By looking at where we exert our political power, you would think that the biggest calling of Christians would be to fight abortion and homosexuality. It's not that these are not important issues. On the contrary, I find that both of these also go back to poverty, injustice, and strengthening our communities. But to try to control others into having Christian values does no good, no sense focusing on the symptom rather than the disease.

The Church needs prophetic voices, and to be corrective sometimes they have to be loud, hopelessly hopeful, and off the beaten path. Isaiah walked around naked for three years cause God told him to, so just because it sometimes looks crazy, I don't want to ignore God working. I don't want us to abandon reason, but to examine our reasoning. And yes, addressing issues like these does put us in the company of people that at times make me uncomfortable. This cause at times is rampant with relativism, theological liberalism, and the like. But all the more reason for a conservative Christian theology to be strong and present in serving the Kingdom of God.