Tag: poverty
For the young Jewish professionals he works with in Washington, DC, “social justice is their faith,” says Rabbi Scott Perlo of Sixth & I Historic Synagogue. “If someone needs help from me, I really have to give it, because they are worth, in God’s eyes, just the same as I am.” More
“If we don’t in some concrete way help people to have a decent life here on earth, we are not fulfilling the gospel. It’s that simple,” say Pastor Dan Bryant, senior minister of the First Christian Church Disciples of Christ in Eugene, Oregon, and president of the board of Opportunity Village. More
“The message of the Gospel is not welfare, is not give my people a better madras or give them some more food. It’s to set them free, and setting them free is this whole movement— right-based, dignity for them, their rights, and empowerment.” More
President Obama visited Pope Francis for the first time this week (March 27).”The principal focus of the meeting was talking about issues of peace, international issues, and also talking about how to help poor people, how to help the marginalized all over the world,” says Father Tom Reese, an authority on the Vatican and senior analyst for National Catholic Reporter. “This is an area where the pope and President Obama are on the same page.” More
“We cannot allow for our brothers and our sisters to be on the side of the road. Jesus tells the story about us caring about our neighbors. Politicians don’t care about us,” says Rev. Charles Williams II of Historic King Solomon Baptist Church. More
According to Father Michael Doyle, crime and poverty in Camden, New Jersey are worse today than when he first arrived there 39 years ago. But through his church’s ministry of feeding, housing, and educating the poor, Father Doyle sees hope for what the FBI considers the most dangerous city in America. “We’re working against the odds, but I think God is on our side,” he says. More
To lift the Philippines out of poverty, economist Antonio Meloto, founder of Gawad Kalinga, believes the next generation of Filipinos needs to create jobs at home rather than seeking jobs abroad. More
“He has given a higher priority to the church’s social teachings, to our obligations to the poor, and to criticism of an unjust economy than we have heard in a long time,” says Washington Post columnist E. J. Dionne. More
As cities grapple with the problem of homelessness, some believe the solution is to move them to “retreats” outside the city. But critics say such proposals are cases of “out of sight, out of mind” that will actually result in more homelessness. More
“One of my goals is to get pastors and congregations to feel emboldened to ask questions about the economy,” says Serene Jones, president of Union Theological Seminary in New York City. More