Uniting people of faith in common prayer

The entire world has entered into a state of economic calamity.  Faulty and inequitable economic concepts catering to greed have led to systems of commerce that have brought the economies of the world down.  Countless millions are slipping into the ranks of the impoverished as a result.  There are over two thousand scriptures touching the subject of poverty.  These many texts reveal that God takes an uncompromising position for the poor to be dealt with in a merciful fashion in the realms of benevolence and economic justice. 

In America Christians and Jews have long taken strong actions to advance the cause of what has been called "distributive justice capitalism". Dating back to the late 19th century, advanced by Roman Catholic theologian Monsignor John A. Ryan, who emphasized six canons of Distributive Justice, social gospel Protestant theologian Reinhold Niebuhr post-War II and religious Jewish intellectuals inspired by the tradition of tikkun olam - making the world whole, America's religious community has been in the forefront, advocating for responsible capitalism.

The Apostle Paul declares in 1 Timothy 6:10 that the "love of money is the root of all evil".  Money in itself is simply a neutral energy source and thus not evil, only the love of it is. As we have seen, atomic energy can be used for creative or destructive purposes. It all depends upon how humans use it. So it is with money. In the past few years we have seen that the freedom of individuals to achieve their dreams and the need of society to restrain the very real human inner tendency to exploit others has gotten out of balance.

In the parable “the Sheep and the Goats” (Mathew 25:31-46) Jesus not only makes it clear that there will be many surprises as to who is gaining entrance into the reign of God and who is not, but also that we will be judged by what we do for the poor and vulnerable: For I was hungry and you left me to starve; I was thirsty and you gave me no drink; I was a stranger and you didn’t welcome me in; I was naked and you did not clothe me, sick and in prison and you did not care about me.
Then they too will answer, “Lord, when did we see you hungry, or thirsty, or a stranger, or without clothing; sick, or in prison, and not come to help you?” Then he will answer them, “I declare that whatever you did not do for one of the least of these, you did not do for me.” And they will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life.

Two Great Commandments identified by Jesus declared that loving God and our neighbors should be prioritized above all else.  Paul diagnosed the root problem and Jesus prescribed the foundation remedy.  Let us pray that our nation's leader rediscover and once again embrace use of the Christian-Jewish concept of distributive justice.

The "Poverty and Economic Crisis " group is coordinated by Rev. Jarrod Cochran. If you are interested in being involved with this group, please fill out the general SGPI sign-up form, or email Jarrod at jarrod@progressivechristianalliance.org