Two thousand one hundred! Not a date but a number. Bono, the lead singer of rock band U2, known for his anti-poverty campaigns, notes that this is how many mentions of poverty there are in the Scriptures: “That’s a lot of airtime.” In the introduction to the Poverty and Justice Bible, the Bible Society adds, “A concern for the poor and an emphasis on just and fair behaviour flows through the Bible like a river. It underpins the laws of the Old Testament and resounds through the words of the prophets; it forms a core part of all that Jesus said and did and shapes the activities of those who followed him.”
The poor come to all of us in many forms. Let us be sure that we never turn our backs on them, wherever we may find them. For when we turn our backs on the poor, we turn [our backs] on Jesus Christ.—Mother Teresa (1910–1997)
Hearts and minds
Many of the world’s current problems of inequality and poverty have their origins in a loss of empathy. Author and psychologist Daniel Goleman observed, “When we focus on ourselves, our world contracts as our problems and preoccupations loom large. But when we focus on others, our world expands. Our own problems drift to the periphery of the mind and so seem smaller, and we increase our capacity for connection—or compassionate action.”
Many of the world’s current problems of inequality and poverty have their origins in a loss of empathy. Author and psychologist Daniel Goleman observed, “When we focus on ourselves, our world contracts as our problems and preoccupations loom large. But when we focus on others, our world expands. Our own problems drift to the periphery of the mind and so seem smaller, and we increase our capacity for connection—or compassionate action.”
The good-hearted understand what it’s like to be poor; the hardhearted haven’t the faintest idea.—Proverbs 29:7 MSG
The justice connection
When the Bible talks about “the poor,” it’s not only referring to those who are destitute but also the downtrodden, oppressed, defenseless, and unrepresented. There is a clear connection in its pages between poverty and injustice, while justice is linked to honesty and fairness.
The Bible offers practical examples, such as giving a fair wage to employees and sharing part of our income. Jesus also suggested making friends with those who are less fortunate than ourselves.
When the Bible talks about “the poor,” it’s not only referring to those who are destitute but also the downtrodden, oppressed, defenseless, and unrepresented. There is a clear connection in its pages between poverty and injustice, while justice is linked to honesty and fairness.
The Bible offers practical examples, such as giving a fair wage to employees and sharing part of our income. Jesus also suggested making friends with those who are less fortunate than ourselves.
Always be generous, open purse and hands, give to your neighbors in trouble.—Deuteronomy 15:11 MSG
See that justice is done, let mercy be your first concern.—Micah 6:8 CEV
The best index to a person’s character is how he treats people who can’t do him any good.—Abigail Van Buren (1918–2013)
What can I do?
Even with limited resources, there are always ways to make a difference. We can share our time, we can be fair and honest at work, we can speak up for those who have no voice of their own.
Even with limited resources, there are always ways to make a difference. We can share our time, we can be fair and honest at work, we can speak up for those who have no voice of their own.
Dear Lord,
Help us to follow your example,
by looking out for those who each day feel that they are marginalised,
who cannot find hope,
who believe that they have little to offer,
who are overcome by the challenges of poverty.
Help us to widen our horizons,
to make space for the stranger,
to watch out for those who feel invisible,
to give time to the outsider,
to talk to the person facing silence,
to restore justice and value.
Give us the courage to undertake this, the determination to join with others in seeing grace in every human face, and the faith to embrace the opportunity.
—A prayer for justice from the Church Urban Fund
Help us to follow your example,
by looking out for those who each day feel that they are marginalised,
who cannot find hope,
who believe that they have little to offer,
who are overcome by the challenges of poverty.
Help us to widen our horizons,
to make space for the stranger,
to watch out for those who feel invisible,
to give time to the outsider,
to talk to the person facing silence,
to restore justice and value.
Give us the courage to undertake this, the determination to join with others in seeing grace in every human face, and the faith to embrace the opportunity.
—A prayer for justice from the Church Urban Fund
Christian hope … enables us to act humbly and patiently, tackling visible injustices in the world around us without needing to be assured that our skill and our effort will somehow rid the world of injustice altogether. Christian hope, after all, does not need to see what it hopes for (Hebrews 11:1). … Rather, it simply requires us to trust that even the most outwardly insignificant of faithful actions—the cup of cold water given to the child, the widow’s mite offered at the temple, the act of hospitality shown to the stranger, none of which has any overall strategic socio-political significance so far as we can now see—will nevertheless be made to contribute in some significant way to the construction of God’s kingdom by the action of God’s creative and sovereign grace.—Craig M. Gay
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Psalm 41:1 (NIV)
For the director of music. A psalm of David.
Blessed are those who have regard for the weak;
the Lord delivers them in times of trouble.
For the director of music. A psalm of David.
Blessed are those who have regard for the weak;
the Lord delivers them in times of trouble.
Deuteronomy 15:11 (NIV) There will always be poor people in the land. Therefore I command you to be openhanded toward your fellow Israelites who are poor and needy in your land.
Isaiah 58:6-7 (NIV)
“Is not this the kind of fasting I have chosen:
to loose the chains of injustice
and untie the cords of the yoke,
to set the oppressed free
and break every yoke?
Is it not to share your food with the hungry
and to provide the poor wanderer with shelter—
when you see the naked, to clothe them,
and not to turn away from your own flesh and blood?
“Is not this the kind of fasting I have chosen:
to loose the chains of injustice
and untie the cords of the yoke,
to set the oppressed free
and break every yoke?
Is it not to share your food with the hungry
and to provide the poor wanderer with shelter—
when you see the naked, to clothe them,
and not to turn away from your own flesh and blood?
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