Essay on Catholic Teaching on Wealth and Poverty

     In “Famine, Affluence, and Morality,” Peter Singer is trying to argue that “the way people in relatively affluent countries react to a situation… cannot be justified; indeed,… our moral conceptual scheme needs to be altered and with it, the way of life that has come to be taken for granted in our society”(Singer 230). Peter Singer provides striking examples to show the reader how realistic his arguments are. In this paper, I will briefly give a summary of Peter Singer’s argument and the assumptions that follow, adding personal opinions for or against Peter’s statements. I hope that within this paper, I am able to be clearly show you my thoughts in regards to Singer.

Catholic Charities provides service to people in need, pushes for justice in social structures, and calls upon the entire church and other people of good will to do the same. Catholic Charities agencies across the country witness to the love of Christ by helping people in need and by serving their communities. Catholic Charities USA is a national organization that offers support to member agencies, provides disaster relief and promotes poverty-reduction through research and legislative reform. It's listed as #15 on the top 50 largest charities on the U.S. according to Forbes.

Poor treatment toward the lower class, depicts classism. The poor were stripped of what little money they had, from the upper class. Such is supported by document 1, where it states, "Why does not the Pope, whose wealth is today greater than the wealth of the richest Crassus, build this one basilica of St. Peter with his own money rather than with the money of

In Europe the attitude towards “the poor” has seem to play a significant role in affecting society. In the beginning when the Catholic Church was the dominate power in Europe the poor was viewed in a more positive light because the Catholic Church emphasized charity. However, when the power of the church began to deteriorate, so did this way of thinking. The poor were starting to get viewed as lazy, and this became the more prominent way of thinking. Europeans between 1450 and 1700 viewed “the poor” in two separate ways, either negative or positive.

The Catholic Church is the oldest major religion in the Western world. Littered with peace, love, and humility, along with violence, turmoil, and controversy this institution has seen, heard, led, and had influence over the majority of everything and everybody that there was in the last two millennia. This has included ordinary people, Kings, Queens, Generals, Nobleman, Royalty, and everything in between, and has endured since the beginning of the modern era, Anno Domini. They great spiritual and monetary machine created a powerful reign over the entire world’s Catholics, and remains so to this day. For the purpose of background for my visit to a Catholic Church, being Presbyterian, I did historical research before I visited. I

Christian teaching on wealth and possessions varies slightly regarding the amount of money and possessions that should be given to the poor. Some Christians follow the teaching in (Mark

Catholic Social Teaching: How does the 40 Hour Famine represent the principles of Catholic Social Teaching?

During the time of World War I, the United States was dealing with a lot of internal problems. At the time before the war, Darwinism is very prominent. The working class looked to those in poverty as if they were the scum of the earth. Then there was the gospel of wealth. The gospel of wealth believed the things that you have is a divine blessing and has favor in the eyes of God (Roark, Johnson, Cohen, Stage, & Hartmann, 2014, p.563). While the working class enjoyed themselves those in poverty was trying to make a living. Those in poverty could of ran to a settlement house. Settlement houses were sent up in poor neighborhoods to help with the progressivism (Roark, Johnson, Cohen, Stage, & Hartmann, 2014, p.563). Jane Adams and Lillian Wald started the profession of social work by living amongst the less fortunate and helping them get to where they were (Roark, Johnson, Cohen, Stage, & Hartmann, 2014, p.563).

Peter Singer is often regarded as one of the most productive and influential philosophers of modern times. He is well-known for his discussions of the acute social, economic, and political issues, including poverty and famines. In his “Famine, Affluence, and Morality”, Singer (1972) discusses the problem of poverty and hunger, as well as the way this problem is treated in the developed world. Singer believes that charity is inseparable from morality, and no distinction can be drawn between charity and duty. The philosopher offers possible objections to his proposition and relevant arguments to justify his viewpoint. The modern world does not support Singer’s view, treating charity as a voluntary activity, an act of generosity that needs

your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.' This is the

This quote explains that as Catholics, we should be doing work for the poor and oppressed to show true justice and worship to God. This can be related to the social justice principle of Justice requires a preferential option for the poor because Caritas, with the help of DPA, are helping the villagers in these Cambodian provinces by making their voices heard and defending them when it is necessary. Without the help of Caritas, the villagers in these Cambodian provinces would not have any modern ways of doing things to help them to be more efficient with their way of living and doing things.

The role of the Catholic Church going to the peripheries is huge for the community. First off, the Catholic Church helps those in need by donating to people who don’t have shelter, or people who don’t have food or water to drink. They also help by holding volunteer work, so people who want to help those in need can by being there. Another thing the Catholic Church does to help those in need is praying. Some people get together to help those in need by asking the Lord to help them. Others pray for them by themselves to help for those in need. The Catholic Church is very generous for being there when people are in need. The Catholic church greatly represents the Spiritual and Corporal Works of Mercy. They would help feed the hungry by bringing goods to those who need it. The Church can give drink to the thirsty by not wasting water. The Catholic Church helps people to shelter the homeless by collecting supplies they need. They can clothe the naked by donating clothes to those who don’t have enough. The Church can visit the sick and imprisoned giving blood and spending time volunteering at nursing homes. They bury the dead by sending a card to to someone who has lost a loved one. Finally, the Catholic Church give alms to the poor by donating money, like a the poor box in the Church. The Spiritual Works of Mercy can also represent the Catholic Church helping those in need. Overall, the Corporal and Spiritual Works of Mercy really represent how the Catholic Church helps those in need, and the Church is a good role model for all Catholics alike.

The world has more than one billion Catholics and with the ever growing population, it will only get larger in number. To be a Catholic means to have complete faith in God and his divine grace. Having God's divine grace means to obey it and keep it holy as it was created by God and given to his people. The religion itself is based on this and the people take it very seriously. Catholics believe that all people are of good nature but when one commits a sin it not only hurts that one person but the people and the Church.

A social problem, is “a general factor that effects and damages society”. It can be used to describe an issue or a problem within a certain group of people or an area in the world. Examples of contemporary social problems today include anti-social behaviour, drug abuse, and sexual abuse. Poverty is an example of a social problem that exists all over the world, and to different extents. In the UK, poverty has effected at least a third of the population, as shown by the Office of National Statistics, providing evidence that it is a massive social problem in the country. Tameside has a big poverty problem. 1 in 4 children in Tameside are born into poverty, and workers in Tameside earn significantly less than other workers in the rest of the North-West area. In addition, Tameside has the largest proportion of people claiming unemployment benefits compared to the rest of the North West of England.

people of God: “Has not God chosen those who are poor in the eyes of