Dr Malcolm Clemens Young Summary

“A basic moral test is how our most vulnerable members are faring. In a society marred by deepening divisions between rich and poor, our tradition recalls the story of the Last Judgment (Mt 25:31-46) and instructs us to put the needs of the poor

In Generous Justice: How God’s Grace Makes Us Just, Tim Keller uses the bible as a focal point in connection to social justice. Leviticus, Deuteronomy, Acts, and the Gospel were all used to associate Jesus’ teachings to today’s world. He does this to prove the importance of social justice. He uses several instances in today’s world and how society needs to do better for our neighbors. Keller shows the importance of social justice by not only using Jesus’ sacrifice, but he also shares the struggles that the poverty stricken and marginalized go through. In the end, Keller calls for all Christians and non-believers to look within themselves and do what is right to provide social justice for all.

Christianity is not supposed to be for the rich but instead, for all believe in Him (Proverbs 8:17, 2 Peter 3:9, Romans

“Christopher,” Brenda told him, “We don’t do business with people who want crush the competition by making sure a bunch of bigots has control over the affairs of average people wanting to save money for college, while allowing the cronies of these bigots to rake in the renown. The Young Christian Health Society, for lack of a better expression, is without a doubt an example of people that people like Siegfried and I refuse to cooperate with.”

A Scottish proverb says “Do not judge by appearances; a rich heart may be under a poor coat.” Frank McCourt, the author of Angela’s Ashes, lost many opportunities because he was a poor boy who lived in the lane. McCourt depicts how society, appearance, and social classes label a person and their abilities. “Delia says something has to be done about Angela and those children for they are a disgrace, so they are, enough to make you ashamed to be related” (44-45). For this woman obviously appearance is a great deal.

Moltmann argues that Christ’s identification with the poor and the oppressed means salvation for the oppressors as well, because it offers liberation from self-complacency.

Catholics are more likely to pursue a career in the crafts, and become master craftsmen, whereas Protestants are more likely to seek work in factories, and become skilled workers and administrators (Weber, 6). He says that the differences in the economic outcomes of the two different religious groups can be seen the character of their religious beliefs, not just in the historical and material conditions that they came from. Many claim that Catholics were more focused on other-worldly things, whereas Protestants were more materialistic in their outlook (Weber, 8). But Weber disagrees with this, saying “Hardly anything shows so clearly as this parallel that, with such vague ideas as that of the alleged otherworldliness of Catholicism, and the alleged material joy of living of Protestantism,…nothing can be accomplished for our purpose” (Weber, 9). Protestantism combines an aggressive capitalistic business sense with an extreme sense of piety and asceticism. The Protestant denominations created a distinction between capital acquisition, which could be a good thing, and the spending of wealth, which was considered immoral. Protestants did not accumulate wealth in order to spend it, as many other groups would have done and had done throughout history. Therefore, Weber states, “If any inner relationship between certain expressions of the old Protestant spirit and modern capitalistic culture is to be found, we must attempt to find it, for better or for worse not in its alleged

From Moltmann's perspective, traditional Christianity has avoided its responsibility to help change the mundane circumstances of the poor by focusing on God's timeless future of eternal life and heaven. Because Christians believe in a better world waiting both for themselves and for all who follow Christ, they are not moved to work to bring about equality and mutual happiness for the poor of the world. One can easily overlook the earthly needs of others when one knows that heaven awaits those who come to Christ. The evangelistic efforts of conservative churches have, therefore, preached a spiritual message of heaven rather than the revolutionary message of "good news to the poor," "freedom for the prisoners," "recovery of sight for the blind,"

When we see how the homeless live, it helps us to show compassion with a genuine concern. Acknowledging and overlooking the difference between the poor and the rich can help us overcome discrimination. Looking past our societies distorted images of being poor also improves how we care for the poor. However, while looking after the physical needs of the less fortunate is very important, what truly makes someone rich or poor is whether or not they have the radiant light of Jesus abiding in their life. 1 John 3:17-18 says, “But if anyone has the world's goods and sees his brother in need, yet closes his heart against him, how does God's love abide in him? Little children, let us not love in word or talk, but in deed and in truth.” Only identifying a need is not enough, we must act upon that need to properly show the love of Jesus Christ and shine a light into a darkening

This passage relates the to Jesus’ mission to the poor because his origins and how he was born shows a humble beginning and shows that even someone as great as Jesus was not privileged from the start. His birth shows us that since he wasn't born in a palace or inn, he can relate to the struggles of the ordinary people. Jesus came from heaven, surrounded by all the power and glory that were rightfully his, and left all of that behind in order to get a comprehension on our lives and give an insight of the compassion of God for everyone, both rich and poor. Another passage from Luke’s Gospel that illustrates this theme of is a verse from Luke that states “Blessed are you who are poor, for yours is the kingdom of God” (Luke 6:20). This verse illustrates

As a young child, almost every Summer I attended Vacation Bible School (VBS). My mother and father never forced me into conforming to religion, rather they wanted religion to find me. Therefore, whenever my mother would ask if I wanted to go this Summer, she wouldn't force me to go; it was my choice and my path. At VBS, we sang, danced, and learned about the life of Jesus Christ. Large portions of the classes were spent discussing parables and scripture about a plethora of topics in the bible: love, friendship, and even money. Jesus' attitude toward wealth and capital was largely egalitarian and we were taught to have a relationship with God over that of money.

     Another parable tells of the rich young man who asks Christ how he may attain the kingdom of God. Christ asks if he as followed the Ten Commandments, and the young man says he has. Then Christ tells him that he has to give all his possessions to the poor because he will have no need of such things in Heaven. This saddens the young man because he has many possessions. After the young man left, Christ told his disciples that it is difficult for the rich to get into Heaven because they put too much faith into their riches. “It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle, than for a rich man to enter into the kingdom of God,” (Mark 10:25). This is a poignant message. Christ then says that a man who gives up everything for his faith will be well rewarded in Heaven. This parable is timeless. It speaks of the downfall greed can force upon you. In the end, no matter how much you have, you can’t take it with you.

“Barna surveyed 718 self-identified Christians from a variety of denominations to find what extent their actions and attitudes line up with Jesus’s. Researchers found only 1 in 7 Christians manages to hold Christ-like beliefs and also act in Christ-like ways” (Steffan). Chaucer depicts a group of twenty-nine diverse travelers on a pilgrimage to Canterbury to visit the grave of St. Thomas a’ Becket. Many of the religious figures from the tales fail to measure up to the actions and attitudes of Christ as well. It is ironic because their attitudes consist of helping people and honesty but their actions show a completely different image. In The Canterbury Tales, the Nun, the Monk, and the Pardoner are rich, which is ironic because they take a vow of poverty.

Poverty and human deprivation have been recognized as the most central challenges to the development of human society ever since the dawn of history. Alongside them is the issue of wealth, and our attitude towards it. Needless to say, Jesus talks about wealth and poverty throughout the Bible, however, more specifically in the Gospels of Luke and Acts in the New Testament. The Gospel of Luke-Acts is considered as the Gospel having an immense concern on the socio-economic background of the people. A reading of the Gospel also demonstrates that there is various material that refers to a sharp distinction of rich and poor. Generally speaking, Luke is kind-hearted to the poor and hard-hearted towards the rich. Therefore, one can ask what exactly did Jesus and the early church teach about wealth and poverty? What are the dangerous of wealth and poverty? Thus, as one reads these two books, one can conclude that there are two meanings of poverty, which are, spiritual and financial poverty. Jesus explains his teachings by examples or occasionally with similes.

Iris Murdoch wrote ‘Morality and Religion’. She explains those who adopt religious views are going to have greater morality, unlike those who don’t implement any religion. She expresses, “Religious beliefs may be a stronger motive for a good conduct than non-religion idealism” (Pg. 763). She refers to the ideal view of a religious person to live through