Around the world there are many families and individuals who live in poverty, and this is something that is growing like wild fire. Poverty knows no race or gender, but when looking at the statistics, it shows the inequality, and that many of those below the poverty line in America are children and those of non-Caucasian. Many also call poverty to be a threat to the common good, and that with many living in poverty, we as a species do not care only but for ourselves. The focus will be of how poverty has taken hold in society and how poverty is causing harm to the common good and the teachings of Jesus Christ. In America alone according to the US Census Bureau in 2013, the “federal poverty line is $11,892 for individuals and $23,836 for a family …show more content…
“Americans are harder working and more productive than ever, yet the rewards of that productivity flow into the pockets of fewer and fewer people (Ketteler, 2006).” This relates to the previous articles in that the wealth are becoming wealthier, while the poor are becoming poorer, and this is something that goes against everything the common good stands for and the teachings of the church for so many years. As we can see over and over again, people become greedy and selfish and only do what is in their best interest, and this goes against the teachings and the actions of Jesus Christ. Father Ketteler writes that Jesus chose the poverty life, to be close to those who are in need most. “Jesus lived out a preferential option in standing on the side of those most in need, physically and spiritually (Ketteler, 2006).” Father Ketteler finishes with saying that when we love one another, nobody is a burden and everything that is produced is shared equally among all men and women, “civilizations of love abandons a mentality in which the poor as individuals and as peoples are considered a burden, as irksome intruders trying to consume what others have produced (Ketteler,
According to Shipler, the working poor need remedies to improve their circumstances. Throughout his novel, Shipler addressed potential solutions that seemed to adjust the lives of the working poor. To help combat low self-esteem and competence more programs should be created by the state or local communities that could be created to assist the working poor in getting their GEDs, personal hygiene if necessary, learning skills that are necessary for job training, balancing daily personal finances, and learning how to eat healthier on a limited income. The more confidence an individual has the more likely they will be outgoing or assertive and will be more willing to apply for jobs. Applying jobs is intimidating for a college graduate who has
Poverty is a difficult and horrible way to grow up in life. It causes people to become stressed, and terrified of the world. It also demonstrates the ugly side of the world. When you ae in poverty. It causes people to become desperate and do horrendous things like murder, rape, and prostitution. But poverty can also produce strong, determined, and hopeful humans. In Child of the Dark: The Diary of Carolina Maria de Jesus by Carolina Maria de Jesus, we see the ambitious mother of three living the daily struggle of living in the poor favelas in Brazil. She provides the best life she can to her kids, while also perusing her dream of becoming a writer. In Testimony: Death of a Guatemala City by Victor Montejo, the readers follow the inspirational
Poverty in America is a very complex issue that can be looked at from many directions. There are a plethora of statistics and theories about poverty in America that can be confusing and at times contradicting. It is important to objectively view statistics to gain a better understanding of poverty and to wade through the stereotypes and the haze of cultural views that can misrepresent the situation.The official poverty line in America begins with a person making at or below $12,060. To calculate the poverty line for a family, an additional $4,180 is added to the base of $12,060 for each additional member(“Federal Poverty Level Guidelines”). According to the last U.S. census, over 45 million or 14.5% of Americans are at or below the poverty line(Worstall). At this level, the U.S. poverty level has not changed much from the 1970s when the government began a “War on Poverty.” However,
For instance, Leviticus 25:35 states, “’if your brother becomes poor and cannot maintain himself with you, you shall support him as though he were a stranger and a sojourner, and he shall live with you” (ESV). As a Christian, a person is called to help those who are struggling, and speaks of giving everything a person has to help those around him or her. According to the Jacob Riis film, citizens turned a blind eye to all those suffering, without a home or food. It also states in Proverbs 22:2, “…the rich and the poor meet together; the Lord is the maker of them all” (ESV). God created everyone on the Earth, and did not create one group to feel superior over another. The last passage that represents the other half is Proverbs 28:6, “ Better is poor man who walks in his integrity than a rich man who is crooked in his ways” (ESV). A man can be as poor as can be, but wealth does not make you better in the eyes of God.
According to familiesusa.org the poverty line is a single individual who lives alone with no dependents making $11,490 a year. The annual salary goes up by $4,020 for each person you add to the household. Minimum wage is mainly used for part-time jobs, and part-time jobs are not meant to support a family full-time. These jobs are meant for teenagers or people who have others to rely on for income. People who live on minimum wage typically live alone and can support themselves. If a woman has a dependent child she either is receiving additional monetary compensation through ch...
After Luke talks about the religious leaders he jumps right into how the poor will be blessed and the rich received their warnings about how they were living their lives. Luke shows us Jesus’ vision of a role reversal, those who are hungry will be full and vise versa. Those who were familiar with Isaiah 61 would take the context of the poor more literal, meaning economically poor because the beatitudes in Luke were influenced by Isaiah 61. The quote that put emphasis on the role reversal is Isaiah 61:6, “You yourselves shall be called priests of the Lord, ministers of our God you shall be called. You shall eat the wealth of the nations and boast of riches from them” This quote shows us those who are being spoken to will be called priests and ministers who were considered the wealthy back in the first century, telling us the poor will be rich and that those who punished the poor will then suffer and the poor shall succeed because of the rich who oppressed them. This shows us that the poor mentioned in Luke’s beatitudes was talking about those who were financially in need. In Luke 6:20 and 6:24 we see the contrast Jesus puts on the poor and the rich during Sermon on the Plain. “Blessed are you who are poor for the kingdom of God is yours” and “But woe to you who are rich, for you have received your consolation.” The first quote tells us that those who are poor will
The Federal Government defines poverty as income that falls below the United States Poverty threshold. (Begun 95). If a person is below or right at the poverty line they are considered poor. It also refers to the lowest level of income a person can make and afford the minimum necessities. (Bender and Leone 23). The poverty line was adopted by the government in the mid 1960's. Not included in the income figure are cash benefits such as food stamps and Medicaid.(Le Vert 50). The poverty rate is adjusted for different sexes, races, ages, and family structures. The government adjusts the poverty line each year according to the cost of living.
In talking about poverty, it is very broad. You can talk about poverty in our lives, poverty in spiritual life, and other things that we experienced poverty. Poverty is hunger. Poverty is lack of shelter. Poverty is being sick and not being able to see a doctor. Poverty is not being able to go to school, not knowing how to read, and not being able to speak properly. Poverty is not having job, is fear for the future, living one day at a time. Poverty is losing a child to illness brought about by unclean water. Poverty is powerlessness, and lack of freedom.
The United States determines the official poverty rate using poverty thresholds that are issued each year by the Census Bureau. The thresholds represent the annual amount ...
Poverty is an outcome of the mode of production and plays a large role in relation to production. Therefore, according to Marx, it is a contributor to the economic base. People who are living at poverty level struggles to meet the living necessities due to capitalist exchange values on productions. What I mean by this that people in poverty cannot afford to buy enough food, clothes, and most importantly a safe home for their kids. This is due to the fact that most people living in poverty are being paid minimum wages that does not meet the exchange values of commodities. People in poverty are the laborers in the capitalist world, they a commodity as well. Using Marx’s theory, people in poverty are the proletariats since they are the actual
In Luke, we see that Jesus’ purpose in ministry is to “proclaim good news to the poor.” At many points throughout the gospels, Jesus instructs his disciples and followers to care for the poor. One such passage appears in Matthew 19. In this passage we see a young man questioning Jesus on the way to gain eternal life. Jesus responds with, “If you wish to be perfect, go, sell your possessions, and give the money to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; then come, follow me.” Here, we see a direct example of what can be done to care for the poor. We see that a person’s attachment to their possessions leads to blocked generosity to the poor. Jesus’ example certainly portrays a concern for, and responsibility to the
What is social class? It is a term used to describe a large group of people who share similar social or economic positions in society based on wealth, income, job status, education, skills or power in the political sphere. Class is not just about what you own or earn but also who you know. Class affects not only how we feel about ourselves, but how others judge and consequently treat us. Those at the top of the class structure, the elite, have more power than those in the middle and even more power than those at the bottom who are of lower class. Education is a highly valued commodity in our world. In his commentary on society Freud, claimed, “ No feature, however, seems better to characterize civilization than its esteem and encouragement
Wealth inequality is the uneven distribution of resources in a given state or population, which can also be called the wealth gap. The sum of one’s total assets excluding the liabilities equates the person’s wealth also known as the net worth. Investments, residents, cash, real estates and everything owned by an individual are their assets.In reality, the United States is among the richest countries in the world, though a few people creating a major gap between the richest, the middle class and the poor control most of its wealth. For more than a quarter of a century, only the rich American families have shown an increase to their net worth.Thisis a worrying fact for the less fortunate in the country and calls for assessment (Baranoff, 2015).
Several contributing factors can be viewed as reasons for crime. Depending on the circumstances, it can sometimes be very difficult to resist the temptation to commit a crime. It is even harder when you are coming from a place where crime is considered to be a normal part of society and looked at as a way of daily living that is supposed to be incorporated into daily lifestyles, hence the city we are not too far from: Fresno. In fact, by having a city or group of cities nearby where violence, crime, and gangs are abundant, it has given me an incentive to dig deeper into this issue. Now the question can be posed: What is the significance of crime in areas where poverty is present? True, this is not an easy question to answer considering that crime happens for many different reasons and sometimes location is not the problem. The origin of crime date back to the beginning of man, and the thing is it will never be stopped, as it is almost a part of human nature nowadays. But for now, we must study how crime and poverty are linked to one another, and what other contributing factors influence the effect of crime where poverty is relevant.
Poverty is in our own backyard. Poverty isn’t turning around a globe and looking toward third world countries for an example. Poverty is everywhere. Poverty is the children down the street who go to bed hungry each night filled only with emptiness. Poverty is my neighbor who had her heat shut off this past winter. However I believe that poverty is preventable.