Outlooks on Wealth and Poverty by Religion

Michielse (2005) defines caritas as charity or good works to humankind, given out of God’s love (p. 3). The principle of caritas implied that poor relief was the responsibility of the Christian community, and therefore should be practiced by family, friends, and the church. Since compassion should be central to the giving of poor relief, the churches were the primary provider of help, rather than the state (Kahl, 2005, p. 101). Therefore, the Roman Catholic Church performed different forms of charity to help those in poverty. The common chest is one example of how charity was delivered in this era.

When the bible teaches about the right ways to behave, the main idea is the way in which we treat each other. Jesus has love and compassion for the poor and condemns those who do nothing to help them. We are taught to do as Jesus did. This means that we should help those in need. The bible teaches us that we cannot have genuine love for God if we are ignoring people in need at the same time.

2) The witness that the church seeks to give in helping in the search for a solution to the problems of the poor is a sign of the presence of the kingdom of salvation and liberation. 3) The mission of the church also consists in helping to make society more human. The Catholic Church agrees with these three ideas and also makes its own judgement on the suffering of these millions of people. From the time of the earliest Christian communities, the church has always shown a preference for the poor, the needy, and on the outcasts of society. The way that the church insists on reaching out to the poor through mission collections, food pantries, and shelters shows the preferential love that the church has for these people.

Coursework (a) (i) Outline Christian teaching on wealth and poverty. Christians do not think money is a bad thing. However, they believe the way money is earned and used is the issue. Most Christians believe that wealth is a gift from God to benefit others. Christians believe that all money belongs to God and he gives them stewardship of his money to use wisely.

Charity's Negative Effect on the Society From a Christian Point of View I disagree with this statement. Charity is ultimately modelled on following and living out the example of Jesus in our daily lives. It is an act of love on behalf of Christians. The main intention for charities is to give help to others and to offer support. Christians, who believe that the giving of charity work does work, argue for example that less economically developed countries would suffer more without charity support.

Both Islam and Christianity have obvious ethical teachings that require Muslims and Christians to contribute welfare to those in need. The teachings of Zakat, Mohammed’s sermons, the Qur’an passages and the teaching of jihad all instruct Muslims to give their extra wealth to those in need. The Bible passages about the poor teach Christians to give money to the needy as well. These teachings are invaluable to Islamic and Christian society as due to these teachings Muslims and Christians give more money to the poor and thus as a result of these teachings poor people in Islamic and Christian society are better supported. Works Cited Holy Bible.

Worship of God, and care for their neighbours are part of the way they understand the meaning of their lives. Christians today work for each other and for the people that they see as the weak in society such as the elderly, alcoholics, drug addicts and one-parent families. There are plenty of schemes run by voluntary Christian organisations for the poor and weak in society e.g. Cardinal Hume Centre for the homeless. The Salvation Army is well known for its concern of outcasts in society.

Another example of service is volunteer work to help the poor and unfortunate. Jesus taught us “if one of you wants to be great, he must be the servant of the rest. For even the son of man didn’t come to be served. This shows us that the life of a Christian today must involve service. Prayer is another way in which discipleship affects Christian life.

Luke’s Gospel is a portrayal of Jesus as a model of social justice. Hence, the reader is empowered and influenced by the Gospel to be actively involved in social justice issues. The Catholic Church has sought to reach out to those in need, and Luke’s Gospel demonstrates this through injustices that Jesus challenged. In addition, mental illness, which is a current social justice issue reflects and appeals to problems that Jesus faced and reacted to in his time. Luke’s Gospel greatly emphasizes the social justice aspect of Christian living.

Christians' Beliefs About Their Responsibility for Other People Christians are taught to be responsible and compassionate towards other people throughout their lives. To do this they must respond to the world we live in today. Even though the bible teaches us to treat all people as equals, our world is still divided. There are poor people, there are people that live in absolute poverty, and Christians are taught to do all they can to help this. Any wealth they have they might acquire, should be shared with those less fortunate than themselves.