Concern for the poor is not Communism, Pope says in homily
June 17, 2015
Pope Francis preached on poverty during his June 16 homily at the Domus Sanctae Marthae.
“Many times, we hear: ‘But this priest talks too much about poverty, this bishop speaks of poverty, this Christian, this nun talks about poverty ... aren’t they a little Communist, right?’” he said.
“Poverty is at the very center of the Gospel: if we remove poverty from the Gospel, no one would be able to understand anything about the message of Jesus,” he continued. “It is precisely this mystery, the mystery of Christ who humbled himself, who let himself be impoverished in order to enrich us. So it is understandable why the first of the Beatitudes is ‘Blessed are the poor in spirit.’”
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Posted by: brenda22890 -
Jun. 18, 2015 9:24 AM ET USA
Communism enters the picture only if a priest, bishop, nun, etc. proposes political solutions to poverty. Solidarity, with particular attention to subsidiarity, is the way to relieve poverty. Perhaps being poor in spirit, humbled, teachable, would lead to real help for the poor, rather than pumping more tax money into failed systems.
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Posted by: unum -
Jun. 17, 2015 7:51 PM ET USA
Pope Francis is rightly calling attention to the poor, as did Jesus and St. Francis before him. "Love one another as I have loved you" doesn't identify a limit on helping those who lack the necessities of life. I believe that those who rely solely on their taxes that support government poverty programs or donations to charities as love for the poor are missing Christ's message. The less fortunate must hear a kind word and feel a human touch to experience the true love of Christ.
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Posted by: JimKcda -
Jun. 17, 2015 7:17 PM ET USA
Minn. Mary makes an interesting point. Poor and poor in Spirit are two different things. But aren't both legitimate concerns? Shouldn't we be both Poor in Spirit and take care of the poor? Perhaps Dr. Jeff would write a clarification for our benefit.
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Posted by: Minnesota Mary -
Jun. 17, 2015 3:55 PM ET USA
"Blessed are the poor in spirit" is different that "Blessed are the poor." Those who acknowledge their own spiritual poverty and try to do something about it are blessed. Being poor in worldly goods is something entirely different. Poverty has many causes, some of which are due to the choices one makes in how they live their lives.
