Giving in faith

Pope John Paul II wrote in his encyclical Ut Unum Sint (1995) that the building of a better world requires Christians to speak with a united voice in working to inculcate “respect for the rights and needs of everyone, especially the poor, the lowly and the defenceless”.

“…since most of the world’s people live in poverty, all activities that elevate the dignity of the human person is an example of living out the Gospel message.” (CNS photo/Normand Blouin, Reuters)

The Christ-mandated preferential option for the poor is also reflected in the Church’s canon law, which states: “The Christian faithful are also obliged to promote social justice and, mindful of the precept of the Lord, to assist the poor from their own resources.”

Responding to the poor is to do as Jesus did.

Cabrini Sister Barbara Staley from Manzini, Swaziland, says that as Catholics we are called to help the poor because it responds to our Gospel mandate.

“We must continually exercise the corporal works of mercy, namely, to feed the hungry, shelter the homeless, visit prisoners, clothe the naked (Mt 25:31-46). It is also part of our response and carrying out the social teaching of the Catholic Church, which holds the same imperative as the moral teachings of the Church, but often is less attended to by the Church at all levels.” She says on a purely human level we innately know it is right.

The Cabrini Ministries are located at St Phillip’s mission in Swaziland, a poor rural drought-stricken part of the country, heavily affected by HIV/Aids and TB. “It is a community-based organisation whose mission is to restore life and rekindle hope through comprehensive and integrated health care to more than 3000 HIV positive people and cares for about 600 children impacted by those diseases,” says Sr Staley.

The nun says the situation does not change as the economy fluctuates, so Catholics should not stop giving during tough times. “One can never outdo God’s generosity; giving is giving and the obligation to do so remains constant, and may actually be heightened when times are tough because it is the poor who must fully feel the impact on day-to-day living.”

Fr Aloysius Abone of St Mary’s cathedral in Cape Town says Jesus made it clear in the gospels that assisting the poor is a priority. “He said we shall all be judged by how we treat our neighbour, and [promised that] what you give shall be given back to you.”

Fr Abone says when we give, we must do so as if giving to the Lord. “When the Lord said ‘give’, he was also aware of economic downturns — but giving to the poor is an investment. Give to the poor and you give to the Lord.”

Sr Staley says outreach and development programmes must work within the constraints of realities in society, but “economics cannot and should not be the driver behind programmes and responses to the poor. Need should be the driver. Economics are only a tool to be understood and utilised for the greater good of the human family.”

Stan du Plessis, professor of economics at Stellenbosch University, says there are benefits beyond our Christian endeavour to help the poor.

“When one is stuck in the poverty trap it is difficult to participate in the labour market. It’s hard to get an education. It’s hard to stay healthy. All these contribute to being a non-productive part of society,” says Prof du Plessis, adding that this reality is then passed down to the second generation because of the lack of education. “The poverty trap is perpetuated.”

Prof du Plessis points to a broad consensus that there is an urgent need to address poverty. Government does have programmes in place to address the issue, he says. These include old age pension plans, child care subsidies and free health care. But there is enormous scope for the private sector to step in and contribute to the effort.

“Typically, South African churches are large and have knowledge of local communities in need —something which government does not have,” Prof du Plessis says. While some parishes might not have the funds, they could easily partner with wealthier parishes or the private sector — and with the value of local knowledge, make a huge difference.

“It is extremely important for the likes of government to team up with civil society. We don’t just need money thrown at the situation—we need local insight.”

Prof du Plessis believes that it is important to invest in projects that would encourage the impoverished to engage in society and give back. “There is a private benefit to the person who can now receive funds, but there is also a public benefit,” says the parishioner of St Nicholas church in Stellenbosch.

Similarly Sr Staley says that since most of the world’s people live in poverty, all activities that elevate the dignity of the human person is an example of living out the Gospel message.

“Giving people skills to enhance their changes at independent living and self autonomy is dignifying. All of us are more whole and complete as we master skills and become more fully who it is that God created us to be,” she says.

Fr Abone agrees: “It is important to give to the poor, but it is of far more value to teach the poor to fend for themselves and work towards better lives.”

The Church teaches to include the poor in our words, prayers and deeds. We are called to show solidarity with and compassion for the poor. The Church also calls on us to exercise the preferential option for the poor as a priority when instituting public policy.

Fr Mokesh Morar has worked extensively in the area social justice in De Aar, Aliwal North and now in Bethlehem. He has served as the director of Sekwele Centre for Social Reflection, the brainchild of the diocese’s former Bishop Hubert Bucher, which promotes social reflection on critical issues affecting society, including socio-economic transformation.

Fr Morar says that it is not enough to just help immediate needs; the root causes of the situation of poverty must be addressed through both analysis and action.

He believes that the local Church can learn from our South American counterparts. “The best examples of living the Gospel of siding with the poor are the bishops in Latin America where they even were willing to invade large land holdings that were standing idle or kept for speculation.”

The Church has been on the frontline of the battle to help the poor in South America. At times this has led to martyrdom.

For example, in 2005 an American nun, Sr Dorothy Stang SND, was murdered in the Amazon Basin because of her outspoken efforts on behalf of the poor and the environment in Brazil. Leading up to her death, she had received numerous death threats from loggers and landowners.

Fr Morar says there are many examples where the South African Church has taken a stance but has “fallen into the trap of ‘leaving economics to the experts’, as advised by the former minister of finance, Trevor Manuel”.

“Sure, the Church needs to assist those who not able to help themselves, but the Church must also address the root causes of poverty and start looking at poverty as part of structural sin, both locally and internationally. Otherwise it will find itself on the wrong side of history,” Fr Morar says.

“It is wrong to stop giving money to families and individuals when times are tough as there are no alternatives for the poor for survival. But it should be part of a bigger strategy and not something done perpetually, else people will become dependent on the Church and lose their dignity,” he says.

“Part of that bigger strategy is to ask the critical question: why are the times tough? Are there not enough resources in this world to support all the people? Why is the gap between the haves and the have-nots growing in places like South Africa?” He believes a critical course of action is necessary.

Fr Morar has an ally in Pope Benedict, who has effectively called for a redistribution of the wealth when in his 2009 encyclical Caritas in Veritate he condemned the “scandal of glaring inequalities” and demanded that all people should be liberated “first and foremost, from hunger, deprivation, endemic diseases and illiteracy”.

For Sr Staley, everybody can contribute towards the immediate alleviation of crises of poverty and bring about societal change through funding, time, talent, influence and prayer — “as long as we give”.