On America – War on Poverty not the Poor

Greetings Dear Reader,

This seems to be a thread throughout this particular part of the dialogue.  How a nation treats its poor says so much about that nation.  The problem to me seems that we have relegated the responsibility of caring for the poor to our government instead of taking personal responsibility for it.

If every individual who has enough gave out of that abundance then those who do not have enough would have their needs met.  Instead we have put into place an un-navigable quagmire of bureaucracy that is both ineffective and un-compassionate.  It is the giving that makes us what we are and not the trappings we put around it.

Most of the people who struggle to make a living do not want us to just feed them.  Most want us to help them learn to feed themselves.  If I assure that I am looking for opportunity to help those individuals then I make a difference.  If every American who has enough were to make that difference the millions of dollars spent on government programs would be unnecessary.

A poor hungry human is my responsibility.  He or she is your responsibility.  We cannot lay this off on institutions and pretend we have done our part.  “Are there no work houses?”  I cannot pretend to follow Christ if I do not do something for those in need when I have the opportunity.  The problem is not too big.  Our vision of what we can do is not big enough.

Wishing you joy in the journey,

Aramis Thorn

Mat 13:52 So Jesus said to them, "That is why every writer who has become a disciple of Christ’s rule of the universe is like a home owner. He liberally hands out new and old things from his great treasure store."