Jesus said, " The poor you will always have with you, and you can help them any time you want ..." (Mark 14:7, NIV)
He said, "The poor you will always have with you ..." He didn't say, '... the poor will always live in poverty ...' He also said, "... you can help them ..."
Meaning there will always be poor people with us, but it doesn't mean they have to live in poverty. It means it's our responsibility to look after them (and each other) so everyone has a dignified standard of living.
There Will Always Be Poor People
There will always be poor people in society, people who for one reason or another aren't able to provide for themselves, or have a dignified standard of living.
Some may be perpetually poor (several generations of poverty), some may be in and out of poverty and some may be new to poverty due to some unforeseen event such as bankruptcy, job loss, illness, etc.
There are many reasons people may be poor: physical limitations, mental limitations, lack of ability, lack of drive, lack of ambition, lack of desire to acquire a higher standard of living, influence of the environment, addiction, unforeseen events and circumstances and many other reasons.
We're Not All The Same
Some people claim that hard work leads to success and that poor people are poor because they haven't done enough to change their own circumstances
The expectation is that everyone should work equally hard.
The assumption is that everyone can work equally hard.
The assumption that everyone can work equally hard is very cruel. It assumes that we're all the same, that we all have the same desires, expectations, ambitions and abilities.
But we're all very different. Our physical characteristics are different, our likes and dislikes are different and we all have different abilities to produce and create, even when it comes to creating the quality of our own lives.
When you begin to appreciate that we're all different, criticism turns to compassion. You become sympathetic of others, especially the poor.
The World Is One Family
The world is one family and it is our responsibility to look after each other. We have to take care of one another in mutual concern and consideration.
We have to seek to benefit others instead of ourselves. In this way we become guarantors for one other. I look after you and you look after me.
Through mutually responsible we'll take care of all members of society, including the poor. We'll create a dignified standard of living for everybody.
As Jesus said, "The poor you will always have with you ...", let's just make sure the poor never live in poverty.
Copyright © 2013, Carter Kagume. All Rights Reserved.
