July 13, 2003
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Poverty
What is poor? Is there a difference between poor and just living paycheck to paycheck? Do you think that most people that are poor are that way because of something they are doing, because of the nature of our society or some other reason? How do think our “poor” in the USA compare to the “poor” in other nations?
I do believe that we have poor in the US and other “wealthy” countries, but there is so much more extreme poverty in the third world countries the USA does NOT compair. I know that we have homeless etc, and I am a very strong advocate for the poor and homeless here in the US, but I have lived in Dominican Republic and have seen the extreme poor. It is beyond imagination, it is beyond what pictures can say. Unfortunately I could not get my scanner to work today, but I found some photos on the net and they pretty much look like the pictures I would have scanned and put up here. I will share them now, then after you take a look, I will share some more about my views on poverty.
Yes, there is a difference to being poor and living pay check to pay check. The poor have no pay check, they live on scraps of what is given to them, or what they dig for, or simply nothing. Sometimes they go without food. They do what they have to do to survive. I am not one for advocating stealing, of course not, that is a sin, but I do understand why it is done by people who have nothing. Most of the time, they have been left on the street to fend for themselves and are not taught right from wrong, and they are in despirate need for food or other things. Here in the USA there are places and orginizations that help the poor. It is available in almost every city in the US. In third world countries they do not have this. I have been there, I have seen people living in boxes along the banks of the river because they had no where to go. In Santo Domingo, every day I would cross a bridge and I could look down and it was like there were people living on top of other people in cardboard and tin shacks. They were so poor, they really didn’t have a place to live. It is so crowded there. Many times people that lived in these places did not have electricity. And they would have families of like 6-10 people all living in this small shack with a dirt floor. I have one friend who has 6 brothers and he is from Costa Rica, they only had one ball to play with, no other toys. They didn’t have shoes because there was no reason to have them. When they had a reason, then the one pair of shoes that was in the family would be given to that one person for the time that the shoes were needed. They lived in a house with a dirt floor. This was a better house than what they had lived in before. I am also reading a book called “The Rabbit Proof Fence” and it is describing the Abariginal people and they are poor, they lived off the land, day to day. Back to the people in Dominican Republic that lived off of that bridge, they recently had a hurricaine and I highly doubt that many of those people are still alive. There was several towns in the country that are now gone, all the inhabitants and the buildings etc are all washed away from the flooding that came with the hurricaine.
The interesting fact that I find about these extremely poor people is that they are much more rich in spirit than the more wealthy people are. When I have visited my friends in Dominican Republic, they will give you anything and everything you need while you are there. They are much more hospitable with the little they have than people who have much. I think this is very sad. I would hope that people who have more would be more giving and share more of their wealth than they do. I know that I am guilty of this also. I am not pointing fingers at anyone in particular, I am pointing it at myself also. I get so busy with my day to day things, that I get focused on the here and now, and only on my problems and things I have to do, and I don’t stop to think about all the poverty in the world. I know many people wouldn’t be able to handle going to a third world country and seeing what is there. It is difficult. This is not to say that the country isn’t a wonderful country. It is. It is beautiful, and just wonderful to visit. I wish I could go more often than I do. I enjoy reading about what Mother Theresa did in Calcutta and admire her for all her work with the extreme poor. Many of the extreme poor in India are looked down upon to the point that it is actually abuse and the poor have such a negative self image, that they can’t understand why any of the nuns at the mission where Mother Theresa was would want to look at them, let alone touch them and want to help them and care for them and show them the love of Christ. I believe that is what all Christians are called to do. Share the love of Christ with everyone.
I do not believe that all are poor because of something they have done or something they have not done. They are that way out of circumstance mainly. Many are born into it and once you are in it, if you do not have assistance to get out of it, you won’t. There has to be something that will break they cycle. Many of the students that I have had stay at my house through the CASS program (one of our very good goverment programs that has been cut
) were from this type of extremely poor circumstances. They are now out of it and helping their families to get out of it too. They recieved the oppurtunity because they had excelled in school. Our government and their goverment jointly sent them to school here in the states and then once they earned their degree, they went back home to help and serve and teach their own people how to get out of the extreme poverty and gave them the skills to do this. This isn’t something where they come here and then simply stay. One of the requirements is to go back to their countries.
I do believe that people can get out of poverty to an extent, but as we all have to realize that there will always be the poor amoung us, it says so in the Bible. I do not believe that means we are to sit idely by and watch because it will always be. I believe that God commands us to love each other not simply with emotions, but with actions too. The comments made by Anna in regards to a devotional she read, are right on. We can not get salvation simply through works. Works are a manifestation of our Faith and Salvation. They go hand in hand and you can’t have one without the other.
