Handsome Chap, say what?
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| Remember The Poor |
| 2013-11-10 |
| The prophets speak ceaselessly about care for the needy and the poor. The call originates in the Torah. Deuteronomy 15:7 tell us that “if there is a poor person among you ... do not harden your heart and shut your hand.” On Yom Kippur we read from Isaiah, reminding us that the fast God wants is this: “To let the oppressed go free; to break off every yoke. To share your bread with the hungry, and to take the wretched poor into your home. When you see the naked, clothe him...” (Is. 58:6,7). Increasingly in modern society we do not see the poor in our daily lives. Wealth insulates and allows us to live among others who are doing well. There are still numerous challenges to life, but the grinding poverty that is a feature of so much of the world (and was prevalent throughout the ancient world) plays an increasingly small role in our everyday reality. That separation is call to conscience. Our good fortune should be a spur to empathy and compassion. We who are so blessed must be more beneficent; we who have more gifts must show more gratitude. God has “grasped you by the hand ... and appointed you ... to bring prisoners from the dungeon” (Is. 42:6,7). Our mission is goodness and the right time is always now. Rabbi David Wolpe is spiritual leader of Sinai Temple in Los Angeles |
| Posted by:badanov |
| #19 #17 What bible verses mention... Most likely falls under - Exodus 20:17 King James Version (KJV) 17 Thou shalt not covet thy neighbour's house, thou shalt not covet thy neighbour's wife, nor his manservant, nor his maidservant, nor his ox, nor his ass, nor any thing that is thy neighbour's. |
| Posted by: Procopius2k 2013-11-10 22:49 |
| #18 As I've often said, Americans who bitch about poverty in America should go to a country like India - where you see real poverty. I often joke that in America, the "poor" complain that they can only get 200 channels on their cable. In India, people live in corrugated metal shacks next to an open sewer. And India is by no means the poorest country. |
| Posted by: Rambler in Virginia 2013-11-10 21:42 |
| #17 What bible verses mention Obama phones, SNAP EBT, Section 8 Housing, farm subsidies for people who do not raise or grow anything, crony capitalism....? My biggest expense (3 times larger than the next largest) is my total taxes paid: federal, FICA, state, property, sales, utility and fees (that I explicitly know about) |
| Posted by: Airandee 2013-11-10 19:02 |
| #16 So that's who it is, why are people always asking about him? Thank you Clomotch Tholuger for this timely information. |
| Posted by: Shipman 2013-11-10 17:09 |
| #15 When you define 'poverty' as the bottom 15% or so, then you can not eliminate poverty - there will always be a bottom 15%. |
| Posted by: Glenmore 2013-11-10 16:57 |
| #14 Main poverty in the west is cultural poverty. Need culture change, not hand-outs that support failed cultural standards. |
| Posted by: Bright Pebbles 2013-11-10 16:27 |
| #13 In the US poverty statistics are calculated BEFORE taking into account any aid. The US Census came out with a second set of results based on people receiving federal and state aid. Poverty numbers jumped in many of the the 'blue' states. I think rabbi's point was for those who are better off should have an increased spiritual regard for the poor, rather than separating resources from those who do to those who don't. Also mentioned was the injunction against the tendency to "shut one's hand." Then there's the line about "we who have more gifts must show more gratitude." More appropriate is this comment: Sadly we know about the poverty half a world away and not next door. From this stance it's easier to pay taxes or deductible dues and expect the government or synagogue take care if it. We do not take care of issues of poverty directly and silently so even the receiver knows not the giver. |
| Posted by: Pappy 2013-11-10 14:09 |
| #12 Obamacare will restore that poverty for the middle class who won't get subsidies |
| Posted by: Frank G 2013-11-10 13:27 |
| #11 In the US poverty statistics are calculated BEFORE taking into account any aid. So, before welfare, medicaid, food stamps, etc. Given that we define the poverty level for a family of 4 at $36k/yr and that same family is eligible, on average, for $38.5k/yr in freebies I think it's fair to say that we have for all practical purposes already eliminated poverty in the US. |
| Posted by: Iblis 2013-11-10 13:07 |
| #10 - John Galt (2 May 1779 – 11 April 1839) was a Scottish novelist, entrepreneur, and political and social commentator. Because he was the first novelist to deal with issues of the Industrial Revolution, he has been called the first political novelist in the English language. Handsome Chap, say what? |
| Posted by: Clomotch Tholuger 2013-11-10 12:32 |
| #9 I think rabbi's point was for those who are better off should have an increased spiritual regard for the poor, rather than separating resources from those who do to those who don't. |
| Posted by: badanov 2013-11-10 12:11 |
| #8 Jesus said, "The poor we will always have with us." He didn't say anything about the |
| Posted by: Barbara 2013-11-10 12:07 |
| #7 So the last shall be first, and the first last. Who is John Galt? |
| Posted by: KBK 2013-11-10 10:56 |
| #6 2 Thessalonians 3:10 (New International Version) Page Options Share on facebook Share on twitter Share on email << < = = > >> Show resources Add parallel 2 Thessalonians 3:10 New International Version (NIV) 10 For even when we were with you, we gave you this rule: “The one who is unwilling to work shall not eat.” |
| Posted by: BrerRabbit 2013-11-10 10:54 |
| #5 There have been poor, there are poor, there will always be poor. Free will means that there will be those who choose the self destructive behaviors observed for centuries as the seven deadly sins. You can't 'save' someone who chooses not to be saved. That's why the redistributionists don't waste their time about demanding change upon the poor. They just steal from others to assuage their own guilt. Matthew 20:15 15 DonÂ’t I have the right to do what I want with my own money? Or are you envious because I am generous?Â’ |
| Posted by: Procopius2k 2013-11-10 08:54 |
| #4 Remember The Poor Cause you sure be joining them soon. |
| Posted by: g(r)omgoru 2013-11-10 02:58 |
| #3 True that Rambler. It is a call to the individual. Now the middle men become the insulation as an easy way to abdicate responsibility into others hands using others money. That is a purposeless inquisition other than to make more middle men. Those middle men are taking half of all that is the Bounty right now alone, your 10% of tithe becomes 90% of your budget. Resentment becomes natural by both. I Pity the FOO that equates government with compassion. Fix the world yourselves, starve the government, and get on with your lives. |
| Posted by: newc 2013-11-10 02:52 |
| #2 And in the New Testament, Jesus said to sell what you have and give it to the poor. He did NOT say to take stuff from someone else and give it to the poor, which is what the government does. |
| Posted by: Rambler in Virginia 2013-11-10 01:19 |
| #1 Increasingly in modern society we do not see the poor in our daily lives. Quite true. In the check-out lanes, they appear to be as well fed or better fed as the rest of us, and few pull away from the car parks in second hand F-150's. |
| Posted by: Besoeker 2013-11-10 01:07 |