Catholics are not socialists. But Catholic Social Teaching does not believe an unfettered free market is a moral good. We are entitled to earn and keep the fruits of our labor. But what we don’t use, we should give to others so they can benefit from us. We all see the effects of poverty. Improving the lot of those less fortunate than us draws us closer to God.
Really?, then who is the 'we' in your next post?
We can afford to pay who those work for a living a wage sufficient to support themselves and their families.
YOU can and should do that, but what about those who don't work for you? Where does that money come from?
What do mean by, “what we don’t use?”
Are you referring to savings deposited into a bank after the bills are paid?
What I don't use, the government takes away for the benefit of itself and for the benefit of those it deems worthy of its largesse. If the Church feels the poor in the USA are not adequately provided for, it needs to petition the entity that took the tithe it otherwise would have had. My 10% Church tithe resides in the coffers of US governments, State and Federal.
I beseech the Church to plead its case for the poor to the legislators that know better than myself how to care for the needy.
Our vocation was to work hard and be responsible for ourselves and our children. Though not rich by any means, we avoided debt and always saved money for unexpected expenses and, eventually, for our retirement years. We never wanted our children OR the government to have the burden of supporting us.
Frankly, many poor people don't HAVE to be poor. They make poor choices and pass them on to their offspring. It can become a way of life and I doubt God expects workers to carry them.
Gads, you don't understand economics at all.
What do you think happens when you invest money in a company? (Hint: the company hires people, or buys capital equipment investments that cause other companies to keep people employed.)
What do you think happens when you deposit money at a bank? (Hint: the money becomes available for others to use, at a fair and reasonable interest rate, so they can purchase needed items like transportation and housing.)
Insane. At least, since I left the church, I can voluntarily join / leave these conversations on boards like this, rather than get inundated with such ignorance in the context of the church.
Well said.
It's just that charity should be done privately and individually -- effortfully, if you will -- so that God can see you really mean it.
When we allow the government to confiscate and redistribute, that is not charity. The hearts of the tax-oppressed often get filled with laziness, resentment or even tax cheating -- not charity, sacrifice and devotion.