Addressing Global Poverty

In a time of unprecedented wealth, prosperity, and technological innovation, it’s nearly unthinkable that issues of hunger and poverty continue to persist throughout the world today. And yet, that is the reality we live in. Throughout the whole of the Christian tradition, from the teachings of the Torah, the prophetic tradition of those like Amos, Isaiah, Micah, through the life, ministry, and teachings of Jesus, and in the practices of life and community for the early Church, care and concern for the poor have always been at the heart of God’s character and movement in the world.

In the Jewish creation story, God bestows upon humanity God’s own image. This image-bearing identity communicates God’s desire to co-create with humanity. The invitation for humanity then is to mirror the life-giving dignity that God displays in our care for one another as well as the creation that we inhabit. Poverty in the most basic sense robs people of the creative agency that God intended for all humans to embody; it is the inversion of God’s desires for the thriving mutuality of creation. Poverty, like all complex issues, carries with it individual as well as systemic causes. Unchecked free market capitalism places impoverished, formerly colonized nations at the mercy of their more developed neighbors. A lack of opportunities in these places leads to the inability to make a livable wage. These conditions set the stage for exploitation, crime, even unhealthy addiction and unnecessary familial, relational, and health stresses. These issues compound upon one another, and often have long, multi-generational effects.

Christians claim to follow Jesus, whose life was not insulated from poverty and oppression. While Jesus’ life modeled a proximity to the marginalized of his day, his teachings spoke even more explicitly as to what those who follow him ought to do with their wealth and resources. Mark 10 tells the story of Jesus’ interaction with the Rich Young Ruler. This man, confident in his practices of piety, asks Jesus what he must do to inherit eternal life. Jesus responds by inviting him to a complete obedience that goes beyond his religious practices; an obedience that rejects the security this young man had found in his possessions: “Jesus looked at him and loved him. ‘One thing you lack,’ he said. ‘Go, sell everything you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me.’” The young man couldn’t go through with it, and walked away. Jesus’ followers, having witnessed this interaction, along with Jesus’ observation that wealth makes it challenging to enter the Kingdom of God, begin to wonder about the futures they have chosen for themselves: “Jesus, what about us, and what we’ve given up to follow you?” Jesus’ response to them is both challenging and comforting, essentially: “Yes, you’ve given up a lot relationally and materially, but because of this new family being formed, you’re always going to have more than enough.”

Though we must acknowledge the social and wealth stratification that does indeed exist for all sorts of Christians in the West, the undeniable privilege and wealth afforded to many Christians in industrialized nations must be seen through the invitations given in the passage above: the mastery of wealth and privilege in our lives can only be undone by the willingness to use it on behalf of our neighbors, global and local. Christians, given the promise of Jesus’ provision through the global Body of Christ, can trust that their own needs will indeed be taken care of as their attention and resources turn to the needs of our family who is affected most deeply by poverty. While humans cannot map our own experiences onto the mystery and magnitude of Jesus’ incarnation, we can in our small and faithful ways point to a God who is graciously generous, self-giving, and whose love undoes the impossibilities of our world as we know it.