The tax plan and Jesus' option for the poor

Just wait, we might have some Bishops standing on the floor of their Cathedrals call for a preferential option toward the rich. Remember, some of them have clearly chosen the party over Jesus.

Lazaro lies outside at the gate, starving and cold.

When he enters into glory, will he send the rich man a fingertip of water to cool the burning below?

See Luke 16:19-31

I don't know. Let's go now outside and give Lazaro a large glass of water, and something good to eat, and enough clothes and blankets to make it through this cold season.

No, I do not know if he is deserving, only what Jesus said.

Feed the hungry, clothe the naked.
Heal the sick. Receive the illegalized at the gate and grant us each sanctuary

as Mary and Joseph have no place to give birth to the Word.

Christ told us that we should personally give the poor food and drink and clothes and housing. He did not tell his diciples to petition Rome for these things. He said give to Ceasar what is Ceasars, Give to God what is God's. I say the poor belong to God and we, personally, should give to the poor, not Washington in either guise of Democrat or Republican.

Hermano, with a name like Mario T.(Tomás?) García, it is quite obvious that the many hypothetical questions buried in your article are simply digs (“preguntas capciosas”) trying to find their way into the public conscience. Your obvious friend Jesus of Nazareth had no interest in the religion of people. He was born and raised as a Jew, argued, and fought with the power-people of that religion until as an old man (for his day) he was hung from the cross of Calvary by his own religious hierarchy. He never founded a religion. but simply invited those interested in following him and his vision to change the world to bring about the governance of his “Abbá Father” to sell what they had, give it to the poor and work to bring about what he called “thy Kingdom come on earth just as it is in heaven.” “How difficult for a rich person to enter into the Kingdom.” So many “religious people” today, including bishops and others keep working along with the “religious Republicans and Democrats” to produce bigger and bigger needles and smaller and smaller camels and keep trying to push the miniature camels through eyes of those giant needles.

“Liberation” means “equalizing” and “Liberation Theology”. condemned by Josef Ratzinger already as Cardinal, focuses in upon the obscene social inequality in countries as in our Mestiza America between the 10% of wealthy and the 70% who barely manage to survive. As my friend Charlie Scanlon commented in his bog above, it simply involves the “rich man” and “Lazarus”. Neither Jesus nor “Father Abraham” neither said nor even implied that the rich man was bad, nor that Lazarus was good, but simply that in this life the “rich man” had everything and Lazarus had nothing, so now “post mortem” the tables were turned.

Jesus never tried to change the world by a religion and now after more than two thousand years, the religion that claims to have been founded by the followers of Jesus counts with a weak 25% of the world population, of which perhaps 12% is under the guidance of Benedict XVI.

The up-shot Mario, is that faith in Jesus present today in our world is by no means necessarily tied up to a religion, where the majority are “out to save their souls” and hardly interested in “that other possible society”, “that other possible world” or as Jesus said “Our Father, ... thy Kingdom come on earth as it is in heaven.”. Today what is “gospel” =good news for 70% of the world population is “bad news” for the 10% who have the power to change things. Just take a look a Kyoto then Copenhagen and last week Cancúm, and then think about your grandchildren.

Justiniano de Managua

As usual, Mr. Garcia, your far left protestations border on socialism, and (fortunately) your ilk and causes were soundly rejected last month. If the there is a 5% tax increase on the "wealthy" (will not happen, of course), US job creation will be hurt, more money will go overseas, and (most significantly) US charities will take a huge hit. Who do you suppose keeps those charities afloat, Mr. Garcia? Those "undocument workers" you talk about all the time? Get educated as to the facts, please. The US has the second highest corporate tax rate in the world and the "wealthy" will be paying well over 50% of their income in state and federal income tax if the decade long tax rates are raised for them amid this 9.8% unemployment economy and the death spasm of the Democratic party. The "wealthy" did not get to be that way because they are stupid. If you tax the hell out of them in the US, they will either go somewhere else to invest and maybe live or pull in their horns and live on thier already taxed earnings, or both. In either case, it will exacerbate Obama's economic disaster.

Mario, if you have a dollar more than the guy you pass on the street, then, by your logic - which I mostly agree with - you might be considered "rich" and therefore "callous" and "lack[ing] humanity." Do you agree or disagree?

Look, I don't begrudge you a penny you earn or the lifetime of hard work that got you where you are. The result may be you make $5 million, $500,000, $50,000 or much less. But you will always have more than someone else. That doesn't make you rich or the other guy poor. It also doesn't make either person intrinsically virtuous or intrinsically evil.

Jesus statement "The poor you will always have with you" is a continuing reference to the "Kingdom" economics - and human relationships - espoused in Deuteronomy 15. Those human relationships are, first, immediate, direct & personal. A changed society, via the legislature, may have to wait 'till society is more changed itself.

A "preferential option for the poor" should be maintained in our Catholic
Schools. If we find that we cannot afford to keep our schools open to the
poor, the schools should be closed and the resources used for something else
which can be kept open to the poor. We cannot allow our Church to become a
church primarily for the middle-class and rich while throwing a bone to the
poor. The priority should be given to the poor even if we have to let the
middle-class and rich fend for themselves.
Practically speaking, the Catholic Schools must close and the resources
used for "Confraternity of Christian Doctrine" and other programs which can
be kept open to the poor. Remember, the Church managed without Catholic
Schools for centuries. We can get along without them today. The essential
factor is to cultivate enough Faith to act in the Gospel Tradition, namely,
THE POOR GET PRIORITY. The rich and middle-class are welcome too. But the
poor come first.