CCHD website and poverty quiz:
How many people are considered poor?
47 million
What group is likely to be poor?
Children at 20% there are 15 million kids in poverty
next highest is young adults at 19%
What race is more likely to be poor?
African Americans by percent
White americans by number
What is the poverty thresholds averaged to the nearest thousand?
1 parent 1 child— 15,700 (16,00)
1 parent 2 children— 19,800 (20,00)
2 parent 2 children— 23,900 (24,00)
2 parent 3 children— 28,000
How does the federal government calculate the poverty line?
food x 3 (no matter what)
What are at least 3 problems with the method the federal government uses to calculate the poverty line?
- doesn’t take in geographical concerns
- doesn’t include income from assistant programs (ex: food stamps etc.)
- Housing/healthcare have gone way up in price while food has gone way down in price
“Economic Justice for All”
Why and when the US bishops wrote EJFA
- Wrote to influence and provide guidance for Catholics
- wrote to influence public policy: for all people
-published in 1986 by Bishop Weakland. 206 pages. 6 years to write.
Does minimum wage allow a family to exit poverty?
NO!
Nebraska Appleseed:
How many Nebraskans live in poverty? Children?
Nebraksans: 12%
Children: 1/7
“Economic Justice For All”
What method did the bishops use to write it?
- Listening sessions. They asked experts and professors to explain questions they had to them so they could better understand.
- They listened to a cross-section of Americans
- People who were poor spoke to the bishops about what it was like to live in poverty
- Drafts–revisions
- formal dialogues
“Economic Justice For All”
2 levels of teaching and the bishops’ expectations?
Principles and applications
-The bishops expected the catholics to agree on the principles because it is the foundation of their faith. They also expected catholics to disagree with the applications. However in the EJFA the bishops were surprised to to find that the catholics didn’t agree with the principle of ‘the common good’.
“Economic Justice For All”
3 purposes of work
- money
- fulfillment (express gifts and talents)
- to give back and make life better for others
“Economic Justice For All”
3 Criteria for making economic decisons
- What does the economy do for people?
- What does it do to people?
- And how do people participate in it?
“Economic Justice For All”
4 worldviews regarding economic matters?
- Conservative: structures sound. Fault is on poor person if they remain poor. If you work hard you can get at least to middle class. poverty is viewed as lazy, ignorant etc. Need to remove gov’t interference. Trust money will trickle down
- Radical (Libetarionists) : structures are flawed. People are poor bc of oppressed unfair structures. Poverty is viewed as oppression is caused by exploratative systems. We need to revolutionalize structures or reconstruct.
- Liberal: tweak systems so they work better for everyone. (gov’t can have policies to protect people. ex: protect minimum wage) Poverty is viewed as economic/social backwardness. Need to reform of exsisting systems.
- Communitation: structure community that it honors individuals human dignity and protects everyone. Poverty is viewed as exclusion and injustice. Need to include the structural reform
** Bishops only agree with Communitation (their own) they rejected everything else.
Catholic Charities and Catholic Campaign for Human Development
Purpose?
Anit-poverty program
Catholic Charities
Who is served? Model of ministry? How is it funded? Leadership?
- All people are served individuals and families (not just Catholics)
- Use direct service and CHARITY
- Funded by fundraising and donations
- Professional staff
Catholic Charities Omaha
How does CC exemplify Catholic social teaching?
They practice what they teach. They put the Catholic social teaching into practice instead of just writing about it.
-They show charity and direct service
Catholic Campaign for Human Development
Who Is served? Methods/Method of Ministry? How is it Funded? Leadership? How does CCHD exemplify Catholic social teaching?
- Serve organized groups
- Use empowerment
- Funded by contributions by catholics and grants (don’t have to pay back)
- Empowerment
“A Place at the Table”
Symbolic meaning of “table”
- **-Where people come together for food (basic needs- health care, food, shelter etc) CATH CHURCH SPEND AND FOCUS ON MOST
- Where people meet to make decsions
- Where Catholics gather to celebrate/worship the Eucharist (share body and blood of Christ)
“A Place at the Table”
Meaning of the 4 legs
(Who is responsible for ending poverty?)
-Family and individuals
-Community and religious institutions
-Private sectors (Businesses, employers) they can prevent poverty by wages and working conditions
Government: regulatating things like workers comp. or minimum wages
Represents a table. Each is a leg and if youre missing one the table is gonna fall.
(subsidiarity)
Charity vs. Justice
Charity: is direct service: Responding immediately to a need. Downside there will always be more
ex: babies going down river and pulling them out or Catholics Charities because they provide counsling and no one is turned away, provide refugee resettlement, food pantries, and microbusiness: help people learn how to start small business.
Justice: Looks at how to get to root of problem and Asks “why” is it happening, investigates and makes a solution or prevents it. Isn’t as visible in the community .
ex: employers and making peoples wages
* *Need BOTH charity and justice to serve peoples needs!
Advoacy
“to speak”
Give a voide to the needy in terms of changing public policy. They speak for others whose rights are being ignored. Speaking for those who can’t speak for themselves
ex: Immigrants, unborn child, farm workers, foster care etc.
Empowerment
Help others help themselves. Giving people the tools, confidence, and skills to address their own concerns. Learn to be independent and not be dependent on others to speak for them.
ex: Unions, wounded solider, CCHD
Does the poverty line (and below) provide enough for a minimal yet livable income?
NO!
