I picked a small quote but there are tons and tons of things like this in the letter. I realize that this was 25 years ago, but the bishops almost just did another letter. It's no wonder that so many Catholics like myself ignore them.
Christ made it abundantly plain that his followers are to be generous to the poor.But He didn’t say that it had to be compelled by “government”.
The Church’s redistribution of wealth is one reason I no longer give to the Archbishops appeal.
This is 25 years ago, when we had some of the worst, most leftist, Vatican II bishops in charge. The NCCB doesn’t even exist anymore, and neither do most of these bishops.
And when is the encyclical coming out on the responsibility of the poor? If the poor have food, shelter, transport, cell phones, medical care and education paid for...what exactly is the appropriate response which the rest of society can expect from them? Functioning adults not only pay for the poor to have these items, but they pay for the ranks of government administrators who run the programs behind the distribution of products distributed to the poor.
What about people whose only "participation" in society, is to sit at home and collect a government paycheck?
Even scripture tells of three sons who were supposed to go out into the world, and make the most of their gifts, regardless of their size. The first two went out, invested well; i.e., participated in the economy, and returned a profit to their father.
The third son, having the smallest gifts, chose to ride it out. He did nothing...did not participate in the economy. He collected a "paycheck," but chose not to participate. While not described as slovenly as some of the "Obama phone" cases, he had access to, but chose NOT to participate in the economy. We have no problem in helping the poor and disabled, but what does the church--what does the Bible say about those who choose not to work?
He who does not work, neither shall he eat
This letter was the brainchild of noted sodomite and embezzler, Rembert Weakland.
“The investment of human creativity and material resources in the production of the weapons of war makes these economic problems even more difficult to solve.”
The Catholic Bishops were at the time heavily invested in the Marxists’ agenda against Ronald Reagan, as to his military buildup and his nuclear weapons programs & and anti-missile programs vis-a-vis western Europe. Many Catholic organizations participated in the Marxist organized and run “anti-nuke” mass protest marches, here and in Europe against Reagan.
Reagan ignored them and helped bring the Soviet Empire to an end.
What brainpower?
They have no business wasting time, money and paper like this because they obviously don’t comprehend either finance or politics. Apparently getting had in glowing color on national TV over the health insurance fiasco wasn’t enough to teach them a lesson? Earth to USCCB, come in, USCCB.