Christian Teaching on Wealth and Poverty

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Coursework

(a) (i) Outline Christian teaching on wealth and poverty.

Christians do not think money is a bad thing. However, they believe the way money is earned and used is the issue. Most Christians believe that wealth is a gift from God to benefit others. Christians believe that all money belongs to God and he gives them stewardship of his money to use wisely. The Bible teaches, “You cannot serve both God and money.” (Matthew 6:24). For Christians this means that they must be careful not to replace their love for God with the love of money.

Christian teaching on wealth and possessions varies slightly regarding the amount of money and possessions that should be given to the poor. Some Christians follow the teaching in (Mark 10:21). This passage states that you should sell all your possessions and give them to the poor. The Methodist Church also follows this idea. Their founder John Wesley said, “Earn all you can, save all you can, give all you can.” On the other hand, most Christians believe that they should use some of their wealth to help the poor, but leave enough to support themselves and their family. Their reasoning is that there is no advantage in giving up everything they have; becoming poor themselves, and becoming dependent on someone else, and a burden to society. All Christians, however, believe that it is a matter of justice that everyone should receive the basic necessities in life. Therefore, many Christians frequently donate money to charities. This is also known as almsgiving. Also, a few Christians give ten percent of their income to the church, (tithing).

Jesus taught his followers that they should show ...

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...rson in need of food or clothing , they should not just wish them well, but take action and help them.”

Considering both points of view, I believe that rich people play an important role in helping people in need and that God has no Quarrel with the rich who use their money wisely and with justice and compassion. Therefore I disagree with the statement, “There should be no rich people as long as there is poverty in the world.”

BIBLIOGRAPHY

http://www.christianaid.org.uk/

http://www.christianaid.org.uk/aboutus/who/history/index.aspx

http://www.christianaid.org.uk/aboutus/who/aims/our_aims.aspx

http://www.christianaid.org.uk/emergencies/current/zimbabwe-crisis/index.aspx

http://www.christianaid.org.uk/emergencies/current/zimbabwe-crisis/zimbabwe-cholera.aspx

http://www.reliefweb.int/rw/rwb.nsf/db900sid/OCHA-64C8RC?OpenDocument

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