Latest Breaking News
In reply to the discussion: Tea party activist: ‘Jesus Christ is weeping in heaven’ over pope’s criticism of capitalism' [View all]Tigress DEM
(7,887 posts)Part of it is to show fiscal responsibility to people who are donating to the cause.
People need a place to come and worship and land and buildings must be bought and constructed. Gotta have money and a plan to get that done. Various programs go on and helping the community as well. Other non-profits do very similar things and you don't hear the same kind of sneer that people here use against religion.
AND for certain types of Reich Wing - Chrystal Cathederal - Money will make you happy kind of churches, I agree. BUT don't act like that is the ONLY thing Religion ever does.
JESUS advocated a less is more kind of life. Most Catholic preists and nuns take vows of poverty.
Pope Francis has already put that one Arch Bishop out of his fancy house and turned it over to the community as a lesson against using church funds for lavish digs. Pope Francis doesn't sleep in the palacial Vatican apartments most of the Popes have used. He's taken more common rooms. He's making every overture possible to be a Pope for the real people out there and not just those with big pockets. It's a risk, but it will probably actually bring a lot of Catholics BACK to the faith.
Christians who have really studied the life of Christ understand that Jesus was a Radical Liberal. That's what we want to follow. Someone who has the courage to stand up when people are being taken advantage of, and the whole 10% isn't a recent phenomenom, it was also part of that time period too. SO it was usary fee's above and beyond the tithe and like sales tax of today, it affected the poor dispurportionately.
Jesus pointed out to a widow who gave something equivilent to a penny at that time, but it was ALL SHE HAD and he said she was giving more faithfully than the pharisees who threw tons of money around, but it was only chump change to them. Jesus saw the inequality at the time and the way the pharisees took advantage of people's gullibility and he called them on it. Another reason they wanted him out of their hair and gave him over to Rome to execute.