Day of rest. Went to church. In Sunday school a scripture was shared that caught my attention (Doctrine and Covenants 56:16-18):
Wo unto you rich men, that will not give your substance to the poor, for your riches will canker your souls; and this shall be your lamentation in the day of visitation, and of judgment, and of indignation: The harvest is past, the summer is ended, and my soul is not saved!
Wo unto you poor men, whose hearts are not broken, whose spirits are not contrite, and whose bellies are not satisfied, and whose hands are not stayed from laying hold upon other men’s goods, whose eyes are full of greediness, and who will not labor with your own hands!
But blessed are the poor who are pure in heart, whose hearts are broken, and whose spirits are contrite, for they shall see the kingdom of God coming in power and great glory unto their deliverance; for the fatness of the earth shall be theirs.
Perhaps it is not very well known outside of the LDS church to what extent it is concerned with the matter of poverty. In a properly functioning ward, should a member - active or inactive, or maybe not even a member at all but someone known to the ward - lose his job it will be discussed in the next ward council meeting and you will see people trying to come up with ideas of how that person could find employment. If someone experiences some kind of emergency that has the potential to cause financial ruin, this will also be discussed as well and some kind of plan will be worked out to alleviate the burden to the extent possible.
One thing that perhaps makes our church stand out from many others is the way we address poverty. We will give to the poor to keep them afloat when needed, but we put a greater emphasis on lifting them out of poverty - education, help in job search, teaching how to present yourself, ideas for starting your own business, skills of self-reliance, learning to live within your means and save for a rainy day, productive use of time, etc.
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