Our duty to humanity

[thirdworld]

I’m not sure if this is the correct forum to post this thread in, but I assume it is.

I live in the United States. I have access to plenty of food, clean water, a safe home, education, freedom, and luxuries like entertainment. I’m healthy, well nourished, and if I get sick I have access to medicine, hospitals, and doctors.I live in a safe neighborhood, I can walk outside at night without having to worry about being harassed, mugged, beaten, raped, or murdered. I have people who love and care about me, I’ve never been abused, and I don’t live in fear.

My life isn’t perfect but it’s pretty nice and easy. I’m very grateful for my life but I can’t help but feel sadness because of it too. I didn’t do anything to deserve my life. I just happened to be born into a relatively normal, middle class family in a country that is notorious for having an abundance of everything.

That’s great for me. But what about the 2 billion people in the world who are living in absolute poverty? What about the millions of people who are dying of HIV/AIDS? Thousands of children die everyday of starvation. People are killed for practicing their religion. Women are raped as punishment. There are millions of orphans and street kids who will never have a family. Child labour, sex trafficking, and slavery are rampant. Even in the United States, 1 in 50 children is homeless.

What I’m getting at is that it’s just not fair. There are so many weak, poor, and innocent people being abused and taken advantage of by the rich and powerful, even in the west. I don’t understand why God can allow some people to have it so easy and others impossible.

The main point of this thread is to ask what is our duty to people living in poverty, those who are ill and weak, those who have been abused and taken advantage of, and those who do have all the rights they should? As Catholics aren’t we obligated to help people less fortunate than us? Isn’t it a mortal sin NOT to donate, volunteer, and help out as best we can? There is no way Jesus would approve of a privileged person (for example me, and most people in the US and Canada) not devoting themselves to improving the lives of people who do not have what we have, am I right or wrong?

I apologize if this is a trite topic or if it’s been addressed a million times, if there are currently active threads about this then please show me. It’s been causing me a lot of distress lately and causing me to doubt humanity and God.

 

[tskrobacz]

Quite simply our duty is to love and forgive the present moment as it is and trust God to direct our lives to achieve his will. While it is easy to observe the pain of the world we must trust that God will lead us to the situations, jobs, etc that are the very purpose of our life individually. A spiritual director is often usefull in discerning your individual calling if you believe you are being called to serve in some greater fashion. As Jesus said, the poor will always be with you. In this human condition we are to love and forgive the present moment and trust that it is exactly as it should be.

 

[JRKH]

First of all, don’t apologize for the topic. It is certainly not trite.

Our duty is to Love our neighbor and to do all that we can to assist him - first and foremost in achieving heaven. Thus it is that prayer is the very first thing we can do for him.

You have eloquently described the many blessings that you have, indeed that we all have, living in a “well to do” nation. So I guess, int he material sense, one can ask oneself how much of these blessings do we need? How can I cut back in order to free up money and resources for the benefit of others? How can I devote my time, less to “entertainment” and more to “building upt he kingdom” through prayer, volunteering, giving etc.

Finally, These things like poverty, oppression, etc will make many stronger in their faith. Thus, while poor on earth they are rich in heaven. While we, poor souls - surrounded by the temptations of “plenty” - are too often given to being “rich” on earth and poor, even “overdrawn” in heaven.

Peace
James