Blessed are the poor Catholics<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"I just thought I'd throw that out there as a reminder to the Catholic Church that not everyone has the money it takes to be a devoted\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/daffeythoughts\/2013\/03\/blessed-are-the-poor-catholics.html\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Blessed are the poor Catholics\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"I just thought I'd throw that out there as a reminder to the Catholic Church that not everyone has the money it takes to be a devoted\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/daffeythoughts\/2013\/03\/blessed-are-the-poor-catholics.html\" \/>\n<meta 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As it is, their youth group is going on\u00a0retreat\u00a0 \u00a0A year ago, some youth went on a trip to Italy. \u00a0Know what? My boys didn\u2019t. \u00a0Why? \u00a0We can\u2019t afford it, that\u2019s why. \u00a0Heck, there\u2019s a decent chance that if I were to have kept my standard of living I had before entering the Church, we still couldn\u2019t have\u00a0afforded\u00a0it. \u00a0And no, there were no offers to pay for those without\u00a0the\u00a0funds. <\/p>\n

You know what we did in Protestant circles? \u00a0First, we made sure that anything we did was open to everyone. \u00a0Not\u00a0just\u00a0the well-to-do. \u00a0Second, when it involved funds or expenses, we raised the money. \u00a0The kids had to wash cars, work at people\u2019s houses, raise the money themselves. \u00a0All of them equally. \u00a0Then the congregation would find a way to match, or through donations pay, a certain balance. \u00a0That way no kid was set in the \u2018you\u2019re too poor so here\u2019s the money\u2019 category, as opposed to those kids with rich parents who don\u2019t need the help. \u00a0I know, it is likely behind the scenes. \u00a0But still, I know churches. \u00a0People talk. \u00a0Things get around. \u00a0And it\u2019s enough to remind the kids by virtue of what is needed anyway.<\/p>\n

This doesn\u2019t even include the uber-trips like Italy or the Holy Land that just don\u2019t have options. \u00a0Let the adults do that, but don\u2019t do it for the kids. \u00a0Don\u2019t\u00a0separate\u00a0the kids into sheep with money and goats\u00a0without\u00a0before they\u2019re even out of high school. <\/p>\n

Do I seem a bit pissed off, maybe resentful and jealous? \u00a0Perhaps. \u00a0Maybe I am. \u00a0But it\u2019s not jealousy toward the people with the money. \u00a0That\u2019s fine and dandy. \u00a0I\u2019m not one who thinks large bank accounts leadeth unto perdition. It\u2019s the fact that it\u2019s my Church doing the categorizing. \u00a0It\u2019s being the standard bearer of \u2018blessed are the poor, for they shall stand over there\u2019 that\u2019s the problem. \u00a0The Catholic Church has a long, age old reputation for wallowing in wealth while the poor of the world grovel in the mud and dirt. \u00a0 Remember what I\u2019ve said about avoiding stereotypes<\/a>? <\/p>\n

If our parishes want to go to wonderful events for our\u00a0youth\u00a0 that\u2019s great! \u00a0Just find a way to make sure all can go\u00a0together,\u00a0without\u00a0the need to\u00a0stand\u00a0up and say \u2018I need help since my family isn\u2019t as rich as yours.\u2019 \u00a0And if the answer is \u2018but Dave, there\u2019s no shame in being poor\u2019, let me remind the Church it shouldn\u2019t be the\u00a0Church\u2019s youth policies\u00a0and programs that force the\u00a0confession\u00a0in the first place. \u00a0Programs for adults? \u00a0Sure, why not. \u00a0But kids shouldn\u2019t be shown by the Church that with money comes soother paths to the\u00a0child\u00a0born in a manger.<\/p>\n<\/body><\/html>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"