Option for the Poor & Vulnerable
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usccb: option for the poor and vulnerable
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While the common good embraces all, those who are weak, vulnerable, and most in need deserve preferential concern. A basic moral test for our society is how we treat the most vulnerable in our midst…This preferential option for the poor and vulnerable includes all who are marginalized in our nation and beyond – unborn children, persons with disabilities, the elderly and terminally ill, and victims of injustice or oppression.¹
More on Option for the Poor and Vulnerable from the USCCB
CATECHISM OF THE CATHOLIC CHURCH:LOVE FOR THE POOR
POVERTY | HOMELESSNESS | DEBT RELIEF
Click the Title of each section to learn more about the issue on the USCCB website.
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POVERTY
Take action
- Volunteer with CRS and Fair Trade
- Write your local Senator to share the Catholic perspective on issues related to poverty such as affordable housing and health care
- Volunteer at a local food bank
- Support the Catholic Campaign for Human Development
“The Church’s love for the poor… is a part of her constant tradition. This love is inspired by the Gospel of the Beatitudes, of the poverty of Jesus, and of his concern for the poor. Love for the poor is even one of the motives for the duty of working so as to ‘be able to give to those in need.”
Catechism of the Catholic Church, 2444
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HOMELESSNESS
Take action
- Volunteer at a local homeless shelter
"As Americans and believers, we are haunted by the tragic reality of so many without decent housing in our land. It is a sign of serious social neglect and moral failure. We ask everyone to join in a sustained and urgent effort to find creative and effective responses to this national tragedy. A great and good nation cannot turn away as people wander our streets looking for a decent home."
US Bishops Statement on Homelessness
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DEBT RELIEF
Take action
- Urge your local representatives and congressmen to support the HIPC Initiative and play a more active role in the implementation of the Millennium Development Goals and Debt Cancellation.
- Talk about debt relief to our communities to educate and increase awareness on this issue.
Increasingly, global economic leaders are recognizing an important connection between international debt and poverty. Many poor nations have huge debts that they cannot sustain and that drain much-needed resources. This has happened because of mistakes or mismanagement by debtor governments, initiatives by creditors that may not have been sound, or changes in global economic circumstances beyond any one country’s control. Now, poor countries are using scarce financial resources to make debt payments, often at the expense of funding for health care, education, housing, and other basic needs. This makes progress on reducing poverty and increasing development in these countries difficult, if not impossible. It also means that many of the world’s poorest people are suffering enormously and are unable to obtain services to meet their basic needs. Because the debt burdens carried by poor countries affect the well-being of the world’s poorest people and represent an often overwhelming obstacle to development, the Catholic Church has been a strong proponent of debt relief. Pope John Paul II has called on all the countries of the world to “reduce substantially, if not cancel outright, the international debt which seriously threatens the future of many nations.
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¹Forming Consciences for Faithful Citizenship 2007, 50., Aug 2, 2016
updated June 5, 2020
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