Friday, September 24, 2010

St. Francis of Assisi vs Obama Regarding Taxes


"It is not lawful to take the things of others to give to the poor. It is a sin worthy of punishment, not an act deserving a reward, to give away what belongs to others."


St. Francis of Assisi
Admonitions To The Bretheren


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posted by Chris Dickson, F.L.A. at 8:10 AM

1 Comments:

Anonymous Portiuncula said...

St. John Chrysostom, whose feast we celebrated earlier this week, had an interesting fourth-century take on social justice:

Should we look to kings and princes to put right the inequalities between rich and poor? Should we require soldiers to come and seize the rich person's gold and distribute it among his destitute neighbors? Should we beg the emperor to impose a tax on the rich so great that it reduces them to the level of the poor and then to share the proceeds of that tax among everyone? Equality imposed by force would achieve nothing, and do much harm.

Those who combined both cruel hearts and sharp minds would soon find ways of making themselves rich again. Worse still, the rich whose gold was taken away would feel bitter and resentful; while the poor who received the gold form the hands of soldiers would feel no gratitude, because no generosity would have prompted the gift. Far from bringing moral benefit to society, it would actually do moral harm. Material justice cannot be accomplished by compulsion, a change of heart will not follow. The only way to achieve true justice is to change people’s hearts first — and then they will joyfully share their wealth.

September 25, 2010 1:39 PM  

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