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I agree. I got to go in the oldest surviving church in Michigan...nothing like what is in Rome, but I felt a connection to it.
Part of me loves beautiful religious buildings....part of me thinks its a waste of resources that could have been better used to ameliorate the conditions of the poor. Some religions go for utilitarian buildings or even in members' homes.
Jesus said the poor will always be with us... despite the fact that you are supposed to give them everything you own.
So you might as well build a nice building before you give away the proverbial farm.
Part of me loves beautiful religious buildings....part of me thinks it's a waste of resources that could have been better used to ameliorate the conditions of the poor. Some religions go for utilitarian buildings or even in members' homes.
You can never optimize for X without de-optimizing for Y. So if you optimize everything to feed the poor, you might in substantive ways impoverish your culture or community in both material and non-material ways. Should we put on that play, or use the time and resources in a soup kitchen? Should we pave the street, or donate the 3 million dollar budget to the poor? When the property values go down as a result, and people have to spend more to fix their cars due to the massive potholes, do they then qualify for some of this aid to the poor?
Often I don't think it has to be either/or, or some kind of zero-sum game. Cutting the military budget in half (still leaving it the largest in the world) could go a long way toward ending poverty and want in this country; eliminating student debt would barely be a rounding error to the military-industrial complex. So the notion that poverty is this intractable hard problem that we can only nibble away at, is kind of false.
One must always remember that workers have seen basically none of the massive productivity gains of the past 50 or 60 years. We should all have a basic guaranteed income and be working 15 hour weeks for the same pay, but alas, things are heading the other way because nearly all the gains were inequitably distributed. So poverty is a problem we've manufactured and a learned helplessness we've cultivated ... not at all on the part of poor people, but it is a selfish decision of society, led by our elites, who mostly enjoy their luxuries on the backs of the poor. What is the figure now ... half the world's wealth belongs to the top 1%. Seems like that's the actual source of the problem, not that more of us need to live in a yurt and give the rest away.
You can never optimize for X without de-optimizing for Y. So if you optimize everything to feed the poor, you might in substantive ways impoverish your culture or community in both material and non-material ways. Should we put on that play, or use the time and resources in a soup kitchen? Should we pave the street, or donate the 3 million dollar budget to the poor? When the property values go down as a result, and people have to spend more to fix their cars due to the massive potholes, do they then qualify for some of this aid to the poor?
Often I don't think it has to be either/or, or some kind of zero-sum game. Cutting the military budget in half (still leaving it the largest in the world) could go a long way toward ending poverty and want in this country; eliminating student debt would barely be a rounding error to the military-industrial complex. So the notion that poverty is this intractable hard problem that we can only nibble away at, is kind of false.
One must always remember that workers have seen basically none of the massive productivity gains of the past 50 or 60 years. We should all have a basic guaranteed income and be working 15 hour weeks for the same pay, but alas, things are heading the other way because nearly all the gains were inequitably distributed. So poverty is a problem we've manufactured and a learned helplessness we've cultivated ... not at all on the part of poor people, but it is a selfish decision of society, led by our elites, who mostly enjoy their luxuries on the backs of the poor. What is the figure now ... half the world's wealth belongs to the top 1%. Seems like that's the actual source of the problem, not that more of us need to live in a yurt and give the rest away.
Jesus said the poor will always be with us... despite the fact that you are supposed to give them everything you own.
So you might as well build a nice building before you give away the proverbial farm.
Reminds me of Jesus Christ Superstar
[JESUS]
Surely you're not saying we have the resources
To save the poor from their lot?
There will be poor always, pathetically struggling
Look at the good things you've got!
Think! While you still have me
Move! While you still see me
You'll be lost, you'll be so sorry when I'm gone
as performed by the Legendary Legend himself, John Legend
I would suggest that the same hands which built the cathedrals are the same hands capable of alleviating poverty The question is, how much do we and that 1% sitting at the point of the economic pyramid really really want to do so?
I would suggest that the same hands which built the cathedrals are the same hands capable of alleviating poverty The question is, how much do we and that 1% sitting at the point of the economic pyramid really really want to do so?
The problem with that is that it doesn't need to be one or the other. It could be both.
The problem with that is that it doesn't need to be one or the other. It could be both.
The issue seems to be I, Me, Mine, You, Yours as in attachment to the fruits of action and I'm using action in the broadest sense that includes thoughts and words, even belief and disbelief.
For those who would say: "it's wrong to build beautiful and elaborate houses for God, that money should have been used for helping the poor",
Who do you think those beautiful churches are for? Without them, when and how can the poor ever experience heavenly beauty in this world?
The rich already live in palaces. Why can't the poor have a palace to visit?
A nice sentiment, but visiting a palace doesn't put food on the table, either. If you're far enough down the hierarchy of needs, you wouldn't give a fig about being inspired, not until your belly is full and you have something to aspire to in life other than more drudgery -- which IMO is the only true inspiration on a personal level and the only rational basis for hope.
There's a balance to be had, I think. One can argue that you can still have an inspiring place of worship, with less high-quality marble and stained glass windows. Many churches (and not just Catholic churches) can be fairly described as "opulent". I do not see why believers would want to justify endorsing such excess without first effectively and sustainably addressing people's needs.
A nice sentiment, but visiting a palace doesn't put food on the table, either. If you're far enough down the hierarchy of needs, you wouldn't give a fig about being inspired, not until your belly is full and you have something to aspire to in life other than more drudgery -- which IMO is the only true inspiration on a personal level and the only rational basis for hope.
There's a balance to be had, I think. One can argue that you can still have an inspiring place of worship, with less high-quality marble and stained glass windows. Many churches (and not just Catholic churches) can be fairly described as "opulent". I do not see why believers would want to justify endorsing such excess without first effectively and sustainably addressing people's needs.
Our primary need is the salvation of our soul. Spiritual needs are at the very top of the hierarchy of needs. Food is further down the line, since God can turn stones into bread in order to feed us.
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