Cardinal deplores ëextreme and shameful povertyí in Britain
-04/04/06
Even after record
Cardinal deplores ëextreme and shameful povertyí in Britain
-04/04/06
Even after record spending on welfare, contemporary Britain still has ëextreme and shameful povertyí, the Archbishop of Westminster, has told a Cambridge conference.
Speaking at Corpus Christi College at the annual conference of the Catholic bishopsí social action lobby Caritas on Tuesday, Cardinal Cormac Murphy-OíConnor said that the safety net of the welfare state was ëfull of holesí which ëincreasing numbers of peopleí fall through.
ìIt is a kind of poverty which is not purely material, but which involves great anguish and suffering. It is multidimensional, where the welfare state is too often one-dimensional,î the Cardinal said.
The Cardinalís critique was made as part of a reflection on Pope Benedict XVIís first encyclical, Deus Caritas Est. The title of the talk, ëThe practice of love by the Church as a community of loveí was taken from the title of Part II of the encyclical, which is concerned with the role of church charities in contemporary society.
The Cardinal also complained that ìFaith-based organisations competing for public funds often feel marginalised, because of the difficulty of using taxation for what are perceived to be religious organisationsî. The obstacles remain, he says, ìdespite the commitment by Government and the other parties to eliminating this barrierî.
The Cardinal also called on Catholics in England and Wales to commit to social action on behalf of the poor, action which he says ìmust start with the Church, as Godís family on earth, looking to its own congregations and understanding their needs.î
He said the congregations of Britainís major cities were increasingly made up of migrant workers, people whose ìprecarious living standards impose terrible burdens on their familiesî.
ìPeople whom every Sunday we stand alongside in the pews need us to stand alongside them in their need of justice and charity. We can only do this when we understand their needs, when we enter into their lives,î he said in the speech.
Together with the bishops of Southwark and Brentwood, the Cardinal has commissioned research into the position of migrant workers in London parishes, and is inviting workers to a Mass concelebrated by the three bishops at Westminster Cathedral on 1 May.
Cardinal deplores ëextreme and shameful povertyí in Britain
-04/04/06
Even after record spending on welfare, contemporary Britain still has ëextreme and shameful povertyí, the Archbishop of Westminster, has told a Cambridge conference.
Speaking at Corpus Christi College at the annual conference of the Catholic bishopsí social action lobby Caritas on Tuesday, Cardinal Cormac Murphy-OíConnor said that the safety net of the welfare state was ëfull of holesí which ëincreasing numbers of peopleí fall through.
ìIt is a kind of poverty which is not purely material, but which involves great anguish and suffering. It is multidimensional, where the welfare state is too often one-dimensional,î the Cardinal said.
The Cardinalís critique was made as part of a reflection on Pope Benedict XVIís first encyclical, Deus Caritas Est. The title of the talk, ëThe practice of love by the Church as a community of loveí was taken from the title of Part II of the encyclical, which is concerned with the role of church charities in contemporary society.
The Cardinal also complained that ìFaith-based organisations competing for public funds often feel marginalised, because of the difficulty of using taxation for what are perceived to be religious organisationsî. The obstacles remain, he says, ìdespite the commitment by Government and the other parties to eliminating this barrierî.
The Cardinal also called on Catholics in England and Wales to commit to social action on behalf of the poor, action which he says ìmust start with the Church, as Godís family on earth, looking to its own congregations and understanding their needs.î
He said the congregations of Britainís major cities were increasingly made up of migrant workers, people whose ìprecarious living standards impose terrible burdens on their familiesî.
ìPeople whom every Sunday we stand alongside in the pews need us to stand alongside them in their need of justice and charity. We can only do this when we understand their needs, when we enter into their lives,î he said in the speech.
Together with the bishops of Southwark and Brentwood, the Cardinal has commissioned research into the position of migrant workers in London parishes, and is inviting workers to a Mass concelebrated by the three bishops at Westminster Cathedral on 1 May.