| Standing up for the poor  BY KEN HORNE There exists a division in our church that can no longer be tolerated. On one side, many of us who are concerned about the plight of the poor and marginalized have responded to their suffering by trying to supply their material needs. The churchs ministry of supplying food, clothing, shelter and other necessities to those in need has been, and continues to be, impressive. Others of us have chosen to attempt to relieve the suffering of the poor by addressing the systemic evils that insure the existence of poverty and make it nearly impossible to escape its clutches. Over the years these two approaches to ministering to the poor have become two separate camps. We seldom talk to one another, and often bicker about how best to serve the poor. This is partly because the tasks necessary to fulfilling each mission are so different. Those who provide food, shelter and clothing must be skillful at soliciting money and materials necessary for the relief of the poor. They must also be passionate about relieving suffering among their fellows. Those who advocate on behalf of the poor must be skillful at public and private debate. They must also be well informed on political and economic issues and be passionate about seeing justice done by their fellows. We can no longer afford to be thus divided. The time has come in our nation for the church to stand up for the poor. It is abundantly clear that churches and other charitable organizations cant care for our nations poor alone. We can and should do all we are capable of doing to ease the suffering of the poor. Our Lord requires no less. But given the economic resources at our command we cannot be, and should not be, the first line of defense in the fight against hunger. That job belongs to the organization that holds the power of taxation. The governmental safety net must be available to all those who cannot work and provide for themselves. If the economic system continues to be stacked against the poor, as it is today, the obscenity of hunger in the richest nation in the history of the world will never be eliminated. The task ahead of the church is clear. We must join the efforts of our service and advocacy ministries together. We must insist on an economic system structured in such a way that virtually anyone who is willing and able to work can escape the clutches of poverty. And we must insist that those who cannot escape poverty are provided for out of the abundance with which God has blessed our national community. God, give us the grace to cease bickering among ourselves about how best to attack poverty, and finally stand up for and with the poor. The Rev. Ken Horne is co-founder of the Society of St. Andrew and a member of the Virginia Conference. | 
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