A Parable
Posted by: tony on 09/20/2007 10:52 PM
Updated by: tony on 09/20/2007 10:52 PM
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Expires: 10/21/2007 12:00 AM
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A man was walking down the road, minding his own business, and he was beset by robbers. They told him that unless he handed over 30% of all of the money he just earned, they would imprison him. The frightened man handed over 30% of his money and the robbers left him unmolested.
The robbers than took 50% of the money they just stole as "administrative overhead" and used the rest to pay for a doctor to visit a pharisee who had two camels, one of which he would have had to sell had he had to pay for the doctor himself.
The pharisee promised to use his influence to allow the robbers to continue their "corporal works of mercy".
In the latest issue of The Catholic Sun, I was told that this sort of activity was encouraged by Catholic social justice teaching. It was a complaint from an official in the diocese that New York was going to lose SCHIP money because it did not meet it's requirement to insure the health of 95% of children in the lowest tax brackets before it began insuring people in the higher tax brackets.
I guess I'm a bad Catholic.
I've read Scripture. I have read that "I was hungry and you gave me to eat", but I have never read "I was hungry, and you robbed your neighbor to give me something to eat". And please, I don't want to hear "render unto Caesar" from anyone, because in the United States, we are "Caesar".
People make choices. When people are young and healthy, they don't think about health insurance. If they get sick, then they decide that they should have had it. We already cover the poorest with Medicaid, and the most expensive, the senior citizens with Medicare, now we need to cover each and every person?
People want health insurance. People want nice cars. Many times people can't afford both. Sometimes they choose to buy the nice car, the latest gaming console, a 60" wide screen TV or crack instead of health insurance. They are listed as "uninsured". Why is that my problem?
I'm all for helping the poor. I do it now. I just don't understand why I have to be a big government proponent to remain true to Catholic social justice teaching.
Someone help me out here.
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