Pope Francis says charity isn’t enough: True Christians give all their money to the poor

Travis Gettys
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Handing over wealth to the poor is Christianity – not communism, Pope Francis told Catholics.
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The pope struck back during Mass Tuesday at critics who accuse him of promoting socialist ideals, saying they misunderstood the Gospels’ central theme, reported National Catholic Reporter.
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“Poverty is precisely at the heart of the Gospel,” Pope Francis said. “If we were to remove poverty from the Gospel, people would understand nothing about Jesus’ message.”
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He urged Catholics to share their “wealth of the heart” – which he said Christ taught and offered to everyone – by sharing the wealth in their wallet.
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“When the faith doesn’t reach your pockets, it is not a genuine faith,” the pope said.
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Pope Francis reminded Christians that Jesus became poor and eventually sacrificed his own life to save humanity – but he said charity is not enough.
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“Christian poverty is that I give to the poor what is mine, not just what is left over, but even that which I need for myself, because I know that he enriches me,” he said.
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“Why does the poor person enrich me?” the pope continued. “Because Jesus said that he himself is in the poor.”
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He said Christ works within those who give up their attachment to worldly possessions, telling Catholics that giving to others would enrich them – just as Jesus gave of himself in the Eucharist.
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“He becomes bread for us,” the pope said.
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Pope Francis explained that the “theology of poverty” which forms the heart of the gospel goes far beyond ideology – such as communism, which he has criticized in the past as spiritually inadequate.
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“It is precisely this mystery, the mystery of Christ who lowered himself, was humiliated, made himself poor in order to enrich us,” he said.
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http://www.rawstory.com/2015/06/pope-francis-says-charity-isnt-enough-true-christians-give-all-their-money-to-the-poor/