With hunger and need on one hand, and power and money on the other, which does one choose to focus on?  Whatever the answer, it comes from the soul.  There are souls rich in generosity, ready to try and help those in need and souls that focus on themselves and what they can acquire.  Most of us are somewhere in the middle. Still, in spite of the fact that there is enough wealth to feed everyone, people still go hungry.  This is evidence of what I am referring to as a “poverty of the soul.”

In the United States, the huge disparity between the rich and the poor can be seen so clearly, and ignored so easily.  Without regarding all people as being worthy of basic necessities, we feed the greedy and starve the needy.  There is a large question that looms over America today. What kind of country do we want to be?

Why is the bottom line ALWAYS money?  Aren’t we better than that?  Shouldn’t we be?  Life is unfair.  This is true.  However, there is so much we can do to even the playing field.  People need not go hungry.  There should be opportunity for everyone to succeed.  I’m not talking about endless handouts. But giving a hand up can make it possible for those born into poverty to lift themselves out of it.

You may be familiar with the quote from the Bible that states, “From everyone who has been given much, much will be demanded; and from the one who has been entrusted with much, much more will be asked” (Luke 12:48).  Money is only a part of the equation.  Gifts of time and talent are also needed.  There are so many ways to give and every one of them is essential.

I guess I am trying to make sense of these inequalities and am pondering the possible solutions to the problems that we face in the United States and elsewhere.  One thing is relatively certain.  When people do not have access to ways out of physical poverty, it is unlikely that it will happen. Sharing abundance, in all its forms, makes life better for everyone.  Poverty of the soul is still poverty.  It is the simplest kind of poverty to fix.  What it requires is a change of heart.