Our aid values and principles
Why should wealthy countries give aid to poor countries?
We believe that as Christians we are called to love our neighbour in response to God’s love for us; we believe in the dignity of each human person created by God; we believe that we have been given everything we have by God and cannot keep it to ourselves when others are in need; we believe in working together for the common good so that every human being can flourish and develop in a balanced and sustainable way.
a. Love of neighbour is at the heart of the gospel.
‘If anyone is well-off in worldly possessions and sees his brother in need but closes his heart to him, how can the love of God be remaining in him?’ (1 John 3:17) At the heart of the Gospel lies the commandment to love your neighbour. This love is to be lived out as a practical imperative, not expressed as a pretty sentiment. ‘If one of the brothers or one of the sisters is in need of clothes and has not enough food to live on, and one of you says to them, ‘I wish you well; keep yourself warm and eat plenty,’ without giving them these bare necessities of life, then what good is that? In the same way faith, if good deeds do not go with it, is quite dead.’ (James 2:15-17)
b.At the root of concern for human development is respect for the dignity of the human person, a dignity which comes, not from what they do, but from who they are. Each person should be able to flourish and to reach their full potential, as God intends. ‘There is a growing awareness of the sublime dignity of human persons, who stand above all things and whose rights and duties are universal and inviolable. They ought, therefore, to have ready access to all that is necessary for living a genuinely human life: for example, food, clothing, housing, ... the right to education, and work...’ (Gaudium et Spes, # 26)
c. God has gifted us the goods of creation freely and generously, they are to be shared justly not hoarded by a few. ‘God destined the earth and all it contains for all people and nations so that all created things would be shared fairly by all humankind under the guidance of justice tempered by charity.’ (Gaudium et Spes, #69).
d. We are called to act for the global common good, in solidarity with our sisters and brothers. ‘Probably the most difficult problem today concerns the relationship between political communities that are economically advanced and those in the process of development. Whereas the standard of living is high in the former, the latter are subject to extreme poverty. The solidarity which binds all together as members of a common family makes it impossible for wealthy nations to look with indifference upon the hunger, misery and poverty of other nations whose citizens are unable to enjoy even elementary human rights.’ (Mater et Magistra, #157)
e. Aid should be offered even at cost to ourselves. ‘Therefore everyone has the right to possess a sufficient amount of the earth's goods for themselves and their family. This has been the opinion of the Fathers and Doctors of the church, who taught that people are bound to come to the aid of the poor and to do so not merely out of their superfluous goods. Persons in extreme necessity are entitled to take what they need from the riches of others.’ (Gaudium et Spes, #69)
f. Aid should be transparent and enabling ‘That is the goal toward which we must work. An ever more effective world solidarity should allow all peoples to become the artisans of their destiny…May the day come when international relationships will be characterized by respect and friendship, when mutual cooperation will be the hallmark of collaborative efforts, and when concerted effort for the betterment of all nations will be regarded as a duty by every nation.’ (Populorum Progressio, #65) ‘Economic aid, in order to be true to its purpose, must not pursue secondary objectives. It must be distributed with the involvement not only of the governments of receiving countries, but also local economic agents and the bearers of culture within civil society, including local Churches. Aid programmes must increasingly acquire the characteristics of participation and completion from the grass roots.’ (Caritas in Veritate, #58) ‘The struggle against destitution, though urgent and necessary, is not enough. It is a question, rather, of building a world where everyone, no matter what his race, religion or nationality, can live a fully human life, freed from servitude imposed on him by others or by natural forces over which he has not sufficient control; a world where freedom is not an empty word and where the poor man Lazarus can sit down at the same table with the rich man.’ (Populorum Progressio, #47)
g. Development must be sustainable, and will involve change in our own lifestyles ‘A way of life that disregards and damages God's creation, forces the poor into greater poverty, and threatens the right of future generations to a healthy environment and to their fair share of the earth's wealth and resources, is contrary to the vision of the Gospel.’ (Call of Creation, CBCEW, 2002)
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