Describe Christian teachings about the ways in which believers should treat people who are less fortunate than themselves.

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Describe Christian Teachings about the ways in which believers should treat people who are less

Fortunate than themselves.

The world today is sharply divided into rich and poor. Many Christians are concerned about the injustice and inequality in the world today. Two Christian organisations that work for the world’s poor are: Christian Aid and CAFOD.

In Christian Teachings believers are taught about love and forgiveness in the form of Agape Love. Agape love is Christian love, love for all and unconditional love.

Christianity gets its tradition of caring for the poor from the Old Testament where writers emphasized that God cares about the poor and wants them treated well.

Prejudice means pre-judgement, taking a dislike to someone for no good reason. To take action as a result of it is known as discrimination. Christian Churches are against prejudice and discrimination based on the belief that humans have been created in the “Image of God and are all valuable and equal in his sight.”

In Matthew 22:26 one of the Pharisees asked Jesus “Teacher which is the greatest commandment in the law? Jesus replied with two commandments, the second greatest being,

“Love your neighbour as yourself”

In the Parable of the Good Samaritan Jesus showed that a neighbour is anyone who needs your help and not just the person who lives next door. Jews looked down on Samaritans and treated them as an inferior race; therefore the Samaritan could have left the wounded Jew as he was actually considered his enemy. The Samaritan payed for his care at an inn and did not criticise the Jew for going out alone without any protection.

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The lessons Christians learn from this is that they have a duty and responsibility to help all people, those they do not like, those who have been unkind, those of a different race and those that have brought the suffering on themselves because the Samaritan showed no prejudice or discrimination.

Christians believe it is their duty to help the poor. Jesus said that the really important people were the sinners, the lepers, the poor, the prostitutes and the tax collectors.

Jesus showed compassion for the sick and healed those with diseases.

Matthew Chapter 10 Verse 8

“Heal the sick, raise ...

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