Surprisingly inspired by a Business Week article, Bill Moyers focused his recent edition of the Journal on the business of poverty.

For some, it seems, poverty equals opportunity. But, as one Business Week employee states in the Journal story, it’s an opportunity to exploit – both for profits, and to exploit the poor. As more and more of us join the ranks of the “poor” and become dependent on predatory lending, what will become of these high risk loans? As more and more of us take on medical debt, who will pay when we can’t? Do hospitals accept “80 cents on the dollar” by hiking up their prices so that they still can make money? Do car companies make more money off of financing than off of selling cars?

I’m afraid it might be so.

It’s worth quoting the Bible:

If you lend money to one of my people among you who is needy, do not be like a moneylender; charge him no interest. If you take your neighbor’s cloak as a pledge, return it to him by sunset, because his cloak is the only covering he has for his body. What else will he sleep in? When he cries out to me, I will hear, for I am compassionate.

Exodus 22: 25-27 (New International Version)

It’s worth considering that the missing quality is compassion. After all, the logic of Exodus above is hard to argue with. The only reason predatory lending – which charges desperate people for their desperation – exists is greed.

The first week here (which is now a distant memory) was largely spent casting a vision for our church. The vision that was cast was hopeful, positive and emphasized our strengths. The vision came from a variety of places, but there were some consistent themes.

The bishops outlined “Seven Vision Pathways” that describe the best of who we are as Methodists, and offer avenues of promise for the future. These pathways are:

1. teaching the Wesleyan model of reaching and forming disciples of Jesus Christ;
2. strengthening clergy and lay leadership;
3. developing new congregations;
4. transforming existing congregations;
5. ending racism as we authentically expand racial and ethnic ministries;
6. reaching and transforming the lives of new generations of children; and
7. eliminating poverty in community with the poor;

In addition, the General Secretaries identified four areas of focus for our ministry. These areas of focus:

1. Developing principled Christian leaders for the church and the world. The church must recruit young people for ministry and provide them with the skills necessary to be effective in this new time of opportunity. That includes women and people of color the world over. Similarly, we must offer leadership training for lay people who are in ministry in countless ways.
2. Creating new places for new people by starting new congregations and renewing existing ones. If we are to remain faithful to our commitment to transform the world, we will reach out with genuine hospitality to people wherever they are. We will make them feel welcome as we start new faith communities, seek to renew existing ones and inspire faithful discipleship.
3. Engaging in ministry with the poor. As an expression of our discipleship, United Methodists seek to alleviate conditions that undermine quality of life and limit the opportunity to flourish as we believe God intends for all. As with John Wesley, we seek to change conditions that are unjust, alienating and disempowering. We engage in ministry with the poor, and in this, we especially want to reach out to and protect children.
4. Stamping out killer diseases by improving health globally. Conditions of poverty cause illness and death. The lack of access to doctors, nurses, medications and appropriate facilities is deadly, especially among those who live in conditions of poverty. But the diseases of poverty are not inevitable. We believe the people of The United Methodist Church can play a significant role in educating others about diseases such as HIV/AIDS and malaria, and treating and preventing their devastating effects.

It’s interesting to notice the overlap – leadership, new churches, a serious focus on global poverty. Not a bad agenda for the global church – but I wonder about the local church. Can a local congregation really relate to these areas of focus? Thinking about Hartford, where I serve, the idea of engaging in ministry with the poor is exciting – if we understand that the poor are not simply “over there” but also “right here.” Poverty in Hartford should be a central focus of my congregation – and I would wager that many other urban congregations in the United States are on the front lines of poverty as well. An emphasis on children in poverty is also important, but we must not forget that such children are growing up in our communities, attending our schools. Fighting poverty begins at home. What if our General Conference created structures, agencies, and funds to encourage and facilitate a focus on ministries of poverty that bring urban or rural congregations into mission with their suburban counterparts to bring a variety of resources together for a truly effective engagement with poverty?