[Deleted for abuse]

I don't see any point to this article. Certainly nothing to make Alan B go berserk.

I suggest Dr Ray campaign against the idiotic renewables path resulting in ridiculous electricity prices if he is concerned about the 'poor' in this country. I mean with record cold weather and heating and cooling costs at ridiculous levels one has to question the sanity of our Government. All this while China, India, the US and others make us look like fools. Maybe also the billions wasted on the Indengenous industry could be used to help those in need.

Don't be silly Runner.

Without the Indigenous industry there would be nothing to keep tens of thousands totally useless bureaucrats employed.

I will think of Jesus..every time I see his representatives on Earth, the Vatican, use their millions to influence politics and escape accountability rather than change things for the poor in the third-world countries where they preach.

And his followers, who vote for leaders who discriminate against minority populations and are exclusive and focused only on individual wealth for themselves rather than have any sense of global responsibility.

Jesus must be so proud of the above.

Apologize for fo earlier uncalled for remark, and withdraw. The politics of envy is in my view, based on a false premise. A cop-out and assumption built on presumption without foundation.

A quite massive misrepresentation, I believe, not worthy of anyone claiming Christian values as foundational.

Entirely unnecessary biased judgement based on fact-free personal belief and what you would do if stood in the other's shoes?

And says more about the Author and his personal values, I believe, than those he points his judgemental finger at?
Alan B.

Sadly today, any view that is different or difficult, runs the risk of being dispatched by glib one liners or words formulated to deride. The beauty of the Gospels, in part, are their call to the counter-cultural and the uncomfortable. Concepts of justice, fairness and sustainability need a lens of critical 'uncomfortableness' if they are to be addressed and re-calibrated.

Woe to the rich indeed. But there's more to it then just politics and taxes on the wealthy (which is the context I gather "politics of envy" is termed for). Jesus said to be generous, and more so even with debt to not take someone's only coat and not let them have it back in the night. In this way we have done wrong to con society to need a higher education that forces them into debt. Then in collecting it we let most of them go homeless. Lose their car, their house, or any of their savings because of a debt that was almost designed to cripple the masses. After a certian point it almost seems impossible to get out of debt because the rate of intreast is greater then the amount that can be paid off. So the debt grows.

For those of us that are not homeless we are probabley the rich that is being warned. Therefore the taxes the supper rich try to avoid, we should allow in order for helping the supper poor. And let any generousity we have not end with taxes. The politics of envy can be supplied by by generousity.

However there is a counter point worth mentioning. In the face of laziness taking it's toll on the early Christian community that shared it's wealth; Paul gave this advice. To those who don't work, they shouldn't eat. (One assumption is that he meant this only to those who are healthy and able to work, but don't..)

Jesus made some of the fat cats uncomfortable. The religion founded in his name is dominated by fat cats. Although some Christians are genuinely devoted to the cause of the poor Christianity as a whole seems more concerned with who engages what part of their anatomy with a part of the anatomy of another person or the fate of a fetus as more important than the fate of the pregnant woman that surrounds that fetus. Christianity supplies chaplains to the armed forces euphemistically called defense forces while those Christians who oppose the violence are put in jail. Of course, Jesus was not a Christian so why should Christians share his views, anyway?