Is it a mortal sin when I don't help the homeless people I see on the street?

Is indifference towards the poor mortally sinful?

DIFFICULT MORAL QUESTIONS: Is it a mortal sin when I don't help the homeless people I see on the street?



Q. Is it a mortal sin when I don't help the homeless people I see on the street? I work in a city where I see a lot of homeless people. I recently saw a homeless person I saw a few times and felt the urge to buy her food. I thought about doing it, but in the end I didn't and I decided to go home instead. Was it a mortal sin? —Gabriel, Sydney, Australia

A. The Catholic Church teaches that three things are necessary for a sin to be mortal.

First of all, an action that we are contemplating must be truly negative (called serious matter). Secondly, we must know quite clearly that it is truly negative (called complete knowledge). And third, we must be free when we choose it, that is, free not to do it and then still do it (called full consent). (See Catechism of the Catholic Church 1857).

In a city like Sydney (or any other major city in the United States or Europe), homeless people have a variety of social services available to them for assistance. The men and women we see on the corners of our streets do not rely on our one-off benefits for their livelihood. If they did, our responsibility for their well-being would be much, much greater. As it is, the choice not to feed a poor man is unlikely to meet the conditions for mortal sin.

I say choice, because it seems to be what has been described above, not simply an oversight. (Gabriel says he "decided" to go home.)

Now choices can be motivated by many things. You may be afraid for your safety or not have money in your pocket or be late for a doctor's appointment. Or when you see the homeless, you may remember your community's social safety net and decide that your help isn't necessary. In these cases, there must be no sin.

But sometimes we do nothing, not from fear, from the lack of money, from the frenzy, etc., but from indifference.

I am using "indifference" here with a decidedly negative connotation. So I don't mean, as one might say, to those who, when asked if they like the color of a blouse, "I'm indifferent", in the sense that they have no opinions.

Here I use indifference to say "don't be interested in" or "don't worry" or "show no concern at" something that matters.

This kind of indifference, I assume, is always wrong to a certain extent - wrong in a small part if I am indifferent to minor matters, seriously wrong if I am indifferent to serious things.

The well-being of the poor is always a serious matter. This is the reason why Holy Scripture insists that indifference to the poor is seriously wrong. Think, for example, of the parable of Lazarus and the rich man (Luke 16: 19-31). We know that the rich man sees the needy man at his door, because he knows his name; from Hades he specifically asks Abraham to "send Lazarus" to dip his finger in cool water to soothe the tongue.

The problem is that he is indifferent to Lazarus, feels nothing for the beggar and does nothing to help him. Because of the punishment of the rich man, we must assume that he has made no effort to arouse empathy, to change himself - as good people do - to overcome his moral weakness.

Is the rich man's indifference mortally sinful? Scripture thinks so. The Gospel says that when he dies, he goes to "Hades" where he is "tormented".

One could object that the situation in ancient Palestine is very different from today; that there were no welfare states, soup kitchens, homeless shelters and first aid where the poor could receive basic medical care; and certainly no one like Lazarus lies at our doorstep!

I agree very much: there is probably no Lazarus lying at our front door.

But the globe today is covered in places like ancient Palestine - places where the poor have to gather their daily bread, and some days don't have bread at all, and the closest public refuge or row of sandwiches are to a continent of distance. Like the rich man, we know they are there, because we see them every day, on the news. We feel uneasy. We know we can help, at least in a small way.

And so all people face morally consequential alternatives: turn a deaf ear to the restlessness we feel and move on with our lives, or do something.

What should we do? Scripture, Tradition and Catholic Social Teaching converge on this general point: we should do everything we can reasonably do to help those in need, especially those who have a serious need.

For some of us, $ 10 in the weekly collection basket is what we can do. For others, $ 10 in the basket masks the guilty indifference.

We should ask ourselves: am I doing everything I can reasonably do?

And we should pray: Jesus, give me a heart of compassion for the poor and guide me in making good decisions regarding the care of their needs.