Catholic Mass today seemed to endorse austerity and anti-SNAP benefits?

[Anonymous]

The homilies were tone deaf if nothing else.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Pope Francis is not ok with that shi$talk and neither are most Catholics. Call your MAGA priest out! We left our church due to the conservative Monsignor.

Pope who?

Pope Leo! I’d just been reading a quote by Francis my mistake

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:They are trying to create a schism in the church. The American Catholics are cash-rich and are being heavily influenced by Vance's group - MAGA politics. The Italian Catholic church has a lot of expensive real estate but no cash and is heavily influenced by Pope Leo/Pope Francis and traditional Catholic values like care for the poor. One of the reasons Pope Leo was chosen was to keep the American Catholics from taking their cash and going. The fight is going to get ugly and from your report, it seems Pope Leo might be losing.

Please don't malign all American Catholics. Some are conservative, some are progressive. In fact most people who identify as Catholic in the US are progressive according to Pew polls. It's a small group of uber-wealthy conservative white Catholic men who are driving this regressive nonsense, just like they are in the country at large.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Here is the lectionary for this Sunday:

https://bible.usccb.org/daily-bible-reading

It has been set for a long time, so the appearance of the one out four passages in which Paul talks about how the the early Christians worked to feed themselves instead of relying on the communities where they traveled to evangelize to provide charity.

If an idiot priest chose to take this one verse out of context and interpret it to mean that there shouldn’t be SNAP, well that’s not a surprise because it’s a known fact that there are MAGA priests, but that is certainly not the only way to interpret it, nor is it consistent with other passages like the story of loaves and fishes.

Now, if someone wanted to interpret it to mean that Christians who travel to Evangelize should be very careful not to burden the communities they visit then I would agree.

I’m OP. The priests didn’t literally say “SNAP” or “welfare” or “EBT” or any other gov assistance terms in the news and viral on social media the last few weeks — that was me reading between the lines. It just seemed awfully coincidental two Catholic churches which are totally unaffiliated with each other had the same reading and two priests had similar interpretations and expansions essentially demonizing poor people on welfare as lazy, idle, and lacking dignity — albeit the hometown priest was much more aggressive and even used some old school urban “welfare queen” dog whistles.

Every Catholic church in the US, maybe in the world, uses the same lectionary (a document that assigns readings to days), so it's not really a "coincidence" that two Churches would use the same readings this Sunday. But the priest didn't choose them.

I'm not defending his choice to interpret it that way. The Catholic church is very much in favor of feeding people, and does a lot of work towards that goal. This is MAGA infecting the church, and not the position of the church as a whole.

Here is a statement from one of the top Catholic archbishops on the SNAP issue.

https://www.usccb.org/news/2025/archbishop-broglio-urges-funding-lifesaving-programs-and-end-federal-government-shutdown

I disagree with the USCCB on many things. But not on this.

Interesting. I didn’t know the readings were the same everywhere. I guess I've never attended Mass twice in the same weekend or day. It was totally random that I just kept listening to the live feed of my hometown church.

I remain suspicious this reading was chosen for this weekend with everything in the news. I didn’t feel comfortable with the reading and the even crueler sermons after. It didn’t feel Catholic to me. And I know my husband and I weren’t the only two people in the pews side-eying what we were hearing.

Remain as suspicious as you like, but current events had absolutely nothing to do with that reading being this Sunday.

Okay, we’ve covered that. I guess the more concerning part would be priests in different regions of the U.S. taking that allegedly random assigned reading to launch into racist or at least classist welfare queen tropes and demonizing the modern underclass as lazy moochers with no dignity. While those same tropes are being trafficked on the news, on podcasts, used by politicians to shut down the government, and racist videos with those themes are going viral on social media at a scale I’ve never witnessed in my life.

It isn’t “allegedly random”. These readings are on a 3-year cycle, as someone else has already posted. They are published WELL ahead of time.

Also, did the priests actually say all that stuff, or are you simply assuming they did?

OP, can you post the videos, if they were recorded? I’d love to see what was actually said and not what PPs assume was said. I’m guessing it’s Biblically-based and not some lecture about current events.

I’m certainly not going to dox two priests and two churches my family attends, so don’t ask again.

It is your contention that priests are totally oblivious to current events and the government shut down and its impact on SNAP? They are also oblivious that a major theme being pushed by the MAGA right wing is low and middle class Americans are lazy and entitled and if they can’t afford soaring food costs — or soaring housing, college and student loans, health care, a car, kids or a wedding — it’s their own fault because they don’t work hard enough? Compared to model immigrants who will sleep on a floor and work 100 hours a week. President Trump just this week told Fox News this week Americans are lazy and talentless and that’s why we need millions of foreign visa students and workers annually.

How can anyone discern what was actually said at the Mass if we can’t hear it for ourselves?

And I don’t believe it’s “doxxing” a priest to put a link to a publicly available video. Most of the Catholic churches around here have pretty big congregations, so no one is going to know who you are if you just give the name of the local parish.

I’ve already listened twice, as I went back to listen and confirm the reading. I have not mischaracterized the dialogue. And again, the priest located several states away was worse than the local.

What did the priest say?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Here is the lectionary for this Sunday:

https://bible.usccb.org/daily-bible-reading

It has been set for a long time, so the appearance of the one out four passages in which Paul talks about how the the early Christians worked to feed themselves instead of relying on the communities where they traveled to evangelize to provide charity.

If an idiot priest chose to take this one verse out of context and interpret it to mean that there shouldn’t be SNAP, well that’s not a surprise because it’s a known fact that there are MAGA priests, but that is certainly not the only way to interpret it, nor is it consistent with other passages like the story of loaves and fishes.

Now, if someone wanted to interpret it to mean that Christians who travel to Evangelize should be very careful not to burden the communities they visit then I would agree.

I’m OP. The priests didn’t literally say “SNAP” or “welfare” or “EBT” or any other gov assistance terms in the news and viral on social media the last few weeks — that was me reading between the lines. It just seemed awfully coincidental two Catholic churches which are totally unaffiliated with each other had the same reading and two priests had similar interpretations and expansions essentially demonizing poor people on welfare as lazy, idle, and lacking dignity — albeit the hometown priest was much more aggressive and even used some old school urban “welfare queen” dog whistles.

Every Catholic church in the US, maybe in the world, uses the same lectionary (a document that assigns readings to days), so it's not really a "coincidence" that two Churches would use the same readings this Sunday. But the priest didn't choose them.

I'm not defending his choice to interpret it that way. The Catholic church is very much in favor of feeding people, and does a lot of work towards that goal. This is MAGA infecting the church, and not the position of the church as a whole.

Here is a statement from one of the top Catholic archbishops on the SNAP issue.

https://www.usccb.org/news/2025/archbishop-broglio-urges-funding-lifesaving-programs-and-end-federal-government-shutdown

I disagree with the USCCB on many things. But not on this.

Interesting. I didn’t know the readings were the same everywhere. I guess I've never attended Mass twice in the same weekend or day. It was totally random that I just kept listening to the live feed of my hometown church.

I remain suspicious this reading was chosen for this weekend with everything in the news. I didn’t feel comfortable with the reading and the even crueler sermons after. It didn’t feel Catholic to me. And I know my husband and I weren’t the only two people in the pews side-eying what we were hearing.

Are the readings I linked the right ones? Because those are from the lectionary, which is a document that was written many years ago to assure that someone who attends Mass every Sunday hears the entire Bible over the course of 3 years.

I agree that the sermons you describe seem very un-Catholic. I also agree with you that the last few weeks before Advent have some very depressing passages. But I would argue that the priests you heard interpreted the epistle incorrectly.

No, the Lectionary (which is the book used at Mass that contains readings from the Bible) does not contain the entire Bible.

From the USCCB's website: What's the difference between a Bible and a Lectionary? A Lectionary is composed of the readings and the responsorial psalm assigned for each Mass of the year (Sundays, weekdays, and special occasions). The readings are divided by the day or the theme (baptism, marriage, vocations, etc.) rather than according to the books of the Bible. Introductions and conclusions have been added to each reading. Not all of the Bible is included in the Lectionary.

http://www.usccb.org/bible/understanding-the-bible/faq.cfm

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I think this whole thread goes to show that most of those attending mass or service have no clue of whats actually in the Bible and they will blindly follow their priest/preacher.

That’s not remotely what this thread shows.

People have explained that Mass readings are on a schedule. They aren’t some targeted attack on current events. It’s kind of silly to assume that.

This has nothing to do with blindly following a priest.

Its has nothing to do with a schedule. Its about teaching crap that goes against what Jesus would have wanted.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Here is the lectionary for this Sunday:

https://bible.usccb.org/daily-bible-reading

It has been set for a long time, so the appearance of the one out four passages in which Paul talks about how the the early Christians worked to feed themselves instead of relying on the communities where they traveled to evangelize to provide charity.

If an idiot priest chose to take this one verse out of context and interpret it to mean that there shouldn’t be SNAP, well that’s not a surprise because it’s a known fact that there are MAGA priests, but that is certainly not the only way to interpret it, nor is it consistent with other passages like the story of loaves and fishes.

Now, if someone wanted to interpret it to mean that Christians who travel to Evangelize should be very careful not to burden the communities they visit then I would agree.

I’m OP. The priests didn’t literally say “SNAP” or “welfare” or “EBT” or any other gov assistance terms in the news and viral on social media the last few weeks — that was me reading between the lines. It just seemed awfully coincidental two Catholic churches which are totally unaffiliated with each other had the same reading and two priests had similar interpretations and expansions essentially demonizing poor people on welfare as lazy, idle, and lacking dignity — albeit the hometown priest was much more aggressive and even used some old school urban “welfare queen” dog whistles.

Every Catholic church in the US, maybe in the world, uses the same lectionary (a document that assigns readings to days), so it's not really a "coincidence" that two Churches would use the same readings this Sunday. But the priest didn't choose them.

I'm not defending his choice to interpret it that way. The Catholic church is very much in favor of feeding people, and does a lot of work towards that goal. This is MAGA infecting the church, and not the position of the church as a whole.

Here is a statement from one of the top Catholic archbishops on the SNAP issue.

https://www.usccb.org/news/2025/archbishop-broglio-urges-funding-lifesaving-programs-and-end-federal-government-shutdown

I disagree with the USCCB on many things. But not on this.

Interesting. I didn’t know the readings were the same everywhere. I guess I've never attended Mass twice in the same weekend or day. It was totally random that I just kept listening to the live feed of my hometown church.

I remain suspicious this reading was chosen for this weekend with everything in the news. I didn’t feel comfortable with the reading and the even crueler sermons after. It didn’t feel Catholic to me. And I know my husband and I weren’t the only two people in the pews side-eying what we were hearing.

Remain as suspicious as you like, but current events had absolutely nothing to do with that reading being this Sunday.

Okay, we’ve covered that. I guess the more concerning part would be priests in different regions of the U.S. taking that allegedly random assigned reading to launch into racist or at least classist welfare queen tropes and demonizing the modern underclass as lazy moochers with no dignity. While those same tropes are being trafficked on the news, on podcasts, used by politicians to shut down the government, and racist videos with those themes are going viral on social media at a scale I’ve never witnessed in my life.

It isn’t “allegedly random”. These readings are on a 3-year cycle, as someone else has already posted. They are published WELL ahead of time.

Also, did the priests actually say all that stuff, or are you simply assuming they did?

OP, can you post the videos, if they were recorded? I’d love to see what was actually said and not what PPs assume was said. I’m guessing it’s Biblically-based and not some lecture about current events.

I’m certainly not going to dox two priests and two churches my family attends, so don’t ask again.

It is your contention that priests are totally oblivious to current events and the government shut down and its impact on SNAP? They are also oblivious that a major theme being pushed by the MAGA right wing is low and middle class Americans are lazy and entitled and if they can’t afford soaring food costs — or soaring housing, college and student loans, health care, a car, kids or a wedding — it’s their own fault because they don’t work hard enough? Compared to model immigrants who will sleep on a floor and work 100 hours a week. President Trump just this week told Fox News this week Americans are lazy and talentless and that’s why we need millions of foreign visa students and workers annually.

How can anyone discern what was actually said at the Mass if we can’t hear it for ourselves?

And I don’t believe it’s “doxxing” a priest to put a link to a publicly available video. Most of the Catholic churches around here have pretty big congregations, so no one is going to know who you are if you just give the name of the local parish.

I’ve already listened twice, as I went back to listen and confirm the reading. I have not mischaracterized the dialogue. And again, the priest located several states away was worse than the local.

What did the priest say?

Two priests in two different regions of the country who think the poor should starve if they don't have a job or a job paying them enough. The poor need tough love and need to discover the dignity of hard work! Two maybe three jobs, if needed! And this posture is totally unrelated to the right wing regressive austerity garbage being astroturfed around the country and parroted by Trump, Vance, and most Republicans. :roll:

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:They are trying to create a schism in the church. The American Catholics are cash-rich and are being heavily influenced by Vance's group - MAGA politics. The Italian Catholic church has a lot of expensive real estate but no cash and is heavily influenced by Pope Leo/Pope Francis and traditional Catholic values like care for the poor. One of the reasons Pope Leo was chosen was to keep the American Catholics from taking their cash and going. The fight is going to get ugly and from your report, it seems Pope Leo might be losing.

Leo is clearly "winning," and OP did not provide proof that the alleged sermons went down the way OP claimed.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Here is the lectionary for this Sunday:

https://bible.usccb.org/daily-bible-reading

It has been set for a long time, so the appearance of the one out four passages in which Paul talks about how the the early Christians worked to feed themselves instead of relying on the communities where they traveled to evangelize to provide charity.

If an idiot priest chose to take this one verse out of context and interpret it to mean that there shouldn’t be SNAP, well that’s not a surprise because it’s a known fact that there are MAGA priests, but that is certainly not the only way to interpret it, nor is it consistent with other passages like the story of loaves and fishes.

Now, if someone wanted to interpret it to mean that Christians who travel to Evangelize should be very careful not to burden the communities they visit then I would agree.

I’m OP. The priests didn’t literally say “SNAP” or “welfare” or “EBT” or any other gov assistance terms in the news and viral on social media the last few weeks — that was me reading between the lines. It just seemed awfully coincidental two Catholic churches which are totally unaffiliated with each other had the same reading and two priests had similar interpretations and expansions essentially demonizing poor people on welfare as lazy, idle, and lacking dignity — albeit the hometown priest was much more aggressive and even used some old school urban “welfare queen” dog whistles.

Every Catholic church in the US, maybe in the world, uses the same lectionary (a document that assigns readings to days), so it's not really a "coincidence" that two Churches would use the same readings this Sunday. But the priest didn't choose them.

I'm not defending his choice to interpret it that way. The Catholic church is very much in favor of feeding people, and does a lot of work towards that goal. This is MAGA infecting the church, and not the position of the church as a whole.

Here is a statement from one of the top Catholic archbishops on the SNAP issue.

https://www.usccb.org/news/2025/archbishop-broglio-urges-funding-lifesaving-programs-and-end-federal-government-shutdown

I disagree with the USCCB on many things. But not on this.

Interesting. I didn’t know the readings were the same everywhere. I guess I've never attended Mass twice in the same weekend or day. It was totally random that I just kept listening to the live feed of my hometown church.

I remain suspicious this reading was chosen for this weekend with everything in the news. I didn’t feel comfortable with the reading and the even crueler sermons after. It didn’t feel Catholic to me. And I know my husband and I weren’t the only two people in the pews side-eying what we were hearing.

Remain as suspicious as you like, but current events had absolutely nothing to do with that reading being this Sunday.

Okay, we’ve covered that. I guess the more concerning part would be priests in different regions of the U.S. taking that allegedly random assigned reading to launch into racist or at least classist welfare queen tropes and demonizing the modern underclass as lazy moochers with no dignity. While those same tropes are being trafficked on the news, on podcasts, used by politicians to shut down the government, and racist videos with those themes are going viral on social media at a scale I’ve never witnessed in my life.

It isn’t “allegedly random”. These readings are on a 3-year cycle, as someone else has already posted. They are published WELL ahead of time.

Also, did the priests actually say all that stuff, or are you simply assuming they did?

OP, can you post the videos, if they were recorded? I’d love to see what was actually said and not what PPs assume was said. I’m guessing it’s Biblically-based and not some lecture about current events.

I’m certainly not going to dox two priests and two churches my family attends, so don’t ask again.

It is your contention that priests are totally oblivious to current events and the government shut down and its impact on SNAP? They are also oblivious that a major theme being pushed by the MAGA right wing is low and middle class Americans are lazy and entitled and if they can’t afford soaring food costs — or soaring housing, college and student loans, health care, a car, kids or a wedding — it’s their own fault because they don’t work hard enough? Compared to model immigrants who will sleep on a floor and work 100 hours a week. President Trump just this week told Fox News this week Americans are lazy and talentless and that’s why we need millions of foreign visa students and workers annually.

How can anyone discern what was actually said at the Mass if we can’t hear it for ourselves?

And I don’t believe it’s “doxxing” a priest to put a link to a publicly available video. Most of the Catholic churches around here have pretty big congregations, so no one is going to know who you are if you just give the name of the local parish.

I’ve already listened twice, as I went back to listen and confirm the reading. I have not mischaracterized the dialogue. And again, the priest located several states away was worse than the local.

What did the priest say?

Two priests in two different regions of the country who think the poor should starve if they don't have a job or a job paying them enough. The poor need tough love and need to discover the dignity of hard work! Two maybe three jobs, if needed! And this posture is totally unrelated to the right wing regressive austerity garbage being astroturfed around the country and parroted by Trump, Vance, and most Republicans. :roll:

Still waiting for any real evidence that this was actually said. OP has seemingly disappeared and all of this is now rampant speculation.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Wow. The sermon at our non denominational church today was about helping the poor, the orphans, widows. There is a passage in the Bible about that. Jesus never said anything about not helping the idle poor. Sounds like the priest is one of those people who couldn't hack it in the real world so they went into an organization that pays for everything for them, even though they don't believe in everything the organization is about.

Don't mistake me. I know there are devout people who really believe in the message of Jesus, and so that's why they became pastors or priests. But, I also do know some who couldn't hack it in the real world, so they became pastors. These folks don't truly understand what Christ was about.

What would the Pope say about this sermon, I wonder.

If the sermon actually happened as OP claims ....

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I think this whole thread goes to show that most of those attending mass or service have no clue of whats actually in the Bible and they will blindly follow their priest/preacher.

That’s not remotely what this thread shows.

People have explained that Mass readings are on a schedule. They aren’t some targeted attack on current events. It’s kind of silly to assume that.

This has nothing to do with blindly following a priest.

Its has nothing to do with a schedule. Its about teaching crap that goes against what Jesus would have wanted.

OP claims to have a link and refuses to post it.

In any case, the Catholic Church is all about feeding those in need. No dispute about that.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Here is the lectionary for this Sunday:

https://bible.usccb.org/daily-bible-reading

It has been set for a long time, so the appearance of the one out four passages in which Paul talks about how the the early Christians worked to feed themselves instead of relying on the communities where they traveled to evangelize to provide charity.

If an idiot priest chose to take this one verse out of context and interpret it to mean that there shouldn’t be SNAP, well that’s not a surprise because it’s a known fact that there are MAGA priests, but that is certainly not the only way to interpret it, nor is it consistent with other passages like the story of loaves and fishes.

Now, if someone wanted to interpret it to mean that Christians who travel to Evangelize should be very careful not to burden the communities they visit then I would agree.

I’m OP. The priests didn’t literally say “SNAP” or “welfare” or “EBT” or any other gov assistance terms in the news and viral on social media the last few weeks — that was me reading between the lines. It just seemed awfully coincidental two Catholic churches which are totally unaffiliated with each other had the same reading and two priests had similar interpretations and expansions essentially demonizing poor people on welfare as lazy, idle, and lacking dignity — albeit the hometown priest was much more aggressive and even used some old school urban “welfare queen” dog whistles.

Every Catholic church in the US, maybe in the world, uses the same lectionary (a document that assigns readings to days), so it's not really a "coincidence" that two Churches would use the same readings this Sunday. But the priest didn't choose them.

I'm not defending his choice to interpret it that way. The Catholic church is very much in favor of feeding people, and does a lot of work towards that goal. This is MAGA infecting the church, and not the position of the church as a whole.

Here is a statement from one of the top Catholic archbishops on the SNAP issue.

https://www.usccb.org/news/2025/archbishop-broglio-urges-funding-lifesaving-programs-and-end-federal-government-shutdown

I disagree with the USCCB on many things. But not on this.

Interesting. I didn’t know the readings were the same everywhere. I guess I've never attended Mass twice in the same weekend or day. It was totally random that I just kept listening to the live feed of my hometown church.

I remain suspicious this reading was chosen for this weekend with everything in the news. I didn’t feel comfortable with the reading and the even crueler sermons after. It didn’t feel Catholic to me. And I know my husband and I weren’t the only two people in the pews side-eying what we were hearing.

Are the readings I linked the right ones? Because those are from the lectionary, which is a document that was written many years ago to assure that someone who attends Mass every Sunday hears the entire Bible over the course of 3 years.

I agree that the sermons you describe seem very un-Catholic. I also agree with you that the last few weeks before Advent have some very depressing passages. But I would argue that the priests you heard interpreted the epistle incorrectly.

No, the Lectionary (which is the book used at Mass that contains readings from the Bible) does not contain the entire Bible.

From the USCCB's website: What's the difference between a Bible and a Lectionary? A Lectionary is composed of the readings and the responsorial psalm assigned for each Mass of the year (Sundays, weekdays, and special occasions). The readings are divided by the day or the theme (baptism, marriage, vocations, etc.) rather than according to the books of the Bible. Introductions and conclusions have been added to each reading. Not all of the Bible is included in the Lectionary.

http://www.usccb.org/bible/understanding-the-bible/faq.cfm

I think the thee year cycle does cover the entire New Testament doesn’t it? At least the entire gospels but I thought the whole New Testament which is why you end up with some of Paul’s more random letters to some of the more random outlier areas. A good priest knows how to put those in historical context. I think this one was about anti-Christian sentiment, and Paul’s desire to minimize that as part of his mission to grow the church. I think also that the very early church thought the second coming was gojng to be pretty soon, so there were groups that were checking out of regular life and just praying/preaching all the time …. Which isn’t the way to be popular with the larger community or to build a lasting church that will endure for centuries, which was Paul’s goal. (If you think about it — if you thought end of days was gong to be pretty soon, would you be out planting your field and learning carpentry skills? Probably not. So I think Paul was exhorting people to sort of get back to work and support themselves because, while the end might be near, it might not be.)

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Here is the lectionary for this Sunday:

https://bible.usccb.org/daily-bible-reading

It has been set for a long time, so the appearance of the one out four passages in which Paul talks about how the the early Christians worked to feed themselves instead of relying on the communities where they traveled to evangelize to provide charity.

If an idiot priest chose to take this one verse out of context and interpret it to mean that there shouldn’t be SNAP, well that’s not a surprise because it’s a known fact that there are MAGA priests, but that is certainly not the only way to interpret it, nor is it consistent with other passages like the story of loaves and fishes.

Now, if someone wanted to interpret it to mean that Christians who travel to Evangelize should be very careful not to burden the communities they visit then I would agree.

I’m OP. The priests didn’t literally say “SNAP” or “welfare” or “EBT” or any other gov assistance terms in the news and viral on social media the last few weeks — that was me reading between the lines. It just seemed awfully coincidental two Catholic churches which are totally unaffiliated with each other had the same reading and two priests had similar interpretations and expansions essentially demonizing poor people on welfare as lazy, idle, and lacking dignity — albeit the hometown priest was much more aggressive and even used some old school urban “welfare queen” dog whistles.

Every Catholic church in the US, maybe in the world, uses the same lectionary (a document that assigns readings to days), so it's not really a "coincidence" that two Churches would use the same readings this Sunday. But the priest didn't choose them.

I'm not defending his choice to interpret it that way. The Catholic church is very much in favor of feeding people, and does a lot of work towards that goal. This is MAGA infecting the church, and not the position of the church as a whole.

Here is a statement from one of the top Catholic archbishops on the SNAP issue.

https://www.usccb.org/news/2025/archbishop-broglio-urges-funding-lifesaving-programs-and-end-federal-government-shutdown

I disagree with the USCCB on many things. But not on this.

Interesting. I didn’t know the readings were the same everywhere. I guess I've never attended Mass twice in the same weekend or day. It was totally random that I just kept listening to the live feed of my hometown church.

I remain suspicious this reading was chosen for this weekend with everything in the news. I didn’t feel comfortable with the reading and the even crueler sermons after. It didn’t feel Catholic to me. And I know my husband and I weren’t the only two people in the pews side-eying what we were hearing.

Are the readings I linked the right ones? Because those are from the lectionary, which is a document that was written many years ago to assure that someone who attends Mass every Sunday hears the entire Bible over the course of 3 years.

I agree that the sermons you describe seem very un-Catholic. I also agree with you that the last few weeks before Advent have some very depressing passages. But I would argue that the priests you heard interpreted the epistle incorrectly.

No, the Lectionary (which is the book used at Mass that contains readings from the Bible) does not contain the entire Bible.

From the USCCB's website: What's the difference between a Bible and a Lectionary? A Lectionary is composed of the readings and the responsorial psalm assigned for each Mass of the year (Sundays, weekdays, and special occasions). The readings are divided by the day or the theme (baptism, marriage, vocations, etc.) rather than according to the books of the Bible. Introductions and conclusions have been added to each reading. Not all of the Bible is included in the Lectionary.

http://www.usccb.org/bible/understanding-the-bible/faq.cfm

I think the thee year cycle does cover the entire New Testament doesn’t it? At least the entire gospels but I thought the whole New Testament which is why you end up with some of Paul’s more random letters to some of the more random outlier areas. A good priest knows how to put those in historical context. I think this one was about anti-Christian sentiment, and Paul’s desire to minimize that as part of his mission to grow the church. I think also that the very early church thought the second coming was gojng to be pretty soon, so there were groups that were checking out of regular life and just praying/preaching all the time …. Which isn’t the way to be popular with the larger community or to build a lasting church that will endure for centuries, which was Paul’s goal. (If you think about it — if you thought end of days was gong to be pretty soon, would you be out planting your field and learning carpentry skills? Probably not. So I think Paul was exhorting people to sort of get back to work and support themselves because, while the end might be near, it might not be.)

Your point is spot on but I assume most practitioners don't know or understand it. The earliest Christians literally thought that Jesus would be returning, likely within their lifetimes.

That perspective doesn't translate as well 2000 years later.

[Anonymous]

"Catholic" Steve Bannon is railing against SNAP benefits on his podcast today. Just another pure coincidence.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:"Catholic" Steve Bannon is railing against SNAP benefits on his podcast today. Just another pure coincidence.

You mean the "Catholic" who literally called the Pope the enemy? Yeah, not pursuasive as a bash against 'all Catholics everywhere.'