Why is it so hard to get out of poverty in the Bible Belt?

Barbara Raab points out that your chances of escaping poverty depend on where you live in America. Location matters a great deal.

And now there is new research, published this week, showing that when it comes to the chances that a poor child born in America can climb up from the lowest rungs on the economic ladder, where that child lives may be more telling than previously thought. The researchers started by looking narrowly at questions of tax policy for poor parents, when they discovered something surprising but unmistakable in their data.

“Location matters, place matters,” says Nathaniel Hendren, a Harvard professor and one of the authors of the study. When it comes to a low-income child having a chance to climb up the economic ladder, “it matters where you grow up.”

Your best bet is to live in the West or Northeast. The deck is stacked against you in the industrial Midwest and "sunbelt" Southeastern states.

The odds of children from poor families moving into the middle class are significantly lower in the Southeast and industrial Midwest. Atlanta, Charlotte, Memphis, Raleigh, Indianapolis, and Columbus are some of the metropolitan areas where upward mobility seems to be seriously limited.

Not much upward mobility in the proverbial Bible Belt. I would think people that claim to be serious about following Jesus would want to lead the nation in giving the needy a hand up, not come in dead last. So what is going on here?

Here is a potential clue.

You found there are some factors that set upwardly mobile cities apart from others: a large and geographically dispersed middle class so that lower and upper classes live among one another; good schools; a high share of two-parent households; and populations engaged with religious and community organizations.

Since these are areas that profess strong engagement in religious organizations, that only leaves economic segregation, failure to educate the poor, and a high rate of single-parent households as potential differentiating factors. Perhaps there needs to be more discussion of generosity of spirit to go along with all the talk of sexual purity that is so popular in this region.

Speaking of generosity of spirit, it is funny the rich do not have to worry about downward mobility no matter where they live.

The study also suggested that mobility has its upside: for rich people. People born into relative wealth seem to stay wealthy, and they don’t seem to have a big risk of falling down the ladder.

It looks like the rich have perfected the art of Mammon worship. Their prayers for perpetual wealth have been answered. And this is likely to be their only reward according to that Jesus fellow.

I have to wonder what people imagine the Kingdom of God on earth as in heaven will look like. Will it be a gated community with mansions for some, hovels for others, and dungeons for the rest? Or will it be a place where are all are equal and cherished in the eyes of God? And what is our responsibility to bring us closer to a world that mirrors this future Kingdom? Are we to act as the hands of God to lift the burdens of others? Of course.

We are required to treat all as our sisters and brothers, as our mothers and fathers, and as our daughters and sons. That is the walk of Christ. Talking about Christ while turning a blind eye to the suffering of others betrays the Lord. No one will ever have faith in God because of the testimony of a hard-hearted person. That is not the witness that Christ expects of us. "Faith without works is dead."

It is troubling to see how difficult it is to escape poverty in some areas of the country. There are only two viable hypotheses. One is that too few of the financially comfortable are willing to do anything to help lift the poor out of despair. Or worse, perhaps the well-to-do folks are knocking down the ladders of opportunity. I doubt the Lord will applaud neglect or abuse, most especially by those who claim to believe he is their salvation. Christ is neither blind nor stupid.

We live in a society that idolizes greed. The historical Jesus as recorded in the four gospels makes it clear we are not to fall prey to materialism. What you did for those in need, you did for the Lord. On the other hand you lose points for neglecting or harming those in need. Everyone who has read the book of Matthew knows exactly what I am talking about.

Perhaps it would be wise for people of faith to work together to make sure everyone has enough to eat, a place to sleep, a good education, job opportunities, and care when old, sick, or disabled. That would mean putting aside petty disputes over theology and secular political ideology to find common ground among our brothers and sisters in Christ.

Ask yourself if you really hope the Lord returns soon, even tomorrow. Will he be pleased by what he finds? It will suck to be us if we are found bickering about bull crap while people are suffering in our midst. I doubt he will find that the least bit humorous. And that is an understatement.