A basic moral test is how our most vulnerable members are faring. In a society marred by deepening divisions between rich and poor, our tradition recalls the story of the Last Judgment (Mt 25:31-46) and instructs us to put the needs of the poor and vulnerable first. 

Scripture

Exodus 22:20-26 - You shall not oppress the poor or vulnerable.   God will hear their cry.

Leviticus 19:9-10 - A portion of the harvest is set aside for the poor and the stranger.

Job 34:20-28 - The Lord hears the cry of the poor.

Proverbs 31:8-9 - Speak out in defense of the poor.

Sirach 4:1-10 - Don’t delay giving to those in need.

Isaiah 25:4-5 - God is a refuge for the poor.

Isaiah 58:5-7 - True worship is to work for justice and care for the poor and oppressed.

Matthew 25:34-40 - What you do for the least among you, you do for Jesus.

Luke 4:16-21 - Jesus proclaims his mission: to bring good news to the poor and oppressed.

Luke 6:20-23 - Blessed are the poor, theirs is the kingdom of God.

1 John 3:17-18 - How does God’s love abide in anyone who has the world’s good and sees one in need and refuses to help?

God's word teaches that our brothers and sisters are the prolongation of the incarnation for each of us: "As you did it to one of these, the least of my brethren, you did it to me" (Mt 25:40). The way we treat others has a transcendent dimension: "The measure you give will be the measure you get" (Mt 7:2). It corresponds to the mercy which God has shown us: "Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful. Do not judge, and you will not be judged; do not condemn, and you will not be condemned. Forgive, and you will be forgiven; give, and it will be given to you . . . For the measure you give will be the measure you get back" (Lk 6:36-38). What these passages make clear is the absolute priority of "going forth from ourselves toward our brothers and sisters" as one of the two great commandments which ground every moral norm and as the clearest sign for discerning spiritual growth in response to God's completely free gift. (Pope Francis, The Joy of the Gospel [Evangelii Gaudium], no. 179)To be continued