“The poor shall always be with you”: Simmel and the ambivalences of catholic charity in the Brazilian semiarid

Abstract

In this article we analyze, based on the theoretical contribution of Simmel the phenomenon of the reproduction of poverty as a recurring social phenomenon in several areas, the meanings of religious charity in general and specifically that promoted by the Catholic Church (IC) in their “Christmas without hunger” projects, in interface with the speeches on the Family Sponsorship Program (PBF). The empirical data on which we based ourselves were collected through a series of visits to churches in the Brazilian semiarid (SAB) (region of Catolé do Rocha and São Bento/PB), and by conducting semi-structured interviews with a non-probabilistic sample of 10 priests from that region, in addition to analysing material from informal conversations with PBF beneficiaries during the period when they received what is called the thirteenth and Christmas bonus in the states of Paraiba and Pernambuco, in 2019. We emphasize that the SAB conjuncture: (1) the charitable order persists strongly, given that access to income distribution programs, such as PBF, does not overcome the social vulnerability of the poorest sections of the population, which guarantees the continuity of the “Market for the poor”, which is interesting to various religions, NGOs and politicians who turn what they present as the fight against poverty into an electoral exchange currency; (2) the controlling bureaucratization of the aforementioned program has been intensified, sharpening the definition of miserability which makes individuals able to be included as beneficiaries, albeit at a gradually more limited pace and scope, strengthening the access to fundamental social rights based on the rules of the game established by the market.