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Good Morning When my father suffered a stroke, our family circumstances changed overnight; this included our family finances. We all helped my mum as much as we could especially with filling out the various benefits forms – there was no other income at the time. And even though as a family, we never went without, I remember my mum’s worried look every time a letter arrived about the money she was receiving. She was afraid of what might be taken away and I don’t think that fear ever left her. None of us know when our situation might change and a family can fall into hardship at any time. But the recent study published by the Joseph Rowntree Foundation says that severe material hardship in the UK was “no longer a rare occurrence.” The study finds that just under 4 million people faced destitution in 2022, impacting around 1 million children. We can see the word destitution as extreme or condemn these figures as a national shame. When I think of the word, it’s the image of a person begging on the street, huddled on the footpath, surrounded by a few ragged belongings. I don’t think of families who are working all hours but still struggling to feed and clothe their children, many unable to buy basic toiletries, parents who skip meals so their children don’t have to. And yet it is these very families for whom destitution has become a demoralising reality. Yes, the state provides as do so many charities and foodbanks. But if destitution is a complex societal issue, a fairer society can’t only depend on our sense of compassion but requires a greater call for justice. I’d like to think compassion is a quality we all possess but its often untrustworthy and selective, and it can have its limits. Perhaps this is why the Islamic pillar of zakat which is an obligation to give from your earnings, not an act of charity, remains a potentially powerful corrective on individual wealth. If prayer purifies your soul, then giving to those in need, through zakat purifies your remaining wealth. Being rich isn’t a crime but wealth loved as an end in itself can’t be our main contribution to the world. We can get lost in definitions but what’s certain is that we all pay a price for systemic inequality and poverty. For those struggling, it can lead to a sense of despair and exhaustion, a stigma on their lives. I think back to my mum’s resilience, how she encouraged us all to make something of our lives, but I wonder whether I really understood how fragile and alone she must have felt at times underneath her hopeful exterior.