My earliest memories of the concept of being charitable go back to probably first or second grade. I had attended mass with my mom. Afterwards, they handed out unassembled boxes to the churchgoers as they left. Mom explained to me that we were expected to go home, assemble our box and put our spare change in it for a couple of weeks. Then, she said, we were to take it back to the church and they would send it overseas. In my young mind, I had visions of the church leaders taking all these boxes to an ocean beach and releasing them for people in other countries to find on their own shores. I found it a nice thought, but also a giant waste. I mean, the likelihood that cardboard boxes filled with coins could float, let alone hold together long-term, was a slim chance. That’s what I thought, anyway. Of course, I’ve grown up (a bit) since then, and I realize the folly of my young perception. But we often make similar errors of judgement, even today, for the sake of being charitable.

Jonathan Edwards Resolution 13

The Problem with Modern Ways of Being Charitable

In Dancing in No Man’s Land, Brian Jennings quotes the Executive Director of Watered Gardens Gospel Rescue Mission, James Whitford;

“Compassion is the fuel, charity is the vehicle, justice is the destination.”

Jennings then ponders the reality that the ways we deliver on being charitable (which should be an act of love) makes a tremendous difference. His reflections reminded me a lot of the ideas shared in the book, When Helping Hurts, by Steve Corbett and Brian Fikkert. This book exposes the fundamental needs every person has. Readers also learn that poverty is more than a lack of financial or material resources. It takes so much more than donations and handouts. In fact, a lot of the efforts churches and non-profit organizations have engaged in are unintentionally undermining the people they're trying to help. The real goal of being charitable, the book contents, should be aimed at helping people empower themselves. In a similar way, Bob Lupton’s book, Toxic Charity, speaks to similar misconceptions. As a successful urban activist, Lupton speaks from experience about how being charitable can negatively impact the people being served. In fact, the book goes as far as to suggest we sabotage and oppress them in the process. So, is there a better way to understand and be charitable?

What is a Better Model of Being Charitable?

Early in my career in credit union marketing, I was introduced to the long-held mantra of “people helping people.” That ideal spoke to me on many levels, and helped me realize I was not taking a typical “bank job.” In fact, it’s what has enabled me to align my personal mission with my career. I do, however, take a small issue with the mantra. It suggests an end to a means. I suggests the indefinite reliance of the second set of people by those of the first set. Yes, there may always be some form of relational assistance for expertise, yet the real power lies in what “help” is actually provided. If it’s just opening accounts and cashing checks, that’s a thinly veiled “bank job.” It needs to go deeper. It needs to be about “people helping people… help themselves!” Here’s my point…

• Giving people a bag of groceries provides temporary nourishment.
• Paying a person’s utility bills gives them just another month of heat.
• A gas card will get a person to their one-time destination.
• In all these cases, we have to ask; “Then what?”

What if, instead of giving a bag of groceries, we helped people learn to budget, garden, store food, cook, and save on the costs of their food? Budgeting and basic money management can come in handy with utility bills as well. Of course, it doesn’t solve the immediate need. So why not, instead of just a handout, we offered a hand up? Maybe we offer a means for earning their utility bill payment. Odd jobs, yard work, painting, etc. Not only does it remedy their situation, it provides a much-needed means of worth. While we’re at it, let’s work along them and get to know them. Get to know them and form relationships. Who knows where it might prosper from there!

How Should We Go About Being Charitable?

Peter said, “I don’t have a nickel to my name, but what I do have, I give you: In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, walk!” He grabbed him by the right hand and pulled him up. In an instant his feet and ankles became firm. He jumped to his feet and walked. - Acts 3:6-10 MSG

By no means do I think we should stop giving to those in need, nor do I think giving money to worthy causes is not being charitable. In fact, the Bible says a lot about how we are must care for those in need. However, I do think we need to remember that it’s not a “box to be checked” though. Being charitable is a way of Christian living. As St. Augustine said;

“Charity is a virtue which, when our affections are perfectly ordered, unites us to God, for by it we love him.” (De Moribus Eccl. xi)

What I find interesting is the fact that charity is not found in many translations of the Bible. It shows up most often in the King James Version, and is pretty much synonymous with “love.” In fact, if you were to read 1 Corinthians 13 - what is often called the great “love chapter” - in the KJV translation, everywhere we are so accustomed to reading “love” it says “charity.” Could it be that our culture has strayed from an understanding of what it means to be charitable? I think so. And I think we need to realize that as we consider Edwards’ resolution here. We must as Bob Goff says about love and charity, be incredibly inefficient with our love when it comes to our relationships with others.