GIVING TO THE POOR, BIBLICAL AND CULTURAL RESERVATIONS

When we first came to Belize, a seasoned missionary tried to discourage me from giving money to people unless they do some little job. Knowing well the words of Jesus to “Give to him who asks you, and from the one who would borrow from you, do not turn away”, I took his word with a grain of salt. Perhaps having a person do a little something seems good, but over the years, it has often been more of a nuisance to make work for someone, or letting them do something and then we have to pay them, like the man who often wants to wipe my windows while I shop, and then lays guilt on me to give him something. I have felt over the years that there must be American cultural values that try to restrain us from helping the poor as much as Biblical and cross cultural liabilities in sharing with the poor. To sort these out and separate them is a task that needs to be faced for anyone with means to help the poor in the cross cultural settings.

There are many reasons we have heard not to give handouts to the poor and needy:

It just makes them dependent and loose motivation to work.

“It is better to teach a man to fish than give him a fish.”

We really don’t have it to give.

They will misuse it.

They really don’t need it; just want us to make it easier for them.

They can make it without us when we are not here.

They will use it for something else than what they are asking for.

It is the church’s job, not our tax dollars that should help.

Someone else, their families should help.

Why are you helping them?

They will just come around here more and be a problem.

All these reasons not to give have one thing in common: it relieves us of responsibility and a guilty conscience in not helping them. That is not to say that there is not a half truth in most rationalizing about helping the poor. But where there is a half truth, there is also an excuse, or half lie- that is, the reason given is not the whole reason a person does not want to give.

There are various Biblical restraints or cautions in giving. Paul said in one church setting that those who would not work should not be given food by others. In the Belizean settings, those not willing to work should not be relieved of the need to work. I personally have said no to many young men on the streets of our town who begged for a dollar or less. Some will probably think I am mean or stingy unless I give a good one line real reason. But what of single mothers? Do they have to work before we have to help them just because they have children of irresponsible fathers who let their children go malnourished? Should we take the fathers to court if they do not respond to our challenge? And what of the children meanwhile?

Jesus said we should not cast our pearls before swine. It is easy to take the pearls as symbolic of our wealth, and the swine as poetic of the lazy, ungrateful, drug using poor, who however may have helpless children. It makes sense that regardless how much we have, we should not throw it around carelessly. This scripture no doubt is more of a warning about wasting our resources, perhaps even the Gospel to persons who will twist everything you say and use it against you.

Perhaps it would be applicable to giving money to a poor drug user, knowing what your money will be used for. This is a daily risk for us with one person, but it would be a poor excuse for closing our purse and heart to all persons of unknown repute, who, even as this one person we help, actually does have real, legitimate needs without a legitimate income most of the time.

The pat answer is to give in kind rather than cash. Sometimes that is much more inconvenient then practical and a choice has to be made, especially when children are involved.

There certainly is validity in the goal and serious commitment to help people earn a sufficient living by promoting various legitimate means such as job training, industry, or giving them real jobs where it is possible. I have felt many times that we should only give cash until we find a better way to help them. And we have done that. Welfare should be a temporary, emergency way of helping. Yet Jesus was realistic that “The poor you will always have with you.” This is because some have deficiency in supporting themselves through some handicap. The handicap may even be an undeveloped economy as far as jobs are concerned where it is much harder to make a living than when I was young in the USA.

Paul also warns people about being dependent on others, but he encourages people to work with their hands, (he assumes there is work to find.) so as to have more than you need so that you can help others, (which is assumed will always be around you.) Paul assumes that people have options of working productively if they so desire. This is far truer in some societies than others. The two billion poor people in the world are not just lazy. Their options for the most part are severally limited. The challenge in Belize is to help people have hope against many odds, to work as they can, and not to shrink and contend themselves with dependencies. I have met many people who would gladly work, who begged me for a job, and they keep trying, but rarely get a dependable 40 hour per week job. Chronic unemployment is a burden, and even for the semi-skilled, under-employment and part-time jobs, serious gaps in income are common.

Jesus had serious words about helping “the least of these my brothers” as a criteria in separating the sheep and the goats. John also declares that the one who can see his brother in need and closes his heart to him, providing he has the means, it is doubtful that the man has much comprehension of God’s love in his heart. It is thus impossible to be faithful to the Word and pass off one's responsibility by repeating half truths such as mentioned above. If these excuses are half truths, then we must take seriously the truths that are unspoken, and do the positive thing, rather than using the false part of the half truth to do nothing, which is the definitely wrong.

For the Christian, it is no option to do nothing. It is essential to do the best thing possible in the cultural and economic situation. It should always be remembered that many problems of poverty [in Belize for sure] are also related to sin and ignorance, so that the effective Christian must always be ready to have the Word and words of counsel, training, and challenge ready as he helps the poor though their poverty into the better Way of God.

                                                                                                                Thanksgiving Day

                                                                                                                November 24, 2005