Buddhist Catholic Contemplative Evangelical General Christian Hindu Jewish Latter-day Saint Muslim New Visions Progressive Christian

Beliefs

Topics

Columnists

Resource Library

Research Tools

Video

Podcasts

Thought Readers

Faith In Media Tracker

Newsletters

Ad-Free & Subscriber Log-In Subscription Support

Follow Patheos

Christian Piatt

Home
Progressive Christian
Hungry as Dogs: We Don’t Really Understand Charity

Hungry as Dogs: We Don’t Really Understand Charity

Last updated on: October 22, 2014 at 8:46 pm by Christian Piatt

Hungry as Dogs: We Don’t Really Understand Charity 2014-10-22T20:46:12+00:00 Christian Piatt

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

Following is excerpted from “postChristian: What’s left? Can we fix it? Do we care?” (Hachette/Jericho, Aug 2014)

Any Christian—and arguably, any socially aware human being—would agree that having concern for our neighbor should be a core value of any society. And yet, we hardly have to look beyond the boundaries of our own doorstep to see evidence all around us that there is unmet need, unnecessary suffering, and unchecked oppression and violence. We know what is right, but we don’t really do all we can to make it right.

We might ask ourselves why, save for the fact that the answer we might discover is likely to be one we don’t really want to hear: Drop everything and follow me. Sell all you own and give it to the poor.

There hardly seems to be a point, though. I could sell all of my worldly possessions, give them to people in need, and there would still be an overwhelming amount of need, right there in front of me. Not only that, but now I’m among the poor, vulnerable, and in need of help. Plus I’ve lost the means to keep giving, because now I’ve given up all I had. Maybe it makes more sense to stay where I am, carve a little bit off the top (well, maybe not off the very top, but after I make sure the basics are covered for me and my loved ones), give it to a good cause, and then go about my business of making more with the intent of giving some more. Once I get more, that is.

Author Jack London says, “A bone to the dog is not charity. Charity is the bone shared with the dog, when you are just as hungry as the dog.” We may be willing to give from what’s left, but this isn’t the sort of sacrificial generosity to which we’re called by Jesus’ example. Our world tells us that the one who dies with the most toys wins, but the message of Jesus is different; if one is suffering, we all fall short.

Giving something to charity isn’t really the same as living every day with a charitable heart. Granted, we are called to give generously to others from what we have, but a charitable heart goes further. But we are also called to change the systems we live in which cause the inequities in the first place. The challenge is deeper, more complex, and more personal than this. We can give large sums of money to a good cause or dedicate our lives to social justice work, and yet the notion of Christ-like charity can elude us.

We, the System

Speaker, pastor, and activist David Moore argues that Christianity has become so inured to the values and effects of capitalism within our religious institutions that we’re effectively blind to its presence:

What concerns me as a pastor is we have merged religion with hyper-capitalism to develop a sacrosanct and unassailable construct, and if anyone questions it, they are dismissed as un-American, a class warrior, or a Marxist. And Christians buy and sell that construct.i

Moore suggests that we enter into an implied social contract with the power-bearing institutions and systems in our lives. How this functions: we do not threaten their existence, and in exchange, they help us feel satisfied and good about ourselves. This may sound particularly cynical on the surface, but consider, for a moment, the following parallels:

A clothing company has a shirt to sell. To close the deal, they must offer you the greatest perceived value at the lowest possible cost. The actual price is on the sticker. In the free market system where competition is fierce, these companies strain for every advantage possible by keeping labor, material, and distribution costs low. Savvier consumers express concerns about where the raw materials are sourced, whether the labor conditions of workers are fair, and if the company’s business model is environmentally friendly. Most of us, however, know little or nothing about the products we buy on a daily basis. If the seller makes us feel good about our purchase, all the better. In the last decade, we have been trained to check for key terms such as “fair trade,” “organic” or “eco-friendly,” but we’re only willing to pay so much for these add-ons. Ultimately, the transaction is consummated as long as the company can make us feel good enough about the purchase to hand over our money and think little about how it was sourced.

Another example: A political party has a candidate they are positioning for public office. In order to gain the office, they have to secure a certain number of votes. To do that, they have to campaign, which costs money. To inspire people to action, they cast a grand vision, telling you that you’re an integral part of that vision. We are the agents of change and transformation for which you long, they claim. All they need from you in order to make that happen is your vote, perhaps a contribution, and maybe a few hours on the ground in your neighborhood on behalf of your candidate. In exchange, the political system will validate your efforts and reward your faithfulness by assuring you that you are the inspiration at the heart of the movement. By taking a little bit of time and money to support the campaign, you are ensuring that all the values you hold dear will finally be realized.

Your church does good things in the community. They have a food pantry, an annual mission trip to South America, and 10 percent of all offerings that come in go back out to local and global mission projects. In fact, they’ve recently embarked on a capital campaign to add a new wing to the facility, which will house a gym that will be open three evenings a week to the community. What is required of you is to lend your support in the form of an additional tithe, ongoing prayer, and maybe a few hours on the weekends to help with painting and landscaping. You maintain your present way of life while also helping out an institution whose mission you believe is worthwhile. And on Sundays, the pastor assures you that you are, indeed, living out the call of Christ to serve those in need.

In each of these scenarios, though it may be subtle, the pattern is clear. In each case, we’re engaging in a transaction. Each time, the system requires something from us, and in order to achieve a desired goal, it offers you the highest perceived reward at the lowest possible cost. The transaction takes place when you lend your support and/or resources to the system (be it political, economic, or religious), and the system, in turn, validates your commitment and helps you feel good about your decision.

The problem arises when it becomes clear that a system’s primary goal is not the ideals set forth to the consumer (your purchase helps save rain forests; your vote ensures justice for the oppressed; your tithe feeds the “least of these”), but rather the perpetuation of the system itself.

It’s easy to vilify “the system,” as if it were some abstract entity with a will of its own. But at the heart of every institutional organization are human hearts, minds, and ambitions. We are, in effect, “the system.”

Our Four Responses

There are four responses to perceived injustice, suffering, violence, or inequality to consider. In some instances, Christianity addresses these well; other times, not so much. Often, we respond with some combination of the following, and yet we fail to effect the kind of real, radical change we’re called to as followers of Christ:

Freely giving time and material wealth toward a worthwhile cause

Earnestly working for systemic change (i.e., social justice) to rectify the imbalance in the existing systems

Honestly identifying and confessing the complicity we have in being a part of corrupt systems that leads to the kind of violence, inequity, oppression, and injustice we claim to want to fix

Actively seeking to subvert the system entirely, acknowledging that it is inherently built on a set of values and principles that perpetuate the injustice

In general, most churches or denominations work well with the first kind of response. It would be hard to find a church without some kind of community outreach, either in the form of monetary gifts, community service work, or a combination of the two. But statistically at least, the issue of how deeply committed we are to charity is debatable. The United Nations estimates that the entirety of the world’s hunger problems could be solved with an annual budget of approximately $30 billion.ii Meanwhile, a recent study by The Economist magazine estimated that the Catholic Church in the United States alone had an annual combined budget of $170 billion in 2010, when all of the assets of the Church are considered together.iii So in theory, by allocating about one-sixth of the total budget of the Catholic Church in the United States to solving hunger (not counting any other denominations, religions, or even Catholic institutions outside the United States), hunger could conceivably disappear from the face of the earth.

i David Moore, “We Are Not Who You Think We Are,” Speech addressing the Black History Assembly, Feb 11, 2013

ii. Editorial, “The Price of Hunger,” Los Angeles Times, June 23, 2008. http://articles.latimes.com/2008/jun/23/opinion/ed-food23.

iii. “Earthly Concerns,” The Economist, August 18, 2012. http://www.economist.com/node/21560536.

Previous Post

October 6, 2014

Lederach’s Peace Train…And Coloring with Satan! (CultureCast)

Next Post

October 13, 2014 How Others View Christianity (#postChristian book tour trailer)

Browse Our Archives

Select a Category atonement belief bible Bill O'Reilly Buddhism CCM children christian piatt christianity Contemporary Christian Music current events derek flood Easter education Everyday Sunday faith faith and culture Frank Schaeffer great commission Haaz Sleiman Hobby Lobby Homebrewed Culture humor ISIS Jesus John Paul Lederach Killing Jesus LGBTQ marc driscoll Mission Year Music My Jesus Project Nat Geo parenting politics popular culture postChristian prison reform Ray rice religion republicans sacrifice sexuality theology Uncategorized video violence wild goose festival World Vision young adults

Select a Month December 2017 November 2017 October 2017 September 2017 August 2017 July 2017 June 2017 May 2017 April 2017 March 2017 February 2017 January 2017 November 2016 October 2016 September 2016 August 2016 July 2016 June 2016 May 2016 April 2016 March 2016 February 2016 January 2016 December 2015 November 2015 October 2015 September 2015 August 2015 July 2015 June 2015 May 2015 April 2015 March 2015 February 2015 January 2015 December 2014 November 2014 October 2014 September 2014 August 2014 July 2014 June 2014 May 2014 April 2014 March 2014 February 2014 January 2014 December 2013 November 2013 October 2013 September 2013 August 2013 July 2013 June 2013 May 2013 April 2013 March 2013 February 2013 January 2013 December 2012 November 2012 October 2012 September 2012 August 2012 July 2012 June 2012 May 2012 April 2012 March 2012 February 2012 January 2012 December 2011 November 2011 October 2011 September 2011 August 2011 July 2011 June 2011 May 2011 April 2011 March 2011 February 2011 January 2011 December 2010 November 2010 October 2010 September 2010 August 2010 July 2010 June 2010 May 2010 April 2010 March 2010 February 2010 January 2010 December 2009 November 2009 October 2009 September 2009 August 2009 July 2009 June 2009 May 2009 April 2009 March 2009 February 2009 January 2009 December 2008 November 2008 October 2008 September 2008 August 2008 July 2008 June 2008 May 2008 April 2008 March 2008 February 2008 January 2008 December 2007 November 2007 October 2007 September 2007 August 2007 July 2007 June 2007 May 2007 April 2007 March 2007 February 2007 January 2007 December 2006 November 2006 October 2006 September 2006 August 2006

TAKE THE

Religious Wisdom Quiz

True or False: In Revelation, the New Jerusalem has ten gates, each made of a single pearl.

Select your answer to see how you score.

FALSE TRUE