But it's not just sudden tragedies, but also tragedies like poverty, inadequate health care, and others that invite speculation about adequate solutions. Right now, taxes, federal/state indebtedness, and related issues have been in the public debate. Some of my Christian friends have said (paraphrasing), “Ideally, the church should be helping the sick, not the government." But when I think about that, I wonder how we can realistically address the tremendous medical and mental health needs of millions of persons solely through private charitable efforts. It’s a well-intentioned idea, but to me not very practical. We need some kind of combination of government assistance, government oversight, and private charitable work. And yet, the questions remain: what kind of combination? What are the limits of government assistance and oversight?
I thought of the problems of hunger and homelessness this past week, as my family and I enjoyed a week in San Diego. We passed numerous folk, some with shopping carts with their belongings, and all these persons held simple signs describing their situation and requesting financial help. I’ve always been told to resist giving money to such persons directly; it's better to support agencies that know their needs and can provide assistance. I’ve also heard that a still-better way to help impoverished persons is to address social conditions that contribute to poverty.
Still, I think although that's true, here is an actual person who looks very despairing. Like the issues of adequate health care for the needy, it's difficult to know how best to address such a tremendous social challenge.
“We must change people’s hearts,” you might say. But bringing people to Christ (an excellent way to change people's hearts!) unfortunately doesn't automatically make people better. Millions of people who profess Christ are just as flawed and difficult, if not more so, than they were before; having more loving, Christlike hearts is a lifelong process. In fact, I worry that in our hyper-partisan times, we Christians are becoming more bitter and divisive along with the culture, so that there is nothing particularly unique about our witness.
So I think: maybe we Christians should get our own hearts fixed better, before we worry about the hearts of others.... But that, too, isn't a good solution when there are troubled people in immediate need.
My wife Beth says that she read a tweeted article, suggesting that movie theaters should ban costumes at movies. That seems ludicrous, as does another idea I heard, installing metal detectors in theatres. Even worse are horrible articles that I’ve read this past weekend, accusing liberals, Democrats, and others for creating a society with no moral underpinnings. Talk about bitter, partisan blame! There are probably also articles that fault conservatives who use gun-related rhetoric of creating a growing amorality in the county. But here again, partisan blame may temporarily feel good, and analysis of cultural trends may be helpful, but for real solutions, I think we need a better sense in our nation that "We're all in this together."
I admit I’ve no solutions. Sometimes tragedies do reveal clear remedies; the sinking of the Titanic, for instance, taught important lessons about adequate lifeboats and safer trans-Atlantic routes. But social problems so often resist simple resolution. Perhaps the grasping for solutions and possibilities is a way that we express grief at tragedies that move us particularly deeply.
I think, too, that the simple solutions of changing our own hearts, and of responding with love and concern to those around us, can have an amazing reach. We won't solve the world's big problems. But how do you know whether your kindness and concern might not have touched someone's heart, so that the person didn't ultimately descend into the kind of despair that lashes out in some awful way?
It really does start with ourselves. Your example about homeless people sitting and asking for money really hit home. My husband has probably the best way to help that I have come across.
ReplyDeleteIf someone asks for money, his first concern (being from cleveland) is to ensure that no one with him will be harmed if it turns out to be a scam and the person has bad intentions. He takes care of his own responsibilities first, to keep his family safe.
If that is the case, he doesn't simply hand out money and walk away. Too many people do that and it's as detrimental as doing nothing. He asks them what they need the money FOR. If it's food, he takes them to a nearby restaurant or grocery store. If it's legitimate medication, the nearest pharmacy. He makes sure he's satisfying their NEEDS, not just dropping dollar bills. He ensures that they have a purpose for the money, ensures that it is actually buying what they need and not drugs or alcohol, and most importantly, he follows through. He tells them the charity is not free. He asks them to tell their story. He offers what advice he can, but most importantly, a sympathetic listening ear.
One man in East Cleveland, he took out for pizza (after making me go inside and lock the doors) and learned that although he had only a moldy loaf of bread in the shack he was staying and hadn't eaten a day or two, he would have bought drugs with the money. Two young kids that he took to McDonald's shared that they were on their own, at 12 and 14, and the older was trying to keep the younger in school, but both were wary of people as they'd been beaten a lot. My husband sent them off with a few extra Big Macs to keep for awhile and some advice and offers of other help down the road if they could stay in school.
That was rather a long explanation, but I admire my husband very much for this approach. I DO think that personal and private charity is the best way to remedy social problems. Governments have issues with that, not least because the more population you put under a program, the more bureaucratic it gets, and the fewer people you end up helping.
But there should be rules to charity. Too many give and never give a second thought. They don't follow through. "Irresponsible charity" can be just as detrimental as leaving people to their own devices.
People need to learn to truly take care of their responsibilities first, and to learn how to give truly of themselves instead of just of their paycheck. They need to learn how to take care of people's NEEDS and not just what they are asking for.
Thanks for your thoughts! Your husband is truly caring for people and is a wonderful example of a way to reach out to folks in need!
Delete