The IM Writers Association. We aim to create a community of writers who share a common faith and passion for writing that advances the Life of Jesus Christ. Consider assisting us with our costs - a safe donor link is available HERE. #94 | CHRISTIAN CHARITYIDENTITY POLITICS | Mark Boonstra: Give liberally and be ungrudging when you do so, for on this account the Lord your God will bless you in all your work and in all that you undertake.
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Christian Charity42 million people receive SNAP benefits in America today.SNAP, of course, is the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program administered by the United States Department of Agriculture. Its predecessor was what we used to call “food stamps.” Feeding the poor has long been not only a worthy goal, but one of God’s commands. Indeed, in imparting God’s law to the Israelites upon crossing the River Jordan, Moses declared: If there is among you anyone in need, a member of your community in any of the towns within the land that the Lord your God is giving you, do not be hard-hearted or tight-fisted toward your needy neighbor. You should rather open your hand, willingly lending enough to meet the need, whatever it may be. [Deuteronomy 15: 7-8.] He continued: Give liberally and be ungrudging when you do so, for on this account the Lord your God will bless you in all your work and in all that you undertake. Since there will never cease to be some in need on the earth, I therefore command you, “Open your hand to the poor and needy neighbor in your land.” [Deuteronomy 15: 10-11.] A wise King Solomon later wrote, “Whoever oppresses a poor man insults his Maker, but he who is generous to the needy honors him.” [Proverbs 14: 31.] “Whoever is generous to the poor lends to the Lord, and he will repay him for his deed.” [Proverbs 19:17.] Jesus himself taught, “Whoever has two tunics is to share with him who has none, and whoever has food is to do likewise.” [Luke 3:11.] Unfortunately, recent events have reminded us that worthy goals are not enough. And that even worthy goals can be manipulated for unworthy purposes. And can be lost even in a world of good intentions. For more than 40 days, 42 million SNAP recipients were held hostage. Hostage to their own government. Victims of a shutdown. Pawns in a battle of political agendas. They deserved better.That 42 million people could become political pawns provides us with an opportunity, however. An opportunity to rethink how we do things. To chart a better course. To return to Christian charity.There is an old adage: “Charity begins at home.” In other words, take care of your family first. But as a noted 17th-century British clergyman, Thomas Fuller, once said, “Charity begins at home, but should not end there.” Charity, of course, has existed since ancient times. It didn’t begin with SNAP. In the Roman Empire, for example, the wealthy contributed to civic institutions through a practice called euergesia (good works). While some of their largesse filtered down to help the truly needy, the motivation often was not a heart-felt desire to help the less fortunate. Giving, instead, was a means of achieving a certain social status or public position. So too in America today. Sadly.For while there undoubtedly are many in government who truly wish to help the needy, let’s be honest. For too many of our politicians, the needy are simply a means to an end. And the end is power. Power and control. Euergesia by another name. In politics, it’s all too easy to offer “free stuff.” After all, who doesn’t want something for free? But “free stuff” is too often designed just to buy votes. To garner political loyalty. To ensure that politicians stay in power. It isn’t Christian charity. It’s self-motivated, not Christ-motivated. America is unique because our Founding Fathers recognized that our rights and liberties come from God, not from any government. As John Adams noted in 1765, in his Dissertation on the Canon and Feudal Law, the poor, as much as the rich, have rights that are “undoubtedly, antecedent to all earthly government,—Rights, that cannot be repealed or restrained by human laws—Rights derived from the great Legislator of the universe.” But “free stuff,” without more, breeds a dependency on government over God. It fosters an entitlement mentality. It undermines self-reliance and personal responsibility. And sometimes it is designed to do just that. It needs, instead, to be coupled with a helping hand designed to bolster resourcefulness, self-sufficiency, and ingenuity. Measures that will address the root causes of poverty and help liberate the vulnerable from its clutches. And it needs to be motivated by true Christian charity. The early Christian church brought something new to the world. Something beyond euergesia. It brought Christian charity as an act of love and humility. It brought compassion modeled on the life of Jesus Christ. It brought a ministry of the mind, body, and spirit. And it did so not to achieve personal gain or power, but as an act of worship to God. The early apostles healed the sick and the crippled. [Acts 3:1-10; 5:12-16.] They cared for the needy: “With great power the apostles gave their testimony to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus, and great grace was upon them all. There was not a needy person among them, for as many as owned lands or houses sold them and brought the proceeds of what was sold. They laid it at the apostles’ feet, and it was distributed to each as any had need. [Acts 4:32-36.] As the Apostle Paul journeyed throughout the then-known world, establishing churches and preaching the Gospel, he described that “they asked us to remember the poor, the very thing I was eager to do.” [Galatians 2:10.] That mindset of Christian charity eventually found its way to the New World. And to the Founding Fathers of our great nation.Before modern-day secular society foisted upon us a never-intended “separation of church and state,” the church was front and center in people’s lives. In colonial America, churches were often the first institutions established in newly formed communities. They held worship services, to be sure, but they did much more than that. They established schools. They served as meeting-places. Church leaders served as civic leaders. The church was integral to the community. And churches tended to the poor and less fortunate, establishing charitable organizations and programs to help those in need. Among them was the multi-denominational Society for the Relief of Poor Widows with Small Children. Among its members was Eliza Hamilton, the devout Christian wife of Alexander Hamilton. And among its benefactors was Hugh Williamson, a signer of the United States Constitution from the state of North Carolina. Indeed, ministering to the mind, body, and soul of the less fortunate was on the hearts of many of our Founding Fathers. Benjamin Rush, a signer of the Declaration of Independence from Pennsylvania, opened a medical practice focused on serving the poor. He also founded Dickinson College to bring “the light of science and religion” to poor Pennsylvania students. Abraham Clark, a signer of the Declaration from New Jersey, studied law, regularly dispensed legal advice to those who could ill afford it, and built a reputation as the “poor man’s counselor.” A young Benjamin Franklin penned his own liturgy in 1728 entitled, Articles of Belief and Acts of Religion, which he used in his personal devotions. It included:
Henry Marchant, a signer of the Articles of Confederation from Rhode Island, wrote to his daughter in 1777: And while you look around you and see the great Priveleges and Advantages you have above what other Children have, of learning to read and write, of being taught the meaning of the Great Truths of the Bible, you must remember not to be proud on that Account, but to bless God, and be thankful and endeavour in your turn to assist others with the knowledge you may gain. And be kind and good to all poor People, and poor Children that have not your Opportunity, especially in a kind and tender Manner assist your Sister and Brother. . . . Let us all be thankful to God for giving us such a Plenty of the Fruits of the Earth. James McHenry, a signer of the Constitution from Maryland, founded the Maryland Bible Society “to encourage the circulation, distribution, and printing of the Bible in all languages without note or comment,” especially to the poor. John Langdon, a signer of the Constitution from New Hampshire, did the same in his state and with the American Bible Society. In 1812, McHenry gave an address to the people, imparting: We call, therefore, upon the rich and all whose circumstances admit of their promoting this undertaking; in the words Moses addressed to the Israelites, “open thy hand unto thy brother, to the poor, and to thy needy in thy land, for such shall never cease out of this land. Open thy hand to procure for thy poor and needy, the only books which can teach them patience and resignation, and enable them to invisage without envy or heartburning, the various bounties of the creation enjoyed by others, while they are doomed to linger out life in labour, pain and sorrow.” . . . All Christians allow that the Old and New Testaments taken together, are the only books in the world which clearly reveal the nature of God, contain a perfect law for our government, propose the most powerful persuasions to obey this law, and furnish the best motives for patience and resignation, under every circumstance and vicissitude of life. . . . Consider also, the rich do not possess aught more precious than their Bible, and that the poor cannot be presented by the rich with anything of greater value. Withhold it not from the poor. It is a book of councils and directions, fitted to every situation in which man can be placed. It is an oracle which reveals to mortals the secrets of heaven and the hidden will of the Almighty. It is a power that can eject the heaviest burthen. It is an armory which furnishes a sure defence against oppression and calumny. It is the genuine balm for wounded hearts. It is an antidote to the poisons which lie concealed in the cup of pleasure. It is a mountain from whose summit are seen the height and depth, the bearings and the boundaries of sin and iniquity. It is a fountain of delight which no drought can dry up. It is a country lofty and serene, laid out into beautiful landscapes, the view of which never satiates or wearies. It is an estate, whose title is guaranteed by Christ, whose delicious fruits ripen every season, survive the worm, and keep through eternity. Is there a role for government in all of this? Certainly. Even in colonial New England, the puritans established a civic institution known as the Overseers of the Poor. Among its Massachusetts board members was Samuel Holten, a signer of the Articles of Confederation. But perhaps it’s time to rethink our approach.Should we simply cede this responsibility to an increasingly secular government? Should we be content to let it just dole out “free stuff” and nothing more? Or should we reinstitute true Christian charity, reengaging our churches and tending to the whole person—mind, body, and spirit? Mark’s Substack | Visit Mark’s Website
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