We are good Catholics.
Every summer we come down to reality from the plastic world in which we live. Yes, we come home, to India. On our first trip home, we felt guilty….was it that we had realized our cowardice in having run away from life as we saw, nothing had changed. There were as many beggar children malnourished and dying on the streets. At the other end of the spectrum, the rich had only found newer means to evade taxes and further their prospects in life. The divide was glaring and ugly.
One of the holiday rituals is giving to the poor, needy and deserving some of our wealth which should be rightfully theirs but which ironically, we ‘earn’ for doing a 9-5 job in air conditioned offices. We call it charity. It isn’t very different from pardon-certificates, if you consider the manner in which it is done – crisp new bank notes are sealed in virgin white envelopes and handed over to the organization head who will promise prayers and blessings for the family. We walk away with our conscience absolved and convince ourselves that we have indeed ‘done our part’. Next year, of course, the tradition continues.
Yes, charity is supposed to be a humbling experience.
8 comments:
yes, charity is supposed to be a humbling experience- but what's more, I feel too much of charity is being done either to feel good superficially(nothing personal), or because people say it is right or even to show off or reduce 'excess wealth'. Charity nowadays is more important than ever before- but important than it, is the proper excercising of the power- i.e. to ensure that charity is done to the right person for the right purpose and is done intelligently so that it reaches the person it is meant for. There are too many of cut-throat orgs. working in the name of charity.
Yes, if charity begins at home, it should stay there unless it reaches proper channels.
A good piece. Thought-invoking!
it is a good fact that we have charitable people in this world but it would be a great day indeed when charity is a thing of the past. when charity is no longer needed.
dream on huh?
Yea, what you said is true. Charity should be a humbling experience. But today, it has become a high profile drama. It is said in the Bible that your left hand should not know what your right hand gives..but does it happen like that today? Hardly!
i think these words are apt in this context:
"May we not be as foolish as we are almost bound to be. if we cannot eschew hatred, let us atleast eschew group hatred. May we see that we could have been born as each other. May we, in short, believe in humane logic, and perhaps, in due course ,love."
VIKRAM SETH ('TWO LIVES')
Shubho-> All that you say is very true.
CJ-> To see a day when charity is not needed?? That would be thinking very idealistically? I hope not.
Naveen-> Your left hand should not know what your right hand gives. That is touching isnt it? I wish we could all at least try to live by these wisdoms.
Shubho-> Thank you so much for that. I thought that was just beautiful and indeed very apt, in this context.
Well, I asked for some serious stuff and that's just what you have come up with, Nic. But then, it's not just being serious for the sake of being serious. This is a genuinely thought-provoking piece.
What I feel (and see sometimes) that charity is being used more as a mere tool for washing one's hands off bigger responsibilities than out of genuine concern for the less fortunate. While I don't deny that even mis-targeted or mis-intentioned (is there a word like that?) charity does do some good to humankind, the fact remains that it can be made much more effective and morally satisfying if directed properly (as Shubhodeep so rightly said).
And needless to say, genuinely good stuff from you, Nic!!!
to be a charitable person can only be good. we all should be charitable to each other and those less fortunate but there shouldn't be those less fortunate should there?
we all should be able to share the same wealth and health. it shouldn't be reserved for one section of world society. india, the phillipines, mexico are all poor whilst we in the UK and the west, to my shame and horror, live in realtive wealth. if there was a greater sharing of wealth and a better balance then we wouldn't need charity. so my point was not that we should stop being generous to those that need it but rather try, certainly the younger generation, to eradicate world poverty.
the catholic church as an organisation would do well to give what ever riches they have to those poor unfortunate souls that really need it!
x
Thought provoking, definitely. And not just that, it also kind of makes me wonder - what after the thought has been provoked? Do i plan to follow up on that? have i set in motion some sort of process?
i liked this. And not just for its wry cynicism.
write on
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