September Appeal
Is not one of our problems today that we have separated ourselves from the poor and the wounded and the suffering? We have too much time to discuss and theorize and have lost the yearning for God which comes when we are faced with the sufferings of people.
— Jean Vanier, Founder of L’Arche
I am not commanding you (to donate to those in need), but I want to test the sincerity of your love by comparing it with the earnestness of others. — 2 Cor 8:8
Dear Friends,
“You know, those people who ask for money in front of stores or at intersections? It’s a scam. They’re not really in need. I heard they get dropped off and picked up in nice cars and make thousands of dollars a day doing their begging.”
Twice recently I have heard such comments from friends of mine. I was shocked to hear them say such things as I regard these friends as kind and generous people. Obviously, I think their conspiratorial judgement on those seeking assistance is misguided at best. From my experience, merely looking at the person asking for assistance shows they are clearly in need. But it left me thinking: Where does their condemnation come from? Does seeing people in obvious distress make them uncomfortable? Are they scared of the feelings these people elicit in them? Are they fearful of people who are different from themselves? Are they fearful that they may end up in the same situation themselves? Is it just plain mean-spiritness? Or do they make up stories to justify their inaction to help someone in need?
I feel their response to those asking for assistance is an outward projection; judging the person in need to calm their own fears. Another response would be to turn the question inward: How am I going to respond to a person seeking my assistance? How can I think of those requests for money as a test of my own commitment to the Kingdom of God? “Am I going to say ‘yes’ to the Kingdom of God and this person’s request or am I going to say ‘no.’” I think of myself and how daily, multiple times a day, I come before God asking for mercy: “O God, help me! Forgive me!” Do I deserve God’s mercy? By human standards, definitely not. I have fallen short time and again, making the same mistakes over and over, but God has repeatedly shown me mercy. Should I not then show Mercy to others?
Are those asking for money worthy? Are they going to use whatever I give them in a manner I view as “proper?” I don’t know, and honestly, it’s not what I’m focused on. I try to view these requests for assistance as an opportunity to show mercy, to share the love of God, to show my commitment to the Way of God. Is one dollar or five dollars or even twenty dollars going to drastically change their lives or negatively impact me financially? No, it won’t. But I think it’s important to show another person a small act of kindness by looking them in the eye, addressing them respectfully, and performing a small act of kindness. This, I believe, is at the heart of the question of whether to give or not to give.
When I initially wrote the above piece, I thought it would only be a small reflection on giving to those in need. But in light of current events, I think my friends’ condemnation of those seeking assistance is emblematic of how our country is currently responding to all who are in need or different. At present, there is definitely a mean-spiritness pervading our society. There is the so-called “Big Beautiful Bill” recently passed by Congress which took away housing, food and health care assistance from the neediest of our society while giving tax breaks to the wealthiest. Then there is the hundred billion dollars allocated to ICE in the same bill to arrest, imprison, and deport so called dangerous immigrants. (Although they just seem to be rounding up anyone with brown skin, immigrant or not.) They’re also pouring money into building new prisons. And once those prisons are built and operating, they won’t be going away. Furthermore, the military has been deployed to Washington, DC to clear out the homeless, even though there is an acknowledged lack of affordable housing. And the president has threatened to do the same in other cities. The recent Supreme Court ruling criminalizing homelessness and presidential Executive Order demanding cities remove the unhoused make clear that the war on the unhoused is ramping up again. Clearly, the Christian Nationalists in control of our government don’t seem to follow the same Christ I do.
I could go on and on, but you get the point. Is what we’re seeing in our country a living out of the Kingdom of God or even an attempt to be a just and humane society? I think not. Those of us working at Catholic Worker Hospitality House stand in opposition to the direction our country is moving. We believe that by sharing what we have, we all become richer. As people of faith, we believe that we honor and follow the Way of God by caring for those in need. We will continue living out this faith through the daily practice of the Works of Mercy – feeding the hungry, sheltering the homeless, welcoming the stranger and immigrant, and visiting the sick and imprisoned. We thank you for your past support of this commitment and hope that you will continue helping us to be a light in the darkness by caring for those in need in our society.
In Christ’s Peace,
Peter Stiehler
Director
Catholic Worker Hospitality House
HOUSE NEEDS
- Cold cereal
- Canned soup
- Canned fruit
- Peanut butter and Jelly
- Pasta sauce
- Toilet paper
- Napkins
- Coffee,
- Creamer
- Sugar
- Money, for our ongoing expenses
WE NEED YOUR HELP! As you can tell from the above list, this is the time of year when our food stores and bank account are at their lowest. Could you help us with either in kind or monetary donations? Thank you
In every large city of the Western world, the poor are still stretching out their
hands for crumbs which fall from the rich man’s table. Only a few crumbs fall to them. There is little love from the rich to the poor. Doesn’t anyone see that in each of the poor it is Christ who begs? When shall we who call ourselves Christians begin to be Christ- like, and to love as he commanded us? “It is by your love for one another, that everyone will recognize you as my disciples.” (John
13:35)
— Catherine Doherty, Living the Gospel without Compromise
WHAT TO DO IN A TIME OF DARKNESS
You are the light of the world…let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your father in heaven. — Matt. 5:14,16
When the powers-that-be dismiss the bearers of bad news, we will speak the truth whether it’s popular or not.
When leaders, or anybody else, misrepresent the truth we will kindly correct them and inform them of the truth.
When the authorities disparage and arrest immigrants and the unhoused or whoever else they may target, we will open our hearts and doors to welcome and care for them, remembering that we are all children of God and equally loved by God.
When we see politicians giving tax breaks to the wealthiest while cutting basic services for those most in need, we will share our wealth with those in need.
We will refuse to live in or be part of the darkness; instead, the witness of our lives – our love, compassion, and generosity – will be a light to others bringing hope into the world.