Charity in Practice

[OnWings]

I’m trying to understand charity and what it means in practice. I’ve thought of a few example situations. Could anyone answer whether any of these might be charitable or sinful?

1. Someone is talking to you and you don’t say very much. You’re not bearing a grudge or anything, you’re just not feeling chatty, or you have a generally quiet personality. The other person becomes uncomfortable and wonders if something’s wrong and thinks maybe you don’t like them. Could this be sinful in any circumstance? And on the other side, is it charitable to try to be very friendly, warm, and talkative when someone is trying to engage you in a conversation? Is it necessary to do this? Is there more obligation to be friendly and talkative with family members and spend time engaging with them? What about the other way around, if you made people uncomfortable by talking too much?
2. You give someone a sincere compliment in order to be friendly or cheer them up. Is this charitable?
3. A friendly dog demands to be petted, and you refuse because you are busy or don’t feel like petting them. Is this sinful? Is petting a dog charitable?

 

[EssentialBeing]

The Catholic definition of “charity”

Charity, in Christian thought, the highest form of love, signifying the reciprocal love between God and man that is made manifest in unselfish love of one’s fellow men. Paul’s classical description of charity is found in the New Testament 1Corinthians 13

Another way of looking at it could be “to give without any expectation of receiving”

 

[brown_bear]

In fact, it is very important to find the right measure between talking too much and having words pulled out like a dental extraction: it is undoubtedly a good example of charity.

Making a compliment can certainly serve, but it depends a little on the circumstances, and also on the way: after all, here too it takes the right measure.

I think it’s a nice thing to pamper a dog a bit, but that not doing it is not a sin.

I liked this charity thing in practice, sometimes we are too abstract.

 

[Tis_Bearself]

“Uncharitable” generally means either that you have a pattern of acting coldly to people, or that you deliberately withheld some good thing that you easily could have done (omission), or deliberately did or said something cold or hurtful to another when it wasn’t absolutely necessary for their good or the good of others.

Charity does not require you to change your whole personality to make someone else feel comfortable. Most people would not be capable of keeping up such a personality change, or it would come off as insincere because it is.

Charity also does not require you to always drop everything you’re doing to pet a dog or even to give attention to another human. You need to strike a balance. If the animal or other person is having an urgent need or emergency, then you prioritize them. If it’s not urgent, then maybe you can get back to them later.

I’m a little disturbed by the “is this a sin” reasoning you’re using. Worrying about sinning is not the best way to improve our practice of a virtue.

 

[kapp19]

Charity starts with loving God - which, as John tells us, means at least following the Commandments… this overflows into wanting the good of all human beings because God wants their good too. We love those who are loved by the one we love, no?

It’s not about being nice or pleasant… though those are good things too.