Do you ever give money to a homeless person holding a sign

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A well dressed guy asked me for gas money once at the gas station. I had just come from church so I gave him 20. I then saw him in my rear view mirror hitting up someone else for money and then leaving the station. He didn’t even have a car.
 
Tis_Bearself said:
A well dressed guy asked me for gas money once at the gas station. I had just come from church so I gave him 20. I then saw him in my rear view mirror hitting up someone else for money and then leaving the station. He didn’t even have a car.
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You pass the test in God’s eyes.

“You have heard that it was said, ‘Eye for eye, and tooth for tooth.’ But I tell you, do not resist an evil person. If anyone slaps you on the right cheek, turn to them the other cheek also. And if anyone wants to sue you and take your shirt, hand over your coat as well. If anyone forces you to go one mile, go with them two miles.Give to the one who asks you, and do not turn away from the one who wants to borrow from you.

Matthew 5
 
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I’ve seen too many hidden camera videos of people begging for money on the street, only to walk a block away and drive off in an expensive car. 🤔
 
That_Flint_Guy said:
I’ve seen too many hidden camera videos of people begging for money on the street, only to walk a block away and drive off in an expensive car. 🤔
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The ones I see crawl back on their blanket on the ground, and try to get through another day.
 
Tis_Bearself said:
I’d like to think I wouldn’t be lying to people for cigarette money. If I got to that low of a point it would be good for someone to tell me to get honest. I might develop some self respect.
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I know it could be me, lying and all. Addiction will do that to a person. Not that everybody who lies is an addict or lies out of necessity. Sometimes, people start with a lack of integrity that ruins their relationships and puts them at emnity with having a job. I’m just saying in that spot nobody needs their lying to be reinforced with financial rewards or cigarettes or anything else.
 
Techno2000 said:
You pass the test in God’s eyes.

“You have heard that it was said, ‘Eye for eye, and tooth for tooth.’ But I tell you, do not resist an evil person. If anyone slaps you on the right cheek, turn to them the other cheek also. And if anyone wants to sue you and take your shirt, hand over your coat as well. If anyone forces you to go one mile, go with them two miles.Give to the one who asks you, and do not turn away from the one who wants to borrow from you.

Matthew 5
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This is true. Having said that, if somebody asks for money to fill their car, it is no violation of God’s law to come back with a full gas can for them. It is also no violation of moral law to refuse to buy someone cigarettes or to help them get drunk or to kill themselves with drugs. That violates the Golden Rule.

Really getting to know the people around us who are in need, of course, is what a lot of them really need the most and yet the one thing that manipulators and con artists do not want any part of. This is where getting aligned with aid groups can really be of help, because there is a group getting to know the people in the neighborhood who seem to need help. Again, I think it is the most likely to be what I’d want in their place.
 
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PetraG said:
Really getting to know the people around us who are in need, of course, is what a lot of them really need the most and yet the one thing that manipulators and con artists do not want any part of.
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Why are you so worried about all that? Jesus says to give even when you are being slapped in the face and being sued !
 
So @Techno2000 is it not enough to give food or water ? Does it have to be money ? I give food and water, I am not about to take my purse out in the street and also I am not gonna provide money for the hit that killed them.
 
halogirl said:
So @Techno2000 is it not enough to give food or water ? Does it have to be money ? I give food and water, I am not about to take my purse out in the street and also I am not gonna provide money for the hit that killed them.
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Of course food and water is good, I gave a can of vienna sausages to someone and they were very happy .
 
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I could do that too. And I’m not even homeless. (I own a blanket!) 🤣
 
Techno2000 said:
Why are you so worried about all that? Jesus says to give even when you are being slapped in the face and being sued !
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Well, yes, but He says to put your eye out under the right circumstances, too. I don’t think there is any chance whatsoever that there is something wrong with getting to know people and seeing to their actual needs.
Nowhere did He ever abrogate the Golden Rule. I’m “worried about all that” because the Golden Rule implies it.
 
Matthew 5 New Revised Standard Version Catholic Edition (NRSVCE)

Concerning Retaliation

38 “You have heard that it was said, ‘An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth.’ 39 But I say to you, Do not resist an evildoer. But if anyone strikes you on the right cheek, turn the other also; 40 and if anyone wants to sue you and take your coat, give your cloak as well; 41 and if anyone forces you to go one mile, go also the second mile. 42 Give to everyone who begs from you, and do not refuse anyone who wants to borrow from you.

The overall concept for us is one of FAITH. God sees all and metes out divine justice to evildoers. For example, they may con us out of a little gas or lunch money, only to suffer a fender-bender collision or transmission failure in the coming days. The wicked just can’t understand why they have all of the trouble. We may not, as Christians, directly observe those just consequences in their lives, but Jesus is saying “Don’t fret about it…just turn the other cheek…I will take care of those insults and abuses for you. There will be justice.” This kind of faith alleviates our disappointment and bitterness when we are exploited in this world. It permits us to move forward, putting the past behind, and concentrating on doing continued good.
 
By the way, the organized charities are just human institutions, too. They are not perfect.

A lot of poor and needy somehow fall through the cracks of organized charities.

We still have personal, charitable duties to the poor when circumstances or the Holy Spirit demand of us.
 
I offered a guy about half a small loaf of sourdough bread I had in my car. He was delighted, said he’d rather have that than cash. He was chomping it down before he even got back to his station. As I drove away he waved vigorously and was smiling broadly. If I hadn’t been out of town and 150+ miles from home I’d make an effort to go back and give him more food.
You never know.
 
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Maybe I’ll try to keep some non- perishable food in my car from now on. Refried beans in pop top cans are a buck or so at Trader Joe’s. Just one example, many possibilities.

If they refuse the food and demand cash, then you know they probably want drugs or booze.
 
I live in the Southwest.

Sometimes we see a poor soul walking along the Interstate shoulder, in the middle of nowhere, in blazing heat.

I consider it unwise (possibly dangerous) to pull over and interact with these unknown people, out in isolation. So, I call a report to the Highway Patrol, informing them which mile marker this person is near and their direction of travel.

I keep some bright orange plastic bags with two bottles of water, beef jerky, and some hard candy in them. I deposit the bag 100-200 yards ahead of the walker.

Then, I proceed, believing I’ve done everything I reasonably can to help them.
 
I completely agree with this, sometimes people need more than money to rebuild themselves.

As our Lord told Saint Faustina:

if I demand through you that people revere My mercy, you should be the first to distinguish yourself by this confidence in My mercy. I demand from you deeds of mercy, which are to arise out of love for Me. You are to show mercy to your neighbors always and everywhere. You must not shrink from this or try to excuse or absolve yourself from it ( Diary , 742).

I am giving you three ways of exercising mercy toward your neighbor: the first — by deed, the second — by word, the third— by prayer. In these three degrees is contained the fullness of mercy, and it is an unquestionable proof of love for Me. By this means a soul glorifies and pays reverence to My mercy ( Diary , 742).
 
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