Landlady took food donations

  • Thread starter Thread starter MSSheBear
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I am reminded of some good words from the Catechism of the Catholic Church:
2477 Respect for the reputation of persons forbids every attitude and word likely to cause them unjust injury. He becomes guilty …] of rash judgment who, even tacitly, assumes as true, without sufficient foundation, the moral fault of a neighbor…
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2478 To avoid rash judgment, everyone should be careful to interpret insofar as possible his neighbor’s thoughts, words, and deeds in a favorable way…
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Based on what the Original Poster has written, there is no clear evidence that the landlady intended to steal. It is plausible that she thought the food donation came from the church for her. We do not know the landlady’s thoughts or motives, so unless there is further evidence to the contrary, we should assume she meant well.

It’s another question whether it constitutes an injustice (as a misappropriation of donations for the poor). When you donate food, you might hope it goes to the poorest, but it may end up going to anyone who qualifies for assistance. If your landlady qualifies, then your donation was not misappropriated; in a way, it just arrived at her pantry by an unexpected shorter route :confused:. I suppose it would be unjust if others in the community are going hungry because the landlady is receiving food assistance, but even so, the guilt would not be upon her unless it was her intention to abuse or defraud the system (but anyway we should not assume or even speculate on this “without sufficient foundation,” as the above CCC says).
 
Weejee said:
I’ve seen so many people rip off honest people, that I think they should be called to task. From the facts that the Original Person who began the thread stated, it seems like this lady ignored the paper attached to the bag, and then made the groceries “go away.”

It stinks. You cant always let people “get away” with stuff. Sometimes they need to be confronted. Otherwise they’ll just keep doing it over and over and over again ad nauseam.

There’s a time for justice and a time for mercy. Especially when it involves the poor. Anyone who owns a house can’t be that poor, but people going to food banks usually are.
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I agree with your post. And after a calm question to clarify the situation, it is very good to give the whole scene to the Lord, and to learn from it. (no matter what nonsense, if any, emerges from it.) 🙂

Peace!
 
I don’t think I could tolerate living in an environment where I was afraid to say something about this. If I found the flyer in the trash, I would immediately say, “Where is the food I put out for the food pantry to collect?” and someone had better have an answer that made sense. If the landlady didn’t realize what the food was for, she would say so, and then you could all move on. Then you wouldn’t have to spend the next however many months assuming the worst and harboring resentment. If she dodges the question or lies about it, then at least you know what you’re dealing with.
 
I fished the flyer out of the trash. It very clearly says in large letters “food drive.” The youth group members were suppose to come to the door to ask for the food or we could leave at the door. This means that my landlady either did not look at the flyer and somehow missed the youth group or she did take it knowing it for somebody else.

I really cannot afford to give to the food pantry anyway.
 
MSSheBear said:
I fished the flyer out of the trash. It very clearly says in large letters “food drive.” The youth group members were suppose to come to the door to ask for the food or we could leave at the door. This means that my landlady either did not look at the flyer and somehow missed the youth group or she did take it knowing it for somebody else.

I really cannot afford to give to the food pantry anyway.
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Then don’t.
 
MSSheBear said:
There were only canned vegetables and fruit in the bag so no it wasn’t of great value.
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So, then, I am not really understanding why you are so upset? It is perfectly plausible that if she receives food donations herself, she took it thinking it was left for her. And if not, and the food wasn’t valuable, why not assume the best and just let it go? Stop making assumptions about the state of her finances; that isn’t your business. And now you will know not to leave things on her porch, especially if they are not clearly identifiable. You’ll feel a lot better if you move on.
 
MSSheBear said:
…She and her husband eat well. They eat meat, eggs, and vegetables.

I spend 75% of my gross income on the rent so I don’t have much leftover.
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Eating “meat, eggs, and vegetables” does not mean you aren’t 200 K in debt. That is worse than not much leftover.
 
Yes, it is a small amount. I am going to try to forget about it and move out if I can.
 
I think it’s probably the feeling of being violated.

To the OP, I hope your economic situation improves soon. You sound broke and trapped in a living situation that is uncomfortable. God bless you for trying to help others!
 
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