Panhandlers, beggars, homeless in a big city

[DaveBj]

My senior year of high school I was at the state solo and ensemble contest on the Butler University campus in Indianapolis. During a long break in the action my friend Jim Fuller (r.i.p.) and I rode the bus downtown to see what was there. While we were walking around, we were approached by an older man who claimed to be an Indian from Oklahoma who was broke and down on his luck and hadn’t eaten in a while. Jim and I put together a few dollars and gave it to him. When he walked out of earshot, we began wondering if he was just going to go buy some booze. So we followed him at a distance and saw him enter a building. When we got to that building we saw that it was a diner, where he was sitting at a counter ordering lunch with a big smile on his face.

But that was 1964. This is 2011, almost 2012. A lot of people have discovered that pretending to be something disreputable and scamming honest people is more profitable than working for a living (and it’s tax-free). They are so good at it that it has become impossible for the rest of us to tell the difference between them and people who are genuinely in need. A lot of other people prefer to mooch off other people to going to available assistance agencies. We, on the other hand, are called to be smart with our resources.

I side with those to don’t give cash (unless we absolutely know the circumstances), but instead give food, restaurant gift certificates, and/or referrals to relief agencies. If someone who claims to need help turns down genuine assistance, that’s on them. And anyone who has enough resources that he can afford to waste money on tobacco gets nothing from me. Period.

snip

I’d also have to say no, that person is not Jesus. Because number one, Jesus did not mooch off of his family or the system, and number two, if you pretend the other person is somebody else you’re not relating to the real person who is actually there.

This may be the weightiest statement on this whole thread. Well said, Lubomyr.

 

[tbcrawford]

Matthew 25:31-46

31 “When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, he will sit on his glorious throne. 32 All the nations will be gathered before him, and he will separate the people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. 33 He will put the sheep on his right and the goats on his left.

34 “Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world. 35 For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, 36 I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.’

37 “Then the righteous will answer him, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? 38 When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? 39 When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?’

40 “The King will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.’

41 “Then he will say to those on his left, ‘Depart from me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels. 42 For I was hungry and you gave me nothing to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me nothing to drink, 43 I was a stranger and you did not invite me in, I needed clothes and you did not clothe me, I was sick and in prison and you did not look after me.’

44 “They also will answer, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or needing clothes or sick or in prison, and did not help you?’

45 “He will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did not do for one of the least of these, you did not do for me.’

46 “Then they will go away to eternal punishment, but the righteous to eternal life.”

Proverbs 14:31 He who oppresses the poor shows contempt for their Maker, but whoever is kind to the needy honors God.

Hebrews 6:10 God is not unjust; he will not forget your work and the love you have shown him as you have helped his people and continue to help them.

 

[TheRealJuliane]

This may be sentimental, and largely fictional, but I thought it would be appropriate to post on this thread.

Change for a Dollar

You never know what might happen when you give…

 

[DaveBj]

For the sake of argument . . .

.snip

40 “The King will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.’

snip

Who are Jesus’ brothers and sisters?

Mark 3:33-35 – 33 But He answered them, saying, “Who is My mother, or My brothers?” 34 And He looked around in a circle at those who sat about Him, and said, "Here are My mother and My brothers! 35 For whoever does the will of God is My brother and My sister and mother." (NKJV)

Here is part of “the will of God,” the doing of which marks one as a brother of Christ:

2 Thess 3:10-12 – 10 For even when we were with you, we commanded you this: If anyone will not work, neither shall he eat. 11 For we hear that there are some who walk among you in a disorderly manner, not working at all, but are busybodies. 12 Now those who are such we command and exhort through our Lord Jesus Christ that they work in quietness and eat their own bread. NKJV

Note that in the original, “will not work” means “does not want to work.”

Proverbs 14:31 He who oppresses the poor shows contempt for their Maker, but whoever is kind to the needy honors God.

The hitch is in differentiating between the needy and the lazy-greedy.

Hebrews 6:10 God is not unjust; he will not forget your work and the love you have shown him as you have helped his people and continue to help them.

Note the emphasis. “His people,” as defined above.

 

[gsbrch15]

Does the Church teach that you only give to the worthy poor? It makes sense but as I was driving to Tysons Corner this morning in the rain people were flying past me, cutting other people off and I thought to myself,“If they wreck it’s their fault and I won’t stop to help.” You probably see where I’m going with this. If you follow this rationale to it’s logical conclusion you would have to evaluate every situation.
I have family members that call and ask for money all the time but I refuse to give it to them because they mismanage their money and have “habits” which contributes to their financial situation (like the reckless drivers) also. Should I give? I don’t. But I don’t know if it’s wrong not to. I see both sides.

 

[PaulinVA]

Does the Church teach that you only give to the worthy poor? It makes sense but as I was driving to Tysons Corner this morning in the rain people were flying past me, cutting other people off and I thought to myself,“If they wreck it’s their fault and I won’t stop to help.” You probably see where I’m going with this. If you follow this rationale to it’s logical conclusion you would have to evaluate every situation.
I have family members that call and ask for money all the time but I refuse to give it to them because they mismanage their money and have “habits” which contributes to their financial situation (like the reckless drivers) also. Should I give? I don’t. But I don’t know if it’s wrong not to. I see both sides.

Well, if you were on Gallows Rd I certainly feel for you.

Did Jesus only die for the “deserving” sinners? No, because none of us are deserving of salvation. It is a gift freely given.

This is the hardest thing I am working on in my life - to be charitable to those people who are most undeserving.

 

[Flame4]

But helping someone who is lazy is NOT charitable. Sometimes love has to be tough. If we keep “helping out” someone because they are lazy, they aren’t going to learn anything. We’re not doing what’s best for them.

 

[Troy_Stamper]

I am a convert and when I was being confirmed into the church I took the name of saint Martin of tours because of his act of kindness toward the homeless man. I too have a soft spot for the homeless and I do try to help when I can. I took a sociology class that said 1/3 of the homeless are mentally ill and 1/4 are veterans. Also, from my own experience I have found many are addicts which contributed to them being homeless and some are addicts because they want to mask their pain of living such a hard existence. It is best to give food when possible because you know they are getting what they really need and if you do give money it is right to do so in the spirit of Christ. It’s unfortunate there are some who are running scams and that could harden our hearts and in doing so you run the risk of turning your back on all of them. I give, and pray for them. Also, I pray that those who take advantage of our kindness will one day be exposed for their deception. God bless you for your charity.

 

[Lubomyr]

Does the Church teach that you only give to the worthy poor? It makes sense but as I was driving to Tysons Corner this morning in the rain people were flying past me, cutting other people off and I thought to myself,“If they wreck it’s their fault and I won’t stop to help.” You probably see where I’m going with this. If you follow this rationale to it’s logical conclusion you would have to evaluate every situation.
I have family members that call and ask for money all the time but I refuse to give it to them because they mismanage their money and have “habits” which contributes to their financial situation (like the reckless drivers) also. Should I give? I don’t. But I don’t know if it’s wrong not to. I see both sides.

Yes, the Church does. Actually Jesus does. Matthew 10:16, “Behold I send you as sheep in the midst of wolves. Be therefore wise as serpents and simple as doves.” To fraudulent beggars, scripture says: “For what glory is it, if, committing sin and being buffeted for it, you endure?” (2 Peter 2:20); and “For if, flying from the pollutions of the world, through the knowledge of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, they be again entangled in them and overcome: their latter state has become unto them worse than the former. … The dog is returned to his vomit; and: The sow that was washed to her wallowing in the mire” (1 Peter 2:20-22).

I see where you’re going with that. After evaluating enough situations, I am confident that refusing handouts is the right thing to do in any situation where you *don’t *know the details.

 

[Lubomyr]

Well, if you were on Gallows Rd I certainly feel for you.

Did Jesus only die for the “deserving” sinners? No, because none of us are deserving of salvation. It is a gift freely given.

This is the hardest thing I am working on in my life - to be charitable to those people who are most undeserving.

Paul, there are two people in scripture who deliberately wasted their means to the point they had to live off charity: the prodigal son, and the woman with the issue of blood. The former lost his inheritance permanently, even though his dad still loved him. But his dad did not give him a second inheritance. The woman with the irregular menses spent all she had on physicians, which means she was spending it wisely on something that was important. She got cured.

 

[tbcrawford]

For the sake of argument . . .

Who are Jesus’ brothers and sisters? We are ALL Jesus brothers and sisters.

Here is part of “the will of God,” the doing of which marks one as a brother of Christ:
We are ALL brothers and sisters fo Christ.

The hitch is in differentiating between the needy and the lazy-greedy.

Appalling to say such comments.Who are we to judge who is lazy and who is needy.Only God can judge not us.We are to help all as if we are helping Jesus himself.

Note the emphasis. “His people,” as defined above.

We are ALL HIS people.God loves everyone of us.‘Whatever you do to the least of my brothers you do to me.’
Try to remember Christ is in all of us.We are witnesses to His love.

So if someone takes you for granted that is nothing in comparison to helping someone in need, helping Jesus in need.Try to remember we are helping Jesus himself when we help others.

The seven practices of charity toward our neighbor, based on Christ’s prophecy of the Last Judgment, that will apparently determine each person’s final destiny:

Feed the hungry
Give drink to the thirsty
Clothe the naked
Shelter the homeless
Visit the sick
Visit those in prison
Bury the dead

God bless

 

[tbcrawford]

Well, if you were on Gallows Rd I certainly feel for you.

Did Jesus only die for the “deserving” sinners? No, because none of us are deserving of salvation. It is a gift freely given.

This is the hardest thing I am working on in my life - to be charitable to those people who are most undeserving.

 

[DaveBj]

Paul, there are two people in scripture who deliberately wasted their means to the point they had to live off charity: the prodigal son, and the woman with the issue of blood. The former lost his inheritance permanently, even though his dad still loved him. But his dad did not give him a second inheritance. The woman with the irregular menses spent all she had on physicians, which means she was spending it wisely on something that was important. She got cured.

Actually, there is a third, not an individual, but a group of people – the Church at Jerusalem. According to Acts 4:32-36, the individual members, working under the false belief that Jesus was coming back soon, liquidated their capital base. For decades afterwards they were living off the charity of other churches.

 

[PaulinVA]

Paul, there are two people in scripture who deliberately wasted their means to the point they had to live off charity: the prodigal son, and the woman with the issue of blood. The former lost his inheritance permanently, even though his dad still loved him. But his dad did not give him a second inheritance. The woman with the irregular menses spent all she had on physicians, which means she was spending it wisely on something that was important. She got cured.

No, I don’t think this applies to the issue at hand.

The prodigal son squandered his inheritance but was welcomed back into the family. The key part here is the dissolute living. It tells us we can abandon our faith but He is always waiting for us to return.

If someone is living on the street by “choice” there is something “wrong” with them. That is just not normal. That right there qualifies them for charitable assistance, maybe not under the homeless clause, but certainly under the “not in their right mind” clause.

But, I still don’t know about giving them money versus hooking them up with assistance. They surely know where the best places are to get food and a place to stay - better than I do. I don’t know. Giving to charities can’t hurt, but is that all we are called to do? Seems like a lot of people think so.

 

[frank_maritano]

" What so ever you do unto the least your brother, you do unto me " Author, JESUS CHRIST !

 

[Julia_Mae]

And lastly, just today, I was walking through DC on my way to a scheduled event and I saw a man digging through one of the city street corner trash cans. :

When they are looking for something thing in the trash, whether food or something to tun into money, I don’t ask, I just walk up, and say “here” and hand them whatever I’ve got handy.

The woman who has begging down to a science, I have quarters for the regulars and give one when I see her (or her counterpart). The vetran who wants to talk, I try to talk to.

My personal take on it has always been: giving has nothing to do with them and how “worthy” or needy or anything they are. Giving is just about me and what I choose to do. You are blessed to be able to encounter so many homeless.

 

[DaveBj]

" What so ever you do unto the least your brother, you do unto me " Author, JESUS CHRIST !

Jesus never said that. For the correct quotation, see post #22. For Jesus’ own interpretation of “my brother,” see post #24.

 

[Monte_RCMS]

John Stossel did a special program on panhandlers.

He focused on people for whom panhandling was their occupation.

Look for it.

 

[Monte_RCMS]

freemoneyfinance.com/2006/06/the_bible_work_.html

Excerpt … read the comments …

One thing I love about the Bible is that it takes a hard stand on people who try to just “get by” and feed off others without doing a lick of work themselves. Here’s my favorite verse on this topic:

For even when we were with you, we gave you this rule: “If a man will not work, he shall not eat.” 2 Thessalonians 3:10

Yep, don’t work, don’t eat. I think that says it all.

*Notice that it doesn’t say that those who CAN NOT work should not eat. No, we should have compassion on and help out those people. *But if someone can work, yet WILL NOT work, then he’s left to the consequences of his actions (or inactions in this case).

Here are a couple other verses on this same line of thinking:

Lazy hands make a man poor, but diligent hands bring wealth. Proverbs 10:4

How long will you lie there, you sluggard? When will you get up from your sleep? A little sleep, a little slumber, a little folding of the hands to rest – and poverty will come on you like a bandit and scarcity like an armed man. Proverbs 6:9-11

 

[Monte_RCMS]

This soup kitchen in Newark, NJ is organized and might be one of the largest in the country. It has been serving inner city people for years and years. The last resident parishioner left about 2003. But the parish church still has a full Mass schedule for office workers and former resident parishioners who visit.

What they have done is / could be a model for similar charities elsewhere.

They offer much more than what is shown on the Web page, which is a recent addition.

njsoupkitchen.org/

Visit the page: “about us” for links.

Because the love of God demands a love of neighbor, and because the faith which underlies true prayer demands good works, St. John’s from its earliest days has sought to meet the physical as well as the spiritual needs of the people in the area.

Today, St. John’s is famous not so much as an historic site as it is for its good works: over 6,000,000 breakfasts and dinners have been served to hungry people, free exhibits are held for struggling artists and the city’s school children, and thousands of toys and books are distributed to other churches and charitable institutions at Christmas.

In the past three years, we have opened a Medical Services Unit staffed by a full-time nurse and two volunteer doctors, and a separate Women and Children’s Center where they can eat in peace and safety. In addition, we run a weekly food pantry handing out over 100 bags of food to assist those in need.

From its earliest days, St. John’s has been a beacon to the marginal people. From harboring frightened immigrants to feeding the hungry, St. John’s has never turned its back on anyone’s physical needs while always taking care of their spiritual needs.

Everything we do has its roots in the gospel; to share what we have, and to reach out and help those who cannot help themselves; to show respect for everyone as if they were “another self”; to reach out and touch people with the love of God through the love of neighbor.

St. John’s is supported by free-will donations. We do not receive government funds of any kind.