Jesus, Republicans, and Charity

A man who calls himself the "Playful Walrus" brings up a number of issues in this post. I’d like to respond to several of them, but it will take some time to do it, and more than one comment. 

The first I’d like to discuss is this: “Conservatism generally (if not all individual conservatives) promotes … private charity…. These are all very much part of what Jesus taught and affirmed.”

 

and

“Jesus ordered His followers to take care of the poor, not the government. He didn't advocate stealing from the rich to "care for the poor".  He told a rich man to sell everything he had and give it to the poor himself, not to sell all he had and give it to Rome for redistribution.”

and

“Leftists, including some Democrats, cite God as Creator and Jesus' acceptance of prostitutes and others marginalized by society during his earthly ministry, His message of forgiveness, His "cast the first stone" and "take the plank out of your own eye" statements, His commands to take care of the needy, His "turn the other cheek" statement, and His willingness to be beaten and crucified as examples of why Republicans and conservatives are wrong and why Christians should support Democrats in their efforts to:

-expand government social spending…”

He makes a good point here, linking Jesus’ teaching to charity. In fact, it is probable that conservatives do give more than liberals. (I say probable because: a. the study linked to is from a conservative think tank, so may be corrupted by agenda; b. it does not appear to be peer reviewed or confirmed by other studies, at least through my brief google search; and c. I don’t think it adequately accounts for variables such as career choice, where liberals may be more engaged in helping the disadvantaged through paid labor.) However, what jumps out is that religious people give more than non-religious people, and that extends across political lines. In my own community, my church and a number of others provide or support soup kitchens and camping places for homeless people. The Catholic church supports a homeless shelter, including some small houses for families. So he is right: conservatism does promote private charity – but so does liberalism, and religion in general. 

But what did Jesus really say about government caring for the poor? In talking to the rich man, Jesus instructed him that selling his goods and giving to the poor was what the rich man needed to gain the kingdom of heaven – there was no connection to government. It was for his (the rich man’s) own sake. When asked if it was lawful to give tribute to the government, He said, “Render unto Caesar the things which are Caesar’s, and unto God the things that are God’s.” When he was taxed, he didn’t protest, or try to weasel out of it – he sent Peter to get tax money from a fish’s mouth. 

But even with all the good it does, can private charity successfully address our society’s need?

-          - Following the social spending cuts in my state during Newt Gingrich’s “Contract on America,” a wave of mentally ill people were cut off from the medications and support they needed to stabilize and improve their lives. Unable to hold a job or provide for themselves, or even to effectively navigate society, they became homeless, and many of them remain homeless to this day, wandering the streets in filth, starvation, and deepening desperation. Christian charity did not step in to fill the gap.

-        -   My partner has worked extensively with autistic children in early childhood intervention programs. She has helped a number of them mainstream, others become socially functional. In this she has worked with a both government agency, and with a private NPO funded primarily by private donors and foundation grants, with limited government grants; and while she believes the NPO is more effective, and a lot more fun to work for, the government agency serves more people, and the NPO is constantly struggling to stay afloat.

-       -   After her first husband abandoned her and their two small children, my sister was left with no means to support herself and her children. My family was going through its own hard times, and we were unable to provide enough for food or rent. She needed housing assistance and food stamps to get by. Over the course of the next 10 years she survived a second, abusive husband (he did 6 years for child abuse) and ongoing poverty, and had a third child. Using Pell grants and other state funding, while also working part time to support her family, she earned a bachelor’s degree in history and went on to work as an archeologist for the Forest Service, making a valuable contribution to conserving our nation’s heritage. 

I’m reminded of the old saw, “Give a person a fish, feed her for a day; teach her to fish, feed her for a lifetime.”

Private charity is a good thing. It makes a valuable – even essential – contribution to American society and well-being, and it can do more. (In “Radical: Taking back your faith from the American Dream,” David Platt makes an impassioned plea for Christians to – to put it mildly – increase their contributions to the less fortunate throughout the world. It’s worth a look.) However, the preamble to our Constitution states that the purpose of our government includes to “promote the general welfare.” Social spending, including education, housing and food assistance, health care, and so much more, is not only an essential function of government, it is in keeping with our Christian values as a nation – whether we are conservative or liberal, or fall somewhere in between.