Blooming in the Desert – Episode 5 – Pillars of Piety Series Part 3: Almsgiving

Thank you for listening to Blooming in the Desert. We apologize for the delay in posting this episode as we have been very busy. The podcast does ask for questions to be submitted at the very end for our interview with Fr. Eric Tosi, however, we cannot take any questions at this time as the show has already been recorded and will be posted soon. Thanks!

ALMSGIVING

He who gives to the poor will not lack, but he who hides his eyes will have many curses.
Proverbs 28:28

Do not forget to entertain strangers, for by so doing some have unwittingly entertained angels.
Hebrews 13:2

Then shall He say also unto them on the left hand, Depart from Me, ye cursed, into everlasting fire, prepared for the devil and his angels: for I was hungry, and ye gave Me nothing to eat: I was thirsty, and ye gave Me no drink: I was a stranger, and ye took Me not in: naked, and ye clothed Me not: sick, or in prison, and ye visited Me not. Then shall they also answer Him, saying, Lord, when saw we Thee hungry, or thirsty, or a stranger, or naked, or sick, or in prison, and did not minister unto Thee? Then shall He answer them, saying, Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye did it not to one of the least of these, ye did it not to Me. And these shall go away into everlasting punishment: but the righteous into life eternal.

Matthew 25:41-46

Definition of alms

(from Merriam-Websters Online Dictionary)

Pronunciation: \ˈä(l)mz\
Function: noun

Etymology: Middle English almesse, almes, from Old English ælmesse, ælmes, from Late Latin eleemosyna alms, from Greek eleēmosynē pity, alms, from eleēmōn merciful, from eleos pity
Date: before 12th century (from Merriam-Websters Online Dictionary)

1 archaic : charity
2 : something (as money or food) given freely to relieve the poor

What is Almsgiving?

A. The subject of almsgiving, isolated in and of itself, is more difficult to speak and write on than the subjects of prayer and fasting.

Almsgiving is mentioned in the Church Fathers’ writings in the context of being a part of the whole ascetic endeavor we are called on to undertake and as far as we have been able to ascertain, it would seem that almsgiving, when spoken of, is always placed among prayer and fasting. Again, the writings on prayer and fasting in and of themselves are quite abundant. However , we should make it clear once again as on our previous shows, that prayer and fasting are not treated as independent practices with ends in themselves by the Fathers and with modern Church teachers. Likewise, we would like to make it clear that neither is almsgiving meant to be divorced from any part of the whole of the spiritual life. And the spiritual life is to be approached organically, not as a set of “DOs and DONTs” to be checked off and somehow “accomplished”.

In the Gospel of St. Matthew at the beginning of chapter 6 which is in our Lord’s discourse “The Sermon on the Mount”, we here him say these words to those who were present to hear Him. We will listen now to His words when He spoke about how to give alms, or rather, what disposition is the sought after one when giving alms:

1 “Take heed that you do not do your charitable deeds before men, to be seen by them. Otherwise you have no reward from your Father in heaven.2 Therefore, when you do a charitable deed, do not sound a trumpet before you as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, that they may have glory from men. Assuredly, I say to you, they have their reward.

3 But when you do a charitable deed, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing,

4 that your charitable deed may be in secret; and your Father who sees in secret will Himself reward you openly.

It is a disposition that is “dead” to the esteem of others in the carrying out of the good deed but “alive” to God Who sees that the deed was done for His sake.

B. Speaking once again on the spiritual life it itself is not an isolated “thing” unto itself or something that we possess in the strict sense, seeing that all that we possess is not ours but given to us by God, but is the Life of Christ Himself.

Almsgiving, how to do it, is not spoken of as a subject in and of itself. Or it could be that we were simply unable to locate such a treatise in the Fathers or by one of the Church’s more modern writers.

However, what seems to be said about almsgiving in the Holy Scriptures is how not to give alms. In the Fathers, especially with our Holy Father in the Faith Saint John Chrysostom, it is often spoken of how to view riches and what to do with them.

C. We would like to make certain to the listener that alms do not solely at all times consist in being measured monetarily. Our Lord, as is recorded for us in the Gospel according to Saint Luke 11:41, says

“But rather give alms of such things as you have; then indeed all things are clean to you.”

In other words, those things which are in our possession, or we should say, in our stewardship, are to be used for alms. It is not something which we do not have that the Lord asks us to give alms with but with that which we do have. It is inconsequential as well what quantity is in our stewardship for the giving of alms but it is rather a question of the disposition of our hearts with those things we have the use of. And in the giving of alms is revealed to us what place possessions have in us.We would at this point like to direct our listeners and readers to an excellent homily given by Father John(our pastor at St. Paul) on Sunday October 11 on the Second Epistle of St. Paul to the Corinthians, chapter 9:6-11:

“Brethren, But this I say: He who sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and he who sows bountifully will also reap bountifully. So let each one give as he purposes in his heart, not grudgingly or of necessity; for God loves a cheerful giver. And God is able to make all grace abound toward you, that you, always having all sufficiency in all things, may have an abundance for every good work. As it is written: “He has dispersed abroad, He has given to the poor; His righteousness endures forever.” Now may He who supplies seed to the sower, and bread for food, supply and multiply the seed you have sown and increase the fruits of your righteousness, while you are enriched in everything for all liberality, which causes thanksgiving through us to God.”

The link to listen to the sermon may be found here:Fr. John Dresko 10/11 (2 COR 9:6-11)

From what has been said already, we should begin to be examining our own attitudes towards the things that have come forth from God and are His gifts to us.

Are we stewards of those things within our use or do the things themselves have attached to them a worth that is not natural? Do the things in our stewardship possess us? Do they, our things, given to us for our use, we being the creature at the pinnacle of all creation and who are meant to offer onto God freely back to Him what He has so abundantly given us for our use, rule us?! Are we the slave of things?

To not be “natural” means they have a worth in and of themselves divorced from their true origin in God from Whom all things find their Source and Worth. God created us good and it is important to understand that the evil that is attached to us is not “natural” to us. So when we give things a worth that they are not meant to have, that is, that we do not see through them to God, the giver of them, we give them an unnatural value.

Meaning, because we are fallen, that which was given to us for good, is taken by us and horded because in the hording we think we will find happiness and fulfillment. Again our Lord warns us against this when He spoke these words during one of the times He was teaching which has been written for us in the Gospel of Luke in chapter 12 verse 13. A man in the crowd yells out,

“Teacher, tell my brother to divide the inheritance with me.”

To which Jesus responds in the next verse,

“Man, who made Me a judge or an arbitrator over you?”

and then comes the warning we are speaking about when He continues and says,

“Take heed and beware of covetousness, for one’s life does not consist in the abundance of the things he possesses.”

Mentioning stewardship is important for the correct understanding of almsgiving for the word stewardship implies that we are the users and dispensers of something that is not ours to begin with. Not not ours as in it is not in our possession to do with as we see fit, but not not ours in that all things have their source and origin in God, the Lover of Mankind Who freely gives us all, even not stopping short in the giving of His Only Begotten Son for our sakes.

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