The Merriam-Webster dictionary defines charity from a secular sense as “generosity and helpfulness especially toward the needy or suffering.” The Encyclopedia Britannica states that, in Christian thought, “charity is the highest form of love, signifying the reciprocal love between God and man that is made manifest in unselfish love of one’s fellow men.” This definition goes on to reference the familiar passage in Paul’s first letter to the Corinthians, chapter 13 in which he describes love as the greatest of all Christian characteristics. In many versions of the Bible, the word charity is used in this passage synonymously with love.
If you combine the ideas that love is the greatest of all Christian characteristics and charity is the highest form of love with Jesus’s commandment to love our neighbor as ourselves, it’s hard to deny that we have a duty to be charitable.
“And you must love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, all your mind, and all your strength. The second is equally important: Love your neighbor as yourself. No other commandment is greater than these.”
Mark 12:30-31
I truly believe that most people are innately charitable. They don’t help others because it’s an obligation or a commandment; they do it because we as humans are made to be empathetic. We don’t like to see someone else hurting or in need. Even folks who don’t have very much themselves will share with those who have even less.
Sometimes a great loss will make us more attuned to the pain of others. When we are deep in the abyss of pain, fear, or grief often someone comes along to take our hand and help pull us out of the mire. I believe those helpers are God-given. God’s answer to our cry for help, or to our wordless moaning prayers, is sometimes to send an advocate on his behalf. Yes, the Holy Spirit, but also at times another human responding to God’s prodding. It could be someone you least expect. Someone you barely know, but who says, “I’ve been in that dark place, too. It’s scary, but less so when you’re not alone.” Once you are steadier on your feet and can see some light up ahead, a common reaction is to want to “pay it forward” yourself.
See how this works? God gave us commandments and Jesus declared which of them was the greatest. Then God gently, but firmly provides us with opportunities to live out these commands.
Many of the parents in grief groups I belong to have started a foundation or a scholarship in memory and honor of their deceased child. It often reflects a passion or talent their child had, or helps children suffering from an illness that impacted their child’s life. Some parents don’t have the financial wherewithal or emotional energy to start a foundation, but they remember their child’s birthday by paying for someone else’s cake at a local bakery.
It’s amazing how much a single, small act can help a neighbor. Take him a cold bottle of water when he’s out mowing his yard. Turn on your yard light so she can see her way up her sidewalk when she had to work later than expected. Send a message to a member of your grief group who is struggling. It’s okay if she lives on the other side of the world. She’s still your neighbor.
Be a light on someone’s dark path. That’s charity. That’s love.
Laura
A Light for My Path 
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