When Religion Collides with the "Real World": Charity

"The merit of charity is so great that I am happy to give to one hundred beggars even if only one might actually be needy. Some people, however, act as if they are exempt from giving to one hundred beggars in the event that one might be a fraud."
- Rabbi Chayim of Sanz, Darkai Chayim

"And also, ye yourselves will succor those that stand in need of your succor; ye will administer of your substance unto him that standeth in need; and ye will not suffer that the beggar putteth up his petition to you in vain, and turn him out to parish. Perhaps thou shalt say: The man has brought upon himself his misery; therefore, I shall stay my hand, and will not give unto him of my food, nor impart upon him of my substance that he may not suffer, for his punishments are just -
But I say unto you, O man, whosoever doeth this the same hath great cause to repent, and except he repenteth of that which he hath done he perisheth forever, and hath no interest in the kingdom of God."
- Mosiah 4:16-18

It is an entrenched tradition of Judeo-Christian religion to give to the poor. It was emphasized in the Torah; the prophets expounded upon it and chastised Judah for refusing to help the helpless: "What mean ye, that ye beat my people to pieces, and grind the faces of the poor? saith the Lord God of Hosts" (Isaiah 3:15). Christ expounded upon alms for the poor, and the rabbis and fathers of Christianity have expanded on the idea ever since.

However, I looked up at a sign recently in Salt Lake City telling people not to give money to the homeless. You may be worsening the situation, they warned, and it would be better to give to organizations than to the beggar himself. I've also talked with many a people who feel that giving to the poor is futile (Ann Rand, anybody?) and many poor people (in their opinion) don't deserve the help. My sister, Jean, is more compassionate, but as a public health major she often tells me how international charity work is almost always counter-intuitive.

So how do faithful religious people overcome this discrepancy? So how do we follow the commandments to help the poor?

I remember a distinct memory when I saw a homeless person while driving home from school one day as a teenager. Feeling guilty for all the times when it was easier to give to the homeless who asked for it in the past and never doing so, I pulled into the local Subway, bought a subway sandwich, withdrew fifteen dollars and gave it to the old man. He thanked me as if I had given him a million dollars. His face was cracked with exposure to the elements, his fingers rough, calloused and dirty, his hair unkempt and his hygiene lacking. I wanted to ask if he'd like to come over for dinner, but felt I would have been overstepping my bounds as a son still dependent on my mother, whose patience with my teenage impudence was already stretched thin. As I drove away, I saw him devour the sandwich hungrily; I never saw him again. And I don't regret one minute for ever doing it. In fact, whenever I think back upon the event, my insides twist with emotion and a different type of guilt. I wish I had done more.

Dantzel and I continue to give money to people who ask for it on the streets when we can, even in the streets of Salt Lake City. We feel good doing so - yes, even the warm fuzzies kind of good. Some people may (and do) berate us for giving in to the fuzzies instead of real solutions, yet often these peoples' solutions is to ignore them. We are taught as religious people to have faith in God; I cannot help but think that if more people were charitable, charity work would not be so counter-intuitive. But then again, I am ill versed in this subject and speak completely out of ignorance. I'm sure many will post their statistics telling me why I'm wrong.

I am an idealist, and I am unashamed to admit it. While I try not to keep my head in the clouds for too long, I firmly believe that idealism has its place in the world. What I am asking is, while we understand that in the long term, much of the widespread organizational international charities must think outside the box and foresee unexpected consequences in order to be successful, could we be shooting ourselves in the foot and blocking our society from discovering a way to fight poverty grass-roots style by discouraging people from random acts of kindness?

In other words, is it possible that the scriptures might still hold validity in today's modern 21st century?

And if so, are we doing it?