Charity

Charity is the old English word for loving kindness. We commonly use the word ‘love’ now instead but, unfortunately when we do, we normally mean something less.

I was working outside one day this past week and the radio was on. You know how sometimes you’re listening, not really paying close attention, but then something just catches you and causes you to really think. This was one of those times.

An ad came on promoting a golf tournament; an ‘all inclusive’ 4 days and 3 nights at a beautiful resort and spa complete with numerous celebrity appearances and amazing live entertainment. As I kind of listened, not thinking too much of it, they continued to sell the excellent features of this entertainment extravaganza. You know how that goes… nothing but the best of everything… And then they added, “… and you can help the underprivileged at the same time!”

Now, up to this point I was not particularly paying a whole lot of attention but that last statement suddenly struck me as odd. There’s nothing odd about golf (though it may appear so to some) and charity shouldn’t seem odd to us. But putting the two together is just … odd! I’m not much of a golfer but I think it’s called the ‘East Coast Classic’. It’s a ‘fund raising’ tournament. In fact, they call it ‘a charitable golf experience like no other’.

Call me cynical, but isn’t there something somewhat disturbing about this? I know that this type of fund raising is extremely common. So much so, that it seems to be the preferred method. Everybody is doing it. I know of a Bible College that has a golf tournament to raise funds for their school. And it seems like every time I turn around someone is selling tickets on something to raise money for some worthy cause.

Don’t get me wrong. I applaud the organizers of these events for the most part (except when it comes to lotteries and such which I have some real issues with, but that’s another story). These people, often volunteers, do a really good job of raising a real lot of money for some really good causes. But I have to wonder about the people who are being targeted for these types of events. In my mind, I can just picture someone who has more money than the average person paying out a significant amount in order to personally benefit from the enjoyment of the very best his money can buy and somehow managing at the same time to give himself a pat on the back, his conscience eased for another year.

What do you call that? Maybe it’s a really good thing, but it is hardly charity; not when you get everything you pay for. What have you really given? At the most, maybe the crumbs off of your table. What place have we come to when a good cause must be sustained almost entirely by appealing to the self-interest of the rich? I guess I am cynical.