 September/October 2001 (XXXIX 4) |
am not one who believes giving is best approached as an obligation. Like all the other practices that are truly meaningful and edifying in the practice of faith, giving should grow out of – even be an extension of – worship. It should be something to which we are moved by our experience of God’s presence and grace; ideally, it should be something in which we find joy. But I was struck by a letter I received recently from a long-time member of one of our Meetings.
She wrote to apologize for not responding to a fundraising appeal I had sent her earlier. That in itself was notable. I can tell you I do not get many apologies from folks for not answering an appeal. But more notable was that she then went on to explain why.
She noted that my letter came after she had “just been reading the minutes of her Meeting’s previous meeting for business.” In those minutes she found the Treasurer’s report which observed “only 10% of adult members [of that Meeting] contribute financially.” This Friend went on to observe:
“I am sure that each of the non-contributors feels that he or she does something for the Meeting ‘in lieu of,’ and would be indignant to be accused of freeloading, but that is what I consider it. 90% contribute nothing – not even the price of a movie or an ice-cream cone – and no one calls them on it.”
This Friend, I am aware, tithes. She gives 10% of her income to worthy causes, including her Meeting. She is a generous contributor to our Yearly Meeting. But when she was asked for another gift to a Quaker organization she felt tired, with some justification, of being asked to carry the “freeloaders.”
I confess her letter set me to wondering about Friends who give nothing to their Meetings. Does this say something about what their Meeting, or Quakerism, means to them? Do they give to anything else? Do they really feel it is alright to accept the benefits of being part of a group they do not support at all? (I doubt we have many, if any, Friends who are so poor they could not give anything to their Meeting.) Is there not some obligation to support a group of which one is a part?
Let me be clear. I firmly believe that giving can and should be a spiritual practice. In that context I know it can be a practice that brings us closer to God and enriches our experience of the spiritual journey. But this Friend’s letter raised (for me) a serious question I think we all need to consider. Is there an obligation to give? And if there is, what will we do with that as Friends?
Thomas H. Jeavons
Swarthmore Meeting (PA)
PYM general secretary
Last modified: Wednesday, February 18, 2004 at 08:18 AM