It is hypocritical and unjust of us to scapegoat bankers and industrialists and fail to notice greed and covetousness in our selves.
A bit of self-examination is in order. St Paul’s cathedral, which receives massive handouts from wealthy people and institutions in the City is ill-placed to condemn its benefactors. And wouldn’t you like a bit more money? I know I would.
At all times, but especially at Christmas, we should see ourselves as the far from perfect creatures we are ”“ the Bible’s word for this is ”˜sinners’. The remedy is to be generous, kind and charitable. For, as the Good Book says, ”˜Charity covers the multitude of sins.’
Interesting article – traditionally the City was associated with charity – many schools and other foundations owe their existence to its generosity. Then came the greedy eighties, the loadsamoney Gordon Gekko era, but even then the new and imported financial institutions started getting involved and gradually the old priorities of service and of charity began to reassert themselves. I remember a City fundraising ball of which a charity of which I was a trustee was made the object of their fundraising that year. We received more from that one event than from all the other activities we had had that year.
So the Rev Mullen is right – the City is charitable, but he puts his finger on a bigger issue – in these times of desperation, unemployment and financial and material hardship, charity is the answer – to help out with the youth programs being cut by government, the libraries whose staff are being cut back, and the local families struggling. In that, we in the church are placed as no one else to observe where there is need and to club together with our talents and our money to some extent to lend struggling people and projects a helping hand. We can also put those in need in touch with the many charities which no one knows about save in the directories and who have funds available to meet such needs, if only they had a way of finding out about them.
There is a big opportunity for the Church at this time, to help and to witness, if we have the energy and focus to take it.