wisdom and order in giving

Reading today in Mosiah 4 - the speech after The Speech. I always marvel about the precision and depth of the words. How the Lord is so clear.

This is a subject that is difficult for all of us, but I think especially to the LDS. There are homeless people around the temple grounds in Salt Lake City, but when the temple goers give to them, they proliferate. There are some examples I might give - "like flies to a carcass" is one, but it's probably not the right phrase. "Like rats in a sewer" is another, but again. It's not charitable, so I guess I won't go there. Maybe "like bees to a flower patch". Again, not enough bees, but you get the idea. For a writer, sometimes words fail me.

But that was always Salt Lake's problem - until recently. American Fork began being the subject of beggars a couple of years ago. It's where I go shopping. You get street beggars with their cardboard signs - whatever text they think will be most successful.

It's difficult because on the one hand the scriptures admonish us to give to those who are needy. On the other hand, the church has advised us to give to organizations, not people. You know those people are generally drug addicts - this has been shown repeatedly. On the one hand, some argue that charity doesn't care what they do with the money. On the other hand, you're not doing anyone any favors if you enable their life- and soul-destroying vice.

By the way, I did give to someone on the street the other day. She looked a bit ashamed to be there, and didn't have a meth face. I thought "this is a good bet on her actually needing the money", and gave her what I had in my wallet. I hope I helped her.

So here is Mosiah talking about this subject. Perhaps world's the number one authority, short of Jesus Christ, on service and giving. After giving his speech he continues "17...the man has brought upon himself this misery, therefore I will stay my hand...for his judgments are just". and 22 "And if ye judge the man who putteth up his petition to you for your substance that he perish not, and condemn him, how much more just will be your condemnation for withholding your substance, which doth not belong to you but to God".

Seems that we are called on to give without judgment. Score one for the side that says "just give to everybody". I can see a scene where druggies from every corner of the world not only line temple square with cardboard signs, but clog the streets. It's easy money in Salt Lake - just guilt the mormons and they give - it's easy money. Gotta say I'm pretty uncomfortable with that.

Then Mosiah says something that eased my mind and causes the church policy to make sense. Verse 27 "And see that all these things are done in wisdom and order." Then later in that verse "therefore, all things must be done in order".

What does order mean when giving to the poor? Obviously it doesn't mean that you give to the first guy first, then the second guy, etc. And wisdom is brought up. I don't know for certain, but I'm guessing that drugs weren't a problem in Mosiah's time. Whether they were or not, he called for wisdom and order. I think that random giving, or maybe I'll call it thoughtless giving (again, not the right word) is not giving with wisdom. To me it's a "make myself feel good" sort of enabling, and it makes the world just a bit worse for my giving because the meth head hands the money to a dealer, destroys himself a bit more, and the dealer now has control of your charity money. That's not good either.

So, wisdom and order. It seems to me that wisdom is giving to organizations that provide services for the homeless. Or just giving to organizations that do good. Julie right now is doing something for children in Madagascar - her efforts reduce the risk of the children being trafficked as slaves, they lift the capacity and lifestyle of the community. It's not the same as giving to the homeless, but these people in Madagascar might be considered to have a lesser yearly income than the homeless here. It's about giving to a place where giving yields something. That's what it means to me.