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Carol's avatar

I struggle with this. We personally have seen abuse of the money we gave. We no longer give money. We buy food for the local food bank.

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Anne Carter Thomas—Protagonist's avatar

In Charlottesville, Virginia, the city council and its surrogates register the beggars who 'claim a priority to work at several key intersections.' I've engaged one woman several times, giving a few dollars in the past. She has definitely used drugs, and she told me she brings her children to 'work'— pointing to a wooded area (poison ivy, creekside, obviously a lie). So she's smart enough to survive on this system. 𝐓𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐢𝐬 𝐧𝐨𝐭 𝐂𝐡𝐫𝐢𝐬𝐭𝐢𝐚𝐧 𝐜𝐡𝐚𝐫𝐢𝐭𝐲, 𝐢𝐭 𝐢𝐬 𝐞𝐧𝐚𝐛𝐥𝐞𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭. When I read the accounts of Jesus passing by the beggars of his age, the message is clear: First, he asks them to believe, and blesses them with the abilities/talents to change their wayward lives. We must be bold in a similar declaration about Jesus as the 'agent to trust.' God also asks us to pray for lost souls. Practically speaking, if the beggars on their government 'turf' get hungry enough, they will seek shelter elsewhere.

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