The Alms We Give to the Poor Are Accepted by Christ Himself
September 18
(On Almsgiving: That By Giving to the Poor One Gives to Christ)
By Archpriest Victor Guryev
September 18
(On Almsgiving: That By Giving to the Poor One Gives to Christ)
By Archpriest Victor Guryev
The Holy Fathers teach this about almsgiving: Chrysostom says: "A man is a great thing, and a merciful man is precious. For far greater is it to feed Christ when hungry than to raise the dead by the name of Jesus: for in the former case you do good to Christ, in the latter He to you" (Homily 16 on I Cor.). And Saint Basil the Great teaches: "Mercy is a great thing: for Christ Himself, who sits in heaven, receives what the poor, lying on earth, receives from your hands" (On the Rich). Is this true? Is it true that by giving alms we do good to Christ? And is it fair that Christ Himself, who sits in heaven, receives from us what the poor, lying on earth, receives from us? Know that all this is absolutely true, brethren, for the deeds themselves speak for the truth of the words of the ecumenical teachers.
A certain man who lived in Constantinople was extremely merciful to the poor. As he walked the city streets, a multitude of beggars always followed him, and he placed alms in each of their hands. One of this man's closest friends once asked him, "What made you so merciful?" He replied, "When I was a ten-year-old boy, I once went into church. I heard from an elder who was teaching the people that whoever gives to a beggar places their alms in the hands of Christ Himself. I couldn't believe this and thought: Christ is now in heaven, sitting at the right hand of the Father; how can He be on earth and accept what is given to the poor? Returning home with these thoughts in mind, I suddenly saw a beggar over whom the Lord Jesus Christ was sitting. I was horrified. And what did I see next? When one of the passersby gave this beggar bread, Christ Himself accepted the bread and, in return, blessed the giver. Seeing such a miracle, I believed that he who truly gives to the poor gives to Christ Himself, and since then, according to my strength, as much as I can, I give alms.”
Therefore, brethren, the Holy Fathers rightly teach that by giving alms we benefit Christ, and that what the beggar lying on earth receives from us is received by Christ Himself, seated in heaven. And if they teach this rightly, then we should never worry that our alms might be lost and we will not receive a reward for them. No, if Christ Himself accepts them, then they will never be lost, and their reward becomes certain — as Augustine says in the person of God: "I, said the Lord, have received it? I will also repay" ("On Avarice and Luxury"). And if this is also true, then Christ Himself becomes the merciful ones' guarantee that what they have given will not be lost. Yes, it will never be lost. For "the Lord is faithful in all His words" (Ps. 144:13), for "He cannot deny Himself" (2 Tim. 2:13). Amen.
Source: Translated by John Sanidopoulos.
