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Generosity, Lending

                 Good will come to those who are generous and lend freely, who conduct their affairs with justice. (Psalm 112:5)

                Are you as generous as you suspect you should be? Do you lend freely (expecting no interest or even repayment? As you absolutely just in all your dealings? Does your answer change when we change the subject from money to time, opinions, skills, expertise, help, equipment, or some other thing that you value?

                These are exam table questions, and my answers are No, no, no, and yes. I think I am more generous with things other than money. The point of my questions isn’t to make you feel guilty. They are questions we all need to take to God and let Him work in our lives. Our evaluations are likely to be based on bad standards.

                For some, the answer is that they – as individuals – should not be asked to give anything to anyone. Generosity and Justice are to come from the society or government. Loans probably shouldn’t exist at all, or are another government provision. For some, the answer is that you should give everything you own to anyone who wants it. Financial prudence, or any sort of prudence, is evil. But we always have some reason why we should be exempted from that standard. For some, the answer is that they’ll gladly give, as long as the media is there. Or they’ll gladly give everything because it makes them feel superior.

                Justice can be just as tricky, because we don’t tend to agree about it. When we, or someone who like or approve is seeking justice, we tend to think they deserve more. When it’s someone we don’t like or approve, we tend to think they deserve little or nothing. This is the neat thing about lex talionis. It limits justice to what was done to the victim. An eye for an eye, etc. Even better is the golden rule, that we should do to others what we would have them do to us.  If it is justice for us, it’s justice for them. We’re not likely to like justice this way, but it we used it as our guide, think how much more just we would be.

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