Charity, Social Justice, Caritas, Ubuntu...

During one of my Episcopal Service Corps interviews I was asked to describe what I see as being the relationship between social justice and charity. I don’t remember my exact answer and, seeing as how it was off the cuff, I’m sure it wasn’t very eloquent. Since the interview, however, I’ve mulled over that question quite a few times.

A few days ago, I was hanging out with blogger-to-be Case and we were talking about this very subject. Within the course of the conversation, we started talking about caritas. Neither Case nor I were positive about the definition of the word, but using our super sweet critical thinking skills, we concluded that its root must have something to do with charity or caring. I eventually looked up the definition and found caritas defined as charity, Christian love of humankind, the Christian concept of brotherly love, love for all people, and an unlimited loving-kindness towards all others. There may be a much greater theological explanation for this term, but for the time being I’ll go off of the definitions I found.

I really appreciate this idea of caritas. As Christians, we’re called to love and serve others so this idea of caring, charitable love really makes sense to me. Unfortunately, this idea seems so different from our society’s idea of charity. The idea of charity that pervades our culture just means giving money or goods to those in need. Don’t get me wrong; there is nothing inherently wrong with this idea of charity. There are a lot of amazing organizations whose work depends on charitable contributions and many people who give charitably do so with great love and generosity in their hearts. With that being said, however, there are great flaws in the way our society views charity. The greatest (and most heartbreaking) of which is the way in which our society’s idea of charity creates boundaries, or otherizes. When we give money to a charity or donate clothes to a Goodwill store, it allows us to draw the line between us and “them.” We are the charitable ones, and they are the impoverished. The entire relationship between those who give “charity” and those who receive it is based on what the former can do for the latter; there is no mutuality. Charity, as is custom in our culture, perpetuates a polarized society of the “haves” and “have nots.” In a society where many have to depend on the kindness of others to eat or be clothed, it doesn’t really seem to me that people take to heart the idea what we are all created equally.

Social justice, on the other hand, does exactly the opposite. Social justice recognizes and exalts the humanity of all people. Social justice works to change systems and people by valuing each person equally. Social justice isn’t about picking an organization to which you’ll give a hundred dollars a couple of times a year. Social justice is about community and recognizing that every person is valuable. Social justice is about ensuring that all people are entitled to dignity. To be perfectly honest, I’ve been writing this blog for three days and still can’t come up with a definition of social justice that really captures its essence. I wish I had my copy of Desmond Tutu’s No Future Without Forgiveness with me because he talks a lot about the idea of ubuntu, which, I think, is very much related to what I’m trying to say. Since I can’t directly quote it, I will paraphrase the best I can from memory. Tutu writes that ubuntu is about recognizing that our humanity is tied up in the humanity of others. I am human because you are human and when I do something to dehumanize you, I also dehumanize myself.

It’s hard to love people you don’t know and our society’s concept of charity allows this impersonality to permeate our thoughts and actions. Social justice and caritas, however, address the fact that we are all human and are worthy of love. As one definition said, caritas is an unlimited loving-kindness to all of humankind. And so it is my hope that, in the next year, I learn to live not just a charitable life but a socially just life. I hope that I am able to remember just how much my humanity is tied up in the humanity of everyone else. And I hope, most of all, that I learn to exalt the humanity of all people.