Greenfield on bandaid charity

I was compelled to reflect on this heart-wrenching paragraph on two levels. First was how I am so very thankful about Lee Kuan Yew's vision to provide public housing, education and healthcare for every Singaporean. In Singapore, while there are those who fall through the cracks of the social/welfare nets, I am heartened that at least slums, drugs and gang violence are not as serious as in some other countries.

Secondly, I was grieved by the sorry state of justice and mercy ministries by the local church. While Faith Community Baptist Church (FCBC) is one of the few that stand out for the boots on the ground, I am aggrieved by the one-off "charity" events during festive seasons. How is it that I could have grown up in church and not caught God's heart for the poor? Surely it should take the form of a long term or even permanent ministry? It is indeed easy to criticise the efforts of others, but rather than discussing the theological necessity of justice ministries, Greenfield was compelled by Scripture to uproot his family to live among and be a blessing in the slums of Cambodia and Canada. There is nothing to argue when somebody lives life like that; rather, we are posed with the question of whether we have been faithful and obedient to God's call for us in our lifetime.

I recognise my anger and discontent that a HDB flat (in the areas I'm looking at) has gone by about 40% since 2006. I cannot believe that I'm going to spend so many years slogging my guts out just to own a home. While I had hoped to purchase a 5 room or Executive apartment so as to have extra rooms to host friends and missionaries from overseas, the exorbitant price of HDB flats make 3 and 4 room flats as a more realistic choice. And that would mean that we probably wont be able to host as many as we had hoped to. I pray that the pressures of my own financial needs do not drown out the just-as-important need to use God's money on a group of people that is very close to his heart - the poor.


From Page 110 of Subversive Jesus

"By shuffling the hungry into soup kitchens, charity placates the downtrodden and assures that the rest of us won't need to be bothered by protests or unruly behavior. Meanwhile, temporary homeless shelters have become substitutes for a housing sector that includes affordable housing for the poor. Food banks and soup kitchens have become substitutes for affordable, nutritious food and livable wages. Tutoring has become a substitute for an education system meant to serve everyone. Free clinics and emergency rooms have become substitutes for affordable healthcare for the poor and unemployed."