What is charity?
After I got involved in charity, my role as a movie star began to seem unbearably stupid. © Angelina Jolie.
What is charity? Is it everyone’s business or just the rich? Should we talk about it "loudly" or should we help "quietly"? Some will say, quite an amazing question, some will call it strange. This is a question that everyone will have their own answer to. To answer these and other questions, we came up with a series of publications "What is charity?". In this section, we will talk about charity in general, learn from famous and beloved artists, writers, scientists, public figures and many others, what is this process and why is it for each of us?
So, recently, almost all the world’s media wrote about charity, telling the story of how Pope Francis donated a Lamborghini car to charity. Also, the Pope has repeatedly helped Ukraine, in 2016 the Vatican set up a committee to help victims in the Donbass, then allocated several million euros to victims of violence in the east.
And in early 2017, Pope Francis recorded a speech for the TED conference. The topic of the speech was "We are the future". And here he remembered solidarity and mutual assistance - a good deed. In his address, Pope Francis reminded of the importance of supporting each other.
Pope Francis:
"Solidarity is a term that many would like to delete from the dictionary. However, solidarity is NOT an automatic mechanism. It cannot be programmed or controlled. This voluntary reaction is born in the heart of each of us.
Jesus once told a parable to help us understand the difference between those who are indifferent and those who care for others. This is the parable of the good Samaritan. When Jesus was asked, “Who is my neighbor? Who did I take care of? ” - he told the story of a man who was the victim of an attack: he was robbed, beaten and thrown on the road. He was seen by a priest and a Levite, two very influential people at the time, but they passed by without stopping to help. A Samaritan soon followed that path. When he saw the beaten man lying on the ground, he did not ignore him. He felt sorry for him, and sympathy prompted him to act. He poured oil and wine on the wounds of the helpless, brought him to the nearest house, and paid out of his own pocket for them to be taken care of. "
Is charity the lot of the rich and the public, or is it everyone’s social duty?
"The future of humanity is not only in the hands of politicians, prominent leaders or large companies. Yes, they do have a lot of responsibility. But the future is primarily in the hands of those people who see in another person his "I" and perceive themselves as part of "us". We all need each other. "
Solomiya Vitvitskaya, host of TSN and curator of the social project "Winners" ("Winners"), volunteer (helps injured ATO fighters to raise money for prostheses, undergo rehabilitation and adapt to life after the war):
What does charity mean to you?
Charity is when you give and do not demand anything in return, when you do not expect to be praised, shown on TV and told how good you are and so cool that you help in one way or another. In practice, for example, we buy prostheses for fighters, train prosthetists, try to change society’s attitude towards people with disabilities. Each has its own front, including its own moral burden. Even just to support someone morally, to call, to contact, just not to be on the sidelines - this is also a good thing.
Is it the lot of the rich and the public, or is it everyone’s social duty?
Experience shows that neither public nor rich people do this. Here we are, how many times we have collected money for the fighters, more often help not large sums and not rich at all. It is difficult to find such rich benefactors who will constantly share.
When should you do this in public and when should you keep quiet about what you are doing good?
Each time, it’s a separate story that has its reasons for either being public or staying in the shadows.
Public charity has its side effects, when a rich and famous person helps, and they find out about it, there is a queue of those people who think that once he helped there, then he should help them.
Sometimes, it happens that a person does it for the sake of PR, and the good deed itself is less than the conversations around.
When should charity be covered as much as possible?
For example, this applies to volunteers who have to report on the funds raised. Or, when it is a public good deed, it can inspire many other people to charity. This is my case, because I will not be able to do much alone, but if another number of people join me, we can do more and better, then the good deed is undertaken.
I had an example when girls from Lviv wrote to me that they wanted to help the Kiev hospital because they saw me, and it moved them. But then I told them that they could help in Lviv as well, and they didn’t even know that help was needed there too, because maybe at that time there was not enough public call for help. Or, for example, they send things to me from abroad: Morocco, Germany, Italy, because they believe that they will give me exactly on purpose.
Borislav Bereza, MP:
What is charity in general and for you personally?
Charity is about helping other people, it is about wasting your time, opportunities and involving as many people as possible in things that do not enrich you financially, but enrich you spiritually.
So this is not necessarily financial / material assistance?
No. I had, for example, a case where we were collecting financial aid for an orphanage in Kiev, and I had the opportunity not only to help with finances, but to organize entertainment for them and then communicate with the children, and it was great.
How often are you approached for help because you are a fairly public and well-known person?
This is really a problem when people think that if you are an MP, then you have unlimited access to the "budget" and now you have to help everyone. This is a stereotype, the reality is different. Therefore, they often turn to me, and I only help when possible.
Is it the responsibility of the rich and famous only?
No matter how rich and famous you are, it should not interfere with or help you do charity work. Because charity is not just about money, it’s about time, attention and participation. It’s just a desire to help those whom you can help in your free time, or let’s say, to reorient to some direction and put part of your soul there.
It is now fashionable, especially among politicians, to create their own BFs and talk a lot about how they help. Do you think it is necessary to advertise your help, or should it be quiet?
Everyone has to make a choice for themselves, sometimes a loud statement about what you do - helps to do it.
So it was when I went to my friends and asked them to help raise funds for blind runners in Kiev, they supported us and the Ukrainian Charity Exchange. For the second time we have collected a considerable amount for their needs. Publicity is needed so that people can see where the money is going, people need to know that there is such a project and it can be helped, and all together we have closed this need.
The second question, if you need it just to tell about yourself. If publicity helps to solve the problem, that’s fine, but if you just want to promote yourself, it’s incorrect. Here, everyone chooses his option and everyone has their own moral responsibility.
How often do you now turn to the ATO for help?
Now, they practically do not apply to the anti-terrorist operation, because the volunteers have clearly identified the military units and are helping them. Even if there are appeals, I know who to send them to. For example, I have a close friend Sergei Pritula, who does a lot to help in the anti-terrorist operation, sometimes together with him we overtake cars for certain needs.
How to help properly so as not to give money to fraudsters? What rules do you have?
I had a story when people approached me through Facebook, asking for help to treat the girl. I asked where she lies? I double-checked that there really was such a girl, but these people who asked for money for her had nothing to do with her, moreover, they asked for money for her for another 6 months in a row, after the child was discharged. I was just waiting and wanted to know when their conscience would wake up. You always need to double-check yourself. Or to vouch for those people you personally trust.
Author Evgenia Motrich
Read also : Tina Mikhailovskaya, Alla Martynyuk, Alla Shlapak - What is charity?
What is charity? Is it everyone’s business or just the rich? Should we talk about it "loudly" or should we help "quietly"? Some will say, quite an amazing question, some will call it strange. This is a question that everyone will have their own answer to. To answer these and other questions, we came up with a series of publications "What is charity?". In this section, we will talk about charity in general, learn from famous and beloved artists, writers, scientists, public figures and many others, what is this process and why is it for each of us?
So, recently, almost all the world’s media wrote about charity, telling the story of how Pope Francis donated a Lamborghini car to charity. Also, the Pope has repeatedly helped Ukraine, in 2016 the Vatican set up a committee to help victims in the Donbass, then allocated several million euros to victims of violence in the east.
And in early 2017, Pope Francis recorded a speech for the TED conference. The topic of the speech was "We are the future". And here he remembered solidarity and mutual assistance - a good deed. In his address, Pope Francis reminded of the importance of supporting each other.
Pope Francis: "Solidarity is a term that many would like to delete from the dictionary. However, solidarity is NOT an automatic mechanism. It cannot be programmed or controlled. This voluntary reaction is born in the heart of each of us.
Jesus once told a parable to help us understand the difference between those who are indifferent and those who care for others. This is the parable of the good Samaritan. When Jesus was asked, “Who is my neighbor? Who did I take care of? ” - he told the story of a man who was the victim of an attack: he was robbed, beaten and thrown on the road. He was seen by a priest and a Levite, two very influential people at the time, but they passed by without stopping to help. A Samaritan soon followed that path. When he saw the beaten man lying on the ground, he did not ignore him. He felt sorry for him, and sympathy prompted him to act. He poured oil and wine on the wounds of the helpless, brought him to the nearest house, and paid out of his own pocket for them to be taken care of. "
Is charity the lot of the rich and the public, or is it everyone’s social duty?
"The future of humanity is not only in the hands of politicians, prominent leaders or large companies. Yes, they do have a lot of responsibility. But the future is primarily in the hands of those people who see in another person his "I" and perceive themselves as part of "us". We all need each other. "
Solomiya Vitvitskaya, host of TSN and curator of the social project "Winners" ("Winners"), volunteer (helps injured ATO fighters to raise money for prostheses, undergo rehabilitation and adapt to life after the war): What does charity mean to you?
Charity is when you give and do not demand anything in return, when you do not expect to be praised, shown on TV and told how good you are and so cool that you help in one way or another. In practice, for example, we buy prostheses for fighters, train prosthetists, try to change society’s attitude towards people with disabilities. Each has its own front, including its own moral burden. Even just to support someone morally, to call, to contact, just not to be on the sidelines - this is also a good thing.
Is it the lot of the rich and the public, or is it everyone’s social duty?
Experience shows that neither public nor rich people do this. Here we are, how many times we have collected money for the fighters, more often help not large sums and not rich at all. It is difficult to find such rich benefactors who will constantly share.
When should you do this in public and when should you keep quiet about what you are doing good?
Each time, it’s a separate story that has its reasons for either being public or staying in the shadows.
Public charity has its side effects, when a rich and famous person helps, and they find out about it, there is a queue of those people who think that once he helped there, then he should help them.
Sometimes, it happens that a person does it for the sake of PR, and the good deed itself is less than the conversations around.
When should charity be covered as much as possible?
For example, this applies to volunteers who have to report on the funds raised. Or, when it is a public good deed, it can inspire many other people to charity. This is my case, because I will not be able to do much alone, but if another number of people join me, we can do more and better, then the good deed is undertaken.
I had an example when girls from Lviv wrote to me that they wanted to help the Kiev hospital because they saw me, and it moved them. But then I told them that they could help in Lviv as well, and they didn’t even know that help was needed there too, because maybe at that time there was not enough public call for help. Or, for example, they send things to me from abroad: Morocco, Germany, Italy, because they believe that they will give me exactly on purpose.
Borislav Bereza, MP: What is charity in general and for you personally?
Charity is about helping other people, it is about wasting your time, opportunities and involving as many people as possible in things that do not enrich you financially, but enrich you spiritually.
So this is not necessarily financial / material assistance?
No. I had, for example, a case where we were collecting financial aid for an orphanage in Kiev, and I had the opportunity not only to help with finances, but to organize entertainment for them and then communicate with the children, and it was great.
How often are you approached for help because you are a fairly public and well-known person?
This is really a problem when people think that if you are an MP, then you have unlimited access to the "budget" and now you have to help everyone. This is a stereotype, the reality is different. Therefore, they often turn to me, and I only help when possible.
Is it the responsibility of the rich and famous only?
No matter how rich and famous you are, it should not interfere with or help you do charity work. Because charity is not just about money, it’s about time, attention and participation. It’s just a desire to help those whom you can help in your free time, or let’s say, to reorient to some direction and put part of your soul there.
It is now fashionable, especially among politicians, to create their own BFs and talk a lot about how they help. Do you think it is necessary to advertise your help, or should it be quiet?
Everyone has to make a choice for themselves, sometimes a loud statement about what you do - helps to do it.
So it was when I went to my friends and asked them to help raise funds for blind runners in Kiev, they supported us and the Ukrainian Charity Exchange. For the second time we have collected a considerable amount for their needs. Publicity is needed so that people can see where the money is going, people need to know that there is such a project and it can be helped, and all together we have closed this need.
The second question, if you need it just to tell about yourself. If publicity helps to solve the problem, that’s fine, but if you just want to promote yourself, it’s incorrect. Here, everyone chooses his option and everyone has their own moral responsibility.
How often do you now turn to the ATO for help?
Now, they practically do not apply to the anti-terrorist operation, because the volunteers have clearly identified the military units and are helping them. Even if there are appeals, I know who to send them to. For example, I have a close friend Sergei Pritula, who does a lot to help in the anti-terrorist operation, sometimes together with him we overtake cars for certain needs.
How to help properly so as not to give money to fraudsters? What rules do you have?
I had a story when people approached me through Facebook, asking for help to treat the girl. I asked where she lies? I double-checked that there really was such a girl, but these people who asked for money for her had nothing to do with her, moreover, they asked for money for her for another 6 months in a row, after the child was discharged. I was just waiting and wanted to know when their conscience would wake up. You always need to double-check yourself. Or to vouch for those people you personally trust.
Author Evgenia Motrich
Read also : Tina Mikhailovskaya, Alla Martynyuk, Alla Shlapak - What is charity?