Potential Role of Humanitarian Efforts

As I prepared these remarks I found myself reflecting upon the implications of an idea that is common to all of the major religions of the world and to most ethical positions, namely that it is desirable to give; it is, in effect, better to give than to receive. In the King James translation of the Bible, it is written: "It is more blessed to give than to receive." A fairly modem translation places giving in an equally selfish framework: "It makes one happier to give than to be given to." There is some implication here that the one who receives may not be happy at all, though this does not necessarily follow since both the giver and the receiver could be made happier than each was before. I have long remembered a wise statement attributed to some ancient Chinese philosopher I have forgotten the source who was supposed to have said: "I don't know why he doesn't like me; I never did anything for him." To me these are troublesome thoughts. Admittedly it makes us feel good, either individually or collectively, when we do something that we believe helps others. But all too often we fail to consider how our act of charity, however fine our intentions, may make the recipient feel or what effects there may be upon the recipient's circumstances. More than a century ago, John Stuart Mill wrote as follows about these issues: