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Xmac
9-8-14, 12:51pm
This short video is very interesting.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YD1VT7YRJ5I
Davidwd
9-8-14, 4:39pm
This short video is very interesting.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YD1VT7YRJ5I

certainly makes you stop and think!
catherine
9-8-14, 5:07pm
certainly makes you stop and think!

Or stop and cry.

Very touching. This is why I love Charles Eisenstein and the Gift Economy model.
Xmac
9-8-14, 11:03pm
Or stop and cry.

Very touching. This is why I love Charles Eisenstein and the Gift Economy model.

Just met Charles last winter. I also have his book Sacred Economics. You?
catherine
9-9-14, 7:03am
Just met Charles last winter. I also have his book Sacred Economics. You?

Oh, wow! You met him? So cool. Yes, I had a hard copy of Sacred Economics, which I gave to my son when I finished reading it and then I bought a copy for my Kindle so I'd have it. I've also read Ascent of Humanity and The More Beautiful World Our Hearts Know is Possible.

Speaking of which, if you are a FB user, there is a very large group that was set up by Charles' assistant called The More Beautiful World. It's multinational, and fun to belong to because people share really interesting things happening all over related to getting to the "more beautiful world" It's a closed group but you only have to ask to join.
ToomuchStuff
9-9-14, 5:09pm
What word?
"sometimes those who have less, give more"?
That is true, and not always for their betterment. While one should be willing to give, one needs to remember that they need to put themselves first, to improve their situation so they can give more later. It will be bigger amounts, and yet, statistically a smaller percentage of their money, because their money is working for them to make the money to give away.
I will throw that out in the discussion now.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tqDcm0nlYQs&list=PLCF345CF0B31D070C
catherine
9-9-14, 5:19pm
41 Jesus sat down opposite the place where the offerings were put and watched the crowd putting their money into the temple treasury. Many rich people threw in large amounts. 42 But a poor widow came and put in two very small copper coins, worth only a few cents.

43 Calling his disciples to him, Jesus said, “Truly I tell you, this poor widow has put more into the treasury than all the others. 44 They all gave out of their wealth; but she, out of her poverty, put in everything—all she had to live on.”

This isn't a Dave Ramsey lesson. This is a lesson of the heart. It's about how do you respond, moment to moment, human being to human being? If you have 10 dollars, are you quick to give away one?

I think in general, people who have "been there"--in dire straits or in poverty, are more empathetic than those who have not experienced lack. This is a message of connection. Are you willing to give when asked? And if you do, can you imagine that giving, by nature, starts a cycle of giving in which everyone benefits, including you?
Xmac
9-10-14, 2:42pm
What word?

Spread The Word is the name of the group that put out the video.



"sometimes those who have less, give more"?
That is true, and not always for their betterment.

Spiritual betterment or material betterment?


While one should be willing to give, one needs to remember that they need to put themselves first, to improve their situation so they can give more later.

I see it as contextual, so I don't know there is a formula, right or wrong or 'one size fits all' kind of solution.

If I believe I have to take care of myself first, which, in the moment, could mean first and only, I could cost myself a valuable ally. I could cost myself a piece of my much needed inner peace too.

And, if I see myself as less deserving than others, my homelessness could be a reflection of my thinking or my beliefs could contribute to keeping me there.

Ultimately, it comes down to the individual, whether or not it is too painful to give or to painful not to give.

Still, I can't get past the sense that the homeless man has a greater freedom than the average guy in the restaurant: "freedom's just another word for nothing left to lose". Maybe he's no longer in fear of the future for himself. There's no where to go but up. In some cases, death might even be a welcomed handout.

So, helping someone else is a mercy for the other and for him because for that one moment, he's not penniless and powerless.