Helping the needy is a noble task often assigned to family members, the church, and community. When people are affected by job loss, death of a breadwinner, incapacitating mental health problems, domestic abuse, and property destruction from natural and human disasters, they instinctively seek help from the mentioned entities. Family members who are financially endowed tend to help their needy relatives by paying bills, providing shelter, awarding loans, or any financial-based help. Similarly, needy community members expect churches to help them when they have problems. Further, communities are not exempted from needy people’s expectations for help when in economic, healthcare, or social problems. The extensive analysis of the role of the church, family, and community in helping the needy backed by personal and Biblical perspectives helps conceptualize variant ways under-privileged people can receive aid today.
The role of family in helping the needy remains mandatory to date. Social expectations are that when people need basic needs, senior citizen care, shelter from abusive adults or spouses, and a home when rendered homeless, their relations will assist them ( Thomas, Liu, & Umberson, 2017) . Family members may care for their needy by providing financial aid in the form of gift cards, loans, paid employment, or prepaying bills. In the Bible, the role of family in helping the needy is recorded in Leviticus 25:35, saying, “If your brother becomes poor…you shall support him…and he shall live with you”(New International Version). Therefore, family has a role to help needy members, as explained.
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The church is also responsible for helping community members who are needy medically and economically. When older adults become physically incapacitated and do not have near family members to help them, they seek refuge in church-owned shelters or nursing homes. Additionally, the church is often the first point of contact for needy community members who cannot afford basic needs or are escaping abuse. Most progressive churches have programs to help the mentioned population as a way to advance the gospel of Jesus Christ ( Scott & Cnaan, 2018) . We have a volunteer program in church where members donate $50 per month to help the needy in our community. Then once a month, we meet and distribute food and clothes to homeless people or children’s homes. The Bible mandates the church to help needy people in the community in Luke 6:28, saying, “Give and it will be given to you. A good measure, pressed down, shaken together and running over, will be poured in your lap. For with the measure you use, it will be measured to you.” (New International Version). Therefore, churches should help the needy in their community, as discussed.
Finally, the community has a responsibility to care for the needy amongst them. People who are economically challenged become a burden if community members ignore their plight, as they may resort to crime to earn money for catering for their needs. Communities should create employment opportunities for the underprivileged to enable them earn income, which will be used to afford basic needs ( Boonyabancha & Kerr, 2015) . Moreover, communities should construct nursing homes where needy older adults can seek shelter and care if they do not have willing family members to assist them. Further, community can donate food and clothing for the homeless and advocate for the state to construct subsidized housing for them. In the Bible, communities are mandated to help the needy, in Galatians 6:9, which says, “And let us not grow weary of doing good, for in due season we shall reap, if we do not give up.” Therefore, communities should cater for the needy, as explained.
References
Boonyabancha, S., & Kerr, T. (2015). How urban poor community leaders define and measure poverty. Environment and Urbanization , 27 (2), 637-656. https://doi.org/10.1177/0956247815600945
Scott, M. L., & Cnaan, R. A. (2018). Religious congregations and poverty alleviation in the age of new public governance. Nonprofit Policy Forum , 8 (4), 391-410. https://doi.org/10.1515/npf-2017-0013
Thomas, P. A., Liu, H., & Umberson, D. (2017). Family Relationships and Well-Being. Innovation in Aging , 1 (3), 1-11. https://doi.org/10.1093/geroni/igx025
