As the holiday season picks up steam — and the attendant barrage of party invites, festive light shows and can’t miss shopportunities accelerates — it can be easy to overlook one gift of the season that makes this time of year so special: the gift of charity.
All the major religions of the world proclaim charity as foundational to their beliefs.
In Hebrew, the word for righteousness and justice is all but interchangeable with the concept of charity. St. Paul taught that the three most important Christian virtues are faith, hope, and charity, with the greatest being charity. One of the pillars of the Muslim faith is giving to those in need. The Qur’an quotes Mohammed saying, “Your removal of stones, thorns or bones from the paths of people is a charity. Your guidance of a person who is lost is a charity.”
But religious adherence is not required to understand that helping others less fortunate than ourselves is essential to being human. The season of lights, of passing ontraditions to the next generation, of fellowship and celebrations of community, should remind us that
there are many among us who need our help. Everyone has, at one time or another, had to rely on others to get them through. Those who won’t admit that family members, friends, neighbors or even strangers came to their aid when they needed it most are not being honest.
We have all been there. This week marked the twelfth anniversary of GivingTuesday, a concept that was launched at the 92nd Street Y in New York City in 2012 to designate the Tuesday after Thanksgiving as a day that “encourages people to do good” and has since blossomed into an independent nonprofit and “global movement that inspires hundreds of millions of people to give, collaborate and celebrate generosity,” according to the group’s website.
Some of the largest philanthropic organizations in the world now participate annually, often by matching individual donations, and the charity raises several billion dollars each year — all in a single day.
Closer to home we witness the power of giving on a seemingly daily basis. In the wake of the tragic fatal fire in Mattituck late last month, family, friends neighbors and,yes, strangers donated nearly $100,000 through a GoFundMe campaign to support members of the
displaced Morales family. Local grass roots nonprofits like Billy’s Will-Power, Ryan’s Team, the Andrew McMorris Foundation and Kait’s Angels — which celebrated its 10th anniversary this fall — all continue to support worthy causes and engender the spirit of charity that makes our community so special. Larger organizations such as the CAST in Southold and RISE Life Services in Riverhead offer essential services to area residents in the most dire and immediate need. Business groups including the Riverhead, Southold and Greenport Rotaries have been supporting worthy causes for decades.
The list goes on — so much so that we couldn’t possibly list them all — and the true value of their collective gifts is immeasurable. For that we are thankful.