Christianity is not some ideal toward which we ought always to strive even though the ideal is out of reach. Christianity is not a series of slogans that sum up our beliefs.
Stanley HauerwasRead
To be poor does not mean you lack the means to extend charity to another. You may lack money or food, but you have the gift of friendship to overwhelm the loneliness that grips the lives of so many.
Interpretation
What this quote means
Being poor doesn't prevent one from offering kindness and support through friendship.
Stanley Hauerwas emphasizes that generosity and charity are not solely defined by material wealth. Even in circumstances of poverty, individuals possess the ability to provide emotional support and companionship, which can be profoundly impactful to those who feel isolated in their struggles. Friendship can serve as a vital source of comfort and connection, highlighting the richness of human relationships beyond financial means.
Themes
CharityFriendshipKindnessPovertyEmotional Support
In practice
Example use cases
During a charity event to promote friendship and community support.
More from Stanley Hauerwas
All quotes →My way of putting it is that Christians are called to live nonviolently not because we believe nonviolence is a strategy to rid the world of war, but in a world of war as faithful followers of Christ, we cannot imagine being anything other than nonviolent.
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War is America's central liturgical act necessary to renew our sense that we are a nation unlike other nations.
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To kill, in war or in any circumstance, creates a silence. It is right that silence should surround the taking of life. After all, the life taken is not ours to take.
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The most creative social strategy we have to offer is the church. Here we show the world a manner of life the world can never achieve through social coercion or governmental action. We serve the world by showing it something that it is not, namely, a place where God is forming a family out of strangers.
Stanley HauerwasRead
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