The recession and charities.

Give to everyone who begs from you.

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Yesterday I received a letter from a diocesan religious community begging for donations, it was the second such request from the group since the beginning of Lent. Charities seem to be stepping up mailings due to the recession, yet what is so serious about this religious community's request is that they now say their funds are completely depleted - they have no money at all.

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A few years ago a priest was speaking about this particular group of religious and claimed that they had mishandled some of the donations they had received. Later on, working in a Catholic bookstore, I heard other rumors and rumblings about the group, but dismissed the stories as hearsay from the sanctimonious. Then a couple of years ago, out of the blue, a zealous woman I had never met, called me and informed me of a whole host of improprieties associated with the group, assuring me she even informed the diocesan authorities about "what was going on over there". This all occurred shortly after a member of the group left and spread slanderous stories about life in that community. The rumors were picked up by otherwise devout persons and dutifully spread abroad like wild fire, warning the sheep, as it were. To the best of my knowledge, nothing ever came of the accusations, and the community continues to exist with the blessing of the local ordinary.

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I consider all of the stories that were told to be gossip, slander, detraction and calumny. In the first place, it is none of my business, despite the fact I know people associated with the group. Nevertheless, the stories, going as far back to the priest's tale, have stayed with me. Every single time I get a letter asking for money from this group, I am reminded of everything I've ever heard about them. Witness the damage a story told long ago can do.

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Remember your local charities and the poor - people lie about them sometimes, perhaps out of envy - however that doesn't make them any less needy. And remember, amongst Christ followers there was a thief, but that did not mean all of them were stealing.