Three weeks ago, I attended a small spiritual retreat at the Cathedral in Hong Kong. At the end of the retreat, our spiritual director, Fr. Marco Cho LC said goodbye and as he folded his hands to do so, he blessed us and said the following words in Spanish and English :
“Beneficencia. Do good. Be kind. Speak well of others and may your inner transformation reflect the true charity of Jesus Christ.”
‘Beneficencia’ is such a beautiful profound word in Spanish. In English, the same word is ‘Beneficence’ and Fr. Marco’s parting words resounded and sang directly to me. And so, I want to write today about this beautiful concept of ‘BENEFICENCIA’ or in English, ‘BENEFICENCE’.
FIRST, DO NO HARM
Left : An engraving of the ancient Greek physician, Hippocrates of Kos by Peter Paul Rubens, 1639
Right : A logo of the hippocratic oath , ‘primum non nocere’ – First Do No Harm
In Latin, the words ‘Primum non nocere’ means ‘First, do no harm’. To abstain from doing harm is ingrained in medical ethics and every physician takes what is known as the ‘Hippocratic Oath’ before they practise medicine. Universally, this principle of non-malfeasance is fundamental to healthcare workers – that "given an existing problem, it may be better not to do something, or even to do nothing, than to risk causing more harm than good." Hippocrates of Kos ( 460 -370 BCE ) was an ancient Greek physician often known as the ‘Father of Medicine’ who articulated this principle of ‘First, Do No Harm’ as the obligation of all physicians to act for the benefit of the patient, prevent harm and remove conditions that will cause harm.
BENEFICENCE - KINDNESS, CHARITY IN CHRISTIANITY
Aside from medical ethics, beneficence also means doing good, showing kindness and charity. Everything which we do or do not do - for the benefit of others. As humans, we all have in the core of our being, an inner humanity. It is from this which comes beneficence which is the basic ethical and moral principle of not just doing no harm but also doing good. Beneficence is fundamental to the humanity in each of us.
Each human being knows what is good and what is wrong. As Christians, we do not have any unique possession of beneficence being a Christian ethic as such. But, as a Christian, what we do have is our unique Christian approach to the universal humanitarian culture of beneficence. We get this from our loving God – a benevolent God. In spite of the sins of mankind, God’s benevolent love for mankind was so complete, so uncompromising that he sent his own son, Jesus Christ to suffer and die on the cross so that we may all be saved.
“ For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.”
( John 3:16-17)
Left : A ‘Regnum Christi’ Crucifix, ‘Christ on the Cross’. This is my own personal crucifix which reminds me every day of my benevolent God.
Right – Silhouette of Christ on the Cross ; picture from the public domain
In the short 3 years of Jesus Christ missionary life on earth, he taught us about Christian beneficence; how to be kind; how to love others; how to do good to help others; respect the poor and needy and how to be generous which is a fundamental Christian virtue. In the famous ‘Sermon On the Mount’ as described in the Gospel of Matthew 5:1-12, Christ lists out the ‘Beatitudes’ or ‘Blessings’ providing his followers with a loving, indispensable and transformative guide as to how we can live our lives - with beneficence.
Above : The Sermon on the Mount by Cosimo Rosselli 1439-1507 ; fresco at the Sistine Chapel, Vatican City
“Now when he saw the crowds, he went up on a mountainside and sat down. His disciples came to Him, and He began to teach them, saying:
Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted.
Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth.
Blessed are those who hunger and thirst after righteousness,
for they will be filled.
Blessed are the merciful, for they shall be shown mercy.
Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God.
Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called the sons of God.
Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of me.
Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in Heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you.”
( Matthew 5: 1-12)
Love for God and our fellow human beings is surely the stirring and compelling raison d’etre of our Christian faith.
BENEFICENCE – SOCIAL JUSTICE AND THE COMMON GOOD
Above : Andrea di Bartolo 1389-1428 – Joachim and Anna giving food to the poor and offerings to the temple; tempera on poplar panel, National Gallery of Art, Washington DC
Beneficence - doing good - is also an abiding fundamental principle of social justice. It involves practising social justice to have a fair and equitable society. In the beautiful painting above by Andrea di-Bartolo, we see that already more than two thousand years ago, before organised patronage of church and state, the humanitarian culture of charity by private individuals was well practised. In di-Bartolo’s painting, Joachim and Anne (the parents of the Virgin Mary ) are giving alms and food to the poor and needy.
Above : Gainsborough; ‘Charity Relieving Distress’, circa 1784, oil on canvas; Indianapolis Museum of Art.
In the painting above by the famous 18th century English artist, Thomas Gainsborough, we see that the ideal of charity – with the wealthy sharing their food and alms with the needy and the poor was an inspiring subject for British painters. In the painting ‘Charity Relieving Distress’ a poor family in rags is receiving food from a well-dressed young woman with an onlooker admiring this act of benevolence.
Above : St. Thomas Acquinas
For the Catholic Church, Social Justice has been part of the Church’s philosophical thinking for centuries. I wrote about this in the May 21st 2022 issue ( # 000042) of Smitten By Faith) entitled : ‘Social Justice - A Moral Vision; Dignity of the Human Person and Commitment to the Common Good’. The Dominican philosopher, theologian, and Doctor of the Church, ST. THOMAS AQUINAS (1225–1274), offers the concept of social justice as a personal virtue rather than a virtue of social institutions. For St. Thomas Aquinas, social justice is more about inter-personal morality than civic or social obligations. He argued that God is the source of both the light of natural reason and the light of faith. For Aquinas, social justice is a cardinal virtue which he defines as "a habit whereby man renders to each one his due by a constant and perpetual will”.
Above : Pope Leo XIII
In 1891, when Pope Leo XIII saw the dire straits of poor people living in utter and abject poverty in the cities of Europe, his personal distress and concern led to the promulgation of his encyclical ‘Rerum Novarum: Rights and Duties of Capital and Labour’ which can be said to mark the ‘birth’ of the Church’s social doctrine and modern Catholic social teaching - respect for the human person, promotion of the family, dignity of work and workers, subsidiarity, the right to hold property, pursuit of peace and care of the poor.
According to Rerum Novarum, all people have a duty, after taking care of their own needs, to help their neighbours who are in need. It underscored that this duty is one of charity rather than of legally enforced justice. Today social justice is the core of Catholic social teaching which recognises the dignity of the human person; that all of humanity is connected to each other; part of one family made in the image of God and that our actions, good or bad, will inevitably impact on others. We need to live in peace and harmony with each other. And, if we act with a view to the common good, we can and must use our positions to influence, innovate and improve the lives of others.
BENEFICENCIA ! BENEFICENCE !
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Very edifying explanation of the outworking of beneficence.
This action is a true reflection of the Holy I Am.
Even the layperson is able to process that this is a Godly action.
One needs only to consider how this world would be radically altered from its present state if all or even a fair percentage of people were to adopt this view toward concern for the wellbeing of others.
Appreciate your offering up of this uplifting message.
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Active beneficence could also be referred to as the golden rule.
My mate and I have a grand, I call it 'opportunity' to live this out.
We were SERIOUSLY scammed out of a LOT of money 💰, never easy to live this out then, but we're going to do it.
We're quite sure these scammed are practiced, performing this on seniors(as we are). My mate had nearly died, close it was, and
they exploited that.
We WILL live out scripture, see what happens, NOT serve Mammon or worry about money, or consider loss.
'Jesus', whose Hebrew name is Yehoshua LOST, yet GAINED.
We expect no less.
It removes us from petty hatred, revenge, which don't work anyway but ruin those doing it.
Good words. Thank you.