Earlier quoted context omitted.
But we do need to worry about those people when those people may be a large percentage of the people on the streets. These people are deep into the throws of mental illness, addiction, or both. What do you do to help people who don’t want to help themselves? It’s a very difficult problem and I don’t know if there is an easy solution that doesn’t infringe on people’s rights. You can’t make being homeless illegal and s…
Those who need more support than just housing (and I’d assume that could be many!) should be able to have it provided for them — I am sure the lines get murky if someone claims to not want to get helped, but I am also sure there is a way to still provide it humanely — anything is a step forward from the present conditions of homelessness and/or incarceration, at this point
The approach I’ve taken in the past to these issues is to simply treat people as people worthy of fair treatment, do what I can personally to help, and provide what resources I’m able to provide to support organizations that I believe to be effective in helping people.
The parable of the starfish seems to apply: if you walk down a beach covered with starfish dying in the sun, you have no means available to save all of them. You can only put the ones you encounter back into the sea. It doesn’t solve the problem as a whole, but it makes a difference to the ones you’re able to save.
Or, from a Judeo-Christian perspective; “If among you, one of your brothers should become poor, in any of your towns within your land that the Lord your God is giving you, you shall not harden your heart or shut your hand against your poor brother, but you shall open your hand to him and lend him sufficient for his need, whatever it may be … For the poor you will always have with you in the land. Therefore I command you, ‘You shall open wide your hand to your brother, to the needy and to the poor, in your land.” (Deuteronomy 15:7-11)
I take this to mean that helping those who need help is the responsibility of every individual, within that individual’s means. I also take it to mean that it is a problem where one should not expect a neat resolution; no matter how much you give or how many people give alongside you, there will always be more that can (and should) be done. The purpose of the commandment to help the poor is not to eliminate poverty, but to provide an ongoing means of spiritually enriching all parties involved.
I know that the things I’ve done for others have lead to personal growth in both myself and the people I’ve come to know through those actions.
I’m still trying to integrate the apparent contradiction that some of the smallest sacrifices I’ve made have had some of the largest impacts. Several times my wife and I have given substantial monetary gifts to individuals and organizations - they’re important and I in no way mean to dissuade someone from doing that, but at the end of the day it feels like the phrase “it’s just money” seems to apply. On the other hand, the single most impactful thing I’ve ever done was to pick someone up who was walking down the highway in my small town. I had some time that day and ended up not only taking them where they was going (home), but spending about two hours afterward taking them to run a handful of errands that would have taken them at least a full day to accomplish without a vehicle - to the DMV for a replacement license, to a staffing agency to sign up, and to the grocery store to pick up a few essentials. In that case I wasn’t even able to help them pay for groceries due to my own financial situation... but months later, that same person flagged me down and told me - with tears in their eyes - that the fact that I took the time to help them was a major factor in their deciding not to attempt suicide and to seek help. That was a bit over two years ago, and while that person is still dealing with their personal demons, they are no longer regularly using hard drugs, have reconciled with their family, and are living with an elder relative to help care for them.