Perspectief 2017-36

2017-36 JT Chapter 1: Roman Catholic responses 17 Reageer the basis for all action, including charity, was that before long, Western society returned to a seemingly pre-Christian classification of the needy. They were divided into those who were able to contribute to the wellbeing of the nation, and those who were of no perceived use at all. 51 This distinction was justified by the prioritisation of the public interest. Society was to be elevated to physical, mental and cultural perfection, leaving no space for imperfections like poverty and disease. 52 The main effect of this secularisation of Western society with respect to altruism was that charity came to be defined in terms of rights and obligations. Guardini calls this the mechanisation of charity, which entails a business-like bureaucratisation. A business-like attitude should not and cannot be entirely obliterated from aid 53 – especially because large-scale crises simply require efficiency in order for aid to be effective – but such an approach should be subordinate to the altruism that flows from a free and open heart. This is because “[c]harity finds its deepest motivation in the relation from person to person, in the liberty of calling and answering”. 54 Guardini then turns to the abovementioned objection that is often posed against the personal approach to the needy that he himself advocates: that the magnitude of, for instance, the refugee crisis does not allow for personal and customised aid. People who start working for charitable organisations are initially highly motivated, yet get discouraged and embittered once they realise the scope of the problems they are dealing with. In order to prevent this loss of ambition from happening, Guardini stresses that these masses of people in need of help should be seen not as a mass of cases, but rather as a large number of individuals. Respect for the uniqueness of each person must subsequently be conveyed through involving the needy themselves in improving their situation. 55 Guardini proposes the Christian outlook on charity as the remedy to secular society’s limited perception of charity. Belief in Christ’s presence in the most needy allows for 51 ibid. 26. 52 ibid. 28. 53 ibid. 41. 54 ibid. 38. 55 ibid. 42.