In my last blog of this series, I consider the obstacle of projecting ourselves, our preferences and our desires onto our neighbors. However, this isn’t just a challenge at the individual level. This happens on a larger scale in our societies.

One of the forms this projection can take is paternalism. This is when people in power restrict the freedom and responsibilities of those under them, in their best interests, of course! This could be in the form of misunderstanding what people want and need or simply projecting self onto them. We see this at work in large systems like anti-poverty measures. A large proportion of the money dedicated to the poor is not being given to the poor. Instead, it is spent on programs to help them because the poor are thought to be untrustworthy and poorly educated. Of course, they may not understand all the complexities of the factors contributing to their situation. But creating solutions without the wisdom and lived experience of those facing the problems often fails to bring lasting solutions. One maxim from community organizing is how ‘the people closest to the problem are closest to the solution.’ Perhaps a better starting point is asking how could those closest to the problem become part of the solution? Anyone seeking to help others on a broad scale should wrestle with this question first. 

A great example of looking first to those experiencing the problem is from the book Switch: How to Change Things When Change is Hard. The book details how people were trying to improve malnutrition in Vietnam. Instead of spending months analyzing all the challenges facing the poor farmers. Jerry Sternin, working for Save the Children, went out and found the bright spots in the community. What were certain people doing that others weren’t with the same access to resources and getting better results? He discovered that people were making different choices about what to eat and how often to eat which were making a big impact. He then worked to spread those behaviors to other people as organically as possible. The first village saw 65% of the kids better nourished 6 months after he arrived. It was then exported to 265 villages or 2.2 million people. This made a huge and lasting difference for lots of people. The solution came by amplifying what the people were already doing. That was where the real expertise was needed. Those closest to the problem were also closest to the solution. 

So am I saying we should just give the poor money and their problems will go away? No, of course not. Their problems will remain. Just read The Locust Effect, by Gary Haugen. If the rich can exploit and take from the poor will legal immunity, then the riches of the poor will never be safe. But there are very thoughtful efforts to explore how giving money directly to the poor can make a significant difference. This article by the NPR highlights an ongoing experiment of direct payments to poor rural people in Kenya. It has led to significant positive change in their lives through direct assistance of various kinds. Wouldn’t it be great to understand and advocate for similar programs in our own country? Another idea that have seen positive implementation in North America is housing first for the homeless. Imagine what change it would bring if it was implemented more broadly. These approaches are in contrast with imposing solutions on the poor from on-high or afar. This blog isn’t advocating for any particular solution but hopefully opening your mind to new possibilities for you to invest in, advocate for, or implement. 

The Church isn’t immune from this solution from a distance problem either. The book, When Helping Hurts, comes to mind. It highlights how good intentions do not prevent people from causing legitimate harm to the very people they want to help. This could be in the form of short-term missions that disempower local people from being part of a more permanent solution. Or how an urban community installed new lights to make it safer at the advocacy of the church. But they didn’t fit the neighborhood ascetic and there was no money included for maintenance. So, the lights looked great but out of place for a while. Then they were broken and contributed to a negative neighborhood experience. The history of missions and community involvement are overflowing with similar examples. 

When you read about the complexity of helping people you may feel discouraged. You may think well if it is that hard to do it right, I just won’t bother! But I want to say, “Hold up! Wait a minute!” When one of us makes a mistake, all of us can learn from that and do better next time. We have made lots of mistakes! So, we can learn a lot from that if we make the effort. It does mean the work might take a bigger investment of time. It will likely require hard choices and prioritization versus other things you care about. But I encourage you to take time to reflect and consider where God is calling you. You can’t be everywhere all at once doing everything. Life just doesn’t work that way. Try starting with something small. Is there a way you can remind yourself of the struggles of other people? A picture you can put on your desk? An object? Or a story you can read and reread? Where can you join in what others are doing to put your hands and feet into action? 

When you slow down and reflect on your frustration with dealing with large issues, you might realize that your frustration is a manifestation of your impatience. Today, we often want to help people fast. And we shouldn’t be surprised by that. When we can order something and it arrives the same day at our door or stream a video immediately, we get used to not having to wait. These things seem almost like magic. Is there a magic word to fix X large societal issue? Someone has got to know it! Of course not. Yet, this same impatience can unconsciously come with us to help others. We become less willing to invest upfront in understanding the challenges or in staying around long enough to see a real impact. We say to ourselves, “I’ll help for a day or a week and that’s all.” Or “I’ll post it on my social media feed and then go back to my regular life.” And those things can be good. But without some people really taking on these issues, they will never be solved. So yes, we need the many to give some of their time, energy, and money. But we also need the few to give more. Consider which one God is calling you to be and hopefully the advice in this blog and elsewhere can help you to do it well.  

This blog addressed really big issues and unfortunately, the depth of engagement may be a bit limited for some readers. Please consider joining one of BFJN’s book groups like the upcoming Rich Christians in An Age of Hunger group in April to go deeper. Or explore having a Micah 6:8 weekend learning experience at your church.