Sins with sweet charity they Clothe:²
Charity allows the uncaring to appear to care—
And it is Terrible for those who depend upon it.³
The catch is they’re Selfish about being Generous.⁴
Pity is a Trade—Generosity a Science—
That men get Rich by.⁵
Take heed that ye do not your
Alms before Men to be Seen of them:
When thou doest thine Alms, sound no
Trumpet before thee, as the Hypocrites do!⁶
Little thanks are due to they who Only
Give what is of No Use to themselves.⁷
They rob & steal with a conscience
Like that of Holy Men giving Alms—⁸
Their Benevolence is a heavy weight on our head,
Their good intentions an act of Aggression!⁹
We would like a little assurance that
No one will Destroy the Earth
For some good cause …¹⁰
¹ Arundhati Roy, The God of Small Things
² Strickland Gillilan, Watch Yourself Go By
³ Derek Jarman, Into the Blue
⁴ David Foster Wallace, Brief Interviews With Hideous Men #31
⁵ William Blake, America: a Prophesy
⁶ Matthew 6:1-2 (King James)
⁷ James’s Aesop, The Wolf and the Horse
⁸ Giovanni Boccaccio tr. Wayne Rebhorn, The Decameron
⁹ Philip Whalen, Unsuccessful Spring Poem
¹⁰ Wendell Berry, Window Poems