Source: staugustine.com

In the New Testament book of Acts, Jesus is reported to have spoken these words: “It is more blessed to give than to receive.” Jesus understood that to sacrifice self-indulgent desires, for the sake of someone else, brings happiness.

However, Christianity is not the only religion that stresses the significance of giving. Every major world religion stresses the importance of charity.

In the Qur’an we read, “True piety is this … to give of one’s substance, however cherished, to kinsmen, and orphans, the needy, the traveler, beggars, and to ransom the slave …”

And from the Hindu Vedas: “The wealthier person should give unto the needy.”

Even though Americans give more than citizens of any other country, there is something surprising in those numbers. According to Forbes, “While the wealthiest citizens give the most in sheer dollar amounts — it’s in fact low-income employed Americans who give the highest portion of their income, or 4.5 percent.”

It seems that the less money one has the more one is willing to part with one’s money. By why is this? Why do the wealthier among us give a smaller portion of… continue reading at staugustine.com