One of the most fundamental principles of Christianity is to “love thy neighbour”. Surely we cannot consider ourselves to be doing this if we do not help those in need worldwide, and not simply in our own country. As Christians we are also taught to ‘go the extra mile’, and there is no better way of doing this than by helping the often faceless victims of disasters and poverty worldwide.
Surely to support many people all over the world is better than to give support to a select few, who often have a high standard of living when compared to people across the globe. Although it is important to support charities that work in our own country, it is equally important to support those that work worldwide, and so it is often best to donate money to charities which work where help is needed, including in our own country. By doing so, we are ensuring that our donation is used where it is needed most, and so we are helping in away which ensures those in need receive the necessary help and support.
Some people feel that we cannot try to ‘solve the problems of the world’ while there are still many problems in our own country. This a valid point of view, but if each country was left to solve it’s own problem with no outside help, many people would die from many things, starvation to illness due to contaminated water supplies. Many of the countries where aid goes simply do not have enough money or resources to help its own people, and so by leaving each country to solve its own problems, we are effectively sentencing tens of thousands of people to death. Surely this cannot be seen as humane, let alone a Christian point of view.
Sometimes when donating to overseas funds, we cannot be sure that our money is reaching those in need, and this is another reason why some people feel that we should not donate to charities based in other countries. People do not want to fund the production of weapons for example, when the money they give is supposed to be helping provide clean water to a remote village. However, by donating through reputable charities and aid agencies, this risk can be removed, and so there is no reason not to help those in other countries by donating to overseas charities.
In all the churches under the general name of Christianity there is one consistent view about giving to charity, and helping those in need of our help, or those less fortunate than us. An example of this can be seen in The Methodist church, which recognises that all Christians have an obligation to "(a) give relief to those in need, (b) to ensure rehabilitation after natural disasters, and (c) to assist in fundamental development.” This same principle is seen in the teaching of all the churches, and so it is expected that Christians should give to all charities, not just those which support work in the UK.
As Christians, therefore, it is impossible to ignore the suffering across the world and still claim to be following the ‘Christian Code’ so to speak. It is important to support people across the world who are suffering, and not to be prejudiced by the fact that these people live in a different country. If we neglect the charities that work abroad, especially in the developing world, we are causing the already substantial gap between the developed and developing worlds to widen, and so causing those who are already suffering to suffer even further.
