Enchiridion On Faith, Hope and Love
by Saint Augustine

CHAPTER XX

SPIRITUAL ALMSGIVING

75. Now, surely, those who live in gross wickedness and take no care to

correct their lives and habits, who yet, amid their crimes and misdeeds, continue to

multiply their alms, flatter themselves in vain with the Lord's words, "Give alms;

and, behold, all things are clean to you." They do not understand how far this saying

reaches. In order for them to understand, let them notice to whom it was that he

said it. For this is the context of it in the Gospel: "As he was speaking, a certain

Pharisee asked him to dine with him. And he went in and reclined at the table. And

the Pharisee began to wonder and ask himself why He had not washed himself

before dinner. But the Lord said to him: 'Now you Pharisees clean the outside of the

cup and the dish, but within you are still full of extortion and wickedness. Foolish

ones! Did not He who made the outside make the inside too? Nevertheless, give for

alms what remains within; and, behold, all things are clean to you.'"162 Should we

interpret this to mean that to the Pharisees, who had not the faith of Christ, all

things are clean if only they give alms, as they deem it right to give them, even if

they have not believed in him, nor been reborn of water and the Spirit? But all are

unclean who are not made clean by the faith of Christ, of whom it is written,

"Cleansing their hearts by faith."163 And as the apostle said, "But to them that are

unclean and unbelieving nothing is clean; both their minds and consciences are

unclean."164 How, then, should all things be clean to the Pharisees, even if they

gave alms, but were not believers? Or, how could they be believers, if they were

unwilling to believe in Christ and to be born again in his grace? And yet, what they

160John 14:6.

161Matt. 6:14, 15.

162Luke 11:37-41.

163Acts 15:9.

164Titus 1:15.

heard is true: "Give alms; and behold, all things are clean to you."

76. He who would give alms as a set plan of his life should begin with himself

and give them to himself. For almsgiving is a work of mercy, and the saying is most

true: "Have mercy upon your own soul, pleasing God."165 The purpose of the new

birth is that we should become pleasing to God, who is justly displeased with the sin

we contracted in birth. This is the first almsgiving, which we give to ourselves--

when through the mercy of a merciful God we come to inquire about our

wretchedness and come to acknowledge the just verdict by which we were put in

need of that mercy, of which the apostle says, "Judgment came by that one trespass

to condemnation."166 And the same herald of grace then adds (in a word of

thanksgiving for God's great love), "But God commendeth his love toward us in that,

while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us."167 Thus, when we come to a valid

estimate of our wretchedness and begin to love God with the love he himself giveth

us, we then begin to live piously and righteously.

But the Pharisees, while they gave as alms a tithing of even the least of their

fruits, disregarded this "judgment and love of God." Therefore, they did not begin

their almsgiving with themselves, nor did they, first of all, show mercy toward

themselves. In reference to this right order of self-love, it was said, "You shall love

your neighbor as yourself."168

Therefore, when the Lord had reproved the Pharisees for washing themselves

on the outside while inwardly they were still full of extortion and wickedness, he

then admonished them also to give those alms which a man owes first to himself--to

make clean the inner man: "However," he said, "give what remains as alms, and,

behold, all things are clean to you." Then, to make plain the import of his

admonition, which they had ignored, and to show them that he was not ignorant of

their kind of almsgiving, he adds, "But woe to you, Pharisees"169--as if to say, "I am

advising you to give the kind of alms which shall make all things clean to you." "But

woe to you, for you tithe mint and rue and every herb"--"I know these alms of yours

and you need not think I am admonishing you to give them up"--"and then neglect

justice and the love of God." "This kind of almsgiving would make you clean from all

inward defilement, just as the bodies which you wash are made clean by you." For

the word "all" here means both "inward" and "outward"--as elsewhere we read,

"Make clean the inside, and the outside will become clean."170

But, lest it appear that he was rejecting the kind of alms we give of the

earth's bounty, he adds, "These things you should do"--that is, pay heed to the

judgment and love of God--and "not omit the others"--that is, alms done with the

earth's bounty.

77. Therefore, let them not deceive themselves who suppose that by giving

alms--however profusely, and whether of their fruits or money or anything else--

they purchase impunity to continue in the enormity of their crimes and the

grossness of their wickedness. For not only do they do such things, but they also

love them so much that they would always choose to continue in them--if they could

do so with impunity. "But he who loves iniquity hates his own soul."171 And he who

hates his own soul is not merciful but cruel to it. For by loving it after the world's

way he hates it according to God's way of judging. Therefore, if one really wished to

give alms to himself, that all things might become clean to him, he would hate his

soul after the world's way and love it according to God's way. No one, however, gives

any alms at all unless he gives from the store of Him who needs not anything.

165Ecclus. 30:24 (Vulgate).

166Rom. 5:16.

167Rom. 5:8.

168Luke 10:27.

169Luke 11:42.

170Matt. 23:26.

171Ps. 10:6 (Vulgate).

"Accordingly," it is said, "His mercy shall go before me."172