POLITICIZING CHARITABLE GIVING

For the past two-plus weeks, I have kept a personal appeal on the top of this blog in the hope that those who visit will contribute to one or more of the charitable organizations who are on the ground doing work to help Hurricane Katrina victims. It will stay there a little bit longer as many of them will likely also be assisting those residents along the mid-Atlantic coast who are being affected by Hurricane Ophelia.

I have received a couple of messages questioning my inclusion of Operation Blessing International on the list, because it was founded and continues to be led by the televangelist and former Republican presidential candidate Pat Robertson. Like many of the organizations that I included, it was culled from several lists of groups doing work in the region.

By no means am I a Pat Robertson fan; I personally despise his politics and believe that he sullies the meaning of "Christian" to advance his own goals. He is no better than the Muslim extremists who murder innocent civilians toward their end of a theocracy.

That said, I don't believe in using politics to include what organizations to include in this list. If a group is in the region and is helping the victims, they deserve to be recognized and supported. I may not personally contribute to Operation Blessing, but it is each individual's choice. The intention of the list is simply to provide readers with a number of choices from the major groups that are working in the area. Friends, it doesn't matter who you give to, as long as you GIVE and GIVE GENEROUSLY...but please be sure to follow the caution mentioned in the original post.