On the Dignity of the Person: Human Worth and Gift-giving

Man as Scrooge

Watching the movie “Scrooge” (1951) starring Alastair Sim has become part of Christmas tradition for me. I’ve seen other film adaptions of Dickens’ “A Christmas Carol”, but no actor conveys the joy of reclamation as infectiously as Sim did in the 1951 film.

Scrooge was rich, but he lived as a poor wretch. He had no appreciation of human worth, neither the worth of his fellow human being, nor his own worth. He never gave anything of value, because he had nothing of value to give, or to be more precise, he had nothing that was truly his own. The wealth he had accumulated was as dead to him as his business partner Jacob Marley: it had done good to none, not even himself.

Truth be told, Scrooge and I have much in common, and I suspect the same can be said of many in this day and age. “A Christmas Carol” is a heartwarming story that the darkest day in our life -Christmas being around winter solstice–can be transformed into a day of joy and hope. But alas, such warmth doesn’t last long. Scrooge was transformed from a miser to a philanthropist. But there is much more to the well-being of man than can be achieved through philanthropy.

The Problem with Gift-giving

According to ancient Greek philosophers, there are three levels of goods: external goods, e.g., lands and possessions; goods of the body, e.g., health, strength and beauty; goods of the soul, e.g., knowledge and virtue.

The problem with gift-giving is that our gifts tend to be the lowest level of goods, i.e., material goods, and few people are capable of giving gifts that are goods of the soul. We lack genuine knowledge of human worth, and cannot give gifts that are worthy both of the giver and of the recipient.

There are people who don’t believe in such a thing as soul. The fact that man’s desires remain insatiable, even when his physical needs are satisfied, should give them pause. Among those who do believe, the soul is still valued far less than the body. To know what a person values the most, we only need to look at what he gives to those he loves, and for what purpose he spends most of his time.

Parents would often sacrifice their own needs for their children’s. Much as they love their children, however, parents can’t give what they don’t have. Many parents lack knowledge in medicine and nutrition, consequently children suffer from various disorders caused by an unhealthy and imbalanced diet; Many parents, though they try their best to nurture and protect their children, have neither the wisdom nor the power to help their children lead a good life — they have enough troubles of their own.

God as the Ultimate Gift-giver

Is there anyone among you who, if your child asks for a fish, will give a snake instead of a fish? Or if the child asks for an egg, will give a scorpion? If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will the heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him!”
— Luke 11:11-13

Speaking as an idealist, the main appeal of Christianity to me is Christmas, i.e., God gives man the ultimate gift of eternal life in the person of Jesus Christ.

In gift-giving, the giver is expected, nay, sometimes required, to give in accord with his own worth, i.e., noblesse oblige. One might ask: What ultimate gift can God give that is worthy of Him? Christianity answers: The ultimate gift God can give is God Himself. St. Augustine writes in his treatise On the Trinity, “How great a God is He who gives God!”

This Ultimate Gift is given man in and through the Person of Jesus Christ, the only Son of God who for man’s sake became poor that through His poverty man might become rich. As St. Athanasius writes, the Word of God Himself assumed humanity that we might become God.

When he has received the kingdom of Israel from his father King David, King Solomon asks God for wisdom that he might execute justice in a manner worthy of a king; When man has received the Gift of Life, he no doubt needs wisdom from God, that he might live worthy of the divine calling. For this, God has not left man without help, because the Holy Spirit, who has come to dwell in man, has the power to guide man into all truth, that all might come to the knowledge of the Son of God.

The Riches of the Poor

Has not God chosen the poor in the world to be rich in faith and to be heirs of the kingdom that he has promised to those who love him?
— James 2:5

Many of us, myself included, live our lives like the proverbial beggar sitting on a goldmine. We live like the poor wretch Scrooge, because we have no genuine knowledge of human worth, of the riches of glory and freedom of the children of God.

In gift-giving, the recipient is expected not to squander the gift he has received, but cultivate and use it for good according to his ability. One of the common fears among parents is that their children would squander their inheritance, and that their whole life’s work would come to naught in their children’s hands. What a terrible waste it would be if we squander the Gift of Life that God has given us!

One of the best ways to know what gifts we possess is to exercise them. Even the dirt-poor among us have gifts to give, because the kingdom is theirs. As Kierkegaard writes, a man who has neither natural talents, nor material wealth, nevertheless can bestow precious gifts on others, by offering prayers to God for them. The prayer of faith is powerful and effective. For after all, God is the ultimate Gift-giver, and every perfect gift is from Him.

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