“Nihil mihi deerit”. There are alternate English renditions of St. Jerome’s translation of the opening verse of Psalm 23 (22). Most readers will recognize “The Lord is my shepherd I shall not want”. Others will be familiar with “The Lord is my shepherd I shall lack nothing”. Wouldn’t it be gratifying to know and to understand the original Hebrew text? For those of us who are linguistically limited we might be left wondering if there is a difference between “not wanting” and “lacking nothing”. And, if there is, has the distinction any bearing on philanthropy?
The answer to each question is affirmative.
As for the first, the distinction between “not wanting” and “lacking nothing” may be exceedingly subtle but still illustrative. “Not wanting” suggests one has everything he desires or needs (and nothing more). “Lacking nothing” on the other hand indicates one possesses, or has access to, everything (regardless of need or desire). Though subtle, there is a significant distinction, at least as it relates to philanthropy.
Philanthropists – certainly Catholic philanthropists – are in the latter camp. They reject the Malthusian mindset that asserts resources are limited. Or, stated more clearly, they do not accept that the effect of their philanthropy is limited to the resources they commit. In spite of the zero-sum zeitgeist pervading much of our society, they dismiss the notion that a contribution by one party to another diminishes the wealth of the former by the same amount it increases the wealth of the latter.
It isn’t so much because they honor the scriptural advice that it is better to give than to receive or that giving enhances the self-esteem of the giver. It is more than that. Donors, at least the ones who are members of the NCCF community, are intrigued by and inspired by the multiplier effect and creative power of philanthropy, like the yeast in leavening bread, or salt in enhancing flavor, or the improbable growth of the tiny mustard seed. For them, philanthropy attracts a force that is exogenous to the gift given, a force which hints at the possibility that – if one believes – there are no limits, that nothing is lacking, that all is possible.
That NCCF’s donors should harbor such notions should not be surprising. Creation itself is an act of philanthropy. God, compelled by love, brought into existence out of nothing (ex nihilo) the universe we inhabit. Our world is the result of the creation of something out of nothing made possible by an exogenous force. Then, of course, there is the well-known Gospel story of Jesus feeding five thousand hungry listeners with five loaves and two fish. Wasn’t this a philanthropic act? Isn’t philanthropy itself miraculous?
To be sure, for our donors, philanthropy is a form of ministry. But, it is more. It is a ministry imbued with mystery, the same mystery that is guiding the advance of the Kingdom.