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Comment by twodave | Hacker News Reader

It isn’t. A primary tenet of Christianity is to identify with Christ, mainly through suffering. Much the way a workout can be rewarding in and of itself (e.g. the runner’s high), the suffering of sacrifice can be its own reward if given in the correct mindset. What makes this possible for the Christian believer is the faith/knowledge that one’s sins have already _been_ absolved, so Heaven has already effectively been attained. So (now having a mindset of gratitude) the Christian believer is free to be charitable without the need for personal gain, for what more could the believer gain? Or what could he/she lose that would stain the gift already received?

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>What makes this possible for the Christian believer is the faith/knowledge that one’s sins have already _been_ absolved, so Heaven has already effectively been attained

I have yet to meet a Christian believer IRL who has actual faith that their sins have already been absolved so heaven has already effectively been attained

Maybe that's more common in other corners of the world? I haven't met many people who actually act as if they know they'll be saved as opposed to hoping they'll be saved

There are entire books of the New Testament devoted to assurance of salvation. I find this sentiment I described commonplace in my area of the world (Florida, US).

So what is the motivator for people to give charity if there is no reward from God? I would have thought there were some sort of reward for charity in Christianity.

Human beings possess empathy and a desire to help the less fortunate entirely apart from religion or its rewards. From a purely utilitarian standpoint, one could argue that the reward of altruistic behavior within a social hierarchy is the strengthening of social bonds and likelihood of reciprocity, and this behavior has been seen in other primate species besides humans, suggesting it has an evolutionary benefit. Unfortunately, thousands of years of religious indoctrination has led many people to believe that humans are essentially amoral sociopaths without religion. But religion doesn't generate morality, ethics or virtue so much as codify them into a culturally specific framework.

That said, Jesus commanded his followers to practice charity often and directly linked doing so with gaining rewards in heaven.

The reward is being in a state of obedience to Christ and his will which is a reward in and of itself.

> So what is the motivator for people to give charity if there is no reward from God?

Love of ones fellow man.

> I would have thought there were some sort of reward for charity in Christianity.

To the extent that there may be, that reward is not generally viewed in most Christian doctrine as the motivator. Christianity is not, predomonantly, doctrinally, transactional in that way.

(Transactional personal beliefs are, however, far more common in Christianity than formal doctrine would suggest, and political Christianity frequently invokes a transactional view that is at odds with common doctrine.)

>Love of ones fellow man

Hmm interesting. I wonder is love really a motivator? It's more of a reason, right? "I give charity because I love my fellow man". I feel like that's not inclusive.

Like what about people who don't love their fellow man all that much? I mean is that even allowed?-- If I'm a Christian do I have to love my fellow man to the point of charity? What if I call myself Christian but I think most people are rude and selfish and have a hard time loving them.. does that make me not Christian? I'm sure there are people who are Christian and have a hard time loving humanity, seems like they would be not included. I suppose the reward aspect still applies so it makes sense for everyone.

I like the idea, it's very philosophically pure. But I'm surprised it actually works in real life. It seems to me like that would encompass only a minority. Maybe that's more a reflection of the times we're in than anything else. Hope you don't mind the probing questions-- I'm not trying to poke holes in these beliefs I'm just trying to understand them completely

> I wonder is love really a motivator? It's more of a reason, right?

I'm not sure I understand the distinction you are drawing here.

> Like what about people who don't love their fellow man all that much? I mean is that even allowed?

“Allowed” as in “not sinful”? No.

“Allowed” as in “forgivable”? Yes.

> If I'm a Christian do I have to love my fellow man to the point of charity?

For certain values of “have to”, yes, though it doesn't have to be expressed by giving money to a recognized charity. But equally Christianity means you have to accept that virtually every actual person will fall short of what they “have to” do.

> What if I call myself Christian but I think most people are rude and selfish and have a hard time loving them.. does that make me not Christian?

No, having a hard time doesn't make you not Christian.

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