With politics being everywhere these days, I thought we’d take a breather to notice something which has popped up a lot on my radar lately – namely generosity. Generosity defines this season for many and matters in many profound ways. So, let’s take a palette cleanse from life’s stressses and take a few moments to appreciate generosity and the impact it can have.

Photo Credit: Canva.com

The Holidays of Giving

We are currently in the midst of a great surge of holidays. Diwali just passed, Guru Nanak’s birthday is coming for Sikhs, the Mexican Day of the Dead was last week, and soon Hanukkah and Christmas will arrive. Many of these days are celebrated partly through gift giving. Religions often work to encourage giving, embedding them as practices and teachings. The giving tradition of Christmas is so prevalent that many secular folks will engage in this sharing with family and friends even if they don’t acknowledge the day in any religious sense.

Religiosity Does Promote Generosity

Religion comes under much (justified) critique today. But it is also true (if lesser known) that the devout donate more to charity and volunteer more. In Canada, a 2015 government survey found weekly attenders to religious services donated three times more annually (including donating more to secular charities). They were also more likely to volunteer and volunteered 40% more hours. Similar findings come from the United States.

I witness this at many of the places Encounter visits as I see mosques doing food drives and Hindu temples donating money to hospitals. The many narratives and teachings around generosity alluded to above encourages this as does being in a community that makes giving easy. Within religious communities, often there are folks who find good charities for you, educate you about them and the congregation will collect and transfer your money. All of this helps by making donating easier. It also encourages donating and volunteering when you’re part of a much larger effort by a whole congregation. Individuals might question their impact but being part of a generous community makes the cumulative impact apparent.

Generosity of Hosts

At Encounter, we are often humbled by the generosity of the many communities we visit. The day before writing this, I was with students as we visited an Orthodox church, a mosque and a synagogue. A few weeks ago, that same mosque and a Sikh temple opened their doors to the most senior leaders in one of Canada’s largest police services as we came to learn about how police can better understand and connect with these communities. It is such a privilege to take folks like you to visit these communities. And in addition to being fed educationally and experientially, we are sometimes fed a meal as well. In my over two decades at Encounter, these hosts have donated uncountable hours to welcoming people into their spiritual homes.

A Small Gift for You

We’re also thankful for you! It is a privilege to take folks like you to places of worship, to have people attend in-person and online events, and to have readers of this blog. As a small thank you, we are offering a talk on November 13 on End-of-Year Religious Holidays that is FREE for readers like you (just use the coupon code FALLHOLIDAYS at the link). This talk has been popular in public settings and with many corporations and organizations. We will be looking at holidays from the last couple months of the year including:

• Diwali
• The Mexican Day of the Dead
• Rastafarian Coronation Day
• Guru Nanak birthday
• Hanukkah
• Christmas

We have limited spaces so grab your free spot today!

Photo Credit: Canva.com

Would You Like to Help Us Continue This Work?

Finally, a small request. We have launched our campaign for Giving Tuesday. This time of the year is critical for us to gain financial support to allow us to continue our work. In the past year, we have had more folks become monthly donors (thank you!!) and more have offered one-time donations as well (again, much thanks!). If you’re looking for a way to give back and to use some of your treasure to make our communities better places, we would be honoured by your support. You can do so here and you will get an immediate tax receipt.

Social media and other aspects of our lives have a way of channeling negative news to us. But daily, I get to interact with folks like you who are engaged with their communities, and working and learning in order to make them more welcoming. I hope that Encounter can be a bright spot for some of you and help spread the message that there are good folks making big and small positive changes just about everywhere we look. It is worth our while to notice this in others and in ourselves, especially in these interesting times.

Photo Credit: Canva.com