Mine Rescue, by Fletcher Martin, 1939. Smithsonian American Art Museum, Washington, DC.

Philanthropy

Volume VIII, Number 3 | summer 2015

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Preamble

Pennies from Heaven

By Lewis H. Lapham

The word philanthropy first appears in Western thought in the fifth century BC to denote an act of rebellion and name the crime of treason.

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Treasure in Heaven

By Peter Brown

St. Augustine and other early Christians challenged the Roman idea of charity by invoking the ultimate authority—God.

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Map

Money Trails

Where the UN, the World Bank, and eleven nations send foreign aid.

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Miscellany

Kings of England extorted money from their subjects in taxes concealed as gifts—a practice first used in 1473 by Edward IV. These were known as benevolences.

1178 | Cairo

The Ladder of Charity

The eight degrees of charity. More

1796 | London

Prix Fixe

How to make a very cheap soup.More

1922 | New York City

The Cruelty of Kindness

Margaret Sanger on the harsh realities of motherhood. More

Charts & Graphs

Naming Rights

Donors who want their names etched in stone.

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Portrait of Alexis de Tocqueville wearing a black suit and standing in front of a chair.

Photograph of American writer Ralph Ellison.

Photo of stone Aristotle statue face

German philosopher and music critic Theodor Adorno.

Sepia colored photo of Oscar Wilde sitting on a rock with a book in his hand

I know what I have given you. I do not know what you have received.

—Antonio Porchia, 1943

Edward III & Carol Liu

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