Charity begins at home

Posted by ESC on September 13, 2005

In Reply to: Charity begins at home posted by Farhad on September 13, 2005

: Charity begins at home. What does it mean ?

CHARITY BEGINS AT HOME -- "One's own family (or country, etc.) comes before any other responsibilities. The idea of the proverb can be found in the Bible. The proverb dates back to the time of the Roman comic playwright Terence (about 190-159 BC). In 1383, John Wycliffe wrote: 'Charity should begin at himself.' Five hundred years later Dickens said that 'Charity begins at home, and justice begins next door.' First attested in the United States in the 'Winthrop Papers' .'." From Random House Dictionary of Popular Proverbs and Sayings by Gregory Y. Titelman (Random House, New York, 1996).