thoughts on the news of the day: gleaning

hmmm…..

            Gleaning is a word that doesn’t come up in conversation much.  It is the idea of going back into a field after it is harvested and picking up what is left.  In the Bible, Ruth  became famous for gleaning from a field back in the Old Testament. 

            Kelly Callahan, who is from Atlanta, and picks food in the yards of empty homes in foreclosure may well become famous, too.  She is quoted in the New York Times as saying:  “I don’t think of it as stealing.  These things were planted by a person who was going to harvest them.  That person no longer had the ability to.  It’s not like the bank people who sit in their offices are going to come out here and pick figs.”

            What do you think? Is it stealing or not? And does it matter if she does it to feed her family?  It’s an age old question that ethics professors pose.  If a person steals a loaf of bread to feed his family, is it a crime?  Ethicists weigh in on both sides of the question.  If you are a legalist, someone who believes that the law is the law no matter what, then you might think that it is illegal.   And it may be, but does that make it wrong?  I mean, people even do it in the Bible.  The difference is that Ruth had permission; which means it wasn’t stealing. 

            So there you have it, is it stealing or not?  It may end up being a dilemma for the courts to decide.

            hmmm…..