Sharing with others.
The Saxons were one of the ancient tribes that lived in the British Isles before the nation of England was established. Here is an old Saxon story:
At noon, one day, a young peasant sat by the side of a wood, and, sighing, prayed to the gods to give him a morsel of food. A dwarf suddenly emerged from the wood and told him that his prayer should be fulfilled. He then gave him the pouch that he had on his side, with the assurance that he would always find in it wherewithal to satisfy his thirst and hunger, charging him, at the same time, not to consume it all, and to share with any one who asked him for food.
The dwarf vanished, and the peasant put his hand into the pouch to make trial of it, and there he found a cake of new bread, a cheese, and a bottle of wine, on which he made a hearty meal. He then saw that the pouch swelled up as before, and, looking in, he found that it was again full of bread, cheese and wine. He now felt sure of his food, and he lived on in an idle, luxurious way, without doing any work.
One day, as he was gorging himself, there came up to him a feeble old man, who prayed him to give him a morsel to eat. He refused in a brutal, churlish tone, when instantly the bread and cheese broke, and scattered out of his hands, and pouch and all vanished.
[SOURCE: Dobbins, Frank S. Story of the World’s Worship. Chicago: The Dominion Company, 1901, pp. 207-208.]
Throughout all of history, all civilizations have had standards for hospitality, in other words, everyone knows that we all need to help each other. Think of all of the points on the Scout Law that have to do with some aspect of hospitality:
A Scout is helpful.
A Scout is friendly.
A Scout is courteous.
A Scout is kind.
The peasant in this story violated every one of these four points on the Scout Law.
The Old Testament prophet, Isaiah, said:
“Share your food with the hungry and open your homes to the homeless poor. Give clothes to those who have nothing to wear, and do not refuse to help your own relatives.” (Isaiah 58:7, Good News Translation).
The Book of Proverbs says:
“Be generous, and you will be prosperous. Help others, and you will be helped.” (Proverbs 11:25, Good News Translation).
“Be generous and share your food with the poor. You will be blessed for it.” (Proverbs 22:9, Good News Translation).
Scripture taken from the Good News Translation - Second Edition, Copyright 1992 by American Bible Society. Used by Permission.