Thomas Merton:
“Without love, almsgiving is no more important an action than brushing your hair or washing your hands, and the Pharisees had just as elaborate a ritual for those things as they had for alms, too, because all these things were prescribed by law, and had to be done so.
“But love does not give money; it gives itself. If it gives itself first and a lot of money too, that is all the better. But first it must sacrifice itself.”