The Origin of Christian Charity

AbstractThe article considers the origin of Christian charity, its sources and principles, and also anсient civilization's influence on its development. Charity genesis as a sociocultural phenomenon has for a long time been of interest to philosophers, historians and scholars in other areas of the humanities. Already in ancient times such authors as Ennius, Cicero, and Seneca studied motivation, forms of blessings and restriction in this sphere, and also the typology of philanthropists. However, charity transformed due to change of eras, moral systems, level of civilization and socioeconomic development. Even during the ancient era two stages in charity development are examined: Greco-Roman, pagan and Christian. Studying the emergence of Christian charity, an analysis of its sources and interrelation with Roman imperial society are also the aim of this article