PROVIDENCE, R.I. — Roman Catholic Bishop Thomas J. Tobin posted "Three Reasons Not to Give to Panhandlers" on Tuesday, a day after a protest of Cranston's new antipanhandling ordinance.

While Bishop Tobin quoted Pope Francis in his post, the bishop's reasons for not giving to beggars conflict with the pope's view that giving to someone in need "is always right."

"Throwing some loose change at a panhandler while passing by is demeaning of his or her human dignity," Bishop Tobin wrote as his first reason. "While it might make us feel better, in fact it sustains a very unhealthy and degrading lifestyle."

Bishop Tobin said people should donate to the "legitimate and structured means of helping the poor and needy."

The other two reasons were that giving to roadside panhandlers created a safety hazard and that the practice "enables a few dishonest individuals to prey upon the compassion of others."

Bishop Tobin's Facebook post quoted Pope Francis as saying, “The great danger, or temptation, when aiding the poor is falling into an attitude of protective paternalism that, at the end of the day, does not allow them to grow. A Christian’s obligation is to integrate the most deprived into the community in whatever way possible.”

Speaking directly about beggars in an interview published Feb. 28 in a Milan magazine run by homeless people, Pope Francis said "There are many excuses" to justify why one doesn't help when asked by someone on the street.

But giving something to someone in need "is always right," and it should be done with respect and compassion because "tossing money and not looking in [their] eyes is not a Christian" way of behaving, the pope said.

Even if the person uses the money to buy alcohol, the pope said, "that's OK," because it might bring a little happiness.

dnaylor@providencejournal.com

(401) 277-7411, @donita22