What do you think of Robin Hood, who stole from the rich & gave to the poor?

 

Robin Hood is made out to be a hero in English folklore, known for “stealing from the rich, and giving to the poor.”

Robin Hood showed us that an otherwise wrong deed is at times a good thing. Or simply put, sometimes stealing isn’t necessarily wrong, mainly when justified by worthy ideal.

Really! Can it be so simple? Only in a fairy tale, I say.

Suppose you saw a man rob a bank, and then, he donated the money to a poor old age home. The sum of money would be a great benefit to the poor people. What would you do?

A: Call the police and report the robber, even though they would likely take the money away from the old age home, or

B: Do nothing?

Now for all those of you who chose answer B, think again! Would your answer be the same if this modern day Robin Hood robbed your home instead of the bank?

If stealing from the rich and giving to the poor does not seem wrong, then what would you say about a student who is poor in studies copying in the exams from another student who has wealth of knowing all the right answers. Should the teacher act like Robin Hood and let the poor kid copy?

No matter what our purpose in doing so, stealing is never right. Nature has not created everyone to be the same. Every person has the wealth of some talent and is poor by the lack of some other ability. No Robin Hood in the world has God’s permission to change this law of nature.

Unfortunately, that does not stop people, society, government & nations from trying to play Robin Hood.  This is because for hundreds of years people have got the moral of the Robin Hood story wrong.

To me, stealing from the rich means you see wealth and success as evil and giving alms to the poor means you are encouraging misery & failure.

Being rich is not evil and everyone must work hard to progress in their lives.

For Robin Hood to be a true hero he needs to steal poverty from the poor and not simply give them money snatched from the rich.

And how do you steal poverty from the poor?

The answer lies in a beautiful Chinese proverb which says “Give a man a fish & you feed him for one day. Teach a man to fish and you feed him for a lifetime”

For Robin Hood to be a true hero he needs give alms to the rich.

And what is that you may ask? The new & improved Robin Hood needs to steal their hearts and fill it with gratitude & compassion.

A person who can help the poor become rich rather than trying to take away somebody’s wealth makes for a better Robin Hood.

It’s time we re-wrote the legend of Robin Hood.

Friends, I am looking for a co-author; please raise your hand if you would like to join me.