ALMS. Relief given to the poor out of compassion. There seems to be a connection between sacrifice and the giving of alms. The deity enjoys only the spiritual part of the food offered; the poor receive often the substance. Sacrificial food is distributed among the poor. The goddess Artemis (q.v.), the god Mazda (Yasna, 5) benefited them in this way. The poor of ancient Arabia partook of meal-offerings made to the god Uqaigir. Sometimes the almsgiving itself is a form of sacrifice. In the sacred books of India sacrifice and almsgiving are often mentioned. In the Egyptian " Book of the Dead " (q.v.), in the Zoroastrian prayer Ahuna Vairya (q.v.), in the Koran, almsgiving occupies an equally important place as a part of religion. It is well known that the Jews associated almsgiving and sacrifice. " He that giveth alms sacrificeth praise" we are told (Ecclesiasticus, xxxv., 2). In the Mishnah it is said : " Through alms a man partakes of eternal life " (Rosh 3): and : " As sin-offering makes atonement for Israel, so alms for the Gentiles " (Baba Bathra l0b).
In the Jewish synagogues and at the services of the early Christian Church alms were regularly collected. It has been said, too, that whereas in heathen guilds or clubs " charity was an accident, in Christian associations it was of the essence " (E. Hatch, Organisation of the Early Christian Church, 1SS1). Almsgiving is also closely con nected with fasting. In Brahmanism sacrifice, fasting, and the giving of gifts are often spoken of together. In Mohammedanism almsgiving is enjoined after a fast, and in some cases (e.g., of old people) it is a substitute for fasting. The Christian Fathers (e.g., Augustine) say that what is saved by fasting should be given to the poor. See E. Westermarck; Encyci. Bibl.