G.B. Ferngren

Organized care for the poor was not known in the civil charity that existed in the classical culture of Greece and Rome. In its framework, aid was distributed by rich philanthropists among all citizens, regardless of their social status or financial status. The new charity system, based on donations, was established on the basis of Christian and not Greco-Roman values and led to a redefinition of the concept of „poor”. Christians regarded the poor as blessed by God, endowed with a special grace, and even in poverty reflect the image of God. Christian ideas of charity for the first time identified and simultaneously lifted the poor as a distinct social group. Change of hospital care occurred in the XVI century under the influence of the Reformation. It marked the transition from medieval Christian views on medical charity to secular social policy.

Keywords: hospital care, Christianity, the Reformation, the sick poor people, charity, philanthropy