It is important to understand people’s motivation, their resources (time, emotional, material) and their areas of responsibility.

I distinguish between intrinsic and extrinsic motivation. Intrinsic is that which has matured in the volunteer’s soul, which he formulates himself. Personal motivations can be as varied as possible, as long as they do not contradict the practical, moral and religious (if any) principles of the organization. External motivation is offered by the volunteer organization and cannot be reduced to rigid ideology or manipulation.

Each person comes to serve for some personal motivation. Even Christians. Someone remembers how lonely he was in the hospital, someone simply responds to the pain or suffering of others, someone believes that serving others is his moral or religious duty, someone goes to children for the company, someone perceives volunteerism as personal development, training, etc. In any case, a person’s motives for volunteering are always a mystery.

Of course, it is the task of volunteer leaders to know the inner motivations of volunteers, but it is very important to treat these motivations with care and to accept all of them gratefully, as long as the “do no harm” principle is respected. Obviously, occultists or persons of “sexual preoccupation,” those who would do harm to their charges, have no place in volunteerism. But if we exclude the anomalies, then for me the apostle Paul’s words are decisive on this subject: “As much as they preach Christ, whether falsely or sincerely, I rejoice and will rejoice in this” (Philippians 1:18).

As for the external motivation (the one offered by the organization), I am convinced that we should not choose high ideologemes as the goal and meaning of volunteer service: to make the world a better place, to reduce suffering, to help the sick to recover, to fulfill the commandments of Christ, to help people to find salvation, to help them accept their pain and suffering as a step toward salvation. To abandon the ideological motivation is enough to understand that in trying to accomplish such tasks, volunteers will not see visible and tangible results of their activities, and they will have a sense of disappointment and guilt over the unfulfillment of the higher goal. But there is also a moral and even religious dimension. Volunteers and mentees cannot be involved in a relationship that is not honestly and responsibly negotiated, and that is not primarily provided with personal resources.