Ang Pow Culture and 5 Bible Verses to Hold Onto

Chinese New Year season is arriving, along with all the festive foods, customs and rituals of ushering in a new lunar year. There’s reunion dinner, spring cleaning, new clothes, family visitations, and not to forget – the giving and receiving of ang pow.

Now that much of our lives has gone online, ang pow is also starting to go cashless. Touch ‘N Go, DuitNow, Grabpay, you name it. This has led many to go on forums asking questions like “How much should I give in an ang pow?”

“How much should I give in an ang pow?”

If you do a quick search, you’ll find websites providing guides for this year’s market rate, with a general hierarchy of how much to give to whom. The consensus is that the closer the blood ties to the person, the more money goes into the red packet.

To some, this may feel awkward and insincere. Relationships are complex enough to not have to throw in a financial variable to quantify it. To others, how much or how little they give or get doesn’t matter. Life is hard enough and people need to be realistic.

How about we try to get to the bottom of this from a biblical perspective, by looking closely at five Bible verses below:

1. Children are a heritage from the Lord (Psalm 127:3)

It is said that ang pow culture began as early as China’s Han Dynasty (202 BC – 9 AD). Coins were inscribed with auspicious words to protect people from evil spirits, sickness and death. This later evolved to elders threading coins with a red string and giving them to children as ‘lucky money’. That’s why ang pow is today given predominantly by elders to juniors, from the married to the unmarried.

Culturally, the Chinese all over the world have adopted this practice. Christians do it, too, as a good and acceptable way of blessing our younger ones – be they our own children, nieces, nephews or friends’ children. Though we do not believe in the power of money to ward off evil spirits, a small financial token is a form of material blessing to children, who are themselves blessings from God.

2. Honour your father and your mother (Exodus 20:12a)

As the customs evolved over the centuries, young people with careers have also taken to giving ang pow to the elderly, like their parents, in-laws and grandparents. This is another good and acceptable practice, for Christians are taught to honour our parents in the Ten Commandments God gave to Moses and the Israelites.

Even Jesus cared for His earthly mother, appointing John the Apostle to look after her as He hung dying on the cross (John 19:26-27). Financial blessing is only one of many ways to honour our parents, and an ang pow during the festive period is a great opportunity to do that.

3. When a foreigner resides among you… do not mistreat them. (Leviticus 19:33)

In Malaysia, it has become customary to give ang pow to service staff like security guards, cleaners and domestic helpers. How this custom began is unclear. However, we can be sure that it is an act that pleases the Lord, who calls us not only to be generous, but to look out for the marginalised.

The Lord had special instructions to the Israelites to care for foreigners; asking them to “not mistreat or oppress” them (Exodus 22:21). Seeing as a large number of service staff in Malaysia are foreign labour, we can show Christian love during the festive season by continuing this tradition.

4. Each of you should give what you have decided in your heart (2 Corinthians 9:7a)

When Paul wrote this to the church in Corinth, he was urging them to follow through their commitment to collect money for suffering Christians in Jerusalem. In this chapter, it is clear that God expects Christian giving to be faith-based, voluntary and cheerful, not legalistic or done out of obligation.

It can be argued that ang pow is a cultural obligation for many Chinese people today. However, we can apply God’s principles here; husbands and wives, or young working adults, can decide how much they want to give and to whom, or to not give to certain quarters, to give as they are able (Deuteronomy 16:17) and once decided, be free of condemnation, for every family is different. At the end of the day, God loves a cheerful and willing giver, and it is better to give than to receive (Acts 20:35).

5. We are not trying to please people but God (1 Thessalonians 2:4a)

If there is one negative aspect of Chinese culture, it is the concept of saving face and reciprocity i.e. keeping scores. This can strain relationships and the festive season becomes a source of dread, as people struggle to match or “outdo” richer relatives, or “retaliate” by giving less because they received less the year before. Some even avoid gatherings to avoid ang pows altogether.

Ang pow culture can put a lot of pressure on givers, and cultivate a sense of entitlement on receivers. However, ang pows are blessings and not meant to be a source of income. Besides being willing and cheerful, givers are not to please others or keep up with appearances. Receivers, on the other hand, are to be grateful and content, “pay careful attention to their own work” (Galatians 6:4), and look to God for their ultimate provision, instead of expecting to profit from festive handouts.

As with many things in life, the Bible does not have a simple answer to, “How much should I give in an ang pow?” Many topics can be further explored here, such as responsibility for relatives and extended family, money and generosity, or striking the balance between birth culture and faith. With that, we hope that the five Bible verses above will provide a sound biblical guide to today’s ang pow culture in Malaysia. Have a blessed Chinese New Year!

About the Author

Wan Phing Lim is a contributor to Our Daily Bread Ministries Malaysia. Born and raised in Penang, she studied Politics before turning to a career in writing. She loves coffee, books and films.

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