“C’est l’hôpital qui se fout de la charité !” is a French idiom that literally means “It is the hospital that does not care about charity!” In French it is means “you are not in a position to talk,” or “you make fun (of someone or something) but you don’t do any better yourself.”

In the 12th century, a hospital was a religious building meant to welcome the poor, to provide them with charity in the form of food or shelter. It was not specifically a medical centre in the modern use of the term hospital.

In the 17th century, the word came to describe a medical establishment. But hospitals and charities were still virtually the same thing in those days.

This saying dates back to the late 19th century – surprisingly late, given the ancient origins of hospitals as described above.

The closest English equivalent is “the pot calling the kettle black.”

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