In our Catholic Christian faith, corporal works of mercy are a “big thing.” Jesus not only spoke about service, or corporal works of mercy, He actually did them—giving new meaning to “actions speak louder than words.” In fact, the mission and ministry of Jesus came to be known as “the Suffering Servant” by Scripture scholars and Christ Himself said, “Just so, the Son of Man did not come to be served but to serve and to give his life as a ransom for many.” (MT: 30:28, MK 10:45 and John 13:1-7)

Today some Christians are indifferent to the importance of the works of mercy—both their value in providing for others in need and also in the act of “doing for others” the formative value of the one helping out. “Practice makes perfect,” a common saying today—St Thomas Aquinas referred to this as “habitus,” the virtue of doing something routinely, such as feeding the hungry, caring for the poor or truth telling, where the “doing of it” creates a virtue within us. Yet, part of our modern culture believes that “just showing up is 90 percent” of everything. But Christ did not just “show up” and stand around. He rolled up His sleeves and got busy in the midst of the dirtiness of everyday human life—and acted.

Last weekend’s gospel reported Jesus healing the deaf and mute man while other gospels show Jesus feeding the hungry, giving drink to the thirsty and even raising a young man to new life at the gates to the City of Nain when He said “Rise” and touching the  young man’s arm in the coffin, he came back to life as his mother watched. In heling lepers and caring for orphans and widows Christ began His Church’s long and powerful history of corporal works of mercy,
which has become so ingrained in our faith tradition that the Roman Catholic Church is now the largest private provider of social services in the United States and in the world. Evidenced by Catholic Charities, the Knights of Malta and Columbus, parish soup kitchens, homeless shelters run by numerous religious orders, Catholic schools and after school tutoring sessions, to
the works of untold parish ministries and religious retreat houses, to the Passionist hospitals and orphanages in Haiti, and beyond—the Roman Catholic Church is the definition of Christ’s Sermon on the Mount—the Beatitudes—a blueprint for Christian living. And that’s not by way of bragging but rather a faith-based declaration.

The Catholic Church—the original Christian Church founded by Christ and handed over to His Apostles—does not believe in Sola Scriptura (scripture alone). Rather, good works as a lived faith, is noted in today’s second reading from the Letter of James (chapter 2): “What good is it, my brothers and sisters, if someone says he has faith but does not have works? Can that
faith save him? If a brother or sister has nothing to wear and has no food for the day, and one of you says to them, "Go in peace, keep warm, and eat well," but you do not give them the necessities of the body, what good is it? So also faith of itself, if it does not have works, is dead.” The Son of God Himself took to the streets and fields of the world and fed the hungry, healed the sick and brought truth to the ignorant.

The heart and soul of our Christian faith is the belief in Jesus Christ as the Son of God—and to illustrate that belief in both Word and deed—the latter by way of charity expressed in the lived Christian lives of everyday people. There is an “interesting” television commercial by Southern by New Hampshire University that states “the world distributes talents equally, but not opportunities…” I think they are dead wrong. Talents—or gifts—come from God and are given to
each of us according to our needs. Not all of us will be math scholars nor are we all mechanics or high tech gurus or corporate strategists. But each, according to God’s plan, is given gifts to complete the ‘tapestry” of the human family of God’s plan. From a Catholic perspective, some of us will be strong in the faith and the devotional life of the Church to proclaim God in prayer—the rosary, in Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament, in the full participation in the Mass, praying the Breviary—saying the Office and Hours of the Church; some will find a home in carrying out the
corporal and spiritual works of mercy—through the Knights of Malta or the Knights of Columbus, some organizing a homeless shelter, or running the ministry of Pantry Partners or St. Elizabeth House, in youth ministry or religious education, in knitting prayer shawls or baptismal blankets.  Saint Catherine of Siena Parish offers a whole host of ways and means to live out your faith with more than 20 active ministries and programs—from Lenten Mercy Project or the Advent Giving Tree to the Men’s and Women’s Clubs, to Parish Council and so much more. What matters is
not the “what” of doing things but rather the “doing something.” Actually we need to hear the words of Christ spoken to the dead man at gates of Nain: “Rise!” – and then we need to get up and do something…our part in making the tapestry of faith complete.