The Ladder of Ascent

The Corporal Works of Mercy [Part A]

By Dr. Andrew Thomas Kania

The Holy Gospel According to Mark has a scene where the Scribes are debating as to what are the most important commandments by which to live a holy life. Christ is then questioned and He replies: “‘The first is, ‘Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one; and you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind, and with all your strength.’ The second is this, ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is no other commandment greater than these.” And the scribe said to him, “You are right, Teacher; you have truly said that he is one, and there is no other but he; and to love him with all the heart, and with all the understanding, and with all the strength, and to love one’s neighbor as oneself, is much more than all whole burnt offerings and sacrifices.” And when Jesus saw that he answered wisely, he said to him, “You are not far from the kingdom of God.” And after that no one dared to ask him any question.’” (Matthew 12: 28 - 34, RSV)

We ascend to the Kingdom of Heaven by climbing a ladder in which each rung is an increasing life-long ability to love God and neighbour – or in the words of the great Spanish mystic, St. John of the Cross, to be able to show at our death how we have grown in our capacity to love, throughout the course of our lives.

It is clear that in order for us to live the Christian Way (the term ‘Way’ was the first term to describe those who followed Christ - as a ‘Way’ of Life) - we have a primary duty to the service and honour of God - but then an important social duty to our neighbour. It is not a matter of one or the other - but both. For as St. John teaches us in his First Epistle: “If any one says, “I love God,” and hates his brother, he is a liar; for he who does not love his brother whom he has seen, cannot[a] love God whom he has not seen. And this commandment we have from him, that he who loves God should love his brother also.” (1 John 4: 20 – 21, RSV) Sometimes, our Church service to God can see us become scrupulous, or proud - and we believe that all that is demanded of us is Sunday attendance - without showing love for our neighbour. Our Father Among the Saints, the same author of our Divine Liturgy, John Chrysostom, issued a warning about this: “Do you want to honor the body of Christ? Then do not despise his nakedness. You come to attend church services dressed in the finest silks which your wardrobe contains; and it is right that you should honor Christ in this way. But on your way, do you passed naked beggars in the streets? It is no good coming to the Lord’s table in fine silks, unless you also give clothes to the naked beggar—because the body of that beggar is also the body of Christ. Do you want to honor the blood of Christ? Then do not ignore his thirst. You have donated beautiful gold chalices for the wine, which becomes a symbol of Christ’s blood; and it is right that you should honor Christ in this way. But on your way to services, you passed by beggars who pleaded for food and drink. It is no good putting gold chalices on the Lord’s table unless you give food and drink to the poor from your own tables. The service which we celebrate in church is a sham unless we put its symbolic meaning into practice outside its walls. Better that we do not come at all than

we become hypocrites—whose selfishness can only besmirch the Gospel in the eyes of others.” (St. John Chrysostom, 1996, On Living Simply, Sermon 55). St. Paul many centuries prior to Chrysostom would write of Christians who praise God with little or no love for their neighbour in the following manner: “If I speak in the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I am a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal. And if I have prophetic powers, and understand all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have all faith, so as to remove mountains, but have not love, I am nothing. If I give away all I have, and if I deliver my body to be burned,[a] but have not love, I gain nothing.” (1 Corinthians 1 - 3, RSV)

Moreover without a concern for neighbour - we run the risk of being puffed up with spiritual pride. St. James writes this in his famous Epistle: “But be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves. For if any one is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a man who observes his natural face in a mirror; for he observes himself and goes away and at once forgets what he was like. But he who looks into the perfect law, the law of liberty, and perseveres, being no hearer that forgets but a doer that acts, he shall be blessed in his doing. If any one thinks he is religious, and does not bridle his tongue but deceives his heart, this man’s religion is vain. Religion that is pure and undefiled before God and the Father is this: to visit orphans and widows in their affliction, and to keep oneself unstained from the world.” (James, 1: 22 - 27, RSV)

The War in Ukraine has given us in the diaspora an unexpected gift. Every one of us from the elderly to the child, can give something. The infirmed can pray fervently in their beds; the grandparent can treat a refugee child as a part of their family, the adult worker can sacrifice with their time, their coin - and what other skill, or connection they have; the business owner can see one or two refugees added to their list, the sport’s coach can invite someone into their team, the child can show love by being friendly and welcoming to other children. This is what God asks: “He has showed you, O man, what is good; and what does the Lord require of you but to do justice, and to love kindness,[a] and to walk humbly with your God?” (Micah 6: 8, RSV) For as St. Paul also reminds - and we should never be forgetful of: “Do not neglect to show hospitality to strangers, for thereby some have entertained angels unawares.” (Hebrews 13: 2, RSV)

Our Catholic Church offers us a powerful guide in its teaching of the Corporal Works of Mercy as to where our social responsibilities lie in service of God, through our neighbour, tending to their physical needs. These are, that wherever we see the need - and have the capacity to help, we should: feed the hungry, give water to the thirsty, clothe the naked, shelter the homeless, visit the sick, visit the imprisoned, or ransom the captive and bury the dead. We are not expected by God to work miracles – we are only asked to sincerely attempt to do what we can. St. Teresa of Avila tells us that a Saint is a person who does the little responsibilities of their life well – to the best of their ability. Let us not be jealous of the good works performed by others as they seek in sincerity to help - for as Christ explained to his Disciples when others were doing good in his name: “But Jesus said to him, “Do not forbid him; for he that is not against you is for you.” (Luke 9: 50, RSV) Try and encourage your brother and sister in doing Corporal Works of Mercy - as they should assist you, in your endeavours to do good: “Then let us no more pass judgment on

one another, but rather decide never to put a stumbling block or hindrance in the way of a brother.” (Romans 14: 13, RSV)

Recall also Christ’s teaching to do your good works for their own reward and not for the reward of the observance of others: “Thus, when you give alms, sound no trumpet before you, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, that they may be praised by men. Truly, I say to you, they have received their reward. But when you give alms, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, so that your alms may be in secret; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you.” (Matthew 6: 2 - 4, RSV)

As I complete writing this piece, I need to mention that last Friday afternoon after I taught my final lesson for the day, a twelve-year old student of mine, waited until all the students had left the class. He then said to me: “Doc, I need to tell you this - my mother and father donated to the Humanitarian Appeal in Ukraine yesterday evening.” The parents are of an Irish background - they don’t know any Ukrainian people - but as the Good Samaritan so well understood - the world, and its people are our neighbour. This family without reading our Ukrainian Catholic Catechism – Christ Our Pascha knows the intrinsic value of the words: “Christian love is the foundation of all interpersonal relations and all social life. It is precisely love that discloses the dignity of the human person and teaches us how to love him or her. Acts of mercy are the social manifestations of Christian love. The religious character of acts of mercy stems from the fact that Jesus identified himself with every destitute person: “as you did it to one of the least of these who are members of my family you did it to me.” (Mt. 25: 40) Love for the sake of Christ is the primary motivation for acts of mercy.” (Par. 936, Christ Our Pascha)

The Letter of St. James has a redounding preaching contained – “What does it profit, my brethren, if a man says he has faith but has not works? Can his faith save him? If a brother or sister is ill-clad and in lack of daily food, and one of you says to them, “Go in peace, be warmed and filled,” without giving them the things needed for the body, what does it profit? So faith by itself, if it has no works, is dead. But some one will say, “You have faith and I have works.” Show me your faith apart from your works, and I by my works will show you my faith. You believe that God is one; you do well. Even the demons believe—and shudder. Do you want to be shown, you shallow man, that faith apart from works is barren? Was not Abraham our father justified by works, when he offered his son Isaac upon the altar? You see that faith was active along with his works, and faith was completed by works, and the scripture was fulfilled which says, “Abraham believed God, and it was reckoned to him as righteousness”; and he was called the friend of God. You see that a man is justified by works and not by faith alone. And in the same way was not also Rahab the harlot justified by works when she received the messengers and sent them out another way? For as the body apart from the spirit is dead, so faith apart from works is dead.” (James 2: 14 – 26, RSV)

How many of us – the ‘righteous’ will want to be told at life’s end – that our charity was in fact less than those we may have often derided as being unworthy of God?