|
Caring for sick, feeding hungry, clothing naked take many forms |
|
|
|
By Father John Estrem
|
|
Wednesday, 03 December 2008 |
On the feast of Christ the King two weeks ago, Jesus told his disciples that those who feed the hungry, clothe the naked and visit the sick will join him in God’s kingdom.
Serving Others
Father John Estrem
|
The intractable and seemingly endless nature of poverty, homelessness, the mental health crisis and the prevalence of racism can overwhelm all of us.
The daunting task of fixing it all can easily leave us disheartened and
believing that we cannot fix it, we cannot make it better, we cannot
improve everyone’s life.
And it becomes inviting to walk away and ask what difference we as
individuals can make. It’s tempting to say that I, as one person, lack
the ability to make changes, to end racism, poverty and injustice.
Tempting but wrong.
Having an impact
The fact remains we each can make a difference to one person. To one
person, we can change the world. A series of events at St. Joseph’s
Home for Children reminded me of that.
Earlier this year, a caseworker at St. Joe’s took one of the residents
to visit his mother’s grave. The mother had died while the child was in
our care, and the boy hadn’t been to the cemetery.
The child noticed immediately that, while the graves of other people’s
mothers and fathers had tombstones, his mother’s plot had nothing to
mark it, and he left the cemetery upset.
That night, the caseworker bought a plaster art kit, and the next day,
she worked with the child to create a marker for the grave.
Noticing those around us
The staff at St. Joe’s brought the small plaster marker to the
cemetery, explained the situation and asked the cemetery’s caretaker
for ideas on how to best display it. The caretaker became overwhelmed.
With the help of a neighboring monument company, the man arranged to
donate a tombstone for the mother’s grave.
The odds that any of us will face a similar situation are small. But we
face everyday the opportunity to notice those around us, to do what
Christ commanded.
 It’s tempting to say that I, as one person, lack the ability to make changes, to end racism, poverty and injustice. Tempting but wrong.
- Father John Estrem
The gift of insight
Visiting the imprisoned doesn’t have to mean driving to the
penitentiary. We can befriend a young person by offering emotional
support, help someone find a path out of an unhealthy living situation
by providing resources, give a single parent a much-needed break by
watching his or her children for a few hours. Caring for the sick,
feeding the hungry and clothing the naked take on many, varied and
important forms.
We find our insight into understanding Christ’s call to service and
gratitude for our own gifts when we give of ourselves. God’s grace does
remarkable things. Because of God’s grace we find that insight. Through
God’s grace, we learn to accept it.
The cemetery caretaker found his gift of insight in the little boy at St. Joe’s.
As we walk through the darkness of Advent and stand at the doors of the
manger, may we receive the insight that comes from making a difference
in one person’s world.
Father John Estrem is CEO of Catholic Charities of St. Paul and Minneapolis.
 |
Show/hide comment form