Works become holy when we incorporate the Blessed Trinity into our actions. They are not just tasks or gestures. They are movements of love, shaped by grace and offered back to God. While someone can do good works without consciously recognizing grace, we are always held in sanctifying grace – given freely by God, not earned. Because this grace is already present, the question of whether we can do good without it becomes less relevant. What matters is how we respond to the grace we\u2019ve already received. We don\u2019t earn grace through works, but we do deepen our participation in it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Scripture reminds us not to seek worldly acknowledgment for our deeds. If we do, we\u2019ve already received our reward. It is best to be quiet about our works, to live them humbly like in 1 Thessalonians:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\n\u201cAspire to live quietly, and to mind your own affairs, and to work with your hands, as we instructed you.\u201d
\u20141 Thessalonians 4:11<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\nI wrestle with works. In my heart, I believe it is our duty as Christians to tend to our fellow human beings. We are called to live the Beatitudes. Not outsource them to governments or charities or other people… It\u2019s not someone else\u2019s job. It\u2019s OURS. And I know I lack woefully. I\u2019ve looked over the corporal and spiritual works of mercy and seen how far I\u2019ve fallen short. It saddens me deeply that I have not given to my Lord what is His\u2014All of me<\/strong>.
Not just some of my time, but all.
Not just some of my words, but all.
But my whole heart, my whole life.
And yet, He still calls.
Still waits.
Still loves.<\/p>\n\n\n\nI remember someone once told me they didn\u2019t want to help the less fortunate because they didn\u2019t want to get their hands dirty. \u201cLet the government do it for me,\u201d they said. That may seem practical, but it lacks true love of neighbor. We are called to treat others as we would treat ourselves:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\n\u201cYou shall love your neighbor as yourself.\u201d
\u2014Mark 12:31<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\nSaint Rose of Lima once said,<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\n\u201cLord, our actions have meaning through you. It is our actions which express our love for you. Lord, let me never fail to see that stranger as one of yours.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n
When I told my aunt, a nun, that I wanted to be a missionary, she said something that changed me:
\u201cStart in your own backyard.\u201d<\/strong>
That simple phrase opened my eyes to the suffering around me – in the streets, in our families, in our communities. It reminded me that loving like Christ begins close to home. It also reminded me that love doesn\u2019t mean appeasing sin. We are called to live by the commandments and understand them more fully:<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\u201cIf you love me, you will keep my commandments.\u201d
\u2014John 14:15<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n
\n\n\n\n\ud83e\uddfa What Are These Works?<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
The Church teaches us about the Corporal and Spiritual Works of Mercy<\/strong>\u2014acts of love that reflect Christ\u2019s care for the body and soul. They\u2019re not optional. They\u2019re our Christian duty.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u2728 Corporal Works of Mercy<\/h4>\n\n\n\n
These tend to the physical needs of others:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\n
- Feed the hungry<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- Give drink to the thirsty<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- Clothe the naked<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- Shelter the homeless<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- Visit the sick<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- Visit the imprisoned<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- Bury the dead<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n
Jesus speaks directly to these in Matthew\u2019s Gospel:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\n\u201cFor I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me,
I was naked and you clothed me, I was sick and you visited me, I was in prison and you came to me.\u201d
\u2014Matthew 25:35\u201336<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\nThese works echo the Beatitudes:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\n\u201cBlessed are the merciful, for they shall obtain mercy.\u201d
\u2014Matthew 5:7<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n\n\u201cBlessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted.\u201d
\u2014Matthew 5:4<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n\ud83d\udd4a\ufe0f Spiritual Works of Mercy<\/h4>\n\n\n\n
These care for the soul:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\n
- Instruct the ignorant<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- Counsel the doubtful<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- Admonish sinners<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- Bear wrongs patiently<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- Forgive offenses<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- Comfort the sorrowful<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- Pray for the living and the dead<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n
Scripture calls us to build one another up:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\n\u201cTherefore encourage one another and build one another up, just as you are doing.\u201d
\u20141 Thessalonians 5:11<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\nAnd to restore others gently:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\n\u201cBrothers, if anyone is caught in any transgression, you who are spiritual should restore him in a spirit of gentleness.\u201d
\u2014Galatians 6:1<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\nThese works reflect the Beatitudes too:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\n\u201cBlessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God.\u201d
\u2014Matthew 5:9<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n\n\u201cBlessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied.\u201d
\u2014Matthew 5:6<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n
\n\n\n\n\ud83d\udd6f\ufe0f Closing Reflection<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
We\u2019ve looked at grace.
We\u2019ve looked at works.
We\u2019ve named what\u2019s been given, and what\u2019s been asked.
We\u2019ve seen the ache of falling short, and the quiet courage of beginning again.<\/p>\n\n\n\nWe\u2019ve remembered that it is our<\/em> hands, our<\/em> hearts, our<\/em> duty.
Not someone else\u2019s.
Not someday.
Now.<\/p>\n\n\n\nWe\u2019ve seen the suffering in our own backyard.
We\u2019ve heard the call to love\u2014not by appeasing, but by living the commandments more fully.
We\u2019ve remembered that mercy is not a feeling.
It\u2019s a movement.<\/p>\n\n\n\nSome things are said.
Some things are done.
And some things are simply lived.<\/p>\n\n\n\nThe next step isn\u2019t a new idea.
It\u2019s something already stirring.
Already known.
Already waiting to be named.<\/p>\n\n\n\n