Charity

Many things can be said of the virtue of Charity.  The word itself conjures up thoughts of anything from the loving example of Mother Teresa to plunking a coin into the Salvation Army’s black pot.  Whereas, charitable acts include giving alms to the poor, visiting the sick and helping those less fortunate – it also includes treating others with the love, respect and dignity that God expects from us.

St. Paul tells us in 1 Cor. 13:13 about the three great virtues of Faith, Hope and Love (charity).  He goes on to say that the greatest of these is love.  Are we truly charitable in all aspects of our life or do we understand charity as being simply a monetary donation?  Do we conduct ourselves with others in a respectful manner – or do we indulge in gossip and harbor ill-will towards one another?

In John 13:34, Jesus tells us to love one another, “I give you a new commandment: love one another. As I have loved you, so you also should love one another.” This was not a mere suggestion but a command. This same command is echoed in Mark 12:30-31.  In this passage, Jesus tells us about our love for God and each other and goes so far as to say, “There is no other commandment greater than these.  This is very strong language indeed.

Finally, in the 10 Commandments the first three are dedicated to God alone – but the next seven pertain to how we treat others.

One area we might want to consider is in the way we conduct ourselves as we leave the church grounds after mass.  As we drive away after mass – many times it seems that the charity and unity we all shared during the mass is all but gone.  As we jockey for position to be among the first to leave the Church property, we often times forget the car in front of us or off to one side as we careen by, making sure that nobody gets in our way.  As the Little Flower, St. Terese of Liseaux observed, it is not necessary to perform great deeds or heroic acts to express her love for God.  She practiced what became known as The Little Way:

"Love proves itself by deeds, so how am I to show my love? Great deeds are forbidden me. The only way I can prove my love is by scattering flowers and these flowers are every little sacrifice, every glance and word, and the doing of the least actions for love."