Serving Our Neighbor

Fr Shori began his presentation last evening with this selection from Everyone’s Way of the Cross

Sixth Station: Veronica Wipes the Face of Jesus

Christ:

Can you be brave enough my other self to wipe my bloody face?

Where is my face you ask?

At home whenever eyes are filled with tears
At work when tensions rise
On playgrounds, in slums, at the courthouse, the hospitals, the jails

Wherever suffering exists there is my face
I look for you to wipe away my blood, my tears

All:
Lord, live in us, act in us, love in us so that we may reveal your glorious face

Fr Shori’s presentation focused on why people of faith need to be concerned about acting to transform the world

• Our faith calls us to it. The Gospel and church teaching place our service of the poor and vulnerable and our work for justice at the center of Christian witness.

• Our nation needs it. Too many Americans, especially children, are growing up poor in the richest nation on earth. The blessings and burdens of American life are not being shared fairly.

• Our world requires it. More than 30,000 children die every day from hunger, deprivation, and their consequences. Disease and debt, corruption and conflict are threatening the lives and dignity of millions in our increasingly globalized world.

• Our salvation demands it. In Jesus’ description of the Last Judgment, Matthew 25:31ff the critical question is ‘What did you do for the least of these?’ Jesus identified himself with the hungry, the thirsty, the naked, the imprisoned, and the stranger, insisting that when we serve them we serve him.

• Our actions can make a difference.

The questions for us today:
• What are you doing personally and what do you see others around you doing to serve the poor and vulnerable?

• What is our church doing to serve the poor and vulnerable?

Here is a hand-out that can help you in your prayer and action in serving our neighbors- Transforming the World Action Plan