“Faith without charity bears no fruit, while charity without faith would be sentiment constantly at the mercy of doubt...It is faith that enables us to recognize Christ and it is his love that impels us to assist him whenever he becomes our neighbor along the journey of life.”
Why is service (assisting) important to faith I asked one Thursday evening at St. Philip Melkite Catholic Church in San Bernardino while they were serving their weekly meal for the needy?
“Faith with only words is meaningless,” Stevan Abdalmalik, 17, from St. Mina Coptic Orthodox Church in Colton, responded immediately. By serving “you’re doing something that unites us all, unites everyone from different backgrounds,” he added.
“Faith grows when it is lived as an experience of love received and when it is communicated as an experience of grace and joy,” Pope Benedict also wrote in Porta Fidei.
Practically put, “serving reminds me of who I am, who I am supposed to be,” said Sharon Seitz as I talked with her and several other volunteers distributing food on a Monday morning at Our Lady of Perpetual Help (OLPH) parish in Riverside.
This communicating faith as grace and joy is evident to S. Cross, who often comes to St. Philip’s to eat. She sees “the good attitude they (the volunteers at St. Philip) have toward individuals.” Their faith is helping them in “living out their life in a good way,” Cross said, through the service they give to the needy who come each week. Reflecting some more she said, “When you serve, you become a ray of hope, an aspect to help them. Faith is a stepping stone to bettering their life.” For Cross, seeing the volunteers serving is a stepping stone to a deeper faith. “This place helps you with that,” she said.
Faith, the Catechism of the Catholic Church reminds us, is both a personal and communal relationship, occurring communally within the life and worship of the church. It’s seeing more than just yourself.
“It’s extending beyond my little circle of friends,” Joan Sousa said as she helped distribute food at OLPH. “It’s about whether or not you’re being kind to someone. There’s a lot of people who need that,” she pointed out.
“Serving keeps you connected to everyone,” Cecilia McGrath added when I asked her about faith and service as she was helping at OLPH. “That’s the beauty of the Scripture passage, ‘Leave everything and follow me,’” she said. Serving, McGrath emphasized, “brings this passage alive.”
Julie Strohacker, also assisting at OLPH, believes service helps in finding faith.
“If people did volunteer work they’d be more fulfilled with their lives. Some don’t understand that concept and wonder why they feel a part is missing. You’re bringing people closer to God by your words and actions,” she said. “I talk to people about how you can bring faith to others (and I tell them) it’s all about service.”
“Everything, it’s through God’s grace,” Abdalmalik added. “Living the faith is serving without thinking you’re doing something good. It’s an obligation instead, and it’s our obligation to show this grace to others.”
Through service our faith is strengthened and we can help lead others through the door of faith.
Anne Alhadef is an instructional aide for the third and fifth grade at Sacred Heart Academy and serves as a eucharistic minister at The Holy Name of Jesus parish in Redlands.