It’s a blessing to be back! How was Fr. Richard? I taught him everything he knows. Following what he taught, today’s one main idea(!) from the Second Reading is about reaching out to people in need with the love of Jesus. Some of us may have heard the famous and tragic story told by Dr. Jerome Motto, a psychiatrist who helped people tempted with suicide. In the 1990s, he once had to go to the apartment of a man in his 30s who died after jumping off the Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco. The man left a note on his desk, “I’m going to walk to the bridge. If one person smiles at me on the way, I will not jump”.
God the Father not only wants to heal all hearts and all tragedies, but prevent them from happening. Those of us who have been here at St. Anthony’s for years know how many times we’ve talked about loving strangers, smiling at people, and learning people’s names, but we haven’t in a while, so let’s do an important refresher.
Today, St. James writes, “What good is it, my brothers and sisters, if you say you have faith but do not have works? Can faith save you?” (2:14). He’s writing to Christians, some of whom mistakenly think that just believing in Jesus is enough and don’t change their lives.
So, he gives an example: “If a brother or a sister is without clothing and lacks daily food, and one of you says to them, ‘Go in peace; keep warm and eat your fill,’ and yet you do not supply their bodily needs, what is the good of that? So faith by itself, if it has no works, is dead” (2:15-17). If someone has a vital need but we ignore them when we can do something about it, we commit a sin of omission. The phrase, ‘Go in peace,’ was a customary Jewish farewell, but here’s it’s being abused (Kelly Anderson, James, First, Second, and Third John in Catholic Commentary on Sacred Scripture, 56). ‘Faith by itself, if it has no works, is dead.’ Think about this strong statement of St. James and what he’s getting at. Just saying we believe in God can’t bring us to heaven. It’s a dead faith, meaning it cannot save, it cannot give life. Dead faith cannot bring us to heaven but only to hell.
Many of us, when we hear this, think about how we can truly express our faith in Jesus. For example, there are people who genuinely need food, which is why some of us carry around granola bars or other food that we can give out. There are people who are genuinely lonely, which is why we always ask people their names. That’s why, every December, our parish gives ten percent of the money that we need to help people in greater need.
Now, this doesn’t mean being taken advantage of. Some weeks ago, a man was outside after the 8 a.m. Mass with a cardboard sign asking for help. I introduced myself, asked his name and what he needed. He asked for money, and then I said, ‘We can’t give money. But, would you like some food? I can give you food.’ He declined! And, his explanation didn’t add up: He came from Romania a month ago, has a car, now needs money for his hotel but doesn’t need food? So, help people, but don’t be taken advantage of.
St. James ends with a great example of empty faith: “You believe that God is one; you do well. Even the demons believe—and shudder” (2:19). Even the devil believes that Jesus is God, but, because he doesn’t love Jesus, that’s why he’s in hell!
So, let’s repeat a quiz we did on March 10, 2024. Please answer the following yes-or-no questions: 1) Is it necessary for Christians to do good works? Yes. 2) Is it a sin to be lazy and avoid good works? Yes. 3) Do good works save us? No. 4) Will being nice and doing good works get people into heaven? No. So, what saves us? The grace of Jesus, or, it’s just as accurate to say that Jesus saves us. In the future, we’re going to unpack this teaching, but, for now, we just want to know that good works are necessary and that it’s not enough to be a good person to get into heaven; we must believe in Jesus.
Three years ago, while on his morning commute, a devout Christian stopped on the Mission Bridge that goes to Abbotsford because he saw someone leaning over the railing about to jump. This is his two-minute recounting of the story:
That is hilariously awesome! How do we know this man has true faith in Jesus? By what he did: He saw someone in need, was open to God’s moving him and he responded; he prayed with the man, prayed over the man, told him about Jesus and even shared Jesus with the police officers!
Jesus is sending all of us to bring Him to other people and He’s already given us His strength. When we live by faith, we have His power. Here are two ways of reaching out to people:
1) Smile at people and ask their names. This is becoming part of our parish’s culture. For our 100th anniversary in 2025, the Hospitality Team has a goal: each person learn 100 names that year. Now, most of us struggle with remembering names. Just do what I do: Ask at least three times until they get really angry at you for asking so many times, you’ll remember their name! The reality is: Because we struggle to remember, it’s okay to ask again and again. Let me clarify the spiritual goal here: If we ask each other our names, we win; if we don’t, we lose. Before and after Mass, when we ask people their names, we win! The time will come when each of us will pass someone on the street who’s in great pain, and, because it’s so natural to greet people, we’ll give that person life, and, if the Holy Spirit moves us, we’ll share the Gospel with them.
2) Alpha starts this Thursday, September 19, and there are only 15 spots left. Please invite five people you know who don’t know Jesus; ask if they want to explore faith, have dinner and a conversation; if you meet someone who’s searching for faith, invite them; and, if one says, ‘Yes,’ go with them. Last week, we heard from Kyle Drury how he was visiting our parish and Erika invited him to Alpha. Here’s a short video from Erika about how she invited him, and from which we can learn:
That poor man who jumped off the Golden Gate Bridge just needed one person to smile at him, and we can be that person. The one thing is: Because we believe in Jesus, He gives us His love to reach out to others.