Sacred Heart Parish in Mt. Pleasant shared a note from the pastor on following Christ and serving the poorest among us, according to the weekly bulletin.

“Anne Marie Schmidt lived in Czechoslovakia under Nazi persecution and later on the Russian battlefront. She tells of the night her parents were having a gala dinner party that included several dignitaries. Early in the festivities, a servant whispered to her mother that Christ was at the door. Immediately, her mother excused herself,” Rev. Loren wrote.

The young girl came out to see that there was a dirty man standing in the room and her mother was cleaning him up. Anne Marie was puzzled and asked her mother why she was caring for this man. The mother lamented the fact that he child would even ask and said that she feared she had failed as a mother if her daughter was not able to see that Christ was in the poor. 

“The next morning, a curious Anne Marie looked for the man, who had not come to dinner. She found his bed unused and a single rose on the pillow. She learned that to serve the poor is to serve Christ,” Rev. Loren wrote. 

We are called to be servants of Christ and this can mean many different things. At this time of year, but really always, let us think about how we can dedicate our lives in devotion to Our Lord by bringing our gifts and offerings to the poorest in the world.

“Pope Benedict XVI once remarked, ‘Many times for people, authority is often synonymous with possession, dominion and success. For God, authority is often synonymous with service, humility and love.’ It means to enter into Jesus’ way, who bends down to wash the feet of the apostles and who says, ‘Whoever would be first among you must be your servant,’” Rev. Loren wrote. 

Let us take to heart the words of our Lord and visit the sick and imprisoned and feed the hungry and homeless.