As Matters Stand
When I was a youngster, I use to attend the Albany Senators’ baseball games. The Senators were a minor league team affiliated with the Pittsburgh Pirates. My Uncle Mac bought our tickets, and my brothers and sister, Peg, would attend. “Take your gloves with you,” Uncle Mac would say. “Never know when luck will shine on you and you’ll catch a foul ball.”
We always sat along the third base line. “It’s the best place to catch fouls,” exclaimed Uncle Mac. He failed to mention that the seats were also the cheapest in Hawkins Stadium and very hot on sweltering summer days. So hot in fact that wearing shorts was discouraged.
I never did catch a ball, and there were plenty of them whizzing by our heads, but I do remember Uncle Mac catching one bare handed. Proudly, he gave it to my oldest brother, Jack. “The next one I catch will be Pat’s,” promised Uncle Mac. Although there wasn’t a “next one,” I was never disappointed because I knew that if luck came our way again, Uncle Mac would be true to his word, and his word was more than enough to make every subsequent game exciting for me.
We sat on the bleachers where the “real people sit,” as Uncle Mac would say. The poor sat with us, and Uncle Mac realized this and often reached into his pocket for any spare change he had to help someone out, even if it were simply to buy a hot dog for a kid who couldn’t afford one at 35 cents.
Jesus has given us His word, and we can bank on it. He told us that if we care about the poor, and are good to them, heaven will be ours. He told us to feed the hungry, clothe the naked, welcome the stranger, comfort the sick and dying, and go the extra mile for others. He told us that love is all about giving. Uncle Mac understood this.
Giving is so much a part of Catholic tradition. One of the diocesan-wide services to be provided by the new Catholic Charities of the diocese is “tangible assistance.” Tangible assistance is offering aid to those who seek help to meet basic needs, i.e., food, clothing, shelter, utility and rental assistance, etc.
Scripture tells us that the poor would always be with us, but they need not be the same poor. An organization like Catholic Charities tries to lift people out of poverty, while helping them through temporary adverse situations.
Catholic Charities will collaborate with the St. Vincent de Paul Society and other groups to make sure no one in the diocese goes hungry or is without adequate shelter, and that other basic needs are met.
Every Catholic will be called on to assist, and people of other faiths as well. What a wonderful opportunity for all of us! The most vulnerable in our diocese will have a vibrant new resource available to help make life a bit easier for them. And in helping others, great blessings will be ours. We have God’s word on that.
- Sister Patricia Cairns, CSJ
2010 Diocese of Shreveport