He said to them in reply, “Whoever has two tunics should share with the person who has none. ”
Luke 3:11
September Spotlight: The Corporal Work of Clothing the Naked.
While Clothing the Naked seems intuitive; we are called to help those who may need things like shoes, clothes, jackets, blankets or similar items. Clothing is considered a basic human necessity similar to food and shelter. According to the HarperCollins Encyclopedia of Catholicism, naked includes “those stripped of human dignity and power . . . and necessary tools for work.”
There are many ways people can lose their sense of dignity and power. Poverty, mental illness, abuse can limit a person's ability to live to their full potential. Appearance-based discrimination can also strip people of their human dignity. How often do we judge and treat others differently based on what we see? What conclusions do we draw about young people who have tattoos or piercings? People who are severely overweight? Those who have physical abilities different from our own? Individuals who do not dress “appropriately” based on our standards? People from different cultural/ethnic communities? Appearance-based discrimination and the stereotypes it evokes can have real consequences. People’s rights to dignity, the power to control their own lives, and even to work, are God given.
This month's Saintly Inspiration comes from:
St. Martin of Tours
St. Martin of Tours was a soldier in the Roman army and one day, during a severe winter, he met a poor man who was begging near the gate to the city. The man, nearly naked was trembling with cold. Martin wanted to help but he had nothing with him to give to the man. Martin drew his sword and cut his army cloak into two. He wrapped himself in what was left and gave the other half to the man at the gatef. That night, Martin had a dream in which he saw Jesus himself dressed in the half of his cloak that he had cut and said, “Martin has covered me with his garment”.
Fr. Emil Joseph Kapaun - Download a free booklet of his story
Fr. Kapaun was a Roman Catholic Priest and United States Army captain who served as a United States Army chaplain during World War II and the Korean War. During the Korean War he carried soldiers back toward American lines and dug shallow trenches to shield the wounded from enemy fire. Fr. Kapaun joined his captured comrades on a forced march north to a Korean prisoner camp. For miles, Fr. Kapaun carried an injured Sergeant on his back fully aware that the man would be shot if he fell behind. When they arrived at the camp, the harsh Korean winter had arrived as well. The prisoners were freezing and Fr. Kapaun gave the men his own clothes to keep them warm. He also traded his watch for a blanket and made socks out of it for those who had none.
Agents of Mercy - Your mission, should you choose to accept... Help Clothe the naked and retain people's sense of dignity.
Here are a few suggestions for agents of all ages:
- Ensure clothing items you donate are clean, gently used, and in good repair and fit current clothing style trends.
- Strive to be more aware of when you may judge or treat people differently based on their appearance. Challenge yourself to see people for who they are, not what they appear to be. Put on your God goggles and see people through God's eyes!
Within St. Ann's (we know many of you just donated to the Hanover School clothing drive and the Yard Sale. Thank you! Those donations count toward our Mission of Mercy for September):
- Donate clothing for children and adult for ACES - Click here to see their specific requests for this month!
- Donate new, gently used(clean) coats, jackets and blankets. All sizes are needed-men's, women's, children's, etc. Start now to clean out your closets, There will be a box in the Commons for donations beginning October 1st.
- Buy socks and underwear for people in homeless shelters or put them in ziploc bags to hand out as blessing bags to homeless people you come across.
- Knit, crochet, or sew baby blankets for your local pregnancy center.
- Knit, crochet, or sew scarves, hats and gloves for your local homeless shelter
- Scour garage sales and donate those clothes
- Donate towels and linens for hospitals in developing nations.
- Skip a purchase from a website or catalog and make a donation instead to a women’s shelter or a social service agency. It’s not just about giving unwanted things away but about owning less and offering support to those who don’t have enough.
- Clothe someone with kindness through a compliment or simple gesture.
- Buy diapers or other items that would help a new mom. Donate them to a pregnancy support center or your parish's social ministry program.
- Clothe someone in warmth by contributing to your parish’s or Catholic Charities’ programs that help with heating assistance or participate in a weatherization program.Do you know someone who struggles to fit in, perhaps even in your parish? Clothe them with dignity by making sure they know they are welcome.
- Befriend someone at school who doesn’t have any friends and clothe them with dignity.
- offer to help sort clothing at your local pregnancy resource center
- Bear in mind that those of you who are working hard each day to earn the money to provide food and drink, clothing and shelter for your own families, and those of you who cook and clean at home, are already practicing these corporal works of mercy, at least outwardly. Why not practice them inwardly now as well, from the heart, not grudgingly or merely out of routine, but with compassion and love for your spouse and children, doing all to the glory of God and giving thanks to God the Father for providing for all your needs (see I Cor 10:31, Col 3:17). In this way, as St. Paul wrote, the simplest daily chore becomes "a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God," a true "spiritual worship" (Rom 12:1).
- do the laundry for your family
- help a younger sibling get dressed