The Path to Heaven

The discussion tonight revolved around how the Christian virtue of Charity has such a transformative impact on not just the person who is the object of a charitable act, but also on the giver and on the witnesses to the scene.  Charity transforms us.  It’s the habit we need to perfect to become the pure souls we’ll need to be to stand in the presence of God.  It’s the Path to Heaven.

The Good Samaritan, Rembrandt, 1630

A small act, a giant impact.  In the icebreaker, we had example after example of how some small act of kindness—a listening ear at a key moment in our lives, an unexpected pat on the back, an acknowledgement from someone who we thought hadn’t noticed us—had such a lasting, transformative impact on the course of our lives.  Too often, we think of charity as some big, giant act of amazing sacrifice—which it can be.  Yet, sometimes it’s the little-est of generous acts or kind words that can transform someone’s day or have an even more lasting impact.  Do we focus enough on the opportunities that each day affords us to offer a small act of charity to someone?

Charity transforms those who witness it.  Several of our stories, and then the Rembrandt painting, helped us to focus on the impact a charitable act can have on those who witness it, especially when they witness silently.  Often, we are unaware that others are watching as we stop to speak with a person in need as if they were a long-lost brother; when they see that, and know that we aren’t even aware they are watching, their hearts are touched.  Or as in The Good Samaritan, when others witness someone going completely out of their way to help someone else that normally would have been ignored and left for dead, they themselves are touched.  They begin to ask, “What have I done today?”

Charity transforms the giver.  Ironically, perhaps the greatest recipient of a purely unselfish act of generosity or kindness is the giver himself.  In many of our stories, we reflected on how the very process of making a sacrifice of time, talent, or treasure for someone else, ended up giving us a greater sense of joy and fulfillment.  As we read the Gospel story, we realized that this is actually the point.  When Jesus puts someone or something in front of us that gives us an opportunity to act selfishly or selflessly, whenever we choose the latter over the former, we move one step closer to heaven.  Over a lifetime of acting in charity, our souls are gradually transformed.  Love becomes an instinct that flows instantly out of us, rather than one that needs to be summoned on command, and only when called for.  And when that happens, we are ready for heaven.

Resolution:  Each morning this week, we will pray for an opportunity to perform a charitable act or interaction with someone who needs it, and for the grace to act with unselfish love in that moment.

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