Love Your Neighbor

“You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” Mark 12:31

At no other time in my life is this verse more poignant. I was so frustrated the other day as we were trying to organize a feeding program for the poor in our parish. So many roadblocks. We were mostly senior citizens, and we needed to stay home. How could this be accomplished? How could it be organized? 

In the Parish of Sta. Maria Della Strada, their Parish Priest and Parish Pastoral Council were able to coordinate a program to give 150 families 1.5 kilos of rice and canned goods every day until April 14. The parishioners were able to donate money online. Perhaps more people will be able to implement this in their parishes. It is hard to think we will just allow people to go hungry. We also need to pray for our mayors, our Barangay captains and their people, who have to implement the gargantuan task of feeding thousands of urban poor every day. Our mayor said there are 400,000 poor families in Quezon City alone. Let us look for good feeding programs and donate to supplement the government’s effort. 

I wonder what Mother Teresa would have done if she was alive today? Would she be wearing a mask and a hazmat suit as she went about visiting the sick? I always remember her funny little face which was always described as “beautiful” by people who saw her in person, when I think about the poor. She said that we should strive to see everyone, even those who want to do us harm, as “Jesus in the distressing disguise of the poorest of the poor.” How can we help Jesus from where we are with what we have during this time that we have to stay home? Let us find good feeding programs to contribute to, and pray continuously for God’s mercy upon all of us.