Service without love is merely a duty fulfilled

Service without love is merely a duty fulfilled, the minimum requirement of obedience. Love is what makes any good deed a sacred deed.

What's the real motive behind anything and everything we do? Service that's not motivated by love—love for God and for all whom He loves (which is everyone!)—can do more harm than good.

I am reminded of the time my family and I went to New York for a few days.  As we were walking along 5th Avenue in the morning on the way to Mass at St. Patrick’s Cathedral, we passed by a young man who was obviously cold. I thought, “Dear God, if this guy is still out here when we pass this way again, I’m going to give him my gloves.”  By the time Mass was over, I had already forgotten to look for him on the way back to the hotel. Talk is cheap. Strike one.

Later in the day, we were walking back to the hotel for the evening after a long day of sightseeing, and I saw a woman bundled up against the cold, looking almost dead lying on the sidewalk.  Many people were walking by very quickly, appearing not to notice her. It was like she was just part of the landscape. But did I do anything? For a fleeting moment, I thought I should see if she was all right and maybe buy her a cup of soup or something. But did I? No, I picked up my pace to try to catch up to the girls, who were crossing the street about 50 feet in front of me. Strike two.

For all my noble thoughts of loving my neighbor as myself, I showed a complete disdain for what Christ calls the Greatest Commandment.  I think that both of those unfortunate people were placed in my path for me to recognize as Jesus, and I failed our Lord’s test.

We prove our faith by laboring in love. Anyone can do good works, even atheists. Anyone can claim to be doing good deeds for God, even those who are far from God. Good deeds are sacred—Godly—only   when they are works of love done in cooperation with God's divine plans of love.