We are not grateful because we are joyful; we are joyful because we are grateful.
– David Steindl-Rast
Christian tradition teaches that sacraments are visible, efficacious signs of invisible grace that is bestowed upon us. All grace is divine gift that we freely receive and freely give (cf. Matt 10:8) by using “whatever gift you have received to serve others, as faithful stewards of God’s grace in its various forms” (1 Pet 4:10).
Catholic social teaching (CST) guides the faith community to channel sacramental grace and be “doers of the Word, and not hearers only” (Jas 1:22). CST is derived from Scripture, theological treatises, and papal encyclicals. Its principles help formulate the faith community’s approach to public policies and social rights and responsibilities. Thus, CST provides a framework to serve our communities and countries.
The Declaration of Independence and the Constitution document the founding principles of the United States of America. The high ideals of the nation are reiterated by national leaders in memorable language that inspires generations of Americans. These principles and ideals invite us to render patriotic service that ensures “liberty and justice for all.”
In this essay, we consider how sacraments encode God’s grace in its various forms and how CST principles decode ways to accompany others that are aligned with patriotic modes of service. This reflection is based on Christian and US frameworks, as a model and invitation to explore parallels shared by humankind through various faith traditions and geographic regions.
One caveat before we begin. The first amendment of the US constitution explicitly states: “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof.” We will consider how spiritual rituals and social teaching support service to humanity that yields “the fruit of the Spirit . . . [against which] there is no law” (cf. Gal 5:22-23).
We will use the acronym grateful to sew together the sacramental code of grace and patriotic mode of service using the thread of CST. Each letter of the acronym represents a visible, efficacious sign that expresses the congruence between code and mode. The letters also serve as signposts of a common purpose represented by the final letter of the acronym. Together, all the letters help us weave unique patterns with the gifts we have received into a tapestry of faithful stewardship, the fabric of our lives. Secular and faith-based initiatives are offered as examples of community-oriented service to underscore the harmony between sacrament, social teaching, service, and slogans.
As with previous reflections, one can apply the the P.R.A.Y. format at each letter-sign: Ponder in our hearts (sacramental code); Reflect in our minds (CST); Act using our skills and resources (patriotic mode of service); and Yearn in our souls (aspirational slogans). Unlike previous reflections, however, this one offers seeds only, and invites pray-ers to sow them in “good soil, accept it and bear fruit” (Mark 4:20).
Let us pray . . .
Gracious
Sacrament: Baptism: “You are my beloved . . . with you I am well pleased” (Mark 1:11)
Social Teaching: Human dignity
Service: Pregnancy, family support services; adoption agencies
Slogan: “[A]ll . . . are created equal . . . endowed by their Creator” (Declaration of Independence)
Resilient
Sacrament: Sacrament of the sick: “Your faith has healed you” (Mark 5:34)
Social Teaching: Care for creation
Service: American Red Cross; Alcoholics Anonymous
Slogan: “[B]ind up the nation’s wounds . . . care for him who shall have borne the battle and for his widow and his orphan” (Lincoln’s Second Inaugural Address)
Altruistic
Sacrament: Ordination: “The Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and give his life as ransom for many” (Matt 20:28)
Social Teaching: Preferential option for the poor
Service: Catholic Worker Movement
Slogan: “We mutually pledge to each other our lives, our fortunes, and our sacred honor” (Declaration of Independence)
Thankful
Sacrament: Eucharist: “After giving thanks he said, ‘Take this and share it among yourselves’” (Luke 22:17)
Social Teaching: Common good
Service: Catholic Charities; United Way
Slogan: “We have been given the duty to live in balance and harmony with each other and all living things. So now, we bring our minds together as one as we give greetings and thanks to each other as people” (Haudenosaunee Thanksgiving Address)
Empowering
Sacrament: Confirmation: “The Spirit of the Lord is on me . . . he has anointed me” (Isa 61:1; Luke 4:18)
Social Teaching: Subsidiarity
Service: Peace Corps
Slogan: “Ask not what your country can do for you—ask what you can do for your country. My fellow citizens of the world: ask not what America will do for you, but what together we can do for the freedom of man” (John F. Kennedy’s Inaugural Address)
Forgiving
Sacrament: Reconciliation: “If you are offering your gift at the altar and remember that your brother or sister has something against you, leave your gift there in front of the altar. First go and be reconciled to them” (Matt 5:23-24)
Social Teaching: Social Justice
Service: NETWORK Lobby; Equal Justice Initiative
Slogan: “With malice towards none, with charity for all . . .” (Lincoln’s Second Inaugural Address)
United
Sacrament: Matrimony: “What God has joined together, let no one separate” (Mark 10:9)
Social Teaching: Solidarity
Service: Smithsonian; National Institutes
Slogan: “one nation, indivisible” (Pledge of Allegiance)
Life-affirming
Life-affirming reiterates the reverence for life common to all sacraments, social teaching, service, and slogans, and is thus the final letter of grateful. As “workers in the vineyard” (Matt 20:1-16) of life, the seeds of the fruit of the Spirit lie latent in our souls, till our faithful life-affirming stewardship demonstrates “as the Father has loved me, so have I loved you” (John 15:9).
Fruit of the Spirit Meditation
We can rearrange the fruits of the Spirit articulated by Paul in his Letter to the Galatians (cf. Gal 5:22-23) into three sets as we meditate on the call to life-affirming stewardship, and pray the grateful letter-signs:
Resilience (fortitude/steadfastness/faithfulness), reverence (gentleness/humility), and restraint (self-control/temperance): These comprise the first set and map well to the four cardinal virtues of prudence, justice, fortitude, and temperance. This core set, cultivated within ourselves, serves as the wellspring that helps sprout the seeds of the second set.
Patience, kindness, generosity: The second set is made manifest in our attitudes and actions in daily life and helps us gauge how and whether we love our neighbor as ourself (cf. Mark 12:31). The second set builds upon the first and, when practiced by the beloved community, fosters the unfolding of the third set.
Love, joy, peace: The third set is listed first in Scripture, and yet may be the last to manifest within a community and country. However, the seeds of these first fruits readily sprout along with all other seeds in our lives. For example, “love is patient, kind . . . not self-seeking, not easily angered . . . always hopes, trusts, perseveres” (1 Cor 13:4-7).
In conclusion, sacramental code, patriotic mode, and CST principles invite us to be grateful—gracious, resilient, altruistic, thankful, empowering, forgiving, united, life-affirming—as we pray and work (after the Benedictine slogan, ora et labora). We pray to “freely give what we freely receive” in the sacraments, and work to actualize our patriotic pledge of “liberty and justice for all,” so that by being grateful, our “joy may be complete” (John 15:11).
May God bless us all as we pray and work to Make America Grateful Always. Amen! ♦
O’Neill D’Cruz retired once from academic clinical practice as a pediatrician and neurologist, a second time from the neuro-therapeutics industry, and now spends his time caring, coaching, and consulting from his home in North Carolina, known locally as the “Southern Part of Heaven.” He is a wounded healer who works to heal the wounded, in order that All Shall Be Well.