Jesus came not to be served but to serve (Mt 20:28). As followers of Jesus, we too come to serve others by providing for both their physical and spiritual needs. Like Jesus, we wash the feet of others and commit ourselves to live and even die in love and service (Jn 13:5).

Nevertheless, many of us are out of action, that is, “out of service.” Like Peter’s mother-in-law and the centurion’s serving boy, we are “in bed with a fever” (Mt 8:14) or “at home in bed paralyzed, suffering painfully” (Mt 8:6).

We need faith by which we let Jesus return us to service (see Mt 8:10ff). “Is anything too marvelous for the Lord to do?” (Gn 18:14) “Nothing is impossible with God” (Lk 1:37). The Lord can take the worst sinners and most broken people and make them serviceable. In Christ and in faith, we are “in service” no matter what.

“The harvest is rich but the workers are few” (Lk 10:2). St. Teresa of Avila said that God has no feet but our feet, no hands but our hands, no tongue but our tongues. The Lord needs servants through which to serve. By faith, accept God’s grace to “join the service.”

Rescript:  "In accord with the Code of Canon Law, I hereby grant the Nihil Obstat for the publication One Bread, One Body covering the time period from June 1, 2023, through July 31, 2023. Reverend Steve J. Angi, Chancellor, Vicar General, Archdiocese of Cincinnati, Cincinnati, Ohio December 14, 2022"

The Nihil Obstat ("Permission to Publish") is a declaration that a book or pamphlet is considered to be free of doctrinal or moral error. It is not implied that those who have granted the Nihil Obstat agree with the contents, opinions, or statements expressed.