The corporal works of mercy are the charitable actions that we carry out to help our neighbor and get closer to God, this with the purpose of providing the physical well-being of the other person. One of these works is to feed the hungry.
to feed the hungry
One of the charitable actions is to feed the hungry, which is why it constitutes a work of mercy.
works of mercy
The corporal works of mercy are manifested as a result of a list made by Jesus Christ through the description of the Final Judgment. While the spiritual works of mercy were extracted by the church from other texts of the Bible, integrated by the teachings and attitudes of Jesus Christ himself.
The Holy Church classifies the works of mercy in corporal and spiritual, the seven corporal works are made up of:
- Provide food to the hungry.
- Offer drink to the thirsty
- Provide lodging to the pilgrim.
- Give clothing to the dispossessed.
- Visit the indisposed
- Go visit the prisoners.
- Bury the deceased.
While the seven spiritual works integrate them:
- Provide new knowledge and learning to those who do not know.
- Give sound advice to those who need it.
- Amend the one who makes a mistake.
- Forgive offenses.
- Offer comfort to the sad.
- Be patient with other people's flaws.
- Pray for the living and for those who are on another plane.
However, this article will describe what refers to the work of mercy of feeding the hungry, which has as meaning the spiritual hunger that a human being has when he goes through the need to receive the word of God in order to feed your spirit.
Generally, we associate this phrase with feeding ourselves with natural food and drink since for us it is a basic need in our lives, in fact once we have eaten we feel more satisfied. But there are many people in need who need to feed not only physically but also spiritually, so feeding the hungry represents something beyond what is natural.
One of the ways to practice this work of mercy is by fasting in order to give another the opportunity to eat. Feeding the hungry also represents having empathy, feeling compassion for the injustice that other people go through, sharing with them in order to result in a good act of kindness and receive God's blessing. You may also be interested in knowing the parables of Jesus.
We must all be an instrument of God through small concrete facts, which have value in the eyes of God, so the church through the works of mercy, teach us to touch the most important and essential demands of people , with these works we can change the world since they educate us to be attentive to the needs of others.
With the performance of the works of mercy, we approach goodness, so that the presence of Jesus is felt in our neighbor, since through the performance of these works, we remember that he is the bread of life, thus highlighting the generosity and humility that is in the heart of each person. So whoever feeds the hungry feeds his own spirit and that of others, making it possible for both souls to be nourished.
Teaching of “feeding the hungry” in the Bible
This work of mercy is determined in the Bible, such as James 2,14:17-XNUMX, where we are taught that if faith is not accompanied by works, it does not exist:
Of what use is it to one, my brothers, to say that he has faith, if he has no works?
What is the use if one of you, seeing a brother or sister without the required food, says to them: “Go in peace and eat”, and does not provide them with what they need for their body?
It is also found in the Bible, the testimony of Saint Luke 3:11, where it expresses that with the works of mercy, we fulfill and do the will of God, because by giving something to others, Our Lord assures us that He will also give us what what we require:
The one who has two tunics, share with the one who does not have; and whoever has to eat, do the same.
As another testimony of this work of mercy, described in the Holy Bible, is the Gospel according to Saint Matthew, teaching us that what we give from the heart to the needy, the attention we provide with the one who is hungry and the intention with the which we act towards them, is equivalent to our offering it both to our Lord Jesus and to Almighty God:
Come, blessed of my Father, receive the inheritance of the Kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world, because when I was hungry you fed me.
Due to the scriptures described above, it is evident that every believer must help and help others, to approach Almighty God and Jesus Christ, without distinction of persons, because we are created in the image and likeness of the Father, with the security of being able to grow in body and spirit, grow in love with the same opportunities and the same rights, without forgetting that we are all equal.
Feeding the hungry can be interpreted in two ways, through Secular Hunger and Spiritual Hunger, since they are two aspects that human beings experience throughout their lives.
secular hunger
It represents the physical need that every human body has when eating various types of food, representing an essential and vital action for human beings to have optimal health, both internally and externally of their organism.
Therefore, food plays a fundamental role, since it contains the necessary proteins, nutrients and vitamins that the body cannot produce, being essential for the proper functioning of muscle tissues and organs.
spiritual hunger
He describes spiritual hunger as a need that the person has who must know and believe with devotion in the word of God in order to receive it with much love, so that his spirit is fed and balance is sought. Therefore, the person must maintain constant communication with God and Jesus Christ to be spiritually satisfied. The aforementioned is achieved by following the fundamentals of the Holy Scriptures found in the Bible, to keep the spirit active.
Therefore, our Lord Jesus identifies himself with the one who is hungry and teaches us that the Kingdom of God is open to those who are moved and feed the hungry, since mercy represents feeling the miseries of the other and as a result of that compassion is helping and helping him. That is why feeding the hungry means adapting our consumption habits to real needs, not throwing away food and being thankful every day for what we have, our daily food.
Now, it is important to note that in the Old Testament, it was described that the people were not only fed by the word of the Lord, since in difficult times, manna from heaven was granted to them.
Manna from heaven
It is referred to in the Old Testament of the Bible, as the physical food that had a resemblance to a white paste, formed on earth, this food when consumed offered the necessary strength to continue in search of the Promised Land, also known as "the promised bread of the Lord to Moses", due to the journey that Moses and the people of Israel began, crossing the desert for 40 years led by faith.
Therefore, through this food, all believers in the Word and those who were convinced to follow the expedition and the path to the Promised Land could be fed.
However, in The New Testament, it is implied that the food given to the hungry is through Our Lord Jesus Christ, who represents the bread of life. Known how many books does the new testament have.
Due to this, in the testimonies of the Apostles in the Bible, it is affirmed that no one can reach the Father except through his son Jesus, who is the vital food that every person needs so as not to be hungry. In the Book of John, nine verses are evidenced that express the following:
32- Jesus mentioned to them: I tell you: The bread from heaven was not given to you by Moses, it was given to you by my Father.
33 – Because the bread of God is the one that came down from heaven and offers life to the world.
34- They said to him: Lord, offer us this bread forever.
35- Jesus mentioned to them: I am the bread of life; whoever is near and comes before me will not go hungry at any time; and whoever trusts and believes in me will never thirst.
36- I told them more, that even though they have seen me, they do not believe it.
37- What the father has given me will come to me; and whoever comes near me, I will not drive away.
38- For I have come down from heaven, not so that my will be done, but that of the one who sent me.
39- And this was the will of the Father, the one who sent me: That of all that he granted me, I lose nothing, but on the last day resurrect him.
40- Fulfilling the will of him who sent me: May he who believes and sees the Son live forever; and he will be raised by me on the last day. (Luke 6:32-40)
Search for manna from heaven
Have the will to find God through manna from heaven, involve not only talk, you must also act for that to happen, which is evidenced in the Bible, since no success was granted to believers in the Lord, as long as faith in him did not exist in them, but especially, in the gratification they had towards what they received from God.
Therefore, happiness and a good relationship with God are based on accepting, thanking and people, which integrates love. Being the divine food reached and taken by those people who truly believe in the existence of God and in his word, even when he is for all his children, both obedient and disobedient.
Therefore, the manna from heaven means "the bread of life" for those who believe in the Lord, where it is obtained through the good deeds that they do, having as an example the actions of our Lord Jesus Christ.
That is why we must be part of the groups that carry out the work of feeding the most needy, especially those who are hungry, representing this an act of mercy, which our Lord Jesus Christ taught us, to see in others a smile of thanks.
Because of this, to receive greater blessings for good deeds, we must be grateful, as this is an exercise of faith that increases prosperity through thanking God for how much or how little one has.
We must also seek the word of God, because through them the Apostles fed their neighbors at the moment in which there was the multiplication of the loaves and fishes, this as a result of the full trust that all men, women and children had in what God had and continues to have. Therefore, everyone who wants to achieve salvation must first seek support and counsel in the Lord.
In the same way, one must have a great obedience to God, since our Lord Jesus Christ and God the Almighty Father must be involved in any activity we carry out, always placing it as a priority, being fully aware of our actions.
By feeding the hungry in the context of the Bible, we can see that Jesus did not properly feed the people, but gave the food to the disciples so that they would give it to the hungry, therefore, they were part of the miracle of contributing to help others.
Therefore, helping those most in need will always generate a positive impact that will be rewarded with blessings, thus having a way of having a good relationship with God, where we always give our best whether we have all the resources or not.
That is why Jesus performed many miracles that are evidenced in the Bible. also know How many miracles did Jesus do?
Miracles of Jesus Christ
Among the most outstanding miracles of our Lord Jesus Christ, found in the Bible, are:
The miracle of the twelve baskets
It is expressed in nine verses in the Gospel according to Saint Matthew, where Jesus Christ fed more than five thousand men with only five loaves and two fish, expressed in the Holy Bible in (Matthew Chapter 14: Verse 13-21).
13- When Jesus heard him, he left there to go to a deserted and lonely place, through a boat; and when he arrived the people heard him and followed him walking from the cities.
14- As Jesus left, he observed many people, and he had compassion on them, healing those who were sick.
15- At nightfall, his disciples approached him and said to him: The place is deserted, and when the hour is over, send the crowd away, so that they can buy food in the villages.
16- Jesus told him: It is not necessary for you to go, you give him something to eat.
17- To which they replied: We only have here five loaves and two fish.
18- He said to them: Bring them to me.
19- He ordered the people to lie down on the grass, took the five loaves and the two fish, raised his eyes to heaven, gave the blessing and broke the loaves and gave them to the disciples, and these to the crowd.
20- Everyone was satisfied when eating; and they picked up the pieces that were left over, twelve baskets full.
21- Five thousand men ate, not counting the women and children.
The miracle of the seven baskets
Also described in the Gospel according to Saint Matthew, this verse is expressed in eleven verses, where our Lord Jesus Christ managed to feed the hungry, by feeding more than four thousand men with only seven loaves and a few fish.
29 – Jesus passed from there and came to the Sea of Galilee, and as he went up the mountain, he sat down.
30- Many people approached him, bringing them lame, blind, mute, maimed, and others indisposed and sick; they placed them at the feet of Jesus, and he healed them;
31- The crowd was impressed, seeing that the mute spoke, the maimed were healthy, the lame walked, the blind could see; so they glorified the God of Israel.
32- Jesus called his disciples, and said to them: I pity the people, because they have been with me for three days, without having anything to eat, and I do not want to send them fasting, so that they do not weaken on the way.
33- To which his disciples asked him: Where will we get so many loaves of bread in the desert, to satisfy and satisfy so many people?
34- Jesus said to them: How many loaves do you have? To which they replied: Seven and a few small fish.
35- And he commanded all the people to lie down on the ground.
36- He took the ten loaves and the few fish, thanked them, broke them, gave them to his disciples and they gave them to the crowd.
37- And they all ate, being satisfied; they picked up the pieces that were left over, seven baskets full.
38- And they ate four thousand men, not counting the women and children.
39- Then he said goodbye to the people, got into the boat and headed for the region of Magdala.
Therefore, feeding the hungry has a purpose beyond calming the need of those who require it, because in reality what I know is to generate trust among all people, having empathy and compassion about what others are experiencing. people, in order to put into practice what Jesus Christ taught, where what predominates most is love.