Faith and Works

+ Cardinal George Pell, Archbishop of Sydney
30 May 2004

Today Christians celebrate Pentecost Sunday, a strange title to indicate that fifty days have passed since the Resurrection of Christ was celebrated at Easter.

This is the traditional feast to acknowledge the reality of the Holy Spirit, the third person of the Trinitarian God; Father, Son and Spirit.

Jesus is the Son of God and the Holy Spirit is God with us, a spiritual presence in our hearts wherever there is faith and love, now that Jesus has left us.

When Christians are true to their ideals they become better people and this goodness is taken into society. 

To emphasise this the New Testament letter of St James tell us that “just as the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without works is also dead” (Js 2:26). We know that faith should bear fruit in good works.

Good works are always good. Jesus tells us that whenever you do something for those in need, you do it to him (Mt 25:31-46). Genuinely good works will bring us to salvation, even when we do not recognise Christ in those we serve.

Are good works enough? Where does faith—and prayer and worship—come in? Are these optional extras?

Some of the young people who gathered before Easter to help me prepare my Pentecost message argued that good works alone are sufficient for life in this world and the next. But others suggested that works done without faith in Jesus are meaningless. Good might still be done, but what will help us know that doing good is what we should prefer? How do we know that goodness will endure? This is where faith comes in.

Jesus told his disciples that he came “to bring good news to the poor” (Lk 4:18). What is the good news that Christians bring to the poor today?

Welfare workers estimate that 107,000 people are homeless in Australia, and that 90 per cent of them have suffered some sort of trauma. In Sydney alone, 500 people sleep out each night. The St Vincent de Paul Society’s night patrol helps 150 of these people per night, 44,000 a year.

Part of bringing Jesus’ good news to these people is giving them food and a blanket. But we also have to try to heal their hearts. This can only be done through service and relationships. The poor are not just people we “do good” to: they must also become our friends.

Loneliness is one form of poverty that is growing rapidly, outpacing material poverty. “Who needs me?” “Who cares if I live or die?”

Too often these questions go unanswered. For those who have nothing, kindness is everything. We must always be ready to give friendship and a helping hand.