What Can Churches Do To Help Those In Need, & Engage The Community?

Churches often take up large spaces, yet during the night there is usually almost no one in them; when there are people sleeping in the cold streets, this building being locked down so no one may make use of it, is a sin. A Church should be a sanctuary, a shelter, a place of refuge, it should be the open place for the holy family (which is to be seen in every family) to rest, it is to be an open door waiting to take in Christ and his Apostles, ready to take in & entertain angels.

Now some may think, “But if we let homeless people sleep there, what if they trash the place? What if they are irreverent? What if they get violent or hurt someone?” Those are all very understandable concerns, back several years ago a priest at my Parish was assaulted early one morning, & we all know about the priest who was beheaded in France & the African American church goers who were murdered in Charleston; but, we, as Christians must listen to Matt10:28 & Luke12:4-5 & Luke12:11-12
“I tell you, My friends, do not be afraid of those who kill the body and after that can do no more. But I will show you whom you should fear: Fear the One who, after you have been killed, has power to throw you into hell. Yes, I tell you, fear Him!…When you are brought before the synagogues, rulers, and authorities, do not worry about how to defend yourselves or what to say. For at that time the Holy Spirit will teach you what you should say.”
So as Christ said, do not be afraid of people harming you or your loved ones, for if you are doing good & someone murders you, you become a martyr & go to heaven, but if you do not do good, because you fear that someone may harm you, then you will go to Hell; again, Jesus is quite clear on this. So, you must not be afraid to spread the good news, to do good for the least amongst you, this truth is made clear when looking at the lives of the apostles & saints themselves, look at how many of them were martyred, look at how many of them were sentenced to death for helping those in need; The Saints make Christ’s message clear, we mustn’t let fear of bodily harm, stop us from doing good.

Also, we must have trust/faith in humanity, we must tell them “As long as you treat this place with reverence & respect & do not make a mess, & do not fight or threaten people, you may stay here.” & I promise you 99% of them will do as is asked, in thanksgiving for them having a place to sleep, etc. As for that 1%, we covered that issue above, be not afraid.

What else can a church do for the poor?

• They can make sure that everyone is always invited to perpetual Eucharistic adoration, as long as they are respectful & reverent.
• They could create a room where anyone can put extra food that they do not wish to eat & where anyone can get food that they would like to eat.

These are just a few things which churches can do to help those in need.

How can a church better engage the community & get more people to spend their free time at The Church?

• The Church can keep open their religious library so that anyone may come in & read religious books any time they wish & the church can set up a book checkout system so people may take the books home.
• The Church could celebrate more events like Saint Patrick’s Day, Saint Valentine’s Day, Saint Nicholas’ Day, All Saint’s Day, etc, by throwing big parties which have fun & entertainment, but which also maintain focus on the solemnity and holiness of the day, reconnecting people to the truths about those Saints & how those Saints would want them to celebrate in their memories.
• Like in Medieval times, The Church can make themselves the centre of the community, it can engage the community in all aspects of people’s lives, it can make itself a place that people want to go during all hours of the day, a place where people can gather, meet up, read, talk, work on projects together, a place where people can spend their whole lives, where people want to go in whatever spare time they have & where people wish to make the time to be at.

The Church is the Body of Christ, we must be His hands on earth, we must tend to the poor, the sick, & each other. The Church must intertwine itself with the community, it must be an active part of the community if it wants people to make The Church an active part of their lives.

– Jack Danya Kemplin

Are Local Churches truly following Christ’s teachings?

I have began to realize that my local church isn’t following Christ’s teachings, at least not as well as they should.

I have for years been deeply devoted to Eucharistic Adoration, & have promoted it to everyone I meet. However, a while back I was doing adoration one weekday morning, around 7AM, when an elderly female parishioner walked in, & signalled for me to exit the chapel to speak with her.

Once outside of the chapel she, in a somewhat angry tone, asked me “Were you in here a few days ago without shoes?!” I was taken aback by this odd question & answered “No.” While at the same time thinking silently to myself,
“Though even if someone had, what is wrong with that? Christ, & discalced monks & nuns only wear sandals, & even if someone was shoeless, does that mean they do not deserve to spend time with The Lord?”

She then asked me another question, “Did you bring a homeless person in here the other night?!” Again perplexed I answered, “No, I brought a friend in the other night, but he was not homeless.” & once more I thought to myself,
“And even if he was homeless, do homeless people not deserve to spend time adoring The Lord?”

After that thought, I expressed out loud to her, “All people are welcome to adore The Lord, even the homeless, the poor, the least amongst us.”

To this she angrily responded, “Do you want to take this to the Pastor?!” To her pure shock, I enthusiastically agreed to do so!

Father was busy, so we spoke to a lay person who runs the parish’s business end. The man could not refute my quotes of The Lord’s, but asked me to stay away from the Adoration chapel until after Easter, as to avoid the woman & her friends. Though I was upset that he seemed to have made it that her & her other elderly friend’s adoration was more important than mine & my friends; I submitted & did as he had asked.

I type this at midnight on a bench outside of the church, it is about 55 degrees outside. I type this where I do, because in going to the Eucharistic Adoration chapel tonight, I see a new sign posted outside it, which in bold letters reads,
“This is not a shelter or a place to sleep!”
I simply disagree with that, for is not the presence of The Lord, to be a place of shelter? Is it a sin to “Fall asleep in the presence of The Lord with the hope of salvation”? Is it not holy to take shelter with The Lord & be in His presence until one falls asleep?

Christ said, “I was a stranger & you gave me shelter, I was hungry & you fed me, I was thirsty & you gave me drink, I was sick & you comforted me, I was in jail & you visited me” he said those who do these things for the least amongst them, will be righteous, & will go to eternal life, but those who do not do these for the least amongst them, will go to eternal punishment (Matt25:31-48).

Jesus clearly says that we MUST give shelter, food, drink, medicine, etc to the poor, the sick, & those in jail; he says if we don’t, we will go to Hell, it doesn’t get any more clear.

So to tell people that they cannot find shelter in the presence of The Lord, that they cannot find rest in his presence, that they do not deserve to adore him because they smell, have ratty clothing, or have no shoes; is a slap in the face to The Lord Jesus.

Before ending this article, I will tell of one more unfortunate incident:

It was early November and I was amidst a 7 day Eucharistic Adoration for All Saints Day, which I had promised to Saint Therese for her being there during an illness I had recently recovered from.

On the 4th night of my adoration, it was snowing heavily outside, winter had came early that year; it was 2AM, & all of a sudden, a man who had come to do adoration, came in, & at seeing me, he opened the door & propped it open, letting snow blow into the chapel. He went out to his car and got a coat, which he put on himself as he came back inside & sat, shivering in his coat. He of course did not offer me a coat and I was left to freeze in that room.

After his hour was up, he went over, grabbed the Monstrance cover, put it over the Eucharist, & placed the Host into a drawer; he then ordered me to “Get out!”

So, now at 3AM with snow falling around me, he forced me to leave the Adoration chapel, & he sat inside his warm car, watching me stand outside in the cold with no coat for 30 minutes; after which he drove away.

Although I had the passcode to re-enter the chapel at any time, right in front of him; I chose not to, preferring to stand outside in the cold as a saint would have.

At 4AM another adorer came & I told them of what had happened & we both went in to adore The Lord.

This incident, above the others, makes me upset, as not only did he basically torture me & attempt to kill me with hypothermia, but also, while there was someone there willing to adore The Lord in the Perpetual Eucharistic Adoration Chapel, he chose to kick that person out & put away The Lord so that no one could adore him, even though there was someone there willing to do so!

What is with these people?! These false Christians! They are such a slap in the face to Our Lord! They act like as if only them & their friends are worthy enough to spend time with The Lord, like as if the poor & the homeless are not worthy to spend time in the presence of The Lord.

This is an outrage!

Christ says that the faith & devotion of the poor, outshines & is worth more than that of rich people (Mark12:41-44); so why is it that this parish seems to cast out the poor faithful, in favour of the rich? Is this place truly following The Lord?

I leave you with this reminder: If you do not give a stranger shelter, then you are not a Christian & will burn eternally. Those are the exact words of Jesus.

If the people who attend church & those who run it, would live out the teachings of Christ, then the world would be a far better place.

– Jack Danya Kemplin