Building up the body of Christ

There once was a stonecutter who was dissatisfied with his position in life. One day he passed a wealthy merchant’s house, and through the open gateway, he saw many fine possessions and important visitors. “How powerful that merchant must be!” thought the stonecutter. He became very envious and wished that he could be like the merchant. Then he would no longer have to live the life of a mere stonecutter.

To his great surprise, he suddenly became the merchant, enjoying more luxuries and power than he had ever dreamed of, envied and detested by those less wealthy than himself. But soon a high official passed by, carried in a sedan chair, accompanied by attendants, and escorted by soldiers beating gongs. Everyone, no matter how wealthy, had to bow low before the procession. “How powerful that official is!” he thought. “I wish I could be a high official.”

Then he became the high official, carried everywhere in his embroidered sedan chair. It was a hot summer day, and the official felt very uncomfortable in the sticky sedan chair. He looked up at the sun. It shone proudly in the sky, unaffected by his presence. “How powerful the sun is!” he thought. “I wish I could be the sun.”

Then he became the sun, shining down fiercely on everyone. But a huge black cloud moved between him and the earth, so that his light could no longer shine on everything below. “How powerful that storm cloud is!” he thought. “I wish I could be a cloud.”

Then he became the cloud. But soon he found that he was being pushed away by some great force, and he realized it was the wind. “How powerful it is,” he thought. “I wish I could be the wind!”

Then he became the wind. But after a while, he ran up against something that would not move, no matter how forcefully he blew against it — a huge, towering stone. “How powerful that stone is!” he thought. “I wish I could be a stone!”

Then he became the stone, more powerful than anything on earth. But as he stood there, he heard a hammer pounding a chisel into solid rock, and he felt himself being changed. “What could be more powerful than I, the stone?” he thought. He looked down and saw far below him the figure of a stonecutter.

Sisters and brothers, in our second reading St. Paul announces: “Whether we live or die, we are the Lord’s” (Rom 14:8). These words remind you and me this Lord’s Day, first and foremost, of how important we are to God — that each of us is precious to God. Even more, each of us has a sacred purpose as a child of God for one reason — “We are the body of Christ” — or as I would like to suggest, the heartbeat of God in our world today.

St. Teresa of Avila, in speaking of the Church and her members as the living body of Christ, wrote:

Christ has no body but yours,

No hands, no feet on earth but yours,

Yours are the eyes with which he looks

Compassion on this world,

Yours are the feet with which he walks to do good,

Yours are the hands with which he blesses all the world.

Yours are the hands, yours are the feet,

Yours are the eyes, you are his body.

Christ has no body now but yours,

No hands, no feet on earth but yours,

Yours are the eyes with which he looks

compassion on this world.

Christ has no body now on earth but yours.

These are important words for us to remember, brothers and sisters, as we begin the 2026 Hope Appeal supporting 26 ministries in the Diocese of Syracuse and providing our parishes additional funding when we meet our goal and receive back into our parishes 100% of the overage. At St. Elizabeth Ann Seton, this money has, over the years, been put into our savings, preparing for capital expenses that will come our way, including a new roof and some discussion of better lighting and some liturgical updating for our worship space.

Yet, most important is that through the participation of all of us in the Hope Appeal, Christ’s love becomes tangible. Together we are the hands and heart of Christ reaching farther than any one parish or person could reach alone. Your and my support of the 2026 Hope Appeal enables us to show Christ’s merciful face to those who come to our parishes in search of him. It enables us to build here and now: a foundation of faith rooted in our being one family in Christ to spread hope to a world that longs for it.

Sisters and brothers, I would guess each of us has a wish list in life where we look for fulfillment. Let us take with us this week the story of the stonecutter and recognize where our true identity is found — as a son and daughter of God — and “[equipping] His people for works of service so that the body of Christ may be built up” (Eph 4:12).

You should have received a mailing this week. If you did not, or it somehow got misplaced, please contact the parish office or the Foundation of the Diocese of Syracuse, or visit syrdio.org so that you, too, can participate in being Christ’s body here and now. Thank you!