St. John Chrysostom was the archbishop of Constantinople and the most widely read of the Greek Fathers of the Church. A century after his death, he was given the name “Chrysostom,” the Greek for “golden mouth,” a name that characterized his great skill at writing and preaching.

As archbishop, he once offered a challenging and troubling image to the people in his care. He posited that on the Day of Judgment, as we stand before the throne of God, the poor we helped in this life will intercede for us and plead our cause for mercy.

St. John’s question causes us to ask ourselves, “Who will be there for you? Who will be there for me?”

Exactly five years ago on Christmas Day, Pope Benedict XVI issued his profound encyclical that he titled “Deus Caritas Est,” or “God is Love.”

The Holy Father proposed that God’s love is not a warm and passing sentiment, but a life-altering encounter with love made visible through the birth of Jesus Christ. That loving encounter changes human hearts, and allows each disciple who meets Jesus personally to see everything, no longer with human eyes, but as the Scripture has it, “with the eyes of the heart.”

The preface for the Mass of Reconciliation says it well: “Enemies begin to speak to one another, those who were estranged join hands in friendship, and nations seek the way of peace together … understanding puts an end to strife, hatred is quenched by mercy, and vengeance gives way to forgiveness.”

From the earliest centuries of the Church, the followers of Jesus Christ grew in their understanding that the Church has no other choice but to live and act in love, always with a preferential option for the poor. As time went by, the Church organized her charity to meet the growing needs of the lowly and needy in the community.

In our own day, a wide array of ministries such as Catholic Relief Services, Catholic Charities, mission apostolates, hospital and prison ministry, local charities like Good Samaritan and St. Vincent de Paul and our own Guatemala Mission are born in the heart of the Church that practices the love of Jesus.

These ministries are, in the words of Pope Benedict, “as essential [to the Church] as the ministry of the Sacraments and the preaching of the Gospel.” (DCE 22).

In the same vein, a second understanding grew out of the heart of the Gospel. The Church has no other choice but to speak out on behalf of the poor and needy as their advocate and champion. Sometimes the Church’s message is unpopular, unwelcome and even countercultural, placing us against the powerful currents of secular society and culture.

The Fathers of the Second Vatican Council proclaimed “the joys and the hopes, the griefs and the anxieties of the men of this age, especially those who are poor or in any way afflicted, these are the joys and the hopes, the griefs and the anxieties of the followers of Christ.”

Therefore, the Church, in her role as mother and protector, will raise her voice when her children are in danger or in need. The sanctity of human life, especially of the unborn or those who are at the end of their earthly journey, the cry of the widow and orphan, the needs of those who struggle with mental illness and those who are homebound or hospitalized, the plight of the migrant who longs for legal status or lawful immigration, even the prisoner on death row, along with victims of crime— these are the sons and daughters of the Church. The Gospel compels us to speak and act as their advocate and friend, and to continually raise up their needs and attend to their voices in Church, in society and in the halls of government.

The Church has a vested interest in building up a culture of life and love, and establishing a just social order, never remaining indifferent to the cry of the poor. There can be no throw-away people, no castoffs or disposable souls. No one is beyond the love of Christ or the gift of redemption that flows from the heart of Christ.

Finally, from the earliest days of the Church, we have understood that the Gospel compels every disciple to practice charity individually and personally. The ministry of charity is not optional.

The Church admonishes us to live on in God’s love and make connections between our belief and compassion, prayer and service, liturgy and justice, love of God and love of neighbor.

In our own day, the late Catholic social activist Dorothy Day said it well: “God made heaven hinge on the way we act toward him in his disguise of commonplace, frail, ordinary humanity.”

Each person must ask the question: What am I doing to extend the love of God into my home, workplace, classroom, neighborhood and community? Am I sharing, in the words of Pope John Paul II, not simply crumbs from the table, but from my very substance?

The words of St. John Chrysostom leave us with that chilling and challenging image. On the Day of Judgment, who will be there for me?