St. Joseph's Soup Kitchen Analysis

St. Joseph’s soup kitchen has been providing food to the homeless and otherwise needy for over twenty years. Through my Christian Service, I was able to contribute to their mission. Though food is served from 1 PM to 3 PM, preparation begins much earlier. I worker both the morning (preparation) and afternoon (serving shift). In the morning, I worked a variety of jobs that included making sandwiches, making garlic bread, preparing coffee, moving boxes, going to the store to buy ice, cleaning silverware, setting up tables, preparing napkins, and much more. The morning was fulfilling because it kept me occupied with a variety of tasks. After a lunch of the meal we prepared (often delicious), the “customers” began to get their meals. In
Many of the customers were rude, bothersome, greedy, and downright mean; however, the love shown by those who were grateful made up for it. The source of agapic love in St. Joe's was its coordinator Steve. Steve is a lanky, tall man who always looks like he’s had less than three hours of sleep; however, his dedication to the cause of St. Joe's showed through his apathetic exterior. Steve knew almost every person who came into the restaurant by name. Every person who came in, whether his love was reciprocated or not, was given the same care and service as any other customer. Steve’s eyes would light up at the sight of a full restaurant, a completed meal, an empty shop (meaning we’d given it all away), and pretty much anything that spelled success for the soup kitchen. The moment that showed me Steve’s agapic love was during my third time at St. Joe's. A young asian woman who did not speak English also did not understand the concept of “One Item Please”. Tempted to go to her seat and take it out of her hands, I was annoyed at the woman’s greed. Steve, on the other hand, seemed calm and unbothered. When I told him what the lady had done, he simply replied “yeah, she’s hard to control” and carried on. This state of full agapic love towards anyone who came into the restaurant was reflected in the customers’ love for him and his love for St. Joe’s
Joe’s is carried out through Steve and the volunteers; furthermore, the mission of Christ is carried out by St. Joe’s. My service reflected the Catholic church’s teaching on human dignity through service towards and care for the needy of NYC. We did not drug test, we did not kick people out after one meal, and we did not turn away the mentally challenged. As said in Proverbs 22:2, “The Lord is the maker of both rich and poor.” Every person who came into that restaurant deserved their free meal simply for being there and being human. Despite my animosity towards that asian woman, her actions did not disqualify her from taking another piece of bread or sitting down for another ten minutes. The dignity and sanctity of life is preserved in St. Joes by humanizing their guests and making them feel at home in the soup kitchen. I saw the sanctity of life by seeing God in the people at St.