Steadfast Faith and Impartial Selfless Faith-Driven Love of Neighbors: Ss. Damian and Cosmas

On September 26, the Roman Catholic Church honors Ss. Damian and Cosmas, who were twin brothers, practicing medicine in the Roman province of Cilicia in the third century. It was when being Christianity and helping Christian meant to be arrested and killed throughout the Roman Empire. Damian and Cosmas were captured, tortured, and executed, for being Christian.

Both the First Reading (Wisdom 3:1-9) and the Gospel Reading (Matthew 10:28-33) of these twin Saints’ memorial reflect their steadfast faith, tested through persecution, resulting in their martyrdom.

Under persecution, it may look “foolish” to keep the faith, because it comes with a high fatal risk. It would be “smarter” to apostatize and live. And that is how the worldly “wisdom” teaches.

If faith is not genuine and strong enough, it cannot be sustained under persecution. Those whose faith is not steadfast are likely to fall to a “smart” option to save their earthly lives, forfeiting eternal life. In the eyes of God, there is nothing “foolish” about it. So, Jesus said:

Do not be afraid of those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul; rather, be afraid of the one who can destroy both soul and body in Gehenna (Matthew 10:28).

The one who can destroy both soul and body in Gehenna refers to Satan and its agents permeated throughout the world, tempting us with “smart” and “easy” way to save bodily lives at the expense of soul, which is the seat of eternal life. The true faith cannot be swayed by temptations caused by the one who can destroy both soul and body in a hellish place where garbage was dumped and burned, known as Gehenna.

Exemplary faith, which resulted in martyrdom is one thing about Damian and Cosmas. Another admirable thing about these twin Saints is their genuine practice of agape, selfless love. These twin physicians never accepted payment from their patients.  So were known as “silverless ones”.

Keeping faith is one thing but putting the faith in practice of love, which Jesus commanded (John 13:34-35) is another. Otherwise, the faith is as good as dead (i.e. James 2:14-26).

In fact, faith is a gift of the Holy Spirit (1 Corinthians 12:9), and love is one aspect of the multifaceted fruit of the Holy Spirit (Galatians 5:22). Among faith, hope, and love, love is the greatest (1 Corinthians 13:13), as it makes all our virtues worth practicing (1 Corinthians 13:1-3). In other words, faith without love is not functional (i.e. Galatians 5:6).

The faith of Damian and Cosmas was truly through the Holy Spirit, bore abundant fruit of love, through their works of mercy in compassion for their sick brothers and sisters in Christian communities. Because their medical care was genuinely motivated by faith, they did not charge for their services at all. And they made sure nobody was left without their care because of socioeconomic status and other social factors. In fact, their faith-driven compassionate medical works reflects these words of Jesus:

Whoever receives one child such as this in my name, receives me; and whoever receives me, receives not me but the One who sent me (Mark 9:37).

As children were regarded as “nobodies” in Palestine during the time of Jesus. They were rather “invisible” in the society, and it is particularly the case with orphans. Because children were not regarded as deserving dignity, practice of child sacrifice to pagan deities was rather uncommon (e.g. Jeremiah 7:31). But Jesus drew the disciples’ attention to a child, whom the society regarded as “nobody”, and taught them to welcome the child, as it means to welcome Jesus and the Father who sent him in our midst. In other words, Jesus was teaching the disciples to care for those who have been marginalized and ignored, such as the poor, the sick, and so forth, represented by the little child whom Jesus put in the disciples’ midst.

This teaching is further addressed by Jesus in the eschatological and soteriological context:

Come, you who are blessed by my Father. Inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world. For I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, a stranger and you welcomed me, naked and you clothed me, ill and you cared for me, in prison and you visited me (Matthew 25:34-36).

Amen, I say to you, whatever you did for one of these least brothers of mine, you did for me (Matthew 25:40).

Those who took noticed of the presence of their marginalized brothers and sisters  and cared for them, are blessed by the Father, as it really means to receive Christ and the Father who sent him to us. And Ss. Damian and Cosmas have been blessed by the Father for their faith-driven compassionate works of care to "these least", represented by the little child whom Jesus placed in his disciples' midst. 

In the faith-driven medical service works of Ss. Damiana and Cosmas, “these least brothers and sisters”, were take care, just as well as, those with wealth and status. There is no partiality (i.e. James 2:1-9) in the love demonstrated in the wors of faith by Damian and Cosmas, as God shows no partiality (i.e. Acts 10:34; Romans 2:9). Thus, their medical care was given to anyone just as the Good Samarital took care of a stranger (Luke 10:30-37).

Steadfast faith, not only withstood through persecution but also demonstrated in impartial works of love for neighbrs,  characterize Ss. Damian and Cosmas.