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| - The Works of Mercy or Acts of Mercy are actions and practices which the Roman Catholic Church considers expectations to be fulfilled by believers, and which are also recognized as spiritual aids amongst members of other denominations of Christianity. These works, it is believed, express mercy, and are thus expected to be performed by believers insofar as they are able in accordance with the Beatitude, "Blessed are the merciful, for they shall obtain mercy" (Matthew 5:7). These acts are to keep the two greatest commandments:
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abstract
| - The Works of Mercy or Acts of Mercy are actions and practices which the Roman Catholic Church considers expectations to be fulfilled by believers, and which are also recognized as spiritual aids amongst members of other denominations of Christianity. These works, it is believed, express mercy, and are thus expected to be performed by believers insofar as they are able in accordance with the Beatitude, "Blessed are the merciful, for they shall obtain mercy" (Matthew 5:7). These acts are to keep the two greatest commandments:
* "I am the Lord your God and you shall not have strange gods before me.' This is the greatest and the first commandment.
* And, the second is also like the first one, 'Thou shalt love thy neighbor as yourself.'" Like many theological principles in Catholicism, they are expressed in organized, numbered form. There are two sets of these works, the Corporal Works (or Acts) of Mercy, relating to material needs of others, and Spiritual Works (or Acts) of Mercy. Although not so legally defined, these concepts exist in the Eastern Orthodox Church as well.
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