Many years ago some friends of mine were confronted with an unusual question. Their seven year old daughter came home from school, and asked, “Is Johnny Appleseed a Saint?” The question was typical of those that occupy the minds of seven year olds, but my friends had no immediate response for their daughter. It required them to do a little research to figure out what she was asking, and why she was curious.

Johnny Appleseed was the nickname given to John Chapman, who was born in 1774 in a small town in Massachusetts. He belonged to a reform movement of the Anglican church, and was a man of deep faith. As a young man he was made an apprentice to an apple farmer, and learned horticulture. As he grew older, his faith inspired him to take the knowledge he’d been given, and put it to work in service to those in need.

The cultural myths that earned him the name Johnny Appleseed are based on some interesting facts. After his apprenticeship he purchased land, and planted apple tree nurseries in several locations in Pennsylvania and Ohio. He left the nurseries in care of local residents, and returned occasionally to tend the trees. The nurseries existed in order to provide trees to settlers who were moving into the midwestern territories of the United States. The midwestern settlers were required by law to plant orchards in order to secure their claim to the land. Johnny Appleseed’s nurseries provided the trees that allowed families to build new homes and open the midwest to expansion.

Chapman became an itinerant preacher, evangelizing both the midwestern settlers and Native Americans. He is remembered for his religious zeal, devotion to God’s creation and compassion toward others. He was the sort of person who embodied the words of today’s first reading, “if you bestow your bread on the hungry and satisfy the afflicted; then light shall rise for you in the darkness, and the gloom shall become for you like midday.” (Isaiah 58:10)

This passage of Isaiah is typical of what the Scriptures say about love of God. It is not possible to love God unless we can say honestly that we love our neighbor. (cf 1 John 4:20) Love of neighbor is necessarily expressed in loving actions, but these actions are done neither for one’s own gain or that of one’s neighbor; rather, we do good works in order to give glory to God. (Matthew 5:16)

John Chapman, aka Johnny Appleseed, left behind a legacy of religious fervor and generosity to strangers. Some of the orchards planted with trees from his nurseries still stand, and still produce fruit. It’s easy to understand how my friends’ seven year old daughter arrived at her question. She was enrolled in First Communion classes at church, and had probably been told about the lives of the Saints in those classes. When she read about Johnny Appleseed in Social Studies class at school, she made the obvious connection in her mind. She had been taught in Sacramental Preparation classes that devotion to God must be expressed in compassion toward neighbor. She saw in Johnny “Appleseed” Chapman a real connection between faith and action. I’d like to invite you to make a similar, obvious connection today.

This Sunday marks the beginning of the 2014 Annual Pastoral Appeal campaign. (watch this year’s video) The Annual Pastoral Appeal raises money to fund the many activities and ministries of the Diocese of St. Petersburg. Some of those activities are well-known and much-loved, such as the Family Life and Respect Life offices, the Inner City and Migrant apostolates, and training for our seminarians, permanent deacon candidates and lay ministers. APA funds much less glamorous activities, as well: activities such as maintaining the Bishop’s office, planning for future parishes and providing property insurance for parish buildings. These activities don’t necessarily engage the imagination, but they are necessary aspects of maintaining the Diocese, and a Catholic presence, in west central Florida.