Today, the idea of supererogation might be considered by a psychologist studying workforces or a philosopher debating ethical theory. It concerns the idea of someone putting in more effort or work than duty explicitly requires. But the 16th-century usage of this word was in the Catholic Church. Works of supererogation were actions believed to form a kind of reserve fund that could be drawn on through prayer. The idea of acts of supererogation — those that are morally good, but not required — first appeared in the Bible in the story of the Good Samaritan.