Corn tortillas, beans and rice

A story of response, love and abundance

Two sisters on their way back from buying bread and milk for breakfast one morning waited for the train to pass. As the train, known as La Bestia (the Beast), slowed down they saw some men appear and several yelled out, “Madre, tenemos hambre; regálanos tu pan.”

The sisters did not hesitate to give them their bread and milk. People were hungry. After sharing the story with their family and at their mother’s suggestion, the next day they prepared 30 food packets with corn tortillas, beans and rice, and then listened for the train.

That day in 1995 changed their lives, said Norma Romero from the small town of Guadalupe (La Patrona), Veracruz, Mexico. “It made us more conscious of the realities we’re living. Too often, we ignore what is happening around us.”

At the time, “We didn’t know where they were going; we didn’t know about the immigration issues; we didn’t know if they were here legally or illegally. When one wants to help, the last thing you think about is their legal status. For us they were humans,” and that is all that mattered, she said.

Romero, who visited McAllen in October, shared the story of the women now referred to as Las Patronas, denoting the name of their town. In Spanish, the word patrona also means boss or protector.  For Romero, the name reminds her they are working under the patronage of Nuestra Señora de Guadalupe and doing God’s work.

For the past 22 years the women, campesinas from La Patrona, have fed thousands of migrants traveling from Central America. “Donde hay amor, no hay cansancio,” she said. Where there is love, there is no fatigue.

Listening to her story, underscores the importance of our initial response when we see someone in need. These women did not hesitate to help the moment they heard the words – “Madre, tenemos hambre; regálanos tu pan.” And 22 years later their response has not diminished. It has grown.

Las Patronas now have a shelter named El Comedor la Esperanza del Migrante. With the help of the community and other contributors and volunteers they prepare up to 300 meals daily which they toss to migrants as the train passes.

We see this response here in our own community. Close to home, we have our own Norma, Sister Norma Pimentel, director of Catholic Charities of the Rio Grande Valley, who one day in June 2014 responded with a yes when she heard there were immigrants at the bus station in McAllen who needed a place to rest. With her yes, other yeses followed from near and far from people who came to volunteer and provide needed supplies at the Humanitarian Respite Center at Sacred Heart Church in McAllen.

Both Normas and those who help them illustrate all that can be done when you see a need and take action. The capacity of a generous heart provides light and hope.

During her visit in McAllen, Romero spent some time with Sister Norma and visited the Respite Center.

“It gives me hope and joy,” she said, “to know there are others who are supporting our migrant brothers and sisters. Each day God is bringing more of us together, helping us grow in solidarity, not just with our brother migrants but also as a team.

“This space represents hope in the midst of so much violence and evil. There is hope, but above all there is love. I feel as if I am in my home, because these are spaces where God is, where you feel the solidarity, you feel the brotherhood.”

Romero added, “We all need to continue working and need to be conscious of all they are living and how they managed to arrive here, all the obstacles they had to overcome.”

Bishop Flores reminds us God wants our response, and this response is a grace. But in order for us to respond, we must be ready, he said. We must read the Gospels, share them with our children, with our families.

At the Diocesan Encuentro Mass on Oct. 14, Bishop Flores reflected on the image of the Virgin Mary reading, as she is often depicted in many paintings. He pointed out she is reading the scriptures, meditating on the words of God and the prophets. She was ready to respond when the angel appeared to her at the Annunciation.

"Dios quiere un pueblo capaz de recibir la gracia y de responder." / God wants a community capable of receiving his grace and responding.

“Pero tiene que tocar el corazón,” he said. It must reach the heart.

While Thanksgiving provides us an occasion to express our gratitude for the abundance in our lives, year round we need to be ready to respond where needed so that we may say yes to God’s call and be a blessing to others.

As Romero notes when she talks about her work, “We are all Church. From the moment we were blessed with baptism. We need to work in God’s kingdom.”

We don’t need great wealth. But in our response we can find an abundance to share. Let’s go listen for the train. Las Patronas show us it starts with a generous heart, and perhaps with some corn tortillas, rice and beans. 

(Originally published in November 2017 edition of The Valley Catholic newspaper)

Take a pilgrimage, volunteer your time

Can you imagine opening your doors to anyone who comes to your home looking for a place to stay, no matter their health condition or legal status? Every day the Sisters of Divine Providence welcome strangers into their emergency shelter — La Posada Providencia in San Benito.

When answering the telephone or opening her door, Sister Zita Telkamp, who has served as the shelter’s executive director for 13 years, never knows who will need her assistance. “We never turn anyone away,” she said.

Since the sisters opened in the center 28 years ago in 1989 they and volunteers have served more than 9,000 people from 81 countries. Many of their clients arrive with only the clothes on their backs, and “with hope in their pockets,” said Sister Telkamp. The stories recounted by the men, women and children overflow with hardships from their long journeys in search of safety and a better life.

Pope Francis is asking us to share the journey with our migrant and immigrant brothers and sisters. But long before he announced the international campaign on Sept. 27, Sister Telkamp and so many others in our diocese have been answering the call, witnessing to the power of accompanying others.

The campaign draws us to ask ourselves the question, “How are we sharing the journey?”

When considering this month’s Close to Home pilgrimage, I felt a prompting to do more than visit a traditional religious site. St. John Paul II reminded us a pilgrimage is “a process of conversion, a yearning for intimacy with God.” He said it is a gift of grace.

When we reach out to others and share our time, that is also a part of the pilgrimage, one the sisters and volunteers at La Posada Providencia live daily. I went to the shelter in August to report on the visit from Catholic Extension and Cardinal Blase J. Cupich, and was drawn to return in September. This time I made some time to volunteer.

Sister Telkamp always has something for volunteers to do, whether it’s for an hour, a weekend or more. Help is needed with the vegetable garden, inputting data or tutoring a student, among other activities. Elvira Canales of La Feria has been volunteering every Tuesday for the past five years, and has recruited other volunteers to join her. She said she draws great joy from her work.

On the Tuesday I visited, I tutored three young girls with their English lesson for the day. I confess I was nervous as I did not know in advance what I would be doing. Sister Therese Cunningham of the Sisters of the Holy Spirit and Mary Immaculate put me at ease reminding me of the essentials — love and patience. As the young girls practiced their English we shared some stories. Yuriel from Honduras also instructed me on how to make tajadas, fried bananas. Another highlight: holding a one-month old baby, Hilda, born on the Feast of the Assumption.

Sister Cunningham, who has been at La Posada Providencia for 12 years, said her time at the shelter has been a learning experience and one that has enriched her life. “I feel privileged to be a part of this wonderful ministry here at La Posada.”

“Their faith inspires me; their faith in divine providence that God is going to be there for them,” she said. “Sure they have anxiety and moments when their down and depressed,” she added, “but underneath that they have a real trust and a real faith.”

She said sometimes it can be a challenge on how to serve “our immigrant brothers and sisters” who are at the shelter for just a short period of time. “It may just be to be compassionate at heart, to be a compassionate presence, to listen to their story. It might be to give them a hug, a smile, just to be there to tend to their needs in this particular moment and show them they are valued, that they are reverenced because they are God’s creation, that we are all brothers and sisters on a journey.”

“While we’re here on earth,” she said, “we have this opportunity to be God’s hands and feet and heart for one another.”

To visit or volunteer, call (956) 399-3826.

(Originally published in October 2017 edition of The Valley Catholic newspaper)

Consider your circle of influence

Listening to the wisdom of the saints helps us remember there is much to celebrate. We are alive for another day. While there is so much we can’t control, we can focus on what we can do.

St. Francis de Sales advocated for living in the moment. “Leave the past to God’s mercy, the future to his Divine Providence and embrace the present willingly and lovingly,” he said. He also advised us to “bloom where you are planted.” In other words, in our own homes, work and communities, we should do what we can to make a difference.

In his book, “33 Days to Merciful Love,” Father Michael E. Gaitley, with the Marian Fathers of the Immaculate Conception, also offers us the example of St. Thérèse of Lisieux, who advised, “Keep trying: Keep trying to grow in holiness and do little things with great love.”

We witness this wisdom lived out daily in the work of so many here on the frontera. Daily, starting with how we care for our families, we are making a difference, influencing the people in our lives with our actions, with our love.

And it’s not just the saints who offer us this advice. Stephen Covey, in his book, 7 Habits of Highly Effective People, points to being proactive as the first essential habit. He notes as we look at being proactive, we should consider our circle of influence, areas of which we have control instead of focusing on the circles of concern, those areas which are out of our control.

Patrick Lencioni, author and management consultant, spoke about the circle of influence and circle of concern during the Convocation of Catholic Leaders: The Joy of the Gospel in America in Orlando, Florida, this past July.

He said we have to focus on our circle of influence; otherwise, if we focus on the circle of concern, there is a danger of doing nothing. People can lose hope and get bitter, he said. However, hope grows with those who take action. This starts, he said, with our faith life, our interior peace and personal holiness. We then need to work with our teams (within an organization) with whom we share a responsibility.

In August, we had a chance to give Cardinal Blase Cupich and visitors from Catholic Extension who traveled from Chicago a tour of some of the different areas in our diocese, including the Humanitarian Respite Center at Sacred Heart Church in McAllen and La Posada Providencia in San Benito. I emerged reenergized by witnessing again the amazing work taking place.

During the visit to La Posada Providencia, an emergency shelter for refugees fleeing from political oppression, natural disasters and poverty, we had some time to hear the stories of the residents. Some came from Cuba, Guatemala, Honduras, South Africa and the Ukraine. They met at the shelter as strangers, but under the guidance of the sisters who run La Posada Providencia, they have formed a temporary family, helping one another heal from some of the struggles they’ve lived as they learn English together and share their talents at the shelter.

As they recounted their stories, they each mentioned how much they appreciated Sister Zita Telkamp, a Sister of the Divine Providence who has served as the director since 2008. In a story we published in our newspaper in 2013, Sister Telkamp, who “welcomes the stranger” at all hours and from multiple countries, was noted as not just an administrator, but also “a chauffeur, teacher, friend and much more.” Sister Telkamp, who lives on the property where the shelter is located, is virtually on call around the clock.

In our communications ministry, we get to cover stories every day about the people in our diocese here in the Rio Grande Valley like Sister Telkamp who put their faith into action, people who use their gifts within their circle of influence to help one another on this pilgrimage of life. We may be among the poorest dioceses in the nation, relying on the generosity of founders such as Catholic Extension and others, but we live in an abundance of love.

In our present political environment, it is natural to worry about health care, immigration and safety. We must do more than worry. We must stay informed, speak up, and take action, remembering we can be more effective by focusing on what we can do close to home in our own families, work environments and communities.

After our visitors from Chicago leave, after the cameras and reporters disappear, after we return to our day-to-day, the work continues within our circle of influence. Love continues to overflow as well in our communities. It does so because of the inspiring men and women, women like Sister Telkamp and so many others whose stories we need to tell.

(Originally published in September 2017 edition of The Valley Catholic newspaper)

Schoenstatt: A place, a movement, a spirituality

Wayside shrines dedicated 

to Blessed Mother Mary

WESLACO — Sometimes we miss what stands in our own backyard. I have lived in the Rio Grande Valley all my life, and up until this past May had never visited any of the wayside shrines dedicated to Our Lady of Schoenstatt.

Schoenstatt, a German word that means a beautiful place, is a Marian movement started in 1914 by Father Joseph Kentenich in the Rhine region of west-central Germany.

“The Movement emphasizes a strong devotion to the Blessed Virgin Mary, as we uphold her as a perfect example of love and purity,” said Father Carlos Zuniga, pastor at St. Pius X Church in Weslaco.

“Father Kentenich encouraged those devoted to Schoenstatt to invite the Blessed Mother; hence, her divine Son, Jesus Christ, into the home by establishing a spiritual Covenant of Love with her. It encourages its members to have the faith and purity of children, and to think of Mary as their mother,” he added.

Carlos Cantu, of La Feria, who has been devoted to the movement for more than 50 years, explained the different types of Schoenstatt shrines. The original is located in Germany and replicas, referred to as daughter shrines, number more than 200 throughout the world.

Wayside shrines are smaller and vary from location to location. Additionally, some families set up home shrines.

My mother-in-law, who has a special devotion to Our Lady of Schoenstatt, gave me a small framed image some time ago. In May, as I attempted to post a different picture each day of Our Blessed Mother Mary on my social media sites, I found an unexpected surprise. On the same day I posted a photo of Our Lady of Schoenstatt, I came across the newest wayside shrine dedicated in her honor at St. Pius X Church in Weslaco.

Inspired, I set off to visit each one. There are a total of six in our diocese. I was inspired as well to restart our Close to Home Pilgrimages series in The Valley Catholic.

What strikes me about each of the wayside shrines I visited – the simple beauty. Nothing fancy, nothing large, no sign announcing the location. But each chapel offers a peaceful space for prayer. A small chapel, with three walls measuring not more than five feet by six feet, open always for prayer. No key needed. You won’t find a door. You won’t even find a sign announcing the location.

Yellow roses in Weslaco; a spring bouquet in La Feria; a white and yellow silk arrangement in Santa Rosa next to a red rose and baby’s breath. Someone always places fresh flowers.

Inside on the center wall, an image of the Virgin Mary under the title of Mother Thrice Admirable. The image is from a painting by the Italian artist Luigi Crosio.

You can pray anywhere. We know this. Wayside shrines offer another place to pray. They can even serve as a reminder or a quiet escape. By visiting a wayside shrine, you stop what you are doing and make time to visit with our Blessed Mother, away from distractions and noise of the day. Or maybe while you are driving or in the area, you are moved to stop to say hello to our Mother Mary and pray with her awhile.

Two Schoenstatt sisters, Sister M. Margret Gruending and Sister M. Imma Paul, who arrived in La Feria in 1959, started promoting the devotion shortly after they came to work at St Francis Xavier Church in La Feria. Credited for the birth of the Schoenstatt Movement in the Rio Grande Valley, the sisters recruited members in the community to help build the first wayside shrine for the Mother Thrice Admirable. It was dedicated on Oct. 18, 1964 at St. Francis Xavier Church in La Feria. On the 25th anniversary in 1989, members of the local movement named it “The wayside shrine of loyalty.”

La Feria now has two wayside shrines. The first remains at the site near the old church, and a second was built on the grounds of the new church. Other shrines are located on the grounds of St. Mary Church in Santa Rosa, built in 1966; San Juan Diego Church in McAllen, built in 2010; and the newest one at St. Pius X Church in Weslaco, built in 2014. Another wayside shrine resides in Rio Grande City, on property owned by the Blas Guerra family.

Members of the Schoenstatt Movement selected the Feast of the Queenship of Mary on Aug. 22 as a day to honor the Blessed Mother Mary, Queen of Schoenstatt. This year’s Annual Queenship of Mary Celebration with Bishop Daniel E. Flores begins at 7 p.m. Tuesday, Aug. 22, at St. Mary Catholic Church, 101 San Antonio Ave., Santa Rosa. The feast day, established by Pope Pius XII, celebrates Mary as the queen of heaven and earth.

“In Schoenstatt, we deepen our relationship to God through what we call a covenant of love with the Blessed Mother,” Cantu shared. Adding, “Sometimes it appears like the Blessed Mother is the center. She is not the center but is at the center always pulling us, always wanting us to follow the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit.”

(Published in August 2017 edition of The Valley Catholic)

Learning together and the art of accompaniment

We learn from one another. We are always learning. God did not want us to be know-it-alls working independent of each other. He wanted us to work together, to serve one another. As St. Catherine of Siena shared, God wants us to need one another.

We read in her Dialogue, a collection of her spiritual writings, “I have distributed them all (gifts and graces) in such a way that no one has all of them. Thus have I given you reason — necessity, in fact — to practice mutual charity. … I wanted to make you dependent on one another so that each of you would be my minister, dispensing the graces and gifts you have received from me.”

Understanding “we do not evangelize alone or in a vacuum; we need each other,” the bishops of the United State convened a historical gathering in July, the Convocation of Catholic Leaders: The Joy of the Gospel in America.  More than 3,500 people (bishops, priests, religious and lay leaders) gathered in Orlando, Fla., the first four days in July to “reflect, pray and discern together … to renew our baptismal commitment to be missionary disciples …” Our goal – focus on how to reach all the peripheries and share the Joy of the Gospel.

While there is certainly much to unpack and process from the talks and conversations that took place, I return with hope, energized for the journey ahead. In the words of Archbishop Christophe Pierre, apostolic nuncio to the United States, who spoke at the closing Mass, “The spirit is alive in the Church in the United States.”

Among my pages of notes, five points stand out in regard to what is needed from each of us – 1. a renewal of joy; 2. to grow our own faith; 3. to go out in a spirit of mission; 4. to be present and accompany others; 5. to go out to the peripheries. 

Our starting point begins with joy, as it is Pope Francis’ Apostolic Exhortation Evangelii Gaudium (The Joy of the Gospel), which brought us together. “We, your pastors, believe with Pope Francis, that a renewal of joy is essential for a deepening Catholic vitality and confidence at this moment,” said Cardinal Timothy Dolan, archbishop of New York, during his homily at the convocation opening Mass. He quoted philosopher Leon Bloy, who said, “Joy is the infallible sign of God’s presence.”

How do we find joy? Cardinal Dolan shared a story of St. Teresa of Calcutta who said you find joy by looking at the word; each letter outlines our priorities: 1. J, Jesus; 2. O, Others; and 3. Y, Yourself. 

During the convocation, Bishop Frank J. Caggiano of Bridgeport emphasized the importance of our interior lives and a radical response. He said it begins as well with humility. Humility, he said, “is needed amongst all of us so that we can come together as a family and create a home.” He asked a telling question, “How many times does our own selfishness and ego get in the way of missionary discipleship?”

I think this question reminds us of our role as lifelong learners. The understanding that we are always learning helps keep our egos in check before they explode into arrogance. No matter how many years I have in the communications field, I find there is always something more to learn. In July, I signed up for another writing class. Even though I write every day, I realize there is so much more to learn. It also provides an opportunity to get feedback from my colleagues as we learn from one another.

I am thankful as well for the grace of this column space and for each of you who read what I share each month. I don’t come before you as an expert, but as a humble servant putting ideas on the page, learning, sharing, wanting to learn more.

As we share, we give witness. It is a part of going out, a spirit of mission. As noted in the convocation Participant Guidebook and Journal, “Each of us is called to witness Christ in the world.”

Pope Francis in Evangelii Gaudium, tells us we “can make present the fragrance of Christ’s closeness and his personal gaze.” To do this, the Holy Father notes, “The Church will have to initiate everyone – priests, religious and laity – into this ‘art of accompaniment’ which teaches us to remove our sandals before the sacred ground of the other (cf. Ex 3:5). The pace of this accompaniment must be steady and reassuring, reflecting our closeness and our compassionate gaze which also heals, liberates and encourages growth in the Christian life.” (EG 169)

The “Art of Accompaniment” certainly reminds us that we walk with one another. We focus on the other, our neighbors near and far. “As we journey together,” said Cardinal Donald Wuerl, archbishop of Washington, “may we each grow closer to the Lord.”

We have much work ahead of us. As Archbishop Pierre, said before we departed the convocation, “Our mission is beginning. It is always beginning.” And in the words he quoted from a child, “¡Vamos gente; muevanse para Jesus!” 

As a recap, I leave your with a string of hashtags, as I like how they can serve as quick summary – #joy #service #other #humility #accompaniment #witness #missionarydisciple #lifelonglearner.

(Originally published in August 2017 edition of The Valley Catholic newspaper) 

To say yes, sometimes we have to say no

What does your to-do list look like today? How many commitments are you juggling? My husband reminds me often to put a hold on my workaholic tendencies. Even on weekends and vacation time, I keep a to-do list, checking off one item, adding two more.

A question I should be asking myself: Are all my activities in line with what matters?

My sister gave me some excellent advice a few years ago, which echoes in my ears each time I am asked to take on a new commitment. “Every time you say ‘no’ to a new request for your time, you are saying ‘yes’ to your family.”

This holds true as well in our faith lives. For as we say no to what is not important, we create room in our lives to follow the Virgin Mary’s example and say yes to God.

However, in the midst of our busy buzz, we need to pay close attention to what we are saying yes to. To do this it is helpful to pause. In a world where we feel inclined toward rushing all the time, multitasking on several projects at once, it seems awkward to pause.  It’s as if we think that by stopping for bit we might miss something.

Our capacity to discern, however, requires time. Retreats can offer space for a needed pause, for a moment to consider how we are using our time. The Spiritual Exercises of St. Ignatius of Loyola include a helpful framework for discernment.

In his rules for discernment, St. Ignatius explained the different motives, which influence our decisions as a movement of spirits. He classified these as consolations and desolations. Consolations move us toward deepening our relationship with God, while desolations pull us away. “Our one choice,” he said, “should be this: I want and choose what better leads to God’s deepening life in me.”

In the secular world, Stephen Covey, author of the “Seven Habits of Highly Effective People,” suggests writing a personal mission statement. He also offers a time management matrix for organizing priorities. It includes a quadrant for what is 1. Urgent and important; 2. Not urgent but important; 3. Urgent but not important; and 4. Not urgent and not important.

As we focus on our priorities, understanding our goals and objectives, we learn it’s okay to say

no. When we say “no” it helps us consider our capacity for what we can add to our hours. More importantly, Saying no helps us say yes to what matters.

Throughout our day, we are saying no to a host of things before us – to new tasks, to temptations the modern world offers such materialism, greed, gluttony; to emotions which are harmful – negativity, anger, rage; to all that keeps us from saying yes to living more fruitful and grace-filled days.

Just as we must measure and watch what we eat and try to exercise our bodies to stay fit, it’s helpful to take a step back from all our activities not only to recharge ourselves, but also to get some perspective. I know firsthand that saying yes too often can lead to overextending myself.

We have to ask ourselves, are we addicted to busy or to being tethered, always connected to our mobile devices and social media notifications?

When it comes to saying no, I draw inspiration from my sister Leslie who said no to her profession as a stockbroker and later as a teacher so she could focus on her family. Also, from my friend Zulema, who despite a fulltime job and raising a six-year-old, found time to train for her first half Ironman race in May. She did this by saying no to new projects and to television and saying yes to exercise. I think, too, of all the priests and the religious men and women in our diocese who have said yes to God’s call and said no to another vocation.

As we evaluate where we are and the direction, we recognize God may be trying to get our attention and alter our course. We can’t say yes to everything. What can you say no to that would help you say yes to something that truly needs your attention?

(Originally published in July 2017 edition of The Valley Catholic newspaper) 

Finding joy in the darkness

Fear can paralyze us. After my father died, it took me more than a year and a half to return to his home, my childhood home. With windows boarded up and weeds growing, the house sat abandoned until recently when I finally decided, and with my siblings’ promptings, that it was time.

I was overwhelmed. The emotions of dealing with my father’s home coursed through the full spectrum. But I found strength to find the positive side of the situation.

Pope Francis in his message for the 51st World Communications Day addressed the theme “‘Fear not, for I am with you’ (Is 43:5): Communicating hope and trust in our time.” In his message, he said, “Everything depends on the way we look at things, on the lens we use to view them.”

We need to remember this in the dark days that emerge from time to time in our lives. Through health struggles, family dramas, financial burdens. Also, we can’t escape the headlines filled with the tragedies occurring near and far.

James in his letter tells us, “Consider it all joy, my brothers, when you encounter various trials, for you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance” (Jas 1: 2-3).

“Consider it all joy.” Easier to consider when we are not living in the middle of the storm. How do we proceed when it’s too dark to see? James reminds us we must ask God for wisdom, and that we must do so with faith. (Jas 1: 5-6)

It also requires us to consider the lens we use to view a moment we are living. Jun Ellorimo, a triathlete and trainer in Harlingen, shared with our group, “Struggles, challenges, obstacles, or anything that falls in that line are a part of life. We will all encounter that. As Christians, we are not spared from it.” Some struggles, he said, “will either 1. Destroy us; 2. Define us; or 3. Develop us. It’s our choice.”

Pope Francis in his message proposed, “that all of us work at overcoming that feeling of growing discontent and resignation that can at times generate apathy, fear or the idea that evil has no limits.”

“I would like, then, to contribute to the search for an open and creative style of communication that never seeks to glamorize evil but instead to concentrate on solutions and to inspire a positive and responsible approach on the part of its recipients.”

If we are to find solutions, we must rely on the gifts of the Holy Spirit. The Feast of Pentecost this month on June 4 is a good time to remember that we are each given gifts to share. Remembering, too, that we can’t share the gifts if we allow ourselves to be paralyzed by fear and other trials.

In our communication ministry, we recognize we have an important responsibility to share the stories in our diocese, a diocese that serves more than one million Catholics here in the Rio Grande Valley. In sharing the stories, we can see how God is always at work in our lives, we can indeed “consider it all joy.”

I am grateful for the grace to serve in this ministry and to do as Pope Francis asks, “offer people of our time storylines that are at heart ‘good news’.”

As Pope Francis notes in his World Communications Day message, “This good news – Jesus himself – is not good because it has nothing to do with suffering, but rather because suffering itself becomes part of a bigger picture.” He adds, “In Christ, God has shown his solidarity with every human situation.”

I’m not finished with my father’s home, with the emptying and sorting through what he left behind. I know too there are other moments that will test me, but I trust God will help me “fear not,” for he is with me. I also trust he will put people on my path to remind me and that we will remind and help each other find the joy in each moment.

Women of Easter, carrying hope

With continued talk of building a wall along our border with Mexico, we need to continue to oppose such efforts. It is easy to get disheartened at times, but we need to remember in this Easter season, we are people of hope. We proceed with joyful, hopeful and faithful hearts. These are the common attributes shared by the women in the book “The Women of Easter: Encounter the Savior with Mary of Bethany, Mary of Nazareth, and Mary Magdalene,” by Liz Curtis Higgs.

In April, some fellow poets and I visited the border wall near the Old Hidalgo Pumphouse in Hidalgo. As we walked the edges and went around the wall to explore the old trails overgrown now from disuse, I wondered how many more nature trails would be cut from our reach, and how unwelcoming and threatening our borders are becoming. As we read our poems to give others a glimpse of our Rio Grande Valley, we found comfort in knowing our words can impact the world.

Our actions, too, are important.

Bishop Daniel E. Flores in a lecture titled “The Politics of Human Dignity, Catholics and Immigration” which he presented at Bellarmine University in Louisville, Kentucky, said, “A Catholic must begin with hope which for us can only emerge from our contemplation of the One who watches in the night. For us politics can only really be about keeping faith with Him, and what he shows us about God, about ourselves and about our neighbor.”

Holy Week leading up to Easter left us also with some lessons we should remember throughout the year. Each of the Triduum celebrations had a common theme of coming together and of accompanying Christ on his way to Calvary.

On Holy Thursday, “The Lord washes the feet of his disciples, and he says at the end of it, ‘As I have done for you, so you must do for one another.’” Bishop Flores reminded us the Lord “wants us to wash each other’s feet in humility and in service.”

On Good Friday, as we accompanied Christ on the Via Dolorosa, we reflected on his humility and suffering. Bishop Flores pointed out in his homily on Good Friday, we need to recognize the humility of the cross and the hope it offers. “Only a people humble of heart really understand what the hope of the cross is.” He also said we need to seek God’s grace. “We need to seek, we need strength, we need love and we need the courage to be true.”

At the Easter Vigil Mass, we witnessed the power the Lord has over death, and that he is with us at all times. He is the light. “The risen one opens the eyes of the blind to what really matters.” It is up to us to share this news.

Daily we walk together, following Christ’s example, and the example of his Blessed Mother Mary.
Bishop Flores, in his lecture, said we can sometimes forget that “God’s governance in history expresses itself primarily through human agency.” He shared the story of his grandmother who “prayed that if ever they (her grandchildren) are in trouble, God would put a kind and generous soul in their path to help them.” “She was a woman of faith, and trusted to God that He would find ways to help them. Mostly, that meant He would put the right people in their path,” he said.

Bishop adds, “The mirror image of that kind of perception, available to anyone with faith and a little imagination, is that we are also all potentially answers to some grandmother’s prayer in some place far away. Indeed, the generosity God inspires in each one of us today is his answer to someone’s prayer.”

These words resonate. They imbue us too with responsibility as we consider how we can be the “answer to someone’s prayer.” I encourage you take some time to read the bishop’s entire lecture, which is posted on his blog.

“Even in a wounded world,” he notes, “people find themselves crossing paths with someone who will not abandon them to disaster.”

While some may insist on building walls, we must continue to be God’s hands and feet in the world, offering care to those who need it. We must move forward as joyful men and women of Easter carrying hope into the world.

(Originally published in May 2017 edition of The Valley Catholic newspaper) 

Finding focus in a world of distractions

Several years ago, I purchased some juggling balls along with an instruction booklet. Maybe I thought if I actually learned how to juggle, I could transfer the skill to help me focus on all that requires my attention.

We live in a world of distractions. Despite our best efforts to stay on course, an onslaught of diversions can halt our progress. Sometimes these diversions are beyond our control, such as emergencies or family needs; sometimes it’s the nature of our work and we must multitask as we carry out our responsibilities and tasks.

As much as I try to designate specific time for writing, my sentences are often paused in mid-thought so that I can respond to a request or tend to another matter. Stop. Start. Stop. Start. Some days feel like a game of tug of war.

My natural tendency to chase butterflies, or rather lose focus easily, does not help. To compensate requires some strategies to keep my attention where needed. The Lenten Season provides some helpful resources, as does the Easter Season. 

Four years ago, I completed an online spiritual retreat, “An Ignatian Prayer Adventure,” based on the Spiritual Exercises of St. Ignatius of Loyola. The eight-week retreat asked participants “to commit to a regular period of prayer each day.”

Given that once the phone starts ringing before I even enter the office, my days lean toward the unpredictable. To avoid any interruptions, I made it a point to wake up an hour earlier during this time and set some other parameters in place to ensure my concentration. This experience invigorated me. By the time I left home, I felt accomplished, and this motivated me further to stay on course.

Part of the spiritual exercise called for taking note of the attachments in our lives. St. Ignatius referred to the things that keep us from God as “disordered attachments.” The constant distractions in our days can fall in this category.

Technology and social media feed our short attention spans. I know I am not the only one guilty of planning to spend only 10 minutes checking Facebook or Twitter. Then half an hour or even an hour later, we look up and suddenly realize how much time has passed.

Recognizing what attachments or addictions keep us from God and from other priorities in our life is a step toward making changes. From time to time, for example, I completely disconnect from social media. Sometimes for just a day or a weekend, sometimes for longer periods. As for the notification alerts, I keep those off at all times to avoid the distraction. Netflix is another temptation I have to limit. If I’m not careful, it’s too easy to binge-watch yet another series I find interesting. Shifting our focus from unhealthy distractions gives us more time to assist someone who needs our help or to concentrate on a project that requires our attention.

Rigoberta Menchú Tum, the 1992 Nobel Prize winner from Guatemala, spoke in March at a women’s conference, “Mujeres Formadoras de Paz” in Reynosa. I am thankful Sister Norma Pimentel, director of Catholic Charities of the Rio Grande Valley, attended the conference and recorded some of her talk.

Menchú’s talk has a number of points I plan to revisit. Two points resonate: First, she stressed the need for organization and clear goals and objectives. “Good intentions alone do not change things,” she said. Second, she advised women to distance themselves from vice, which keeps us from moving in the direction of our goals.

In this world of distractions, we can take steps to find focus. We can start by being intentional. This does require us to pause from the busyness of our day and find some quiet to concentrate. Turning to prayer has become my priority in this process. We can then proceed to making choices about what matters most as we set our goals for our faith life, families, vocations and health. Periodically we also need to pause, consider our progress, evaluate what changes may be needed.

The Daily Examen offered by St. Ignatius is another helpful practice. It includes five steps: 1. Become aware of God’s presence. 2. Review the day with gratitude. 3. Pay attention to your emotions. 4. Choose one feature of the day and pray from it. 5. Look toward tomorrow. More resources are available online at http://www.ignatianspirituality.com.

As for the juggling balls, I never devoted enough time to learn how to juggle. I am thankful, though, that I did learn how to focus when needed.

(Originally published in April 2017 edition of The Valley Catholic newspaper) 

Fasting year-round, learning to surrender

Because some things should remain private, I have hesitated writing about my devotional fast. However, I believe we learn from one another. Sharing helps us engage in conversations that lead to greater understanding.

I started fasting twice a week close to four years ago. I began not for the reasons one might think, but as a health measure. After watching the BBC documentary “Eat, Fast & Live Longer” by Dr. Michael Mosley, a physician and journalist, I wanted to try intermittent fasting. According to research, fasting provides time for the body to initiate healing.

“It’s not just about how we eat, but when and how we eat it,” said Mosley. In his documentary, he looked at the scientific theory that calorie restriction influences longevity in humans.

My mother died young. She was 50 years old. Since her death, I have been on hyper alert to ways of living healthier. Naturally, I wanted to reap the benefits of intermittent fasting. We take extreme measuring fighting an illness; why not take extreme measures at prevention?

Over time, my practice has evolved into a devotional fast, and I see it now as a gift.

I felt guilty that my fasting did not come prompted for spiritual reasons as part of my ongoing prayer life. Father Alex Flores, pastor at San Juan Diego Parish in McAllen, put me at ease one day when he explained, “Grace builds upon nature.” He said God is gentle and uses our natural inclinations to draw us toward him. So while I started this discipline for health reasons, God helped me understand there are greater reasons to fast.

Fasting is one of the three pillars of the Lenten season. Which draws me to the question I ask myself frequently, “Why fast?” Each week I find more and more reasons to continue my twice-weekly fast.

For thousands of years people have fasted – some for spiritual reasons, some for health. During Lent, we focus on Jesus Christ’s fast in the desert. Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI in his message for Lent 2009 said, “The Sacred Scriptures and the entire Christian tradition teach that fasting is a great help to avoid sin and all that leads to it. For this reason, the history of salvation is replete with occasions that invite fasting.”

He adds, “Fasting represents an important ascetical practice, a spiritual arm to do battle against every possible disordered attachment to ourselves. Freely chosen detachment from the pleasure of food and other material goods helps the disciple of Christ to control the appetites of nature, weakened by original sin, whose negative effects impact the entire human person.”

I remain in awe of how God works in our lives and by how our Blessed Mother calls us closer to her son. Early in my fasting journey, my husband and I made plans to visit Croatia. While our original plans did not include Medjugorje in Bosnia, the site where apparitions of the Blessed Mother began in 1981, the proximity prompted us to include a side journey.

It truly felt like our Blessed Mother was guiding us toward Medjugorje. She was also helping me gain a better understanding of the discipline of regularly abstaining from food. I did not realize at the time Our Lady of Medjugorje is calling for fasting twice a week, on Wednesdays and Fridays. I still can’t seem to trade my Tuesday fast for Wednesday, but at some point I may be ready.

To date, the Vatican’s Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith has not issued a doctrinal judgment on the apparitions. However, on Feb. 11 Catholic News Agency reported Pope Francis “appointed Archbishop Henryk Hoser of Warszawa-Praga as a delegate of the Holy See to look into the pastoral situation at Medjugore, the site of alleged Marian apparitions in Bosnia and Herzegovina.”

This does not diminish the call for fasting. While I sometimes fail, the weekly practice of abstaining from meals keeps me aware of the graces that flow from this devotion.

For one, fasting compliments prayer on multiple levels. It is a great gift to offer up a fast when someone has asked for a specific prayer intention. I am becoming more aware as well that fasting is part of my ongoing surrender to God. Learning to rely on him for strength, each fast brings some insight to a moment before me or to a lesson on my spiritual journey.

Second, fasting keeps me in balance by helping me focus on what is important. I’ve learned to better appreciate the blessings before me. I have also become more aware of the needs of others.

Often fasting serves as a reset button for times when I overindulge and have committed gluttony or when I veer off course from healthy eating. Not only does fasting keep me in check, it makes me more mindful of my meals on the days I don’t fast. I have a greater appreciation for the foods I consume.

Third, fasting offers health benefits for body and mind. Scientists continue to study this and find more and more proof of the merits of periodically abstaining from meals.

Hippocrates, an ancient Greek physician known as the Father of Modern Medicine, advocated for fasting. He noted, “The man carries within him a doctor; you just have to help him do his work. If the body is not cleared, then the more you feed it, the more it will be harmed. When a patient is fed too richly, the disease is fed as well. Remember – any excess is against nature.”

What a blessing. Fasting does not need to be reserved for Ash Wednesday and Good Friday. We can incorporate the practice year-round. I will likely continue to stumble at times, but I trust God will set me back on the path, however many times it takes.

(Originally published in March 2017 edition of The Valley Catholic newspaper) 

Why we must march with love, respect

Thousands of women marched on Jan. 21 to raise their voices for human rights. In Washington, D.C. and across our nation, women came together in solidarity.

On that same day, I marched in McAllen for my beliefs along with hundreds of others in our community who joined the Diocese of Brownsville’s annual Pro-Life March. Had I been in Washington, I would have marched in the Women’s March, but not for all the reasons organizers of that particular event supported in their platform.

The question for some on that day, as reported in the L.A. Times: “To march or not?” The headline continued: “Some women are staying away from women’s rally because of a rift over abortion.” Organizers decided not to include groups with a pro-life stance as partners for the event. So it seems the Women’s March did not aim to include all women’s voices.

“It’s frustrating and insulting,” said Meg McDonnell, executive director of Women Speak for Themselves, that you would claim to be inclusive and for human rights and yet leave out women who are defending the rights of humans in the world.”

Helen Alvaré, a law professor at George Mason University and founder of the Women Speak for Themselves movement, also pointed out in a piece published on Crux, a Catholic news site, the Women’s March raised a number of questions – questions the media rarely pay attention to when it comes to what women “really want.” The article is available at https://cruxnow.com/commentary/2017/01/17/womens-march-raises-questions-answers/

“I realize that no one wants to organize a march called “The March for Some Women’s Ideas, Some of which are Good, Some Vague, and Some Truly Terrible.” But that would be a more fair characterization of the 2017 Women’s March.”

Moving forward, I say given any opportunity, we should march. We should show up and stand for our beliefs regardless of what the organizers try to set forth at the dominant agenda. The Women’s March organizers showed their card by removing pro-life groups from their list of partners, but we must not be bullied to the sidelines.

All women have the right to speak and uphold their convictions. No one can dictate my beliefs or silence me. I am a pro-life feminist who promotes life at all stages.

Closer to home, the annual Pro-Life March in our Diocese is held in solidarity with the national March for Life. Father Alex Flores emphasized it was a “peaceful and prayerful march.”

This year the national march was moved from Jan. 22 to Jan. 27. As we reported in the January edition of our newspaper, it is held in reparation for the more than 58.5 million babies who have been killed in the United States since abortion became legal as a result of the Roe v. Wade Supreme Court decision on Jan. 22, 1973.  

Interesting what the media pays attention to when they cover an event. Most reporters and photographers in McAllen on Jan. 21 were not at the start or the finish of the pro-life procession. They did not hear or report on the testimony of a father who adopted a baby whose mother considered an abortion and opted instead to give him life. They did not hear the songs of love, faith and hope of those who witness to life. They hovered instead at the intersection near the abortion clinic on Main Street and Houston. They wanted to see a confrontation as the voices of those who support abortion tried to drown out the song and prayers of the pro-life march.

Talking to pro-life supporters who gathered at St. Joseph the Worker Church before the procession, Bishop Daniel E. Flores acknowledged, “We are living in a country right now where we see a lot of anger for a lot of different reasons.”

He stressed, “We must be a people who do not let our anger move us, but we let our love move us. Let us be the witness of a people who march through the street, in a procession, singing praise to God, praying and asking God for the grace to make this a world that is first of all hospitable to unborn life.

“As we pray, pray for each other, for those whoever they are who may be contemplating abortion, pray for those who are undecided, and pray for those who are angry at us. One thing Jesus made very clear; we have no right as Christians to answer anger with anger.”

How can we expect peace in the world, if we cannot create it here in our communities? As someone who is not comfortable with confrontation, with people screaming in my face, I prefer to sit together and talk with one another. There is no need to scream. I can hear you better when we dialogue. Let’s remember we are brothers and sisters. We may have different views, be we can still love one another and respect our differences. Bishop Flores reminds us, “Responding with love triumphs with the grace of God.”

(Originally published in February 2017 edition of The Valley Catholic newspaper)