OFFICE FOR SOCIAL MINISTRY
“When we heal the wounds of refugees, displaced persons and victims of trafficking, we are practicing the commandment of love that Jesus has left us … Their flesh is that of Christ.” (Pope Francis)
We crossed paths on a subway in Rome on the way to join thousands in St. Peter’s Square to celebrate Sunday prayer with Pope Francis. She was a teenage mother a dressed in dirty rags, breast-feeding a baby in one hand while the other hand begged for money. Her gypsy or refugee presence made many of us in the subway car uncomfortable, as we turned our eyes from her. But she persisted, and perhaps out pity, compassion or shame, I put some Euros in her pleading palm, barely looking at her. When the train came to a stop, she disappeared as we all plunged out the door to St. Peter’s.
Thousands of pilgrims packed into the plaza to catch a glimpse of the Holy Father, who spoke briefly but eloquently about encountering God in the vulnerable, then sent all forth in peace with the Risen Lord. Walking leisurely back to the station, I grabbed a gelato and sat on a sidewalk bench to savor Italian ice cream. Then I saw her again, wearily sitting in a shop doorway, gently soothing her crying baby. This time instead of looking away, I decided to finish my gelato and give her more money hoping to find out more about her. But when I got up she was gone again, run off by the store staff clearing their doorway.
Remembering the message about encountering Christ in the vulnerable, I now felt a strong sense of loss. I looked around the subway station but saw no sign of the teenage mother and child, so I began to walk back toward St. Peter’s hoping to find them. The search led me back to the basilica, but I could not find them. Then I realized how often the opportunity to encounter Christ is lost because of being absorbed in our own comfort. This moved me to go inside the basilica to pray for forgiveness, and receive the sacrament of reconciliation in an ancient confessional with the “penance” to go forth making more of an effort to open my eyes, heart and hands to the presence of God in the vulnerable all around us.
Ironically we were in Italy for a meeting organized by the Vatican Section Migrants and Refugees — M&R. The mission of M&R is “to support the church and her organizations — locally, regionally, internationally — in accompanying people at all stages of their journey of displacement: the church of those departing, those in transit, those arriving who seek integration, and those returning.”
M&R focuses its mission through the four verbs the Holy Father uses to describe the encounter of Christ in accompanying migrants and refugees: welcome, protect, promote and integrate. Pope Francis calls all to “see, listen and welcome” migrants and refugees, assisting them in their integration, and pursuing long term solutions to their plight. M&R is helping focus the attention of the church worldwide on the rights of migrants and refugees plus the mutual gift and blessing that refugees, migrants and local communities can be for each other through shared vulnerability such as sanctuary and sponsorship programs.
M&R’s very moving website features photos of migrant and refugee women with their children, reflecting Mary and Jesus in our midst. Just before the M&R meeting Pope Francis blessed a sculpture by Canadian artist Tim Schmaltz which depicts a raft packed with migrants and refugees from all nations. Among the rafters are Mary with Jesus in her womb and Joseph as migrants on the way to Bethlehem and Mary with Jesus in her arms and Joseph as refugees fleeing to Egypt.
You can see this sculpture and hear many stories of encountering Christ at www.migrants-refugees.va. This encounter is available to all everyday if we take time to get out of our comfort zone, and let God draw us closer to him through seeing, listening, welcoming, protecting, promoting and integrating vulnerable others. Mahalo.
Your friends at the Office for Social Ministry
