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Two Widows Sunday |
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Written by Msgr. David Ratermann
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Sunday, 08 November 2009 |
Msgr. Ratermann is a founder of the Latin America Apostolate, and served in Bolivia from 1956 to 2008.
 32nd SUNDAY (B) NOVEMBER 8, 2009 - TWO WIDOWS SUNDAY
I Kings: 17:10-16
Psalm 146
Hebrews 9: 24-28
Mark 12: 38-44
The widow of Zarephath (city outside Israel in pagan territory) acted with gracious hospitality in spite of her extreme difficulty brought on by widespread famine that meant almost certain death for her and her son. Whatever faith she had in whatever god, her behavior was an extremely generous and gracious example of hospitality to a STRANGER, a prophet of Israel, God’s chosen people! The widow confides totally and absolutely in her god… or is it the God of the prophet Elijah?
I’ve been the recipient of a similar kind of hospitality from Indian women out in the distant provinces (or counties) of the Bolivian highlands 100 miles from the city of a Paz. I remember visiting homes there and how in one case, an Indian woman literally had two eggs in the house. She prepared them both for me! And I asked myself: What’s going on here? She is hospitable to an extreme beyond extremes, just like the widow of Zarephath… and just like the widow Jesus praises in today’s Gospel!
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World Mission Month is Underway! |
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Written by Colleen Coughlin
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Wednesday, 14 October 2009 |
Colleen is a staff member at the Mission Office. She is the Website Editor and the Coordinator for the Holy Childhood Association.
 It’s that time of year again! While many of us think of October as the month for autumn, pumpkins, and Halloween, it is also the month dedicated to world missions. Both around the world and here in the Archdiocese of St. Louis, World Mission Month was kicked off in style!
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Hello From Belize! |
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Written by Caroline Leritz
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Friday, 09 October 2009 |
Caroline is a parishioner at Ste. Genevieve DuBois Parish and a 2009 graduate of Nerinx Hall High School. She is currently volunteering in Punta Gorda, Belize. She is working at St. Peter Claver School and St. Benedict School.
 HELLO FROM BELIZE! Right now I have been here for about a month and a half, so let me fill you in on just how I got here and what I have been up to until now:
I arrived in Belize on August 19th with my sister's friend (now my friend) Casey. We knew we would be spending our time volunteering at St. Peter Claver School in Punta Gorda (PG), Belize.... but that is basically all we knew. We had a host family set up for us to live with and we had been waiting all summer to leave on our trip. The trip down ran pretty smoothly (other than a minor delay at the Dallas airport). We made it to PG at about 9pm, at dinner, and went straight to bed. Casey and I were in complete culture shock. The first night was the worst part of the trip. Waking up the next morning and getting to see everything in the light made things seem so much better than we had thought the night before. The town is RIGHT on the sea (our first house was about a 2 minute walk) and there were palm trees and a beautiful blue sky and the sun was wonderful. Of course there were the less positive things to notice about PG. Our town -- being in the poorest district of Belize (the Toledo district) --- was pretty rundown looking. Lots of the houses were made of wood and were falling apart in front of our eyes, the school system needed as much help as possible, and drugs are definitely a problem. It has only been a few years since paved roads have been put up to get to PG so it is slowly but surely growing and getting better.
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Life in Chimbote, Peru |
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Written by Jennifer Lay
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Thursday, 17 September 2009 |
Jennifer is a native of Cedar Rapids, Iowa and a 2009 graduate of Saint Louis University. She is currently serving with the Incarnate Word Missionaries in Chimbote, Peru. Her main mission work will be with St. Francis Parish, where she will be assisting with a number of youth programs at the parish, as well as exploring other ministry opportunities.
 I have now been living in Chimbote, Peru for just over two weeks and there is certainly a lot to learn about this new city and culture. Every day is filled with new surprises and insights into the varied life and customs of Chimboteans. I have divided these paragraphs by subject in order to share some of these different realities of daily life for many in Chimbote.
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27 Years After the Calabozo Massacre |
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Written by Laura Hershberger
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Friday, 28 August 2009 |
Laura is a native of Cincinnati, Ohio and a 2007 graduate of SLU. She is currently volunteering in El Salvador with the SHARE Foundation, where she is part of the Grassroots Team. Laura previously volunteered for fifteen months with CRISPAZ: Christians for Peace in El Salvador - an organization in El Salvador.
 The road from Amatina Arriba to Amatitan Abajo was muddy and hard to see in the dark, but never the less, over a hundred people, primarily teenagers, walked the muddy road holding signs that read, “A people never forgets its martyrs” and “Que viva los martires del Calabozo”. When they arrived in Amatitan Abajo, the cultural and commemorative activities of the Friday night vigil commenced. A few of the survivors shared some words and then the youth took over with songs, reflections, a small documentary they had made about the massacre and a short play they had written.
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A Tale of Two Hospitals |
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Written by Laura Hershberger
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Tuesday, 28 July 2009 |
Laura is a native of Cincinnati, Ohio and a 2007 graduate of SLU. She is currently volunteering in El Salvador with the SHARE Foundation, where she is part of the Grassroots Team. Laura previously volunteered for fifteen months with CRISPAZ: Christians for Peace in El Salvador - an organization in El Salvador.
 This is a reflection about my visit to the private hospital and then the public hospital of El Salvador, all in the same day with students on our delegation from Eastern Michigan University.
If you only went to the Hospital Diagnostico, you might not be able to believe that a hospital like Rosales existed in the country and vice versa.
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The Good Shepherd |
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Written by Msgr. David Ratermann
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Sunday, 19 July 2009 |
Msgr. Ratermann is a founder of the Latin America Apostolate, and served in Bolivia from 1956 to 2008.
Jeremiah 23:1-16: “Woe to the shepherds who scatter my sheep. I myself will gather them.”
Ephesians 2:13-18: "Christ is our shepherd who made both groups one, i.e., Jews and Gentiles."
Mark 6:30-34: “They are like sheep without a shepherd”, says Jesus, the Lord.
Remember the 10 Commandments? They are written in the book of Exodus, chapter 20, where God says: “You shall have no gods except me. You shall not make yourself a carved image or likeness of anything in heaven, here on earth, or in the waters under the earth!” Jesus is the living image of God and so it was that in the early church, the faithful began to make images not of any other thing but only of Jesus. Among the first images that they made of Christ Jesus – the Good Shepherd – was most popular.
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Back Pain |
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Written by Laura Hershberger
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Thursday, 16 July 2009 |
Laura is a native of Cincinnati, Ohio and a 2007 graduate of SLU. She is currently volunteering in El Salvador with the SHARE Foundation, where she is part of the Grassroots Team. Laura previously volunteered for fifteen months with CRISPAZ: Christians for Peace in El Salvador - an organization in El Salvador.
This is a reflection on the week in June that I spent as a medical interpreter at the clinic at Maria Madre de los Pobres Catholic Church in La Chacra, San Salvador. The medical professionals who I interpreted for come to El Salvador every year on a SHARE delegation from Visitation Parish in Kansas City.
She was a street vendor who walked around carrying a giant tub of juice cans. The pain in her heals was unbearable.
He threw his back out six years ago. He still has horrible pain. He thought it was cancer. But really it was the fact that he lifted tires everyday and put more and more strain on his back.
She lost her arm during the war. Her husband just had a stroke and is paralyzed. She now does everything for him and works to support them. She can't sleep from back pain.
She was hit by a motorcycle two years ago. She and her daughter and grandson received death threats until the boy fled the community. They cried when they talked about being afraid. They both have knee and back pain.
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A Guide to Flags From Around the World |
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Written by Colleen Coughlin
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Wednesday, 08 July 2009 |
Colleen is a staff member at the Mission Office. She is the Website Editor and the Coordinator for the Holy Childhood Association.
 For anyone who likes history, international relations, and the study of flags, I have a recommendation for a great book – “The Directory of Flags: A Guide to Flags From Around the World” by Charlotte Greig. I recently started reading this book, and it’s turning out to be quite a helpful little directory to have on hand! The back cover reads, “For thousands of years, flags have been used to identify countries and cultures, people and places. Today, the flags of the world can provide a key to discovering each country’s national identity and history in the international community. By turning the pages of this directory, you will be taken on an enlightening journey across the globe.” Each section of the book is dedicated to a different area of the world, taking us through the Americas, Europe, Asia, Africa, and Oceania – thus allowing us to discover the history, background, meanings, colors, and religious undertones of all the flags of the world!
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Summer News from Yaykuna |
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Written by Sr. Carol Donohue
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Monday, 01 June 2009 |
Sr. Carol is a staff member at AMANECER, an orphanage network in Cochabamba, Bolivia. She is involved in the Saint Louis sponsored program, Pan y Amor.
 We of AMANECER – Yaykuna send you our fondest greetings and we pray that God will continue to fill your life with many blessings. Yaykuna is the first level of AMANECER and functions as an outreach to children and adolescents of both sexes who are high risk candidates for entering into the street culture. We also work with those who are totally immersed in the precarious lifestyle of the streets.
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