By Father Donato Infante
Special to The Catholic Free Press
(The following is adapted from a homily preached Oct. 29.)
Readers of this paper may remember that in April of 2016, I was in Egypt, looking at the sites run by local partners that are funded in part by Catholic Relief Services. Included were places like a nursing home for the poor, run by the Missionaries of Charity. But most of the sites were helping refugees. At one place, we had the chance to speak, through a translator, to the refugees. I asked, “What do you hope to achieve through this work here that CRS is doing?” One man, a refugee from Yemen, spoke first: “Don’t we all have the same hopes, a better life in the future for ourselves and for our children?” Another woman was a refugee from Syria. When fighting had broken out in her village, her family’s home was destroyed, and all they could take with them was what fit in the bags they could carry. In the refugee camps, they became separated. She responded by saying: “I hope to survive here so that when the war is over, I can be reunited with my family back home in Syria someday.”
These two people are part of the 65 million refugees in the world today – an overwhelming number. We can’t fathom what that means. Another way of putting it is that every minute, 20 more people become refugees. If that still doesn’t register, it means that at my parish’s largest Sunday Mass, everyone would have lost their home in less than 20 minutes.
As we prepare for the birth of our Lord, we might reflect on his early years, in which he was a refugee who had to flee to Egypt. The Holy Family was not just homeless, but refugees. They were fleeing a type of oppression, like Christians fleeing Iraq, or people who flee Guatemala or El Salvador to escape gang violence.
I also learned in Egypt that the Holy Family did not just settle in one place. There is a whole pilgrimage that follows their footsteps, with shrines built in places they stayed for any significant amount of time. Both Christians and Muslims visit these shrines.
Not speaking the language, the Holy Family probably needed a translator or had to struggle to learn the language. Were people patient with their inability to speak the language? Joseph was a skilled laborer. He was often called a carpenter, but more likely (based on the word “tekton”), he was a stone mason or possibly even an architect. Was he able to find work doing this, or did he have to take smaller jobs to get by? Did people welcome them into their homes or did they stay in inns? The Bible does not tell us, but we can wonder.
Leviticus 19:34 tells us, “The alien who resides with you shall be to you as the citizen among you; you shall love the alien as yourself, for you were aliens in the land of Egypt: I am the Lord your God.” We hear in those words the second greatest commandment that our Lord teaches us: “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” Further, we cannot forget that our Lord, in Matthew 25, says one criteria for our own judgment will be, “For I was a stranger and you welcomed me.”
How can we approach the problem of the world’s refugee crisis with a Christian mindset?
The Catholic Church has embarked on a two-year program of raising awareness about, praying for, and ministering to refugees and migrants. It is being called the “Share the Journey” campaign. As the campaign website, put together by the USCCB, CRS, and Catholic Charities USA, states: “Our neighbors include many of the world’s most vulnerable people: migrants and refugees fleeing war, poverty and persecution, people who seek nothing more than basic needs and a path forward. Just like us, they are children of God, deserving of dignity and love. We as a church are answering the pope’s call to encounter and walk with these migrants and refugees in support and solidarity.”
Share the Journey seeks to raise awareness about the issues surrounding migrants and refugees through education, in particular, by sharing stories of those who are refugees or migrants. There are a number of videos available for viewing. By putting a human face on those who migrate, or flee persecution, it becomes possible to better understand the challenges they face. The website, www.sharejourney.org, also provides prayer resources to pray specifically for those in need because of this global issue; Advent resources and a solidarity prayer vigil. There are also proposed ways of getting to know local recent migrants and refugees, proposed ways of serving the local community, and also suggestions for advocacy regarding the issue.
– Father Infante is associate pastor at St. Joseph Parish, Charlton. He is also a Global Fellow for Catholic Relief Services.