Reflections in the Round

One of the new programs we have going on is this reflection seminar which is all about sharing experiences. A new concept down here and we are indebted to Dan Whitley for bringing it to us. Dan left us today for PaP and other parts of Haiti. Dan spent three years with us as Visitor/Volunteer Coordinator. He will be pursuing a degree in medicine and we wish him well. Nou pap janm bliye w, Daniel.

Reflection

Someone commented on my post in which I quoted Theresa of Avila. I thought I should put it here as many folks do not read the comments. Unfortunately, the contributor remains anonymous.

While we are reflecting, remember the words of Pope John XXIII.
"Lord do not let us turn into 'broken cisterns' that can hold no water...do not let us be so blinded by the enjoyment of the good things of earth that our hearts become insensitive to the cry of the poor, of the sick, of orphaned children and of those innumerable brothers and sister of ours who lack the necessary mimimum to eat, to clothe their nakedness, and to gather family together under one roof."

Reflection

Christ has no body now on earth but yours, no hands but yours, no feet but yours.
Yours are the eyes through which Christ's compassion is to look out to the world.
Yours are the feet with which Christ is to go about doing good.
Yours are the hands with which Christ is to bless all people now.

Theresa of Avila

Theresa of Avila lived over 500 years ago but her words are as true today as they were back then. I find much inspiration and solace in them. My hands, my eyes are His instruments just as yours are. Do people know Christ a little more after meeting us?

warts and wrinkles, weaknesses and wounds

The time of Lent and Easter is offered to us yearly as a help for some self-examination. Your Lent was successful to the degree that you managed to see the real you like Cerrule sees himself in the truck's mirror (photo). Easter is the celebration of hope that things need not stay the way they are. It is a celebration of God's triumphant and unconditional love for us just as we are -warts and wrinkles, weaknesses and wounds. What is more liberating than the knowledge that you are loved? This is what we try to do here in southern Haiti-- create a place of security and love where children can be freed from their worries, their memories of trauma and abandonment, their feelings of being rejected and worthless so they can become wholesome and healthy and moral individuals.