Pope Francis, "Sit and eat with them on the street."

The Associated Press, Vatican bureau reported yesterday that when he was archbishop of Buenos Aires, Pope Francis was known to sneak out at night and break bread with the homeless, sit with them literally on the street and eat with them, as part of his aim to share the plight of the poor and let them know someone cared.

"The Holy Father told me at the beginning: `You can sell your desk. You don't need it. You need to get out of the Vatican. Don't wait for people to come ringing. You need to go out and look for the poor,'" Krajewski said. And so Don Corrado, as he likes to be called, hits the streets of Rome and beyond.

"This is the concept: Be with people and share their lives, even for 15, 30 minutes, an hour," Krajewski said.  Pope Francis, (the former Cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio) "would go out at night in Buenos Aires, not just to find people, talk with them, or buy them something to eat ... He would eat with them. He would sit with them and eat with them on the street. This is what he wants from me."

The existence of the Vatican Almoner dates back centuries: It is mentioned in a papal bull from the 13th-century Pope Innocent III, and Pope Gregory X, who ruled from 1271-1276, organized it into an official Holy See office for papal charity.

Krajewski demurred when asked if Francis himself had slipped out of the Vatican on his own - "Next question!" he said. But there was a clear suggestion that the pope may very well have snuck out before Vatican security got wind of it.

According to Krajewski, "Being an almoner, it has to cost me something so that it can change me," he said. He contrasted such alms-giving with, say, the unnamed cardinal who once boasted about always giving two euros to a beggar on the street near the Vatican.

"I told him, `Eminence, this isn't being an almoner. You might be able to sleep at night, but being an almoner has to cost you. Two euros is nothing for you. Take this poor person, bring him to your big apartment that has three bathrooms, let him take a shower - and your bathroom will stink for three days - and while he's showering make him a coffee and serve it to him, and maybe give him your sweater. This is being an almoner."

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Happy Thanksgiving

May the Lord bless each of you; the readers, followers and subscribers of Homeless In America this Thanksgiving - your family and friends as you gather together soon!

This holiday season has already begun for the "Servants"; performing concerts for the homeless elderly in nursing facilities, helping our at-risk-youth, (plagued by gangs, violence, drugs and alcohol) in the region with craft making, youth nights and expanding our pickups and deliveries to the homeless on the streets. Everyone's help is needed today, something - a little bit! Please, each person that reads this, please help with a homeless donation of alms of mercy in some way today, or tomorrow? Here are a few easy ways to send aid - if everyone responds in some way, all will be good so the homeless, youth and elderly can continue to receive delivery services this coming Thanksgiving, Christmas and through the New Year:

1. Donate online in increments of $10 at http://servantsofthefather.org/donate_2_homeless

2. Go to any Chase Bank and deposit into Servants of the Father of Mercy.

3. If you bank at Chase, log into your account and use "Chase Quick Pay", follow instructions. Email notice of "Quick Pay" to Contact@ServantsoftheFather.org

4. Mail direct to the Servants of the Father of Mercy, Inc., P. O. Box 42001, Los Angeles, CA 90042.

Please ask your family and friends to take up a collection for the "Servants" on Thanksgiving Day for the poor homeless in the name of Pope Francis and his prayer intentions for the Church to grasp on to the message of mercy, not theology and judgment. This is something the children can participate in too!

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Pope Francis: Defeatist "Sourpusses", Muddy Shoes and the Challenge of Mercy

Today, according to Associated Press Vatican reporter, Nicole Winfield, Pope Francis issued the mission statement for his papacy Tuesday, outlining how the Catholic Church and the papacy itself must be reformed to create a more missionary and merciful church that gets its hands dirty as it seeks out the poor and oppressed.

He explained his most controversial remarks criticizing the church's "obsession" with transmitting a disjointed set of moral doctrines, saying that in the church's "hierarchy of truths," mercy is paramount, proportion is necessary, and that what counts is inviting the faithful in.

I prefer a church which is bruised, hurting and dirty because it has been out on the streets, rather than a church which is unhealthy from being confined and from clinging to its own security," he wrote. "I do not want a church concerned with being at the center and then ends up by being caught up in a web of obsessions and procedures."

He added: "More than by fear of going astray, my hope is that we will be moved by the fear of remaining shut up within structures which give us a false sense of security, within rules which make us harsh judges, within habits which make us feel safe, while at our door people are starving and Jesus does not tire of saying to us, 'Give them something to eat.'"

In the frank and often funny style that has come to define Francis' preaching, the Argentine Jesuit chastised priests for their complacency, giving them a lesson on preparing homilies that don't put the faithful to sleep. He reminded them that confession shouldn't be "torture," and told them to get out of their sacristies, get their shoes muddy, get involved in the lives of their faithful and not be defeatist "sourpusses."

He said their greatest concern must be the poor and marginalized, since they are victims of an unjust, global economic system that prizes profit over people. He said the poor need the tender, merciful love that the church can provide.

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Giving Love and Hugs

Between yesterday and today, we received about 100 likes!  That is, the elderly who sat through both Saturday and Sunday Christmas concerts at area nursing homes unanimously had a great time, and so did the nursing staff.  Last night you saw some pics from St. Joseph's in Ojai on Saturday.  Today, after performing in the main lobby to a full house at Vista Cove, here are a few photos from our time in Santa Paula.  Miguel, after the concert is giving love and hugs to the old folks, as well as Lupe, his mother-in-law, Nancy Pena, his wife, their daughter Julissa, Lourdes and her children Lea and Nathan as well as her mother Felipe and DiaClau Montevene and her daughter Valerie are out there too.

The next Christmas concert is a street performance at 6pm, Saturday, December 14th, Ventura, CA, Main Street.  The choir will also perform at Treacy Villa nursing home, Ventura, CA in December.  At each concert the elderly receive hand decorated pine cones to spice up their night stands for the holidays as well as handmade rosaries by "Our Lady of the Rosary Makers" in San Leandro, CA, Alberta, Canada, Seattle, WA and by Claire in San Luis Obispo, CA.  May God bless everyone that makes this all happen!

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The Homecoming

Okay, here are a few pictures from today's Christmas concert, "The Homecoming" performed by the Servants of the Father of Mercy for our "homeless" elderly family and staff at St. Joseph's nursing facility in Ojai.  May God bless all the seniors that attended and all the choir members that sang - Miguel Dorado Rubio, Nancy Pena, DiaClau Montevene, Catherine Delgado, Angelique Gabrielle Perez, Lourdes and all the youth and children - Jose, Martin, Daniel, Nathan, Valerie, and Julissa.  Tomorrow, Sunday, November 24th, the concert will be presented again at 1pm at Vista Cove in Santa Paula.  Here is the list of songs in the program schedule:

Servants of the Father of Mercy Christmas Concert Tour, “The Homecoming”

November - December 2013

“It was thus that Jesus humbled himself, [leaving his home in heaven] and being found in lowly estate . . . Therefore God has highly exalted him bestowing upon him the name that is above every other name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue proclaim that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.”  Philippians 2: 1-10

1.         Lift Up Your Hearts, Tenor, Miguel Dorado

2.         Let Us Go Rejoicing, Solo, Br. Joseph
3.         Your Light Will Come Jerusalem, Tenor, Miguel Dorado
4.         I’ll Be Home for Christmas, Solo, Miguel Dorado
5.         Seek Ye First – Choir
6.         Love Has Come – Choir
7.         Home For The Holidays, Choir
8.         Do You Hear What I Hear, Choir
9.         Mary’s Boy Child, Solo, Br. Joseph
10        A Miracle, Solo, Br. Joseph
11.       Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer, Solo, Miguel Dorado
12.       Angels We Have Heard On High, Choir
13.       Feliz Navidad, Choir
14.        Lead Me Home, Choir

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Lady Gaga

 

Recently, Lady Gaga took a photo with and gave money to a homeless man. He said "But I smell." and she replied, "Don't worry, I smell too!"

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Suffering Part II - Comfort for Gracious Victims

By St. Paul the Apostle

 
“Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.  Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our affliction so that we will be able to comfort those who are in any affliction with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God. For just as the sufferings of Christ are ours in abundance, so also our comfort is abundant through Christ. But if we are afflicted, it is for your comfort and salvation; or if we are comforted, it is for your comfort, which is effective in the patient enduring of the same sufferings which we also suffer; and our hope for you is firmly grounded, knowing that as you are sharers of our sufferings, so also you are sharers of our comfort.” 2 Corinthians 1:3-7

Suffering Part III – Boast, do not Curse Weaknesses

Yesterday in part I on suffering, St. John of the Cross and today in part II, the Apostle Paul have given us a snapshot of the purpose of it all.  But were these guys armchair quarterbacks?  Did they pastor from the comfort of a church rectory like many do today?  Did they have a nice horse, chariot, housekeeper and three meals a day while the rest of the Christians suffered throughout Israel, Greece, Spain and Italy? No!  In reality, St. John of the Cross had been captured by his fellow priests, thrown into a third floor broom closet for nine months, tortured and whipped thrice weekly in an effort for him to give up his “unusually” humble Christ-like poverty-driven spirituality.  Uniquely, both men suffered more than most Christians of their day.  They were experts on the subject.  Paul writes about his own extreme problems in the same chapter as above, also making his life coaching on suffering more meaningful to us all.

“I have worked much harder, been in prison more frequently, been flogged more severely, and been exposed to death again and again. Five times I received from the Jews the forty lashes minus one. Three times I was beaten with rods, once I was pelted with stones, three times I was shipwrecked, I spent a night and a day in the open sea, I have been constantly on the move. I have been in danger from rivers, in danger from bandits, in danger from my fellow Jews, in danger from Gentiles; in danger in the city, in danger in the country, in danger at sea; and in danger from false believers. I have labored and toiled and have often gone without sleep; I have known hunger and thirst and have often gone without food; I have been cold and naked.  Besides everything else, I face daily the pressure of my concern for all the churches. Who is weak, and I do not feel weak? Who is led into sin, and I do not inwardly burn?  If I must boast, I will boast of the things that show my weakness.”  2 Corinthians 2: 23-30.

 
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Suffering

By St. John of the Cross

 

“Our Lord has many ready to share His Table, but few to partake of His sorrows, and it is for us to be among those few, if we would be in the number of His friends. Let us help Him to drink His chalice, for that will show that we love Him sincerely. It is no easy matter to be the friend of Jesus Christ. Suffering borne for him is the only sure way to test which is the true and which is the false friend. Although the draught may be bitter, you drink it – think of Whom you take it; how soon its taste will pass away; what a reward it will bring you, and it will taste so sweet that you will complain that there is so little given you. . .  None of those who are already there have passed through the world without greater afflictions than you have; if some of them had less to bear, their tortures were incomparably more severe in Purgatory, for Our Lord has ordained that none shall take part in His joys but they who have shared His pains.”   St. John of the Cross, Audi Fili.

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No Good Deed Goes Unpunished

According to North Jersey's, The Record, James Brady (picture), the formerly homeless man who earned national praise for turning in $850 he found on the street in Hackensack, learned the hard way this week that no good deed goes unpunished. Brady was denied General Assistance and Medicaid benefits by the Hackensack Human Services Department through Dec. 31 because he failed to report new income he received. The income, according to the agency, was the cash he found on Main Street last spring and that police returned to him in October after no one claimed it.

The good deed turned Brady, who was homeless at the time he found the money, into a minor celebrity. He was featured in news reports across the country and honored by the Hackensack City Council. Now, he said, he’s being treated like a crook. “This is stupid,” Brady said. “I had already proven my honesty by turning in the $850. They were treating me like I was a dishonest individual, like I was trying to cheat them out of the money.” Agatha Toomey, director of Human Services, said she was just following rules when she denied the benefits. The rules, she said, require any lump sum payment to be reported as income. “I’m sorry but we had to — I had to — follow regulations,” she said. “He only pays five dollars [a month] in rent.”

Brady, a former news photographer and market data analyst, fell on hard times more than a decade ago when he became unemployed and suffered from depression. He was supposed to be at the World Trade Center on Sept. 11 for a business event — and the knowledge that he could have been killed traumatized him, he said. After using all his savings and retirement funds, he ended up on the streets and later at the Bergen County Homeless Shelter in Hackensack. He had left the shelter for his daily walk on April 16 when he found and turned in the money he found in a bank envelope on the sidewalk. Brady said he was doing what he believed was right and didn’t want to take money from anyone who could be worse off than he is.

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The Distortion of Life Made by Pride, the Original Sin

By Mark McKeen

“For thus says the High and Lofty One who inhabits eternity, whose name is Holy: ‘I dwell in the holy place, with him who has a contrite and humble spirit, to revive the spirit of the humble, and to revive the heart of the contrite ones.’” – Isaiah 57:15

Pride [our big egos] gives us a false view of reality. Pride is like wearing a pair of glasses with magnifying lenses. It distorts how we view the world and how we view ourselves. Let me show you: The proud man lifts himself up. He has an elevated view of himself. He considers himself more important and more prestigious then his peers. In fact, the proud man is higher, in his own mind, than anyone else on the earth. He needs no one’s help. He desires to have no equal, and definitely desires no superior. But the reality is this throne of pride that he has put himself upon is lower than any position on earth. The reality is that pride has drained the very life from him.

If pride is the pair of glasses that distorts our vision, then humility is the pair of glasses with the correct prescription. Humility sharpens our view of reality. Humility helps us to see ourselves in the light of who God is. Isaiah proves this to us. Just look at his description of the Lord—look at this glimpse of reality: God is the High and Lofty one. God inhabits eternity. His name is Holy. He dwells in a high and holy place. Indeed, our God is great than any other. He is what we could never be. He does what we could never do. He dwells where?  [In a humble manger, a carpenter’s shop, nailed to the wood of a tree and laid in a borrowed tomb.  Places that human pride would protect most from going.]

Mark McKeen earned a Bachelor of Theology degree from New Brunswick Bible Institute in 2009. He attends West Rockport Baptist Church in West Rockport, ME.

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“You don’t get to pick your family so learn to live with them.”

Caryll Houselander, says it so well . . .  “Our oneness, our kinship, everything that binds us, depends on this, that God is our Father. This decides our attitude to our enemies. The enemy may kill our brothers, but he is himself our brother. A hard fact? Yes, it may be, but deny it and we deny God’s Fatherhood.

 “Christ is brother to us all. God is Father to us all. Our Father loves all his children and grieves over all their suffering, all their sins, all their blindness, all their folly. Think of all Christ says of our Father: the story of the prodigal son; the gifts of sun and rain to the just and the unjust alike; how often he stresses that none on this earth are exempt from his bounty, that we may not sort out, separate, good from bad; God is the Father, intent upon saving everyone. God is the Father of sinners as well as saints. He is the Father of the poor, Father of the afflicted, he expects us to treat them all as brothers, as his dear children.

Having one common Father we have certain fundamental things in common; all want happiness, no matter how different the conception of it; all desire to love; all have some family resemblance to God our Creator, our Father. Therefore this Fatherhood is our one hope for peace for the coming of God’s kingdom, for all else that we pray for in the ‘Our Father.’”(This War is the Passion, 2008, Ave Maria Press, Inc., Notre Dame, Indiana)

In a world that is so divided on almost every issue, that has chosen to hate instead of love, that usually puts self above self-sacrifice, let us pray today to let God, our Father, use us in any way He sees fit to bring all His children back into His loving presence.

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