Dear friends,
I wish to write one inspiring Christmas Experience which I
got from a letter from one of my uncle, who is a priest, working
in Chhattisgarh, as a Missionary. I think this experience will
help us to got inspiration in this period of enthusiasm.
During the advent season, we have the custom of priest
visiting every village to celebrate Holy Mass, to hear confessions
and to prepare the people for the Christmas. I have about 28
villages, some of wich are very far away. The we are also
staging one hour drama to communicate a message against alcoholism
since that is theworst evil myparishoners are fighting with. Plus
we are going to have two charismatic retreats in my parish; first
one is from 25th to 27th Jan (already finished) and second one is
from 29th to 31st Jan so as to make sure that every one of our
parishioners to participate in the retreat. Please pray and ask
ur JY friends to pray for the success of the retreat.
At this Christmas season, I would like to share myChristmas joy at
Aundhi with u. As part of the tradition, we have and advent tour
of the villages by the priest and sisters in our parish. Last day
when I, with one sister, visited a village which is very poor even
by our own local standards, after hearing the confessions, I
velebratedthe Holy Mass on a paper carton box, on a veranda of a
house which has only bamboos as its walls. On my right hand side
i.e., of the altar(the card board box, because they did not have
anything better to offer as an altar for the Holy Mass) there was
the so called wealth of that family; a few goats. Through the
gaps between the bamboos, they were watching yet again one more
christmas;the Word becoming flesh and blood; this time it was not
the immaculate Virgin bringing Jesus forth into the world, but the
Holy Spirit was making it happen through the weakness and
wretchedness of a very sinful priest.
I had seen the four women of those four poor families talking
together in pain before we started the Mass at 12.00 noon. They
were probably worried as to what to offer to me and to the sister
with me for our lunch since they didnot have anything at home to
offer. This year's monsoon did not give them sufficient enough to
get back the seeds they had sown. Then I was almost
translocated(in my thought) to that cold and indifferent night in
Bethlehem of 2000 years ago. I was getting probably a glimpse of
the original Christmas; its pain and perhaps a shade of the
poverty at Bethlehem. I was trying in my homily to tell them that
the Creator God can again be born in the midst of their actual
poverty. But the expressions on their faces seemed to remain
stoic and unconvinced. I felt my own helplessness; they were
feeling their own helplessness; and God seemed to be expressing
His own helplessness, too. God seems to be almost chronically
prone to express more often His powerlessness and helplessness
than His power and might. He expressed His powerlessness most
powerfully on the cross of His Son.
As we cycled back to the parish at around 2.00 O'clock with empty
stomachs, I inquired my companion sister shether she felt hungry.
Quitely did she affirm. Within me, I thanked the almighty God
for giving me a taste of pain of Bethlehem, and for His unnoticed
and unrecognized presence in the most unexpected and the cruelest
situation. This is Immanuel, -- not just God is with us; but He
suffers with us our own pain in the sublet way, not even letting
us know that He is suffering with us; lest we feel weak. In our
sufferings He seems to remain silent and absent to make us feel
strong with ourselves.
Dear friends this letter very much inspirated me a I cried
in thinking of the Lords Love. I got this letter in the day of
Christmas, and I also experienced that Lord is with our poverty.
We have to pray for his parish for the second retreat will start
from tommorrow.
With Love Prayers
ur Brother in Lord
Anto Simon
Pondicherry
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