But even when I had people in my corner attempting to shield me from such words or to offer comfort in their aftermath, I struggled to deal with what these comments did to me, my well-being, my view of self, and my view of others.
While I don’t necessarily live in an age or place where a young family might knock on my door hoping to deliver a baby safely, I do come across people who feel alone, outcast, and afraid.
It seems like lately, in both Church and State, the people in charge have failed us — and, in many cases, hurt us — in big, awful, terrible ways. That leaves the rest of us in a bit of a mess.
The truth is, there is a tension that non-native-English-speakers in this country face: If we don’t speak English at all, we struggle to communicate and understand. If we learn just enough to get by day-to-day living, we are told it is not enough.
Our presence in parishes is essential to what the Church needs right now in order to go out and make more disciples who live in the love of Jesus Christ.
From then to now, I have been fortunate to be completely loved on by my beautiful grandmothers — but I’ve also learned A TON from their tales and nuggets of wisdom!
Romero is a perfect example of the inextricable link between orthodoxy and the call to resist injustices of the world; his life (and eventual death) proves that you don’t have to choose between one or the other. No one can look at his example and say it is too radical for Christians to seek justice for social issues.
In their own way, the small suffering that comes with the sacrifices we make in Lent begin a transformative work in our hearts so that we may better face the greater sufferings that life will inevitably bring.
While I was busy being a self-absorbed brat, I completely failed to realize the absolute gift Guadalupe is to my people of Mexican heritage. In addition to the beautiful story of how she appeared to St. Juan Diego and the incredible facts about the tilma itself (which you can read more about here, her mere presence was a sign of love to the Mexican people.
