From February 5-10, four members of the Parish Council traveled to Mexico City to be with the Hope of the Poor Mission-Pilgrimage-Retreat. The objective was to see if we might possibly find a way to bring our parish family closer to the poor so that we may better understand their material poverty compared to our wealth, and our spiritual poverty compared to their wealth. Here are brief reports from the four of us for each topic identified, as well as the experience that had a great impact on each one of us.
Left to Right; Fr. Morin, Katie Kudron, Craig Johring (founder of Hope of the Poor Mission), Collin Aldrich, Jennifer Ramaekers
Pilgrimage by Fr. Morin
I have been on pilgrimages before, so I had an idea of what it meant. Briefly, a pilgrimage can be identified as a sacred journey to a holy place to encounter God. This trip certainly fit that idea. Not only did we travel to a convent with a dozen cloistered Carmelite nuns, where we stayed, we were also a ten-minute walk from the basilica of Our Lady of Guadalupe. Furthermore, we encountered the face of Christ in the poorest people in the streets of Mexico City.
An additional attribute of a pilgrimage – like the journey Moses took with the Israelites from their slavery to the Promised Land, is that there was a certain level of discomfort on our trip. A lot of walking, food we were not accustomed to, a plumbing system that doesn’t quite reach American standards, and unfortunate sights and smells throughout the trip. The experience certainly contributed to our feeling the presence of God during our journey.
The experience that most impacted me was hearing a woman very involved with Hope of the Poor. She had been living on the streets since she was eight years old and spent some time in prison. She was asked why she left for the streets so early in her life. Her rather lengthy explanation was that she was adopted at a very young age and was treated very poorly by her adoptive parents, telling her she was not on the same level as their biological children. What would it take me to run away from home permanently at the age of eight?
Retreat by Katie Kudron
When beginning the Hope of the Poor mission, I knew there would be aspects of a pilgrimage, but I was expecting mostly mission work. I was pleasantly surprised at how much of the trip was actually a retreat. Each day included Mass and a scheduled Holy Hour, and there was time for prayer when visiting various churches in Mexico City. Additionally, each morning we had an optional Holy Hour at the Basilica of Our Lady of Guadalupe to start our day.
Taking time for a retreat is vital for our spiritual lives. We need to step away from the busyness of our lives that we may rest and renew. We need to take time for silence that we may encounter our Lord and our Mother. On the Hope of the Poor mission, being able to retreat was even more important. The prayer time allowed for rest from the physical tiredness of traveling on a pilgrimage, but even more so it allowed for a recharge from the emotional exhaustion of doing mission work. Without first encountering our Lord in prayer, it would have been impossible to go out and encounter the poorest of the poor on the streets and in the shelters.
As we met these people in their material poverty, I was also faced by my own interior poverty – my struggles, insecurities, and sins. Father Allan Phan, our mission leader, providentially gave each of us the Litany of Poverty prayer. This prayer guided me to give my poverty to the Lord and then ask Him to use this for His own good.
Personally, the highlight of the entire mission trip was the Holy Hour on our final full day. During this particular hour, there was music played, which helped to elevate my mind and my heart to God, and there were also prayer teams available for those who wanted to have others pray with them and intercede for their prayer intentions. As I again prayed the Litany of Poverty, I was brought to a place with the Lord where I was more honest with Him and with myself than I had been in a while. I was reminded of my dependence on Him.
Although more related to the mission work than the retreat, one other powerful moment for me was at the women’s shelter. The shelter is a government-run facility housing 300 women, mostly older and many with disabilities. None of these women have families, and they must rely on this facility for everything. My Spanish is quite limited, so all I could really do there was sit with the women and offer a smile and sometimes my hand. When it was time to leave, one frail, old woman reached out to hug me, tears filling her eyes. She did not want us to go. It hurt to leave her there, but it was a palpable reminder of the love we can share with others simply by being present with them.
While there are certainly retreats available much nearer to home, traveling to Mexico and experiencing time for prayer in the midst of pilgrimage and mission was truly beautiful. ¡Viva Cristo Rey! ¡Viva la Virgen de Guadalupe!
Our Lady of Guadalupe by Collin Aldrich
While participating in The Hope of the Poor mission trip, I quickly realized that it was much more that interacting with the poor in Mexico City. The Mission actively works to pull the addicted, poor, depressed, and hungry off the streets and towards a life with Christ. What caught me by surprise is that almost everything on the trip revolved around Our Lady of Guadalupe. Learning about Mary’s visit to Juan Diego that gave us the name, image and likeness of Our Lady of Guadalupe was a spiritual blessing for me.
For those unfamiliar, Mary appeared to Juan Diego, a Catholic convert and Aztec peasant, several times in December 1531 on or near the top of Tepeyac Hill, asking him to build a church where she could lead people to her son. The local bishop did not believe Juan Diego’s apparition tale and asked for proof. Our Lady instructed Juan Diego to gather flowers for the bishop in his tilma – an article of clothing similar to a cloak made from tightly woven cactus fibers. When Juan Diego presented the flowers to the bishop, an incredible and symbolic image of Our Lady miraculously appeared on the tilma.
What I appreciate now more than previously is how miraculous the image on the tilma really is. There are no paint strokes, rather it is an image that sits on top of the fabric; the colors and pigment sources in the image were not available at that time; the stars on her robe align perfectly with the constellation positions for that specific day in 1531, and symbolism throughout the image spoke directly to the Aztec people living in that geographic region. Even more miraculous is the fact that somewhere between 9 and 10 million indigenous people converted to Catholicism over the following decade after hearing of this miracle. For comparison, that is equivalent to all residents of Nebraska, Iowa, South Dakota, and Kansas converting to Catholicism over the next ten years.
Another revelation I experienced in Mexico City was the need for more loving people to visit and work with the poor. The Hope of the Poor mission has an established footprint and outreach program, but they rely on visiting missionaries to help fulfill their work. Just sitting with the homeless and forgotten can make a true difference in their lives and the way they light up and express their appreciation will warm your heart every time.
Blessed Sacrament will have another opportunity to encounter Christ the same way in September 2027. I hope that you will prayerfully consider attending a Hope of the Poor Mission in the future and can experience what I did this year.
Mission by Jennifer Raemakers
The Hope of the Poor mission in Mexico City focuses on working with the poorest of the poor; the homeless, the addicted, and the forgotten. The mission works to identify those that have a desire for a clean, Christ-centered life and does whatever they can to make that happen. Once off the street, the mission provides housing, food, support, and a path to confirmation for those who have no real sense of what love from other humans, let alone Christ, really means.
We had the opportunity to meet and hear the testimony of several success stories from the Hope of the Poor mission, and many of the stories were heartbreaking. Two individuals had been on the streets since they were 8 years old. Every woman we heard from had stories of abuse. Many of them spent years in prison just because they happened to be in a homeless encampment when the police showed up. The penance for being there? Seven years in prison or more.
The friends that we made have amazing strength and ask for very little in return. They were always happy to see us, many greeting us with hugs and handshakes. The strength that they display often results in them returning to the streets in a different capacity – to help save the very ones they left behind. Those living on the streets live a very solitary life; no friends, no groups, no protection, just a desire to survive the next day.
When feeding the hungry we found ourselves not speaking the language very well but just being present to give them comfort and a sense of safety if for only a few minutes while they ate.
In addition to meeting those saved from the streets, we also visited an adult orphanage and a women’s shelter housing hundreds of individuals whose families had abandoned them. What we experienced was very humbling, and a testament to the fact that there are many out there who need our prayers.
Please keep the Hope of the Poor Mission in your thoughts and prayers.