Isn't that ironic?

Man, it has been a long time! I apologize.... I suppose it can also be a good thing though, in hopes that I have been learning so much that I will have good insight to share in this blog! We will see...

The Encuentro Dominicano (Encounter the Dominican) Program is set up in such a great way because it emphasizes the importance of classroom and cultural experiences. So far this semester we have read amazing books by Michael Himes, Dean Brackley, Jon Sobrino, and Jeffrey Sachs, just to name a few which incorporate our actions. Two of the most impacting ideas for me are those dealing with agapic love and hope among hardship.

"To respond with love to a world which seems to have gone wrong in fundamental ways, a broken world, we must get free to love-we need to find a way to love better and over the long haul." -Brackley, The Call to Discernment in Troubled Times

For two weeks in February, I lived with a family of eight Dominicans in a small home. The family was part of a small community, 22 families, in a very rural area. They have enough food, water, and medical care to survive, but they are one of the poorest areas of the country. We arrived and met the people, and immediately I was a member of the family. There was not one second of time that passed by where I was considered a stranger. They did not know one thing about me, but that was okay. Just because we were going to be living together, just because we are human, they loved me literally welcomed me with open arms. I did not have to do anything to impress them. Nothing to earn a place with them, and yet it was so genuine, so counter-cultural from our understanding of initial interactions with others. As the days passed by, I got to know my family more and more. This was not difficult because we ate, talked, laughed, slept, danced, and prayed together. There were no boundaries for us, no privacy, nothing I could hide. And yet, they still loved me completely. Not because I am perfect and not because I worked for them, but because they understand the call to love. They do not have many material possessions, but they possess the most amazing connection within that community that I have ever seen. Even though there is suffering and injustice in the world, we have the ability to create peace and understanding through love. This is what creates the hope among hardship.

Living in a third world country has opened my eyes to reality. I have witnessed violence, homelessness, illness, and anger, and therefore I feel so challenged by my Christian faith to do more than give a check to an organization to help people. No longer can I be fully content because I have witnessed oppression. "With great power comes great responsibility." I have learned the facts and I have the resources, so now I have to use them. This definitely scares me, yet I also feel great peace and joy. How is this possible? It doesn't seem to make sense. I think the best way to summarize it is through an aspect of Liberation theology. Jesus was born poor. Lived poor. Worked with the poor. Died poor. But that's not where it ends. He survived it. He rose and His message lives on. I think that sometimes we forget to incorporate both of these aspects, but we shouldn't because it is so encouraging. We can and should always be gaining strength from this. I don't think there is anything more inspirational. We too can take steps to bring justice to the world, and as my experience has taught me, this will create great inner peace and joy.