Urban Missionaries

We walked from St Peter's on Foster Road this past Sunday and were joined by the parish priest, Fr Stephen. It's always a treat when we are joined by priests, brothers, and sisters. There was a lot of people in need within just a few blocks, and we saw many familiar faces that we hadn't seen for a while. Most of the homeless we saw were very eager to have Fr Stephen pray over them and bless them. It was the highlight of the walk having such spiritual care, tailored to each person's spiritual needs, going beyond just their material needs. One woman gave us a hug after she got a blessing and prayer.

Fr Stephen's calm presence and pastoral care for each individual reminds us of the story of when Jesus comforted Mary & Martha when their brother Lazarus died. In John's Gospel it says Jesus came to visit the sisters when their brother Lazarus died. When Jesus arrives He first meets Martha out front, where she says, "Lord, if you would have been here sooner my brother would not have died!" Jesus responds by giving her an insightful theology talk on what the Resurrection means for believers and this inspires hope and consolation within her. But her sister Mary was inside the house grieving and didn't come out. So Jesus walked inside and Mary sees him and says, "Lord, if you would have been here sooner my brother would not have died!" This was the same comment her sister Martha said just moments earlier. But this time Jesus did not respond with a heady theological answer. Instead Jesus saw the tears in Mary's eyes, He felt the sorrow in the room amongst all those grieving, and Jesus said nothing. Jesus just wept alongside Mary. It was the consolation Mary needed in that moment, and it was different from what Martha needed. Jesus is the ultimate master in spiritual care. He knows what form of consolation we need in each situation, not a "one size fits all" response.

A special thanks to Holy Family Academy in Brooks, OR for putting together these "blessing bags" for those living on the streets. The children and staff at the school included everything: personalized notes, rosaries, booklets on how to pray the rosary, socks, hand warmers, Kleenex, Capri Suns, meat sticks, cookies, crackers and more. May God bless them for their kindness.

Over the years, many Catholic schools have had this idea, even as far away as Olympia, WA. Donations are always welcome! We will even travel to pick up!