Daily Reflection Memorial of Saints Andrew Kim Tae-gon and Paul Chong Ha-sang and Companions

We hear so many accounts of the migrants in their journey to the United States: days and weeks of dodging murderers, unslaked thirst and hunger, and terrible weather conditions. I listened intently to the horrific story of a man escaping from Honduras. I myself can’t imagine surviving such an ordeal. Yet, hundreds of people are willing to suffer in order to live in freedom from personal and political persecution. 

     Today we are commemorating the feast of Korean martyrs. They were many of the first Koreans who gave their lives for believing in and following Jesus Christ. I don’t need to go into detail by describing the slow and painful death by martyrdom. So, why are people willing to gamble with suffering and life itself? They certainly don’t enjoy suffering! What people gain in freedom and love far surpasses the pain they experience. 

      As we deepen our experience of God in prayer, we become aware not only of our own needs, but also the needs of others. One of the benefits of the continual news circuit is that it puts us in contact with those suffering political and religious persecution, victims of violence and natural disasters. With knowledge comes responsibility. What can I do to alleviate another’s suffering?

 In today’s gospel, Jesus tells us that when we don’t follow the way of the commandments, we are like stubborn children who insist on a selfish lifestyle instead of cooperating and caring. Like these children, we too, have our talents (maybe not dancing!). So, we question ourselves whether we use our gifts to become more God-centered people; whether we use our gifts to help those many people who need our talents of personality. Because we have been able to care for ourselves and our families, perhaps we don’t realize that we can extend our gifts beyond our families and neighborhoods. Jesus certainly did that.

    When we commemorate people who have sacrificed their lives for God and God’s people, as we are doing today, this is an invitation to all of us to uncover personal talents or to dust off those we have. We cannot be afraid to share our gifts, even when we make mistakes. Despite our own personal, spiritual, and material needs, we all have something to give to those suffering from want.

HOBO STEW

     Hobo Stew

 More than a meal

 A lesson for us all

If we share with others

Even when we can’t afford to

The resulting mix can be delicious

  And nourishing for all.

--Renee Robertson

EYES OF REALITY

When you talk to people 

at an angle

instead of on a level plane

you’re trying to avoid looking

into the eyes of reality

--Sylvia G.

--These poems are taken from

The Sisterhood of Homeless Women in Poetry