CMFN

About Labor Day

As we prepare for the annual Labor Day Weekend, I invite readers to reflect on the meaning of this day. Impetus for recognizing the value of workers in many of the trades that have moved the economy of the United States began after the Civil War and the beginning of the formation of labor unions in the 1880’s. The U.S. Department of Labor identifies the recognition of a Day to celebrate labor in the following:

Observed the first Monday in September, Labor Day is an annual celebration of the social and economic achievements of American workers. The holiday is rooted in the late nineteenth century, when labor activists pushed for a federal holiday to recognize the many contributions workers have made to America’s strength, prosperity, and well-being.

Growing up in a family of railroad workers, carpenters and other unionized laborers, the importance and value of unions promoting and protecting the dignity of laborers was impressed on me at an early age. This holiday recognized the value of labor, patriotism and the commitment of workers to their families and faith. Many of the children of union workers that I knew were first- and second-generation children of immigrants. Labor Day was not only a day to recognize the workers, but also a celebration of ethnicity and faith. In the 1950’s we were recovering from two world wars and the great depression. Labor Day was also a day of patriotism.

As a child in the 1950’s, the day also marked the end of summer vacation. School began the next day. Perhaps it was the transition of moving from summer vacation to returning to school that made the day a little more special than other days. It was a day to celebrate labor, to forget work and enjoy a day with family and friends.

Today, it is easy to let the day pass, without taking time to honor the laborer. For many people, it is just another day at work, rather than a day off, a day for family. Many people work at convenience stores, restaurants, golf courses, resorts, health care facilities and run services used by many who are celebrating the holiday. Take time this day to truly honor the work and sacrifices of laborers today who contribute to the strength, prosperity and well-being of this nation.

To receive “Walk with My People, a Life in Migration Ministry,” one can order through the following link. I encourage everyone whom I may reach, especially followers of Padre Migrante, CMFN, PCMRT, to use the code 25004 for a 10% discount. There are larger discounts for bulk orders.

https://www.liguori.org/walk-with-my-people-a-life-in-migration-ministry.html

(If you want Padre Migrante to respond to your concerns or questions, write to: padremigrante@gmail.com)

Having a bad day

One of the joys of walking with poor people is that at times we meet extraordinary grace. I met a person of an often-maligned group in today´s world. He was having a bad day. As I passed, he recognized me as a priest, and he decided it was a good day take out some anger at someone. He said some very nasty things about priests and the Catholic Church. He said, “The Church is just a gathering place for hypocrites.”

A week later he apologized when he saw me. I said, “Don’t worry, the Church has been called worse.” Such anger is an uncommon experience in my work with migrants and people on the “periphery”. I did not really think much about it when he vented his anger at the world. Yet, when he apologized, it was a special moment of grace. I have seen the man several times on my walks, and since that first encounter, he has always been gracious, and always makes a point of greeting me.

We all can have “a bad day”, but when a person has the courage to apologize, it is a “good day.” May we all have the courage to apologize when given the opportunity.

To receive “Walk with My People, a Life in Migration Ministry,” one can order through the following link. I encourage everyone whom I may reach, especially followers of Padre Migrante, CMFN, PCMRT, to use the code 25004 for a 10% discount. There are larger discounts for bulk orders.

https://www.liguori.org/walk-with-my-people-a-life-in-migration-ministry.html

(If you want Padre Migrante to respond to your concerns or questions, write to: padremigrante@gmail.com)

Books available for sale

The official publish date for Walk with My People is September 1, but they are already available for order at: liguori.org.  On the homepage of Liguori, it is under “From St. Alphonsus and the Redemptorists”. Today, I will visit Liguori Publications to pick up books and to learn about how to and not to promote the book. 

It is a delicate balance that I hope to promote in the book. The book is a memoir of over thirty years working with emigrants, refugees and migrant workers. I tell stories of the migrants with whom I have walked, and consider the joys and heartaches of this ministry. It is not about policies, immigration data, law and enforcement of law. I simply invite people to be open to learning about and meeting people on the margins of society and the Church. Jesus said, “When I was a stranger, you welcomed me.”

In Caritas in Veritate, Pope Benedict XVI says that responding to global migration is the responsibility of all people. And Pope Francis says that we need to take our faith to the peripheries, to all people. May God bless all migrants and those walking with them.

To receive “Walk with My People, a Life in Migration Ministry,” one can order through the following link. I encourage everyone whom I may reach, especially followers of Padre Migrante, CMFN, PCMRT, to use the code 25004 for a 10% discount. There are larger discounts for bulk orders.

https://www.liguori.org/walk-with-my-people-a-life-in-migration-ministry.html

(If you want Padre Migrante to respond to your concerns or questions, write to: padremigrante@gmail.com)

This saying is hard

In today´s gospel, the early disciples responded to what Jesus told them in last weeks gospel, “Unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you do not have life within you”(Jn 6:53). They said, “This saying is hard; who can accept it?” (Jn 6:60) It was so hard that only the Apostles remained. The mystery of Jesus giving us his body and his blood to eat and drink, we recognize today in the Eucharist. Our presence in the Mass is an act of faith even though the mystery is hard.

I wonder how many other things Jesus said that people today find too hard to accept, such as “Love your enemies.” “Forgive” over and over. And “When I was a stranger, you welcomed me.” Responding to the challenges posed by global migration today is difficult, but they will not be solved by anger, hate, fear and blaming the abused and maligned for our problems with global migration.

We need to recognize Jesus in the “hungry, the thirsty, the stranger…” Let us approach he altar of the Lord for the grace needed to better respond to the challenges of global migration. His words about loving, forgiving and welcoming the stranger need our attention. Care for others may be inconvenient, but it is not hard.

To receive “Walk with My People, a Life in Migration Ministry,” one can order through the following link. I encourage everyone whom I may reach, especially followers of Padre Migrante, CMFN, PCMRT, to use the code 25004 for a 10% discount. There are larger discounts for bulk orders.

https://www.liguori.org/walk-with-my-people-a-life-in-migration-ministry.html

(If you want Padre Migrante to respond to your concerns or questions, write to: padremigrante@gmail.com)

My sister´s observation

Over the weekend, I visited my sisters in Omaha. Three of them received copies of my book, and as the first to receive the book, one wrote: “As I read the book, I cannot help but think of Dad. He was such a supporter of the underdog.” That is so true of our Dad. He was offended by any signs of racism. Living through the Great Depression, he knew poverty and he never forgot mistreatment his father experienced as an Irish Catholic immigrant. My sister’s comment ended, “He would love this.” I certainly hope so.

To receive “Walk with My People, a Life in Migration Ministry,” you can order through liguori.org, and you can use the code 25004 for a 10% discount, and there are larger discounts for bulk orders.

Donations for Redemptorist Migrant Ministry

(If you want Padre Migrante to respond to your concerns or questions, write to: padremigrante@gmail.com)

Why Padre Migrante?

(Excerpt from the Introduction of “Walk with my People.”)

I am a Redemptorist missionary, a migrant priest, a “Padre Migrante.” Consider the Apostle Paul. After years of evangelizing to many nations near the Mediterranean Sea, he spoke of his ministry: “I planted, Apollos watered, but God caused the growth. Therefore, neither the one who plants, nor the one who waters is anything, but only God, who causes the growth” (1 Cor. 3:6–7). Paul sowed the seed, the message of Jesus, wherever he went. He proclaimed the message in one place and then moved on to plant the seed elsewhere. Others organized and established churches in such places as Corinth, Thessalonica, Galatia and other nations. Apollos was the bishop of Corinth who cultivated the seed Paul planted. Paul was the sower and Apollos was the pastor. 

I am a sower, a sembrador. I walk with people on the fringes of society and the Church. Most of my missionary work has been with migrant workers. However, my experience as a priest working with migrants did not begin at the border. It began with the words of Fr. Juan Manuel Lasso de la Vega y Miranda, CSsR, when he accepted his election as Superior General of the Congregation of the Most Holy Redeemer (the Redemptorists) in 1985. He said we are called to evangelize and to be evangelized by the poor. At the time, I was the vocation director for the St. Louis Province of Redemptorists. My entry into ministry with migrants and their families began as a call not only to evangelize, but to allow myself to be evangelized by people who are participants in the phenomenon of global migration. 

I enjoyed and am proud of the work that I have done in migrant ministry, but often after I finish a project or a program, there is no religious establishment that continues. The places where I sowed seeds are within the pages of this book, but Casa San Alfonso no longer exists. Its effects live on in the people who cherish the experiences of the Casa. The Bilingual Mission Team ended when I moved on to work in Liberal, Kansas. Many of those who served on the missions with me are engaged in ministries of the Church today. The parish of St. Anthony´s in Liberal has the church that we Redemptorists built, and the memories of our ministry still inspire many. Campesino ministry continues in Fresno, and it moves forward on the charisma and organization of others. 

Many migrant workers are forgotten, unnoticed, and lacking in spiritual care. They move frequently, seldom having a place to call home. During the COVID-19 pandemic, they were called “essential workers.” Many migrant workers suffered serious illness and the loss of loved ones. Concern for them has been overshadowed, like an eclipse of the sun, by the migration turmoil at the United States and Mexico border and crises around the world. 

I invite others to walk with migrants, refugees, and all the people whom Pope Francis says are “on the peripheries.” Collected in “Walk with My People” are stories and principles for accompaniment of migrants that have guided me as a sower of the seed. Whether you be a Paul or an Apollos, may you create your own camino (path) with migrants and all people on the periphery.

To receive “Walk with My People, a Life in Migration Ministry,” you can order through liguori.org, and you can use the code 25004 for a 10% discount, and there are larger discounts for bulk orders.

Donations for Redemptorist Migrant Ministry

(If you want Padre Migrante to respond to your concerns or questions, write to: padremigrante@gmail.com)

Thanking migrants

Yesterday, I thanked my Redemptorist confreres for their support over the years as I have walked with migrants. They are worthy of the thanks given them, but most important are those whom I recognized in first paragraph of the acknowledgments page of my book, the migrants. Here is their acknowledgement:

I thank all migrants who have accompanied me and allowed me to accompany them as we seek to live the one commandment Jesus gave to his followers, “Love one another, as I have loved you.” It has been my privilege to walk with migrants for the past thirty-five years. Their goodness, love and faith has always shown through in the successes and struggles of ministry with people on the periphery of society and the Church. 

It truly is a privilege to walk with people who are maligned, ignored and oppressed. When given the opportunity, the youth of Casa San Alfonso created a supportive family for young immigrants in a tough barrio of Denver. Migrant workers in restaurants, hotels and other work related to tourism introduced me to workers often unnoticed in religious ministry. Many immigrant workers showed great faith among people working in agriculture, meat packing, dairies, construction and many maintenance jobs.

Amongst migrants, I have come to understand our Redemptorist calling to “evangelize and to be evangelized by the poor.”

To receive “Walk with My People, a Life in Migration Ministry,” you can order through liguori.org, and you can use the code 25004 for a 10% discount, and there are larger discounts for bulk orders.

Donations for Redemptorist Migrant Ministry

(If you want Padre Migrante to respond to your concerns or questions, write to: padremigrante@gmail.com)

Thanks to my Redemptorist confreres

Writing “Walk with My People” has been a work of gratitude to all the people who shaped my life in migration ministry. We owe special thanks to the Redemptorists who came as immigrants to the United States in 1832. They went beyond serving the needs of their own countrymen, to welcoming all immigrants. They were pioneers in welcoming immigrants to New York, Boston, Baltimore, Philadelphia, Detroit, Chicago, St. Louis and New Orleans. They were instrumental in establishing parishes in small towns across the Midwest and establishing ministries along the border in Texas and California. Some of the first ministries involving our seminarians were with migrant farmworkers during the summers.

I was not involved in migration ministry during my first seventeen years as a priest. I thank Fr. Jim Shea, our Provincial in 1991 who let Fr. Patrick Keyes and I experiment in youth ministry by opening a house of welcome for youth, Casa San Alfonso. Whatever we may have accomplished in that ministry was with encouragement and support of so many confreres. In that ministry, we were allowed to engage in the vision of our General government at the time to “evangelize and to be evangelized by the poor.” The ministry was not leading youth, but simply letting them walk into our lives and walking with them.

Many confreres sacrifice themselves so that some of us have the privilege of walking with the poor. I thank those working in province administration, finance, mission promotion, formation, care for our aging confreres and all the works that allow a few of us to walk with the poor. There were times when I could have been asked to take on jobs that would have limited my involvement in migration ministry. I thank all my confreres who have allowed me to become a compañero with migrants.

Here is a reflection in the introduction of the book on page 15:

I enjoyed and am proud of the work that I have done in migrant ministry, but often after I finish a project or a program, there is no religious establishment that continues. The places where I sowed seeds are within the pages of this book, but Casa San Alfonso no longer exists. Its effects live on in the people who cherish the experiences of the Casa. The Bilingual Mission Team ended when I moved on to work in Liberal, Kansas. Many of those who served on the missions with me are engaged in ministries of the Church today. The parish of St. Anthony´s in Liberal has the church that we Redemptorists built, and the memories of our ministry still inspire many. Campesino ministry continues in Fresno, and it moves forward on the charisma and organization of others. 

The book is not a how to do migrant ministry or a response to the anti-immigrant rhetoric of the media and politicians. It about recognizing Jesus in the poor and walking with him. Redemptorists have a history in migration ministry and let us continue to expand our role in this ministry. Thank you, my confreres for your help in this ministry.

To receive “Walk with My People, a Life in Migration Ministry,” you can order through liguori.org, and you can use the code 25004 for a 10% discount, and there are larger discounts for bulk orders.

Donations for Redemptorist Migrant Ministry

(If you want Padre Migrante to respond to your concerns or questions, write to: padremigrante@gmail.com)

My Hope

Someone picked up on a previous blog that I wrote. I prefer asking people what motivated you than to ask why some one does something. It seems that people answer with more reflection on the question. So, I have been asked, What motivated you to write Walk with my People?

I have worked with the most maligned people in our world today. They are misunderstood and abused. I hope people will take the time to meet Jesus in them as he said, “When I was a stranger…” I have had the privilege to walk among many migrants, and they are witnesses to greater faith that I hope to attain.

To receive “Walk with My People, a Life in Migration Ministry,” you can order through liguori.org, and you can use the code 25004 for a 10% discount, and there are larger discounts for bulk orders.

Donations for Redemptorist Migrant Ministry

(If you want Padre Migrante to respond to your concerns or questions, write to: padremigrante@gmail.com)

The book is now for sale

Just got the word that Walk with My People, a life in migration ministry is now available. The past eight months trying to tell a story of migration ministry has been an interesting journey. Writing the story and reflecting on the experience has been filled with hope, faith and promise. Yet, it has not been easy, but I am grateful for so many people encouraging me on the way. For many, my experience is anecdotal, and outside the imagination of many colleagues in ministry. My life has been committed to a community of people on the fringes of society and even the Church. Almost every conversation that I have about emigrants, immigrants and migrants demands clarification. Even among people who are participants in global migration, there is unease. I have spent a lifetime trying to recognize Jesus in the stranger amongst us. It is difficult to see through the haze of considering migration as a problem, rather recognizing Jesus in the migrant. (Mt. 25: 35)

I am not good at resisting the bait of anti-immigrant rants. My book is not about politics at all, although, I expect many to be skeptical. The book is not about creating programs, either religious or societal to address concerns about global migration. It is about walking with people on the margins of society and the Church. We need to recognize migrants who choose to leave their countries of origin, no matter the reason, as our brothers and sisters. May we recognize that in walking with them, we are walking with Jesus.

The book may be ordered at https://www.liguori.org/walk-with-my-people-a-life-in-migration-ministry.html

There is a special promotion code for contacts of padremigrante.org, and for Catholic Migrant Farmworker Network (CMFN), and the USCCB offices of Pastoral Care for Migrants, Refugees and Travelers (PCMRT). The code is 25004. It is for 10% and there are larger discounts for bulk orders.

I am eager to know and help people working with migrants anywhere. I am open to invitations to meet with people concerned about migration ministry. Comments and invitations may begin with a phone call to 210-996-0336 or an email to: padremigrante@gmail.com

Donations for Redemptorist Migrant Ministry

(If you want Padre Migrante to respond to your concerns or questions, write to: padremigrante@gmail.com)