Sr. Bonifacia You shall not wrong or oppress a resident alien, for you were aliens in the land of Egypt. You shall not abuse any widow or orphan. If you do abuse them, when they cry out to me, I will surely heed their cry; my wrath will burn, and I will kill you with the sword, and your wives shall become widows and your children orphans. If you lend money to my people, to the poor among you, you shall not deal with them as a creditor; you shall not exact interest from them. If you take your neighbor’s cloak in pawn, you shall restore it before the sun goes down; for it may be your neighbor’s only clothing to use as cover; in what else shall that person sleep? And if your neighbor cries out to me, I will listen, for I am compassionate. Ex 22. 21-27
This reading reminds us that aliens, the poor, widows, children are with us always.
We know only too well that “alien” does not mean only those from a country other than that where they reside. One can be an “alien” through poverty, sexual orientation, gender identity, sex, or race. We can feel “alien” when we are not understood, when our work is unappreciated, when we are lonely.
Exodus states clearly how God expects us to relate to those suffering alienation in our midst. We are to serve. We are to love. We are to be a reflection of the Holy One who names herself “Compassion.”
Today the pope canonized three new saints. two of whom reached out to women, One, Spanish nun Sister Bonifacia Rodriguez de Castro, a cord maker, founded an order that served poor women, providing them with a safe place to work. Hers was a prophetic voice that spoke quietly through her creation of a community of women that challenged prevailing assumptions about the place and role of women in the world. She offered an alternative to women who often were (and still are in many places here and around the world) abused and powerless.
At a time when even entering a religious order often required wealth and a dowery, Bonifacia’s order and workshop accepted all; those who were physically able earned money by making cords or lace and gave their profits to a general fund,enabling those who could not work to remain.
She thought “outside the box,” creating something new. God was her strength. The home of her parents’ and that of Jesus, Mary, and Joseph, a home where money was made simply in their workshop, were her inspiration.
Even her craft, learned as a child from her parents in their home workshop is prophetic. Cords hold together, connect, strengthen: often the gifts women bring to the world. Bonifacia and her workshops where cords, prayer, friendship, and support flourished, challenges us to become aware of those around us who are in need and to respond as we are able.
Another canonized today was Rev. Luigi Guanella, an italian priest who spend his adult life caring for the poor, orphans, and handicapped. For a while, he worked with Saint John Bosco, caring for homeless children. Fr. Guanella travelled to Chicago to work with Italian immigrants and founded two orders that still serve those in need in a number of countries.
Both these holy people gave their lives in service to the most vulnerable of God’s people. They were open to receive God’s love and to be God’s hands and heart on earth. They were Compassion.
How can we follow their lead in our lives? How can we, like Bonifacia, think “outside the box” and live in a way that is counter cultural? Instead of being caught up in an obsession with celebrity, materialism, and wealth, how can we be committed to the forgotten, to service, and to simplicity?
How can we, too, be Compassion?
and an Italian priest who worked with the poor, the Rev. Luigi Guanella.
Speak Your Mind