From The Passionists of Holy Cross and St. Paul of the Cross Provinces
By Michael Nasello, Director of the Passionist Solidarity Network,
and co-chair of the Migration Commission for Holy Cross Province.
Any community or institution, social or religious, looking at the current crisis of global human migration might be easily overwhelmed and be left feeling hopeless.
Over the past year, some Passionist Retreat Center teams have stepped out of their comfort zones to try some unique local responses.
They have all begun with the same questions and assumptions:
- “This seems to be overwhelming.”
- “We have to do something.”
- “Our resources are limited.”
- “Some people in our communities might be upset with us.”
Here are some of the initiatives Passionist Retreat Centers in the United States have been implementing.
RETREAT CENTERS ARE PLACES THAT OFFER RETREATS
Several communities have spent time discerning the questions, “What can we do?” and “What do we have to give?” The answer to the second question has also answered the first: we can plan and lead a retreat program of renewal and reflection to the people who work in the local migrant/refugee support centers.
The St. Paul of the Cross Passionist Retreat & Conference Center team in Detroit, MI, invited the staff from the migrant/refugee support centers in the Greater Detroit Area to a retreat. And they came – 25 strong! They enjoyed their time together and were refreshed by a morning of reflection and lunch. Given that many had never met before, the group began to network, to share needs and resources, to plan and to support each other.
The retreat center team offered space for people to drop off donated furniture and clothing and to store it until it could be picked up and redistributed. That first encounter was such a success that it has been repeated again, and again. The retreat center is now one of this group’s regular meeting places.
Similar initiatives are underway at Mater Dolorosa Passionist Retreat Center in Sierra Madre, CA, and Holy Name Passionist Retreat Center in Houston, TX. Holy Name has generously used one of its conference rooms to host a Day of Recollection in Spanish to raise funds for two local migrant center charity organizations. There has been an amazing response from a community that identifies itself closely with the migration reality.
New friendships and support networks are evolving. Communities are supporting other communities of migrants and refugees, all from discerning the questions: “What we are good at?” and “How are we being called to respond to the crucified in this present moment?”
RETREAT CENTERS ARE PLACES OF PRAYER AND PREACHING
Another aspect of retreat leadership is the call to bring a message of welcome, inclusion and hospitality to the many retreatants who come for renewal.
Retreats provide opportunities to engage attendees in prayer and reflection on the deep and troubling questions of our time, including migration:
- “What are our politics and economics telling us?”
- “What is our faith telling us?”
- “Can we see in the faces of migrants the face of Christ Crucified?”
- “What are our hearts telling us?”
The Spiritual Direction programs at Holy Name Passionist Retreat Center, Houston, TX, and the staff at Mater Dolorosa Passionist Retreat Center in Sierra Madre, CA, have both become more intentional in this. At Mater Dolorosa, regular food collections support the St. Francis Center in Los Angeles, CA.
At Holy Name, and in Houston, TX, students from the Spiritual Direction programs monthly to assist migrants in their community. This assistance allows the students to experience faith and contemplation in action.
These engagements have inspired both good dialogue and generous responses. A planned café at Our Lady of Florida Spiritual Place in North Palm Beach, FL, will extend this simple response in new ways. “Food for thought” is becoming “food for migrants.”
Whether in prayer or through preaching, the message is that the crucified Christ lives in the children, women and men who are displaced from their homes and are seeking safety and security in a new land. Their stories are the story of Jesus, Mary and Joseph fleeing to Egypt, now made visible in our own cities. Migrants and refugees are asking: “Are we welcome here? Is there a place for us?”
RETREAT CENTERS ARE PLACES WITH ROOMS
One retreat center has taken a creative and bold approach to this challenge by providing rooms, support and training to small groups of migrants and refugees.
The community at Thomas Berry Place in Jamaica, NY, in partnership with the RECONNECT program, is taking a novel approach. In the spirit of St. Paul of the Cross, they are answering the call for his “retreats” to leave room in the house for those who may come knocking at the door in need of shelter.
For over a year, a small group of asylum seekers, young men from various parts of Latin and South America, have been welcomed to live, for a brief time, in a wing of the retreat center. There they are given a room, a hot meal each day, a transit pass, a personalized work-training program and a daily class in English.
These young men are provided an opportunity to give back to the local community through service and given communal support to help them through their cultural and personal transition into this new living situation. The goal is that this opportunity be transitional for each of the men and to help them move toward something more permanent and sustainable.
More recently, a small group of Muslim Afghan refugee women, sponsored by the Congregation of the Sisters of St. Joseph, have been welcomed into another small wing of the retreat center. Creating a temporary home, one of the sisters is living with them and accompanying them through their transitional journey.
On top of all the other benefits, the opportunity to share stories and experience the support of a caring community has proven to be significant in rekindling hope for the future. One of the young women, who is a guest at the retreat center, recently commented that she never would have imagined such hospitality and welcome from Christians. It has changed her life for the better and has given her hope.
Indeed, this can be said for everyone involved.
REFLECTION QUESTIONS
What can your retreat center do to respond to the need of migrants and refugees in your local community?
What gifts and resources do you have to share? What are your next steps?
Michael Nasello is Director of the Passionist Solidarity Network, the Justice, Peace, and Integrity of Creation office for the Passionist provinces of Holy Cross and St. Paul of the Cross (USA, Canada, Haiti, Jamaica, & Puerto Rico). He is also co-chair of the Migration Commission for Holy Cross Province.
