02.27.07
Posted in AV 2006-07 Domestic at 12:37 pm by jacobs
This past weekend I spent in Boston on retreat with 14 wonderful students from Merrimack. We stayed downtown at the Jesuit Urban Center and spent the weekend discussing and reflecting on issues of social justice, doing service, and trying to figure out how God fits into it all (these seem to be the themes of my entire year). Our retreat was guided by the passage of the rich man in Mark’s Gospel:
As he was setting out on a journey, a man ran up, knelt down before him, and asked him, “Good teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?” Jesus answered him, “Why do you call me good? No one is good but God alone. You know the commandments: ‘You shall not kill; you shall not commit adultery; you shall not steal; you shall not bear false witness; you shall not defraud; honor your father and your mother.’” He replied and said to him, “Teacher, all of these I have observed from my youth.” Jesus, looking at him, loved him and said to him, “You are lacking in one thing. Go, sell what you have, and give to [the] poor and you will have treasure in heaven; then come, follow me.” At that statement his face fell, and he went away sad, for he had many possessions.
~Mark 10:17-22
This weekend some tough questions were asked. What is enough? Where is the balance between living simply, giving to those in need and still maintaining a comfortable life for myself, being able to support a family, etc.? How much are we called to sacrifice? As a campus minister I wished I could offer the students the right answers, but I realized once again that all I can do is sit with them in the questions and maybe even add a few more of my own.
As I continue in my year of service with the Augustinians, I can’t help but see the similarities between myself and this rich young man. I have been blessed with much in my life. Sometimes I am overwhelmed with thanksgiving, but more often I take for granted the fact that I have and will always have that which is necessary for my survival (and much, much more). I enjoy the comfort of my possessions and to seldom do I reflect on whether my possessions in fact possess me.
Now don’t get me wrong. I don’t think that possessions are evil in and of themselves. I don’t think God wants me to live in poverty any more than he wants those currently in poverty to remain there. But one of the lessons this year has been teaching me is that I encounter my God in a deeper way when I allow myself to be free from this culture of possession. I’ve seen the faith and the dependence on God that results in people when there is nothing else to rely on and I long for that kind of faith. How would my life be different if I truly believed with my whole being that I could not survive another day, another moment, without my God?
I think this is what the rich man was called to. I think this is my calling as well.
Every Tuesday when I go with students to the soup kitchens I realize the value I give people based on their appearance and material wealth and based on their usefulness to me. I find that I am uncomfortable (though I try to appear otherwise). I want to see each person as Christ - I do. But I find it is much easier to talk about the dignity of the human person than to preach it with my life because poverty, when you actually have to face it, is ugly. It’s uncomfortable.
I think that this is why the rich man went away sad. He wasn’t ready to be stretched out of his comfort zone. He wasn’t ready to be called to something deeper than the image of God he’d always known. This is why I turn away sad at times. I don’t like to be stretched. I don’t like to be uncomfortable. I don’t like my (very small) image of God to be challenged. But I pray that it would continue anyway because it is in the discomfort that we become better people. It is in the discomfort that we find the true God - the God that doesn’t judge based on appearance or material wealth or usefulness, but on how we love.
Jake Schneider ~ Lawrence
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02.16.07
Posted in AV 2006-07 Domestic at 1:23 pm by brian.strassburger
“Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed people can change the world; indeed, it is the only thing that ever has.”
This quote from the 20th c. anthropologist Margaret Mead has become a sort of slogan for my year. After all, I’m working for a small not-for-profit called Water for Waslala, which was started (surprise!) by a small group of thoughtful, committed people.
Crazy as it sounds, there are over 1.1 billion people in this world who live without access to clean water. That’s one out of every six people on the planet! So image the audacity of a group of Villanova students a few years back to step forward and say, “That doesn’t cut it- let’s change the world!” What a bunch of lunatics, right?
Might seem that way - but as of today Water for Waslala has raised over $175,000. Clean water systems have been constructed in eight communities in the rural region of Waslala, Nicaragua, providing over 2,000 people with safe water. What great work! That puts us just 1.1 billion people (approximately) away from solving this whole problem!
When you think about it that way, it’s easy to get discouraged. It’s easy to feel like you can never do enough. In a lot of ways, that’s felt like a theme of the year. Living in the Bronx, I can’t help but feel helpless. Maybe I’m raising money for some people thousands of miles away, but what about the homeless that live on my street? Maybe there are illiterate Nicaraguans, but what about the safety and quality of the schools in my neighborhood? This feeling of helplessness has repeatedly crept into my mind these past months.
For good reason, too: this year isnit easy. Living simply, witnessing to poverty, serving those in need, feeling relegated to the role of an inexperienced volunteer: none of it’s easy. Especially when it’s hard to see the impact you’re having. At the end of each long day (or at least at the end of one long year) it takes something special for me to keep going. Two things, in fact: hope and trust.
I hope that the money I raise will make a difference in the lives of people. I hope the presentations I give to students will inspire them to future service. But even simpler than that, I hope that one person lives a longer life because of access to clean water. And I hope that one student comes to realize that their actions can make a difference in this world. This year is teaching me more and more that I can’t just sit back and “wait for the world to change.” It’s within my ability- in fact it’s my responsibility to work for change. And if every person takes this approach, even the smallest of efforts by a large number of individuals will make a difference. (For now, the world’s left to rely on large efforts by small numbers of people, who hold onto the hope for something greater.)
As I see it, the indispensable partner of hope is trust. This is where my faith comes in and where I can see the importance of integrating faith and service: for I put my trust in God. I hope that my efforts matter; I trust that God will see that they do. This is the part of the equation that sustains me: knowing that I can place my trust, place my sense of helplessness, and anchor my hope in God. And even in my failed efforts, my trust in God supports me as I, at the very least, continue to grow and change for the better.
I tend to be long-winded, so I’ll close now with a story. It may be familiar, but I like it because it speaks toward hope: the hope that the efforts of one are never too small.
A young man walking down the beach observed an old man picking up starfish that had washed up on the shore. As he got closer, he saw the old man throwing them back into the ocean. He approached the man and asked, “What are you doing?” The old man replied, “If I don’t throw the starfish back in the water, they’re going to die.” “But there must be thousands of starfish on the beach. You can’t save them all. Don’t you know you’ll never make a difference?” The old man reached down and picked up a starfish and simply replied, “I’ll make a difference to this one.”
Brian Strassburger: Bronx ‘06-’07
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02.13.07
Posted in AV 2006-07 Domestic at 5:30 am by blaszakj
Five months. The past couple of weeks I have found myself thinking has it really already been five months since I first arrived in Philly looking forward the service I was about to begin, interested in all this year had in store for me? I quickly realize, yes it has been, but exactly what has happened during these past several months, what impact has my time as an Augustinian Volunteer had? Answering these questions can at times be challenging, especially when I only allow myself to look for immediate impacts in my work, which I often tend to do. As a volunteer though I have discovered seeing an immediate impact is not always possible. With the work I do and the people I serve, allowing time to pass can be very important before making any judgment of the impact my service has made.
In my position with the Augustinian Defenders of the Rights of the Poor most of my job duties are behind-the-scenes. Finding volunteers, organizing supplies and finances and handling other logistics that will allow A.D.R.O.P. to offer successful programming are part of my key responsibilities. However, because these tasks are behind-the-scenes and often focus on building A.D.R.O.P.’s future, I can rarely look for immediate impacts. I can look back at the past five months though and see the progress A.D.R.O.P. has made and feel that I have made somewhat of a successful contribution. Since I first began, the health clinic that A.D.R.O.P. sponsors has been able to reach out to over 400 individuals without insurance. Even without any medical training in my background, I am still able help with the planning of this clinic to expand an essential resource needed by so many in the area. There are also the ESL classes that A.D.R.O.P. has been able to provide, which give individuals the ability to learn new communication skills. It is with the progress in programs such as these that while my impact may not always be immediately visible, in given time I know I will be able to look back and see how the tasks I perform each day do contribute to the overall growth of A.D.R.O.P. and the success it has with the people of the South Philadelphia community.
My placement as St. Nicholas of Tolentine School’s computer teacher has allowed me to gain a similar perspective. It is a placement that without time I would not have been able to view the true success of my year as a volunteer. If someone asked me back in October if I ever thought I would have an impact on the computer program, I would have said no. In fact, when I first started the position I thought the year would be nothing but a disaster. The computer lab was a mess of broken and outdated equipment and the students felt that computer time was a period for games and freedom from school work. Over time though I realized that I could either go along and continue the program the way it was going, or I could try to do all I could on my part to change it. I decided to make an impact at all, at least a somewhat successful one, I would have to do all I could with the current situation and see what I can do to help this program in the long run.
Even though every computer in the computer lab is out-of-date, that does not mean they are not useful in teaching the students what they need to know. There are schools that do not have any computers, therefore we work with what we have and we actually try to take part in lessons during every class. While it has been a struggle at times, most students are grasping the concept that we cannot just play games in computers. However, I often still come across days where the 6th grade will argue that concept with me, or where a student like Cindy in 1st grade tells me she cannot participate because her tooth hurts, but if we are just playing games her tooth will be okay. It is during these same days though, when the students are off topic and trying to test my patience that I realize I love doing what I am doing and look to see what else I can to for these kids. That is why although a great deal of progress has been made using the current computers; one of the greatest things I been able to do this year was to help St. Nicks apply for a grant that will hopefully gain the school a new computer lab and allow the computer program to grow even more.
So, while these past five months have seemed to fly by, they have been filled with countless experiences - experiences that have helped me to learn, helped me to grow, and most of all, helped me to share the gifts I have been given by God with others in the world. The impact of my work has not always been clear to me; however there is a quote that helps put this year into perspective and gives me motivation to serve out the final five months of my commitment as Augustinian Volunteer to the best of my abilities.
“I am only one, but I am one,
I cannot do everything, but I can do something.
What I can do, I should do, and with the help of God, I will do”
Everett Hale
As I sit here today I do not know if St. Nick’s grant application will be approved and the school will get a new computer lab, but while I am only one, I am one and I will do all I can in order to provide these kids quality computer education. The same applies to my work with A.D.R.O.P., I cannot say where this organization will be in five years or even in one year, but what I do know is that I have five months left to commit myself to being a part of its mission doing all I can to bring needed resources to those living in Philly.
Josh Blaszak
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02.05.07
Posted in AV 2006-07 Domestic at 4:49 pm by cleone01
This morning Whoopi warned on her morning radio show not to stay outside for very long, for the windchill here in Chicago is significantly below zero. This past Thursday for prayer I rented “The Inconvenient Truth” to add some explanation to the coatless Thanksgiving that we had out here, and the day in the 70’s at the Jersey Shore for midyear retreat. Al Gore would be happy to know, however, that the temperature seems to have regualted itself back to normal here as 5 of us happily huddled together on the couch last night to watch the Bears in the Super Bowl during what was the coldest weekend I have ever expereinced.
Aside from the obvious complaints about such bitter temperatures, my work has been extra complicated because of this weather. I have established myself as a rather accomodating Case Manager to my teen clients. The long day of a high school student, and prolonged evening of a young mother with a baby made it a bit necessary that I give these girls a break whenever possible. My clients know that if they get stuck without transportation to my office all they need to do is give me sufficient notice and I will come to them. Though I never want their young children out in this weather, my clients themselves have been a bit wimpy, thinking of any reason why I really need to come to them for our appointments. Additionally, the community outreach that I schedule bi-weekly into my aganda has been near impossible. I want to find as many girls that need the help of Catholic Charities Teen Parenting as possible, but I would much prefer if for once my referrals came with working telephone numbers. Two more months of winter…
Lastly, I wanted to mention, particularly to those volunteers living in San Diego, the degree of cabin fever that is nearly as severe as this weather. Do take advantage of your temperate outdoors. Ed still thinks he can run outside but the rest of us aren’t budging. I couldn’t wait to see my boyfriend this weekend, partially because I was so desperate to get the CD’s, books, and my face steamer that he was bringing out. I guess I finally have a winter season where I can spend sufficient time using those things that I have been meaning to for some time. We keep all of your communities in our prayers, and request that you ask God to send a bit of warmth to Chicago in your prayers for us.
And for those interested, Didom will still be making his way through winter without a coat this year. He has grown a full beard and mustache instead.
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