Catherine's Cafe Vocation Blog

Every year as Christmas approaches, I remember Howard Thurman’s reflection about the challenges laid down like a gauntlet by the arrival of Jesus in our world.  When the song of the angels is stilled, When the star in the sky is gone, When the Kings and princes are home, When the shepherds are back with their flock, The work of Christmas begins: To find the lost, To heal the broken, To feed the hungry To release the prisoner, To rebuild the nations, To bring peace among people, To make music in the heart. We know the truth of this. Even while we celebrate with family and friends and colleagues during this season, we are aware underneath it all that our world is hurting:  refugees are without homes and welcome, people are starving in spite of abundance, our border with Mexico is a place of fear and violence for asylum seekers, politicians have forgotten their responsibility for the common good, our beloved Earth suffers from our refusal to ...

Recently I had the opportunity to volunteer at the U.S./Mexico border in El Paso, TX at La Casa de Refugiado - House of Refuge. The Casa is not really a house but is a refurbished factory rented by Ruben Garcia, founder of Annunciation House, to receive the hundreds of people released from detention by ICE and needing shelter as they prepare to travel to their sponsors in many different parts of our country. A few times a day, ICE delivers a busload of people, mainly families with young children, who have been in detention, some for up to two months. They arrive tired and frightened, not knowing what kind of treatment to expect. What a privilege to be the first U.S. citizens to smile and say welcome; help them contact their families; provide soap and shampoo and towels for their first shower in a long time; invite them to choose a set of clean clothes; provide the children with a playroom full of toys, art supplies, and balls to play soccer; provide hot, nourishing meals prepared ...