[Not] Seeing the Face of Christ in the Homeless

By Artur Suski, S.J.

a-revolt.org

Three weeks in the Paris of North America. Three weeks contemplating the suffering and rejected Christ. Three weeks of soul-searching.

Though a Jesuit’s summer is often full of Jesuit-formation activities, such as making one’s own eight-day retreat and attending formation gatherings, there are chunks of time that often lend themselves to creativity. I had three weeks at my disposal and I decided to make good use of them. I have been the last three weeks in Montreal, volunteering at a well-established (since 1877) soup kitchen and shelter – Accueil Bonneau.

My initial decision was simply to come to Montreal in order to polish my French. Not really knowing how to go about doing this in a most effective way, I asked some French Canadian Jesuits for some suggestions. After a few email exchanges it was decided that I’d have lots of French conversation at a soup kitchen. Hence Accueil Bonneau.

Christ in the Streets of Vancouver

By John D. O'Brien, S.J.

I regularly go with a group of college students at night to the Downtown Eastside (DTES) of Vancouver. That area is sometimes called “Canada’s poorest postal code” on account of its high concentration of hostels and flophouses. Once there, we set up a couple of foldable tables on the sidewalk and give out cups of hot chocolate and bran muffins. During these visits to the DTES, we meet and engage in friendly conversation with a variety of people: homeless, drug-addicts, prostitutes, or residents simply passing by. Some do not want to talk much. Others seem grateful to linger and chat about life. A number of these encounters will remain on our memories for a long time.

One of the people we met is Barney.* He told us he was homeless, but survived by hustling and the free meals the various missions provide. Barney stayed talking with us for a while, would disappear, then return again, each time asking for more muffins. Eventually he admitted they were for his friends on the sidewalk around the block, telling us they were crack dealers, and couldn’t leave their spots or they’d lose business.

Talking to Normals

By Eric Hanna, S. J.

alifearchitect.wordpress.com

A while ago, I found myself jokingly using a nickname for those people who were not familiar with the Catholic faith: 'normals'. This was a funny way for me to remark on the fact that we as Catholics, and Jesuits in particular, can use a lot of jargon that is unfamiliar to the rest of contemporary society. It was a reminder to myself not to use arcane terminology when simpler words sufficed. However, it got me to thinking.


We believers love to be counter-cultural. If the world moves one way, many of us are inclined to move the other. If you are a believer, I ask you the following question: do you see yourself as normal and the rest of the non-believing or different-believing world as abnormal? Or is it the other way: is the world normal and we ourselves the ones who are different?