Philly through a trekker's eyes....Sonia

Wednesday - Sonia's Story Wednesday was a great day. In the morning we worked at Manna, packaging meals for people with diseases like AIDS and cancer. In the afternoon we helped at the day care by chaperoning the kids while we all skated. We spent the evening touring the St. Francis Inn where Katie Ross, from HFK, is volunteering. Packaging meals at Manna was as intense as playing a video game. It was also a very rewarding experience because we got to see all the meals that we had prepared (there were many). Skating in the afternoon was a refreshing change from the ordinary and we had just as much fun as the kids. It was especially nice helping out the ones that obviously had no experience skating. Touring St. Francis Inn with Katie, I was immensely inspired by the effort that was being put into helping the Kenzington neighborhood. I was deeply touched by how close the team and the guests were described to be and I would love to go back and help there if I get the chance. Wednesday was the day when I really got into my work emotionally and I got the strong feeling that I want to on more missions in the future.

Getting our hands dirty in Camden

Our journeys today took us across the Ben Franklin bridge and into the 5th poorest neighborhood in the Country - Camden, NJ. We spent the morning working in a community garden there before heading back to our summer camp placement for the afternoon, and then out to a delicious African dinner! Tonight, instead of hearing my viewpoint on the day I want to bring you the thoughts and reflections of our amazing teen Trekkers as they look back over the past few days. Enjoy! Erin - "this has been a really fun few days so far. I have loved being able to hang out with all the people at the different missions and camps, as well as getting to know everyone in the group better. It has been amazing and special. I feel so blessed." " what chair?"...kinda had to be there... Matt - "Meeting the men at the Whosoever Thrift Storer was one of the highlights of my wek so far. Meeting a man named Mercy was something that particularly stood out. He had been addicted for 18 years and clean for about 5 now. He talked about how important a daily relationship with God is and how he needs to be in the driver's seat constantly. It was a special conversation that made me reflect on all my relationships and especially mine with God." Lauren - "When I first came to the city I was so intimidated by the gigantic city and by how much need was here. Now that I look back it's amazing how much we have done already. I understand that there is so much more to do, but helping at the kids camp, garden, and thrift store, I understand how little things can add up and make a big difference. I think learning about the men's lives at the thrift store was so shocking. I think it is amazing that the men would bring themselves to the store and stay in the program. It would be very difficult. But the most shocking was definitely the prayer tour. Traveling around the city, learning about the real Philly compared to the tourist Philly and made me think about Seattle. I love Philly and can't wait to help more!" Rebecca - "To see all those little kids laughing makes me smile. Even though they take my whole energy every day, I love going to the summer camp and hanging out with them for a couple of hours! I played basketball with a 6 year old boy and he taught me all his methods. I am sure that guy will become a famous basketball player! I am just so surprised by all of them. Each of them has a story to tell." Sonia - "'Are you sad or are you mad?", the kid asked me. I was completely surprised; I had been brooding and didn't realize how obvious it was that something was wrong. 'Oh no, I'm just tired.' I replied. Was that the truth? I've been wondering ever since. Wow, these kids are sharp." Parker - The Bridge They built a Babel Bridge To prove industrial might Upon, atop the earth so high And opened up to pristine skies They saw that it was good While glorious bright, It stood at noon The bridge that cast a shadow's gloom The dark side of a looking glass. I saw an underworld Beneath the oppressing form All talking was hushed And no other chatter discussed By the tenants of this shadowy blot A present, cold, damp musk Lonely and dark after dusk. Pale, urine stains on walls Here under tower's hallowed stalls I feel the sadness Of their gloomy faces And sense that anger Of desperate aces. I hear crashing thunder From the trains atop passing by Sole silence interruption The world's reminding cry. Cannot see the stars Beneath the bridge Under and above Nature and grace A subterranean shell, Opressed lonely place. Sarah - "Our trip so far has beefull of fun, excitement, and lots of hard work. Our first morning was spent working at a mission which rehabilitated men and operated a thrift store. There we sorted clothes to be sent to third world countries because they had been blessed with more donations than they could handle. After we sorted the clothes, we ate lunch with the men and got to learn a little about what brought the men to the mission. Afterwards, we went to work at a daycare with little kids. They were SO CUTE! A lot of the things they did were totally different from how young kids in Seattle act. They had cute' sassy little attitudes, but sometimes it would get them into trouble. The little girls played musical chairs and kept trying to cheat. They definitely ticketed us out though so we all slept pretty well last night. This morning with a little help from the coffee machine to wake-up, we took off to work at a community garden. We spent the morning weeding and then took off for the daycare again. Today we played outside fir a while and then played BINGO with them. It was a lot of fun and a LOT of chaos. I am starting to learn some of the kids names which is awesome too! Overall, it's been a lot of hard work, but the fruits of our labor have been so evident. I can't wait to see what is in store fir us these next few days! Anna - "My experience here the past few days has given me a more realistic perspective on how lucky I really am. The first day we got here, we went on a prayer tour of the city that night. We toured the projects and the rougher side of town. It was a culture shock and I didn't know how to process what I was seeing. I was scared because I had never been exposed to that kind of poverty before. I am truly blessed to live in the place I do with a safe community and a loving family. I only wish we could all live that way." Tennessee-Taylor - "Philadelphia ain't ready for us!!!! Coming to Philadelphia I had no idea what to expect, because to be honest I never really thought about poverty being in the U.S. Since we've been here, it's been a huge culture shock. I've seen poverty around the world up close and personal, but never this close to home and never to this extreme, like so widely spread. I am excited that we are here and hope that we make a difference in some if these people's lives. I hope that when we go back home, that we remember all of this and carry it in our hearts. I have hope for the upcoming generation, and will continue to keep them in my prayers." Prayer requests: Amanda's daughter turns 8 tomorrow! Keep her in your prayers, please! And for the city of Camden, that it can experience healing an renewal. With love, The 2012 Mission Trekkers!

Charity, children, and cheese steaks!

Our first day here was amazing! After beginning our day together in prayer over today's Gospal reading (Matthew 7:1-5), our hearts were prepared for our first day of mission work! We spent the morning at Whosoever Gospel Mission, and affiliate of Union Gospel Mission in Seattle, it turns out! This amazing program houses up to 40 men at a time and provides a comprehensive homelessness recovery program that includes job training, addiction counseling, resume writing, prayer and spirituality, and an amazing support network of employees, volunteers, and former residents. 1/3 of the annual 1.2 million dollar opertating expenses is raised through their two thrift stores, which process 6-8 tons of clothing donations every week! Our opportunity today was to help "power bale" this massive collection of donations for sale in the thrift store or donation overseas ( excess donations are sent to developing countries). We began our day outside in the mild summer weather, until a sudden downpour (for which everyone blamed the people from Seattle...) chased us inside to finish the task! The mountain of clothes to sort through was seriously staggering - at least 8 ft high and 15-20 ft wide and deep. We are proud to say that's we made a serious dent before getting to join the residents and graduates for a delicious lunch of Caribbean Rice. During lunch, we all sat with the men the Mission serves and got a chance to hear their stories of addiction, homelessness, and hope. Each of us heard different experiences, and each of us had our hearts touched in some special way. It was truly a blessing to be there. After lunch (and a few wrong turns) we made our way to our afternoon placement - the Harold O. Day Church summer camp, which serves low income families with low cost summer camp while parents are working. We got to play, talk with, make crafts, and generally have fun with the 20 or so kids, ages 3-14, that the camp serves...and Parker, Lauren and Sophia got to see first hand how hard it can be to lead a group activity as they lead the organized game time today! They did a great job of rolling with the punches and creating an afternoon that met all the kids needs! I was very impressed!! Needless to say, we all instantly fell in love with these beautiful children and are so excited to get to see them every day this week...even if one little girl DID say that she thought I was 52 years old because I have gray hair! Haha! Once camp wrapped up, we went to South Street, an eclectic part of the city that reminded me of College Ave in Berkeley, CA., and ate dinner at Jim's, a famous cheese steak shop! It was delicious!! So delicious that Josef ate TWO!! After spending a bit of time exploring that street, and discovering the amazingness that is frozen custard (ok, so maybe this was just Amanda...), our next destination was the waterfront to a pier with a beautiful view of the Camden, NJ, waterfront to debrief the day. The Trekkers all shared what had touched their hearts as they reflected on our first day, and spoke of the power of the conversations they had and hope they experienced at the Gospel Mission,as well as the mix of joy and heartbreak for the children we serve at the camp. All in all, we could not have asked for a better start to this week. God is present and moving among us, in our hearts, in our work, and in this city. Please continue to cover us in prayers as we continue this journey, ever anxious to be the instruments of God's love to the people we encounter. Specific prayer request: One of the men we met today, Tony, has a job interview tomorrow - he has been looking for work for quite some time now. Please lift him up as he prepares for that and ask God to make his heart ready to receive whatever plan He has for him. With so much love for the City of Brotherly Love! The 2012 Mission Trekkers

And we are off!

Due to technical difficulties at the housing site, I am not able to post from there - but will get to a location I can post from as often as possible! :) however, I currently cannot get the photos to upload, :( At 11:59pm Pacific time, the 2012 Mission Trekkers took off from SeaTac headed for Philadelphia! We are so excited to have started this incredible adventure! After a long, and for some, sleepless, flight to Philadelphia, via Houston, we arrived in the City of Brotherly Love at about 11:30am Eastern time. After a slight confusion about our rental vans...I had made a reservation, they did not have it...but in the end we got our vans...we headed off to find lunch at reading Terminal Market, a small version of Pike Place. Once our bellies were filled, we walked down to Independence Hall and got to learn about and see the Liberty Bell before heading to our housing site for the week and meeting our city guide, Brittany (not Spears...). We settled into our new home, had a brief orientation, and then went out to our first ethnic dinner - incredibly delicious Indian food at a local restaraunt. We all ate too much, but were pretty happy about it! Next on the agenda was a powerful prayer tour of the city, in which we traveled from the heart of downtown Philly into the most broken and impoverished neighborhoods, learning about the problems and challenges facing the people of Phily, and lifting them up at each step as we offered a decade of the Rosary at each stop. The night ended at a park overlooking the city as we shared what had impacted us most on the tour. From learning that the average age of the homeless in Philly is just 9 years old, to seeing the physical effects of poverty in the buildings we passed and prayed in front of, we all had our eyes opened and hearts broken for this both beautiful and hurting community. The depth of pain, heartbreak, and despair was literally palpable in some areas, but so was the hope and love that radiated from the voices of missionaries and ministers working in the neighborhoods that we listened to as we drove. In the end, we were all touched and moved by this incredible place, and eager to dive in and see what God has in store for us. Exhausted, but excited, we crashed on our air mattresses to get a good nights sleep before beginning our work tomorrow!

Heading to the City of Brotherly Love

On Saturday, June 23rd, 12 teens and adults from Holy Family Kirkland will fly to Philadelphia for a week of urban mission work! While there, we will post pictures from our travels, reflections on the people and things that touch us, stories of how God is working in our lives and shaping our journey, and prayer requests from the mission trekkers!

We invite you to check back here often to follow us as we strive to be the face of Christ to those we are privileged to serve in the incredible city of Philadelphia!!

As February 14th approaches...

Those of you who attended Steubenville NW 2 years ago or the Holy Family Conference this year will remember the fabulous Mary Bielski who spoke at both events. While scrolling through my Facebook, I noticed today that she had posted a new blog entry from her website and took a look - and immediately wanted to repost the link for you all to read and enjoy!

As Valentine's Day approaches, I encourage you to take a few minutes and read through her words of wisdom about modern day romance and the dreaded single-on-valentine's day dilemma!

Single or not - we could all use a reminder about which relationship in our life should take top billing and what REAL love is all about!

Enjoy!: http://marybielski.com/blog/?p=284

A Youth Minister's response to "Why I Hate Religion But Love Jesus"

I know I am maybe a week behind the peak of the attention and responses to the YouTube video “Why I Hate Religion and Love Jesus” but I felt that I needed the time to pray, reflect, and inform myself about the things this artist claims in that video. So despite the perhaps “tardiness” of this response, I feel called as a young, proud Catholic, and as your youth minister to, in fact, respond to what I believe to be a misguided, and if misinterpreted, potentially dangerous piece of social media.

Let me start by saying that I do not hate or even dislike the young man in the video. He has another video out that I think is wonderful and he clearly has a deep love of Jesus. What I dislike and disagree with are his opinions in this case.

You see, there is just enough “truth” mixed in with falsehoods, misconceptions and oversights to make this piece of media dangerous. The heart of the message is that he is claiming that Jesus and religion are two separate things – and that Jesus came to end religion. The basis of this argument is not true – in Matthew 5:17, Jesus says “Do not think that I have come to abolish the law or the prophets. I have come not to abolish but to fulfill.” Jesus did not come to end religion (the Law) he came to, as Fr. Barron said in his own response, to take what was good and right about the Jewish religion and raise it to a new plane – Christianity. In fact, Jesus himself was a rabbi and a faithful follower of His Jewish religion. Yes, Jesus reprimanded the Pharisees – but what he was upset about was not their religion – it was the fact that they had gotten so caught up in the power they had that they lost sight of what they were supposed to be – holy, humble men leading their followers closer to God.

The artist goes on to explain his rationale behind this claim by citing a series of “facts” about religion that he is using to support the argument that religion is not what Jesus was about. Some of what he says is true (voting Republican does not mean you are a Christian) but a lot of it is completely false where the Catholic Church is concerned. He claims the Church does not care for the poor, but the truth is that Catholic Community Services is the largest private provider of assistance to the poor in the United States. He claims that the Church tells single moms that God does not love them if they have ever been divorced, but the truth is that the Catholic Church welcomes everyone and preaches that we are all beloved Children of God, no matter what our past holds. And perhaps most shocking of all is that he claims that Jesus is of God and that the Church is of man. The truth is that the Catholic Church was founded by Jesus himself when he appointed Peter as it’s head in Matthew 16:18 - “And so I say to you, you are Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church,^* and the gates of the netherworld shall not prevail against it.” And for hundred’s of years after His death, there was only Christian religion – Catholicism. So you see, his entire argument is not founded on fact, but on distortions of the truth. When held up and examined in the light of real Truth, it does not hold water.

But he does not stop there – and here is where this video has the potential to do real and lasting harm if not given proper context. He goes on to talk about something that we have all likely experienced at one time or another – the fact that there are many people who go through life claiming to be Christian, but not living up to that claim. He talks about the way that people “put on a show” making it seem from the outside that they are good or holy, while the reality of their inner or private lives tells a very different story. And I have to agree with him here – I hate this. I hate the false-front and hypocrisy that we find in the world – whether it is at Church, a corporation, or our government. I hate it when people are not being their authentic selves – especially when the lie they show the world undermines something as beautiful, loving, sacred, and REAL as Christianity.

But let’s be clear about what we are talking about here – what I hate, and what I would argue the artist actually hates is not religion – it is hypocrisy. It is the human element in our divinely inspired and founded Church that is broken and failing and too afraid to show that reality to the world. And yes, I think we can all agree that we hate hypocrisy.

But hypocrisy is NOT religion. And religion is NOT hypocrisy.

Living an authentic Christian life is about the work you do in the world (Matthew 25:31-46) just as much as it is about your personal relationship with Christ. To be “authentically Christian” one element cannot exist without the other – “So also faith of itself, if it does not have works, is dead.” James 2:17.

And there is no denying that Christianity IS a religion. Religion is defined as “commitment or devotion to religious faith or observance” and a Christian is a follower of Christ. Being part of Christianity, and particularly Catholicism, means joining these two things together to create a completeness that does not exist otherwise.

See, this is the third place where the artist falls short in his claims – if you listen carefully to his story about his life, you will notice something subtle, but shocking. It is all about him – all you hear is how he was saved, what God did for him, how his life was transformed by the grace of God. And all of this is good and glorious. But in his rant against religion, he forgets something. Religion – Christianity – is about a relationship. It is about a give and take, a conversation, and a communion between two people. Its not all about us. Its not all about what God does, or does not do, for or to us. That’s only half the picture – it is also about how we give back to God – how we thank Him, praise Him, glorify Him. It is about falling on our knees in humility and thanksgiving for the incredible love He shows us. It is about coming together with our brothers and sisters, as imperfect as we all are, and joining in one voice to sing praise to Our Father, receive Him into our hearts and our bodies, and ask for His grace to do better tomorrow than we did today. That is what our Catholic religion gives us – it gives us the rituals, Sacraments, Traditions, and community to strive to be who God is calling us to be and to thank Him for all that He has given us – most especially the gift of His Son, really present to us in the Holy Sacrament of the Eucharist.

Religion is about love, community, thanksgiving, tradition, and honoring God. Yes - hypocrisy exists within it but just as the presence of a criminal within a house does not make it a jail, the presence of imperfection in religion does not make it evil.

Jesus did not come to abolish religion; He came to show us what it is really supposed to be about.