An angel said to Joseph in a dream, “Rise, take the child and his mother, flee to Egypt, and stay there until I tell you. Herod… is searching for the child to destroy him.” Who would want to destroy a child? What must be the anguish, the horror to be a parent who fears for their child’s life?
The horror began when we were driven off our land. I lived my whole life on this land, as did my parents and theirs. I’ve nurtured the soil, tended the animals, and fed my children from these labors of love. But now, companies that sell sugar lay claim to it all. Gangs of soldiers employed by the companies came in the night. They rousted us from sleep and drove us into the forest. We’ve spent two nights living off the land but the soldiers keep lurking and it is not safe. We’ve decided to travel to the city. We crouch in its shadows. There is no work here. There are garbage pits upon which people have built hovels. Food waste can be picked through. We will not starve to death this week. But there are so many people; thousands, tens of thousands. Will we starve to death next week, the week after? Some of the children are becoming their own gangs of soldiers. They too rob and rape. I will not watch my child do to others the same thieving and violence done to us. My child is not safe. I have a hope, a dream to find a better life, ‘Rise, take the child and his mother, flee, and stay there until I tell you. Rulers are searching for the child to destroy him.’ We’ve been hundreds of miles walking. We huddle in the rain and seek shade in the heat and still, we keep walking. Some regions are less safe than others and we are attacked and robbed. We spent three weeks at one country’s border. Officials gave us visa application paperwork but they kept intentionally making clerical errors so we couldn’t proceed. We decided to go around the border crossing and travel through the jungle. Some of our group died along the way. We buried them as best we could. It is mostly desert now. We travel at night but most of our provisions are gone. Here and there angels leave gifts of water. They save our lives and help us on our journey. The Rio Bravo is ahead. It is our hope to cross it to a better life. It is our child’s dream to live a fuller life. Who there will bid me, ‘Rise, bring the child?’
“There was a time when love was blind And the world was a song And the song was exciting There was a time Then it all went wrong I dreamed a dream in time gone by When hope was high And life worth living I dreamed that love would never die … But the tigers come at night With their voices soft as thunder As they tear your hope apart As they turn your dream to shame … But there are dreams that cannot be And there are storms we cannot weather I had a dream my life would be So different from this hell I’m living So different now from what it seemed.” (Les Misérables: I Dreamed a Dream – Claude-Michel Schönberg)
Prayer: Spirit, I vow to receive children and all their dreams.
Question: What is my dream for the holy families who journey?
December 29, 2019 Gospel Matthew 2:13-15, 19, 23 Feast of the Holy Family