Author: ANTONINO

WHAT PUNK ROCKERS TAUGHT ME ABOUT BAPTISM

One day, I was taking a walk through one of the streets of the city of San Francisco (California). With me there were two friends from Portugal. One was Fr. Aires Gameiro, at that time professor of Psychology in the Catholic University of Lisbon, and presently living in Funchal, and the other one was Jorge (at the time an immigrant from Portugal, living in San Francisco). We were just enjoying our walk, and talking about people, about ideas and about things.

At a certain moment we saw a group of young people, doing nothing, just talking and laughing together, dressed in a strange way, with strange colours and strange hair styles, also in different and strange colours. I was told that they were a group of «Punk Rockers». I thought that I was, and I think I am, very open to diversity and to surprises, but I confess that I was not open to see what I considered to be such an ugly scene. They were not doing anything wrong. They were just making an «ugly-looking» scene. If one of them hugged me I would feel the need to take a shower.

Then I said «I wish I had a friend punk rocker.» My intention was not to change him or to convert him or her, but to ask what they found attractive about that way of living and that way of dressing. Because to me, that looked so ugly and even repugnant to see those boys and girls like that. They were not doing anything wrong. They were just dressing and acting like a bunch of idiots wasting their time. How could they find that attractive, when to me they looked so repellent? This was the question I would have liked to ask.

That’s when Fr. Gameiro told me: «They are not there because they find it attractive. They are there to fulfil their need of belonging». Then he added that «the basic need of the human being is the need to belong. Most of them don’t belong to a family anymore. They don’t belong to a church anymore. But they still feel this terrible need burning them from inside out. They need to belong. And when they see any young person dressed like that they know that they belong to them.

THAT’S WHY I AM SO MISERABLE

He was what they call «a dangerous guy». One day, when this car was passing by, surrounded by body guards and in a caravan carrying «Very Important People» he pulled out a gun, killed the Mayor of the city and wounded another man». It was not difficult to catch the killer and arrest him. During one of the interrogatories he was asked: «What church do you belong to?». His answer was: «I don’t belong to anything. I don’t belong to anybody, that’s why I am so miserable».

3.

THE BAPTISM OF THE LORD

Today, January 13, 2019, the Catholic Church celebrates the Festivity of the Baptism of the Lord. Celebrating the Baptism of the Lord we are celebrating our own Baptism. Since I had this experience with the punk rockers I started calling BAPTISM, THE SACRAMENT OF BELONGING.

With our Baptism we start belonging to the Body of Christ. We start belonging to the family of God. We start belonging to one another. We are important to one another. We need one another.

Some Bible scholars think that the Church started at the Calvary when Jesus, hanging on the cross, said: «John! Take care of my mother. Mother take care of John». Life is about relationships. Church is about relationships. We are baptized to be part of the family of God and to take care of one another. Life is about belonging. Church is about belonging. Belonging is about taking care of one another.

Fr. Bernardino Andrade

One of the highest moments of my first trip to England (when I was invited by my friends Neil and Dena Spence last summer) was my visit to Powis Castle in Wales. It is impossible to believe that place has been a family residence unless someone tries hard to convince you. Now, of course, it is a museum with a fascinating garden. Inside the Castle there are many big things and many little things. But all of them are a symbol of grandiosity and wealth.

One of the things that constantly called my attention were signs located in different places close to different objects that said: «To preserve me don’t touch me».

Every time I saw one of those signs I thought “I wish I could go around the world and put a sign in every person, especially in the poor, in the homeless, in every child and in every unborn child, in every elderly person, in every saint and in every criminal, in every nun and in every prostitute, every farmer and in every politician, in every prisoner no matter the cause of his imprisonment, in every race, colour and religion, in every insignificant human being but with the opposite message: «If you want to preserve me please touch me”.

“If you want to preserve me hug me, let me cry on your shoulder, feed me even if I look dirty, smell bad and look like a bum. Please touch me, alleviate my pain, free me from this horrible misery, walk with me until I am free from my addictions, teach me about God. I know that I am insignificant and you feel embarrassed before your friends if they see you talking with me or having a cup of coffee with me. But… please touch me. Please don’t just say that I am like this because I want. That hurts me and doesn’t help me”.

“Christmas is God’s way of honouring the insignificant” (Rev. Dr. Robert Schuller).

God became man with the purpose that every human being would become God. “Please touch me. But please touch me with the same respect and tenderness that a priest touches a consecrated host”.

Christmas is God’s way of honouring the insignificant.

Christmas will be my and your way of honouring the insignificant. My dream is that one day you will find a person who feels he or she is insignificant and you invite him/her to come to church with you and sit at your side.

I am planning to ask our Bishop permission to say a Sunday Mass, weekly or monthly, especially dedicated to the homeless but open to all people, with this slogan: «Come as you are». Yes! No matter how insignificant you feel you are. Just come. If you are wearing the same clothes for one year without taking a shower, just come as you are. If you are smelling like urine or anything else, please come as you are. If you have no shoes and long toenails come as you are. If your hair has not seen a comb for one month or more, come as you are.

Come and sing even if you don’t know how to sing, come and pray even if you don’t know how to pray. If you come late or leave early don’t worry, but please come as you are. If you are Catholic, Protestant, Muslim or Hindu or no religious affiliation, just please come as you are. Whenever you did this for one of the least important of these brothers of mine, you did it for me. (Math. 25: 40)

“Christmas is God’s way of honouring the insignificant”

Love and Peace,
Fr. Bernardino Andrade

– Brought to you by Fr. Bernardino Andrade (bernardinodandrade@gmail.com)

There are many symbols that remind us about Christmas. There are carols, lots of lights, decorations and many many more beautiful things that unite believers and non-believers around the same event that is the Birth of Jesus. For me, nothing else reminds me more about Christmas than the presence or the thought of a pregnant woman. Every time I see a pregnant woman, the first thought that comes to my mind is the thought of a tabernacle carrying a living Jesus.

It is also the thought of Advent. This time of Advent is not the time of «waiting» for the Birth of Jesus but it is especially a time of «expectation». «Waiting» is more a passive action like when we are waiting for the bus or in the airport waiting to embark when the airplane is arriving two or three hours late. «Expecting» is being in action 24 hours a day. That’s why Advent is supposed to be a very active time inside each one of us, like the growing process of the Baby Jesus inside the womb of His mother or the growing process of any baby growing inside the womb of its mother. Advent is a time of change. It is, like Lent, a time of renewal and cleaning. What am I planning to happen inside me during this time of Advent? Would you like to make a short list and try? Christmas will be a better Christmas if we have a better and more spiritual Advent.

Every year, around the second Sunday of Advent (December 8th), the Church celebrates the Feast of the Immaculate Conception. It is like a «Baby Shower» for Jesus’ Mother.

In this «Baby Shower» of Jesus’ Mother, there are two key words that can be of great inspiration for us.
One is «Rejoice». «Rejoice, the Lord is with you». This was the way the Angel Gabriel greeted Mary when he announced to her that she was going to be the Mother of Jesus.

I know people who, instead of greeting each other with the traditional «Good morning» or «Good evening», use the words the Angel Gabriel used to greet Mary in such an important moment of her life and the life of the world. It can be: «Rejoice, Thelma, the Lord is with you». «Rejoice Francis, the Lord is with you». «Rejoice Rita, the Lord is with you». I learned a long time ago that every word carries energy. I suspect that greeting each other with these words from the Gospel (Luke 1) will have an impact in each other with a very positive energy that can change the day of a friend or of an enemy. REJOICE. THE LORD IS WITH YOU!

The other word is «Mary, do not be afraid… for nothing is impossible to God» (luke 1). Why not, instead of saying «Good bye», «I will see you tomorrow», just say «John, do not be afraid, for nothing is impossible to God», « Lutchi, do not be afraid. For nothing is impossible to God». «Ana, do not be afraid, for nothing is impossible to God».

Please have a very happy Advent… Please rejoice, the Lord is with you… Please do not be afraid for nothing is impossible to God.

Love and Peace,
Fr. Bernardino Andrade
PEOPLE HELPING PEOPLE – Mobilizing Many People

1.
For the first time, People Helping People has been collecting vegetables from some farmers who live far away in the country side. It has been a very exciting time. It has been the best Christmas preparation provided by People Helping People for the poor families we have ever had. Because People Helping People does not recognise boundaries, lots of time and gas has been spent in the streets of Madeira Island with the purpose of alleviating the suffering of so many hurting families. Most of them don’t have access to other institutions or don’t qualify for help. No papers and no documents are asked. Our point of reference is always the suffering of the people and our love for them.

2.
ADOPT A FAMILY FOR CHRISTMAS –
TO PRESERVE ME, TOUCH ME.
The best gift we can give to the poor for Christmas is our love. When I visited an old museum on my visit to England I saw many signs with these words “TO PRESERVE ME, DON’T TOUCH ME”. And I thought: with People Helping People it works in the opposite way. I felt like walking around the city of Funchal and putting signs on every poor and homeless person I found, with these words: “TO PRESERVE ME, TOUCH ME”. We are proposing to you a new experience for this Christmas that is: “ADOPT A FAMILY FOR CHRISTMAS”. Please ADOPT A FAMILY. We have a long list of needy families. One of the ways of adopting a family is to give your name to a member of our project PHP, and this person will make the bridge between you and Dalila Oliveira, who is the Coordinator of the distribution. You can mention your preference: If you want to know the family and donate personally, or if you would like to help a family with children, or if you just want to donate to any family. You are welcome to buy food or a special present or just some special financial gift. No rules. No strings attached.
The couple to contact is Koen & Manuela Van Doninck.
Phone: 96-29-28-026 or 93-34-28-813. EMAIL: koen.manuela@gmail.com

ANTS

My niece, Romaninha, came from Brasil to spend some time with me in California. One day I «caught» her in the patio, seated on the pavement and playing with ants. She was already an adult, a matured woman, married and mother of two children. She felt a bit embarrassed because she felt that she had been «caught» doing something very childish. What was the game? The ants were forming a long long line as they usually do. They always communicated with those that were walking in a different direction, as they always do. And my niece’s game was to put obstacles in their path to divert them from their destiny.

She tried little rocks, little sticks, bigger rocks and bigger sticks but nothing worked. The conclusion was that if you want to divert ants from their destiny you have to kill them. Death only.Nothing else works. They have a goal, and they get the support from one another and always try to overcome any kind of obstacle. They have a goal and are willing to give their lives to achieve their goal. Death only can stop them.

FIREMEN

Last week (24/11/2018) I had the privilege of being invited to say a special Mass for, and with, the firemen of Funchal. I reflected with them about their job. And how much inspiration I get from them in my life. I compared them with the «normal» institutions. I told them different stories of different institutions and compared it with their stories.

A mother of a large family was called by a special institution to go there to pick up some food that had been reserved for her family. Of course the institutions don’t provide transportation even if they know that the poor have no transportation. Margaret (not her true name) asked Dalila (her true name) for a lift. Dalila went to help Margaret. When they arrived, there were five bags of food waiting for them at the institution. Margaret was very happy. Meanwhile the institution had the obligation of checking for crossing information. Yes. Margaret was caught. According to the rules of this institution Margaret was a cheater. Another institution, the week before, had given to Margaret’s family, some money.

According to the rules of the institution that was enough probably for the rest of their lives. According to them Margaret was a cheater. According to them, she was taking advantage from two different institutions. The five bags of food were left on the floor. Dalila and Margaret and her little son, Cristiano, left with their empty hands, their empty stomachs and their empty souls. On their way home, Dalila called me and invited me for a cup of coffee. I went for a cup of coffee. We offered Margaret and her son something to eat.

I will never forget this scene:

Cristiano grabbed the glass of milk and a pastry we had ordered for him and he didn’t «drink» the milk or «eat» the pastry. Cristiano devoured everything almost without breathing. He was so hungry and so skinny. But the institution hadn’t ask them if they were hungry. Instead they had asked a cold and cruel computer.

Recently we accompanied to an institution, a lady who had arrived from Venezuela where she had had everything. She came to an Island where she has nothing. We just asked for some food. The social worker was very kind, which is not usual. When we finished the conversation, I was expecting some food that they had in abundance. To my disappointment what we brought from that institution was a list of documents that the lady was supposed to present to see if she qualified for help!

I had thousands of stories like this to tell the firemen.

Then I told them some stories about firemen and compared it with the institutions.

When firemen are asked for help they don’t ask who owned the knife or the pistol, who started the fight, who lit the fire, who was over speeding. They don’t even ask for their names or any documents. The only questions they ask are: «Where is it hurting? Where is it bleeding? What is broken? How can I help you? How can I help to alleviate your suffering?

THE GOOD SHEPHERD

For me the story of the Good Shepherd is, like the story of the Prodigal Son, (Luke 15) a Gospel inside the Gospel. The Shepherd was taking care of one hundred sheep. One got lost. He leaves ninety nine and goes looking for his lost sheep. When He has found it he lays it on his shoulders and rejoices and tells his friends and neighbours, saying to them: «Rejoice with me for I have found my sheep that was lost». He does not ask for papers, for documents or the reasons why the sheep got lost. No questions asked. Just love transformed into service.

Mother Teresa says that «when we start by judging we have no time to love».

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ANTS, FIREMEN AND THE GOOD SHEPHERD have been for me the greatest inspirations of my life. With ANTS, I have learned to have a vision and never quit even if I have to give my life for it. «Don’t start quitting… Never quit from starting», It’s the name of a book. With FIREMEN, I have learned to help people without judging them.
With the GOOD SHEPHERD, I have learned to reach out for everyone with a special preference for the lost, the least and the last.

Love and Peace,
Fr. Bernardino Andrade