2004 Mission to the Hogar Rafael Ayau Orphanage in Guatemala
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Part 1 - Monday. June 28, 2004 By the grace of God, our (parish) Mission Team 2004 has returned "in safety and tranquility" - though a bit exhausted - from our ten-day trip to Guatemala City and the Hogares Rafael Ayau and San Miguel Magone. As most of you already know, those are the two Orthodox orphanages in Guatemala that are filled with over one hundred and fifty abandoned, abused and orphaned children, ranging from infants to seventeen year olds, under the over-all protection and guidance of Madre Ines, who is also the abbess of the Lavre Mambre monastery outside of Guatemala City. The day-to-day oversight and administration of the Hogar Rafael is entrusted to Madre Ivonne, that of San Miguel to Padre Emmanuel. We were blessed with a wonderful team that worked together splendidly and which remains, not only on speaking terms, but much more closely knit together than before! We further hope that we were able to live up to the prayer that we offered to God before we left that included the following petition: And grant that they may fulfill all their good purpose unto Thy good pleasure, and favorably to Thy glory ... And there was already a good deal of animated discussion about "returning next year." In fact, presvytera Deborah, our able and experienced team leader for the second year in a row, has been invited to lead a kind of "summer camp" for the children at the Hogar Rafael during the first two weeks of July in 2005. We will see how this develops ... Presvytera Deborah and I each returned for the third time, accompanied by our two children, Anastasia and Paul, first-time visitors. All of the remaining eleven members of our team (including a ten year old girl) were also first-time visitors. In the end, we all shared one thing in common: that unique "Hogar experience" of being overwhelmed by the children. This is quite difficult, if not impossible, to describe. Yet realizing the inadequacy of my words, I would still offer the following admittedly personal observations that just may be shared by others: A searingly painful awareness - that both pierces the heart and troubles the conscience - of the physical and psychic damage suffered by these children through abandonment and abuse; together with a hope-sustaining and life-affirming awareness of the "miracle" of transformation that occurs in the bodies, souls and hearts of these very children through both divine and human love, both of which are palpably present at the Hogares on a daily basis. And by the grace and to the glory of God, it is the latter that ultimately prevails. This is witnessed to by the countless stories of these real transformations that the Madres enthusiastically share with visitors and which brings forth genuine tears of joy. This in no way leads to a superficial and cheery optimism, for we could hardly project, with any kind of realism, a "happy ending" for each child or blindly dismiss the relentless day-to-day struggle to feed, clothe, and guide so many children. But there is nothing that exists that is more powerful than genuine love for "God is love." (I JN. 4:8) When that revealed truth is transferred from the realm of the abstract into very human and "flesh-and-blood" situations, it becomes the immediate source of the hope and life referred to above as part of the "Hogar experience."
Of course there are the more obvious "life-lessons" that can be learned at the Hogar. To mention just a few: the uneasy awareness that sets in about just how "spoiled" and materialistic we all are and how we raise our children to be the same; how much time we spend on mindless and distracting "entertainment;" how we miss the simple joys of life through our self-centeredness and a misguided sense of priorities; and how we marginalize God in our lives and keep Him in reserve for "emergencies."
If you will bear with me, I would like to follow up on these general observations and write further about this year's Mission Team experience in the days to come. I would like to pass on some of the work that was accomplished together with some other stories and anecdotes that may prove to be worthy of your attention.
Fr. Steven
Part 2 - Wednesday, June 30, 2004 Dear Fathers, Parish Faithful & Friends in Christ, Our one Mission Team totalled seventeen persons: fourteen being members of my parish of Christ the Savior/Holy Spirit in Cincinnati, Ohio (Midwest Diocese of the OCA); two former members of our parish; and a young woman from Seattle who was attached to our team. As stated earlier, we were all under the able direction of our team leader, Presvytera Deborah Kostoff. All Mission Teams are strongly encouraged to have a priest as part of it, and I was blessed with fulfilling this role on the Team. Upon arrival in Guatemala City, however, we were immediately divided into two teams of unequal size, the division being made between twelve women and five men. The women (including a ten year old girl) were taken to the Hogar Rafael Ayau; and the men (including my sixteen year old son) to the Hogar San Miguel Magone. The two orphanages, in two very different settings, are about thirty minutes apart from one another. As will be described below, our two groups connected many times during our ten-day visit. In this particular "meditation," I will briefly describe some of the charateristic features, and our experiences of, the Hogar San Miguel. The Hogar San Miguel, newly-acquired in January, is now home to twenty-eight boys ranging between the ages of ten and sixteen. (On a previous visit in Janurary, my daughter and I happened to arrive on the very day of the transfer of San Miguel to the spiritual and administrative care of Madre Ines and we participated in the blessing of the entire grounds - a very moving experience indeed). It is actually located outside of Guatemala City, in Mixco, along a steadily rising and winding road that affords a magnificent view of the sprawling city below. It is surrounded by a dense woods of splendidly tall and graceful trees. It is very peaceful and quiet. The Hogar San Miguel is now under the direct pastoral care, supervision and administration of Padre Emmanuel Rodriguez. Padre Emmanuel is a "convert" to Orthodoxy, born and raised in Mexico. He graduated from St. Tikhon's Theological Seminary in Pennsylvania just a few years ago. He and his wife, matushka Nancy, have two lovely young boys. In just a short period of time, the Hogar San Miguel has experienced a real transformation. All the buildings have been cleaned and freshly painted and, at the center of all life and activity, a new chapel has been prepared. Vespers is served on a daily basis, and there is usually at least one week-day Liturgy. The boys are bussed back to the Hogar Rafael for the Sunday Liturgy with the other children. Many of the older boys who experienced the transfer of San Miguel from one "caretaker" to another, have willingly embraced the Orthodox Faith, about a dozen or so being newly-chrismated on Pentecost. There are a few who are not Orthodox, with one of them being a catechumen. As at the Hogar Rafael, the Church is undoubtedly the main source of stability, healing and hope. "El Senor Jesuchristo" is very much an integral part of, and presence in, the life of San Miguel. The boys do all of the serving, chanting and singing in the services. Their knowledge of the order of the services and the hymnography is quite impressive. As an obedience, the chapel is carefully cleaned on a dailybasis. Worshipping and praying with them continues to be an unforgettable experience. Trying to avoid any excessive detail, I will simply say that the boys have a daily schedule (that begins with a 5:30 a.m. wake-up - that would in turn, alas, wake us up! - and chores ) including, of course, their school curriculum. A small staff of teachers arrives early in the morning for this purpose. Many of the boys, due to their chaotic and troubled lives, are clearly in the laborious process of "catching up" to their grade level. There is also a carpentry shop (a real favorite) and a bakery (samplings of which would make it to the lunch or dinner table). "Free-time" was something of a free-for-all, with simultaneous games of basketball, soccer, and baseball being on a fairly restricted cement playground space. To venture out into that space demanded extra vigilance, for balls of various shapes and sizes were continuously whirring and whizzing through the air from every conceivable angle, often at "head-level." With an instinctive flick-of-the-wrist that made my hand an impromptu shield, I once spared myself from near decapitation when a soccer ball came careening toward my head. This drew a spontaneous round of applause from the some of the boys and the Spanish cry for "goalie" as I managed to deflect the ball. Mission Teams that are present for a short period of time can, perhaps at best, only see the surface of things. Tensions, problems and conflicts that are "behind the scenes" are not always easy to detect, but certainly they must exist in a community of twenty-eight boys who, besides having very different personalities with their attendant flaws, just about to a person have suffered from both abandonment and abuse. And, for the most part, they are teen-agers! Some of this is present in day-to-day jostling for postition and arguments. Yet, without wanting to sound overly-naive, sentimental or, even worse, "utopian," I must comment on just how spontaneously warm, friendly, affectionate and embracing all of the boys were to us. And I would be quite surprised if any of the other men in our group disagreed. Many are like young hosts greeting visitors who have come a long distance to spend some time with them. The boys appreciate and respect you as a "missionary;" but you appreciate and respect them equally in return as unique and unforgettable individuals. You form lasting friendships with at least certain of the boys, begin corresponding with them on a regular basis, think of suitable or useful gifts for the future - and begin mentally planning your return visit! (I hope to treat the issue of adoption from my limited perspective in a future piece). One final anecdote: I noticed on our last evening there, that some of the boys were absent from their usual places at the dinner table. As revealed later, they were in the carpentry shop franctically putting the last touches on a number of wood crossed that they were preparing for us as parting gifts. They presented the crosses to us with great pride and we received them with humility and thanksgiving. A particularly large and well-made cross will find a suitable place somewhere in our church in the near future. I hope to add something concerning the Hogar Rafael in the near future. Padre Esteban
Part 3 - Friday, July 2, 2004 Dear Fathers, Parish Faithful and Friends in Christ,
The twelve women members of our Mission Team, as mentioned in the previous part of this series, were assigned to the Hogar Rafael Ayau. This, of course, is the Hogar that most people either know or have some familiarity with. Surrounded by a fifteeen-foot wall on all four sides in the tough and intensely urban setting of Guatemala City's "zona 1," the Hogar may be perceived as something of a "fortress" as it offers needed protection to the children from the harsh realities of a world that has already cost them untold grief. Yet, the more convincing image may be that of a "haven" or even "spiritual oasis," for the liturgical and sacramental life of the Church is a daily reality in which the children are both immersed and healed. Here, one can experience first-hand the unique experiment of an orphanage that has the rhythm and "feel" of a children's monastery. The Hogar is therefore not merely a holding ground for abandoned and unwanted children, but a place of spiritual maturity, growth and over-all transformation in the name of "El Senor Jesuchristo." To witness this is to fully understand why the refrain of the Hogar - BIG IS GOD! - is repeated on a daily basis. Mother Maria addressed our team one evening and explained how this is a long and difficult process that demands great patience and perseverance. To inadequately summarize her stirring talk, I would focus on a crucial point that she made: the children slowly but steadily learn to trust the madres and Padre Emmanuel (and many of the staff) because they know that they are loved. And they now know that they will not be harmed; indeed that they are protected from the harm they suffered earlier in their lives. So many of them come from a loveless life that also created situations of abuse. That, of course, only breeds mistrust. Their new environment is totally different, and they begin to "open up" and respond to this love inspired by God. Having been blessed with the opportunity of returning to the Hogar more than once, I can say that I have witnessed this change in more than a few children and it is always amazing. Mother Maria was speaking to us in the church following the Saturday evening Vigil of Great Vespers and Matins in preparation for the Sunday morning Liturgy. With the help of Mother Maria, the entire Vigil of about two hours was sung and chanted by the children. As she was speaking to us after the service, a group of "las senoritas" (the older girls between ten and sixteen) were quietly and efficiently cleaning the church as part of their obedience. They seemed to be enjoying themselves. This particular evening's assignment was perhaps "special," in that the girls were cleaning the church following a rather extensive expansion of the inner space of the church that was, I believe, a months-long process. A great deal of new space was created in order to accomodate all of the boys who come to this church from San Miguel on Sundays and certain Feasts and a growing number of visitors who now also worship there. Two new "wings" have greatly enhanced the existing space of the nave, as the church now "breathes" more easily in this new and light-filled area. And this is where our Mission Team comes in and where we (literally) left our mark - for we painted the entire church! We arrived at the completion of the construction and were assigned with the task/obedience of adding the final and essential touch of a new "paint job" to the church's interior. To further inspire us, we were given the goal of having it all completed "by Sunday" in time for the Liturgy (and Mother Ines' "inspection!") Since our first full day was a Thursday, this left us only three days for what was a formidable undertaking considering all of the wall space in what is a rather spacious church. Actually, this was initially a job for the women, for the men were assigned to work with the boy at the Hogar San Miguel. And the women immersed themselves into their work with great determination, skill and zeal (well, something like that ...) However, this gallant effort would probably have come up short without the further assistance of those of us - the male members of the Team - who were brought over from San Miguel for the final two days of painting. Imbued with a sense of self-importance at being so needed, the men also applied themselves with full vigor. With a united effort and in a spirit of co-operation and fellowship, the church was actually painted in time for the Vigil on Saturday evening mentioned above. On Sunday morning, Mother Ines was delighted with the "new look" and, after a splendid Liturgy, expressed her thankfulness to our Team. Somewhat exhausted but justifiably satisfied with a well-accomplished task, we spent a basically care-free day on Sunday following the Liturgy and lunch, joining the children on their "movie day" in the lobby of the administration building and being treated to fresh, homemade popcorn. Padre Esteban |
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