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A simple mind and heart to reciprocate
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Paul Anthony, a Jesuit scholastic and member of the Hurtado Jesuit Community that lives with JRS UK, reflects on a recent conversation about migration.
I was fortunate to attend the session on ‘Migration Conversation’ by Br Stephen Power SJ at the Hurtado Jesuit Centre. It was very informative and the statistics presented were an eye opener. Later, we had a discussion in different groups and I was very much drawn to their sharings. Some of the participants were migrants themselves. Many shared their feelings of sentiments, and what they did with migrants and refugees. What they said was inspiring and heart touching and came from deep down themselves.
When I was in Andhra Province (one of the South Asian Provinces of Society of Jesus), I used to share more often about JRS and its mission to the novice candidates, and in my Vocation Promotion talks to them. The little knowledge I was gleamed from books and newsletters of our congregation I never had met any refugee or volunteer working in JRS. Now I am fortunate enough to be placed in the Hurtado Jesuit Community, in London, as a part of my theology studies. JRS is part of Hurtado Jesuit community’s mission, now I can meet people involved in refugee works as well as asylum seekers and refugees as well. My interaction with refugees is short but it has created a huge impact on me. Simple ‘smiles’, ‘hellos’ and ‘goodbyes’ produce ripples of happiness and joy in their faces. I am not able to advise them on legal matters but simply present myself and share the rapport of a mutual smile. My experience has been similar to that of all those who shared during the discussions, though their sharing has enriched my understanding and feelings towards refugees and migrants.
It is not qualification and experience which matter to have but a simple mind and heart to reciprocate ‘Hi’, ‘Hello’ to those who are in need. ‘When I was hungry, you gave me to eat and when I was thirsty, you gave me to drink’. People not merely long for the satisfaction of physical needs but also for emotional and relational needs. They are hungry for the food of communication and communion and thirsty to receive the water of compassion and acceptance. They desire a space to share their feelings.
The sharing was a great breakthrough and showed me how I need to respond and grow spiritually. It made me realise that the best present I could give to the refugees is my pleasure at our presence together. I have discovered ways to make others happy and to be happy myself.
Discovering Oneself behind the Lenses - Photo Session Epilogue
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| Photo by Fourtotwentychars from Foter.com |
Ingrid, photographer and Founding Director at Fotosynthesis, shares her experience of organising a portrait day at JRS.
What did you today?
We had fun! Taking pictures of people and catching their smiles.
How many people came? How many photos did you take?
27, I can’t count how many pictures we took, they would not stop posing!
What did you see?
I saw people coming from the outside and looking cold and shy or hiding behind coats and hats. And then I saw them glowing, proud, some really felt like models. That was quite nice to see. They quite surprised to see the result and how beautiful they are... The people who came showed us a secret part of their person, it was quite an intimate afternoon with strangers. And they all want the pictures!
What do you enjoy about taking portraits?
I like the interaction you need to have with people, to engage with them. You have to make them feel relaxed and joke and... it’s funny, I don’t know their names or where they are from. It was more like ‘hey! come in, let’s relax and do the pictures’. It was quite enjoyable. I enjoyed working with M, my colleague, he is good about making people laugh. I liked the simplicity with the people here. I do a lot of photo shoots, but I didn’t see anyone being critical, they just felt good the way they were, which is not often the case. I really liked how people left the room full of energy. One thing is there is a lot of trust, they really trusted us to tell them, which position to sit in or pose, so they did very well.
Did you learn anything today?
I don’t know if I learned anything new, but I remembered again the transformative effect that a photoshoot has on people. The photoshoot breaks the wall, it has an instant positive effect. It was a very therapeutic and hopeful day.
One of the participants said: “It was the best, it made me happy!” Is there anything else you would like to say?
I’d like to be a little mouse and see people’s faces when they see their pictures and see their reactions to the photos, to hear their experience of being photographed. And I’ll be excited to see where the images end up, in a family album or who knows?!
More information on Fotosynthesis, visit here.
Look out for more information and images telling a story about JRS’s work here on this blog soon...!
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Advent Together
Kate and Rosemary both took part in Pax Christi’s annual Advent Service at St Aloysius church near Euston in London this week. Kate shares what she enjoyed about the occasion.
Jesuit Refugee Service UK was invited to offer a testimony and focus for prayer for a gathering of people who work for justice all the way through the year. We were together to listen to stories, reflect on scripture and sing. The event was both intercession for people who all year round struggle in impossible circumstances and a festive celebration at the same time.
This service was particularly important to me. It was beautifully designed and presented with a lot of thought and love - whether through the choir, Westminster Deaf Service interpreters or the different creative stations for prayer. It is not often that I feel my worship truly reflects my work and commitment to working for peace. So I am grateful that on occasion we were able to honour refugees, those caught up in the troubles in the Holy Land, women who suffer from violence and those who seek to transform conflict throughout the world.
Each theme had a scripture verse, a personal story, a prayer from Pope Francis or a litany and a song. During the service we were all invited to make a pilgrimage around the church to each area, by way of accompanying people throughout the world who find themselves in situations of flight, discrimination, trafficking or isolation. We sang in English, Arabic and Hebrew and made a commitment to instil in our hearts the courage to take concrete steps to achieve peace. It meant a lot to me to share those words with a mix of people who I know do that in their daily lives.
After the service, we all went downstairs to share a mince pie and glass of wine. JRS had a stall with crafts made by refugees in Kenya (www.jrsea.org/mikono) and sold more than £100 of products. Thank you to everyone who bought something from us.
Read more about Pax Christi’s work: www. paxchristi.org.uk
Read more about JRS’ work in Syria: http://en.jrs.net/campaigns_
The collection was taken for Pax Christi and JRS Syria. You can donate here: https://en.jrs.net/donate
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