Our mission, a vocation of love

Sisters Rency Moonjely and Sibi Varghese, Sisters of the Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament, have been called to care for our homeless brothers and sisters who frequent the Mother Teresa Shelter. Sisters in their congregation endeavor to spread Eucharistic love through their apostolic activities – for Sisters Rency and Sibi, it’s through their work with the homeless. 
 

Sister Rency Moonjely, SABS, (above) and Sister Sibi Varghese, SABS

This mission of love is what Bishop Michael Mulvey encourages all Catholics to recommit to in his 2020 Pastoral Letter, “I am with you always to the end of the age.” In a section of his letter, “The DNA of Communion,” Bishop Mulvey calls members of the Church to a vocation of love. He gives examples of God’s love: God loves everyone; God takes the first step; God sees us through the eyes of His Son; He shares in our troubles; and He accompanies us.

Sisters, Rency and Sibi, have devoted many hours every weekday to feeding, clothing and offering shelter to clients who enter the Catholic Charities’ day shelter. They, along with volunteers and staff, often provide kind words of reassurance to the hundreds of clients they serve. Their actions should speak volumes of their love, but even they will tell you how hard it is to see the face of Jesus in every person they encounter.

“Giving them a basic need is our first priority,” Sister Rency said. But sometimes people want things right away, and she doesn’t have it to give. She says that writing down their names next to what they want makes them happy because they know she heard them.
“Sometimes we cry together,” Sister Rency said. “Some have lost everything, and that’s why they are homeless. Some are not cared for by their family or society. They need someone to listen to them. Just by stopping and asking them, ‘how they are’ makes them so happy.”

Helping them can simply be a matter of directing them toward the shelter’s counselor or caseworker. “Sometimes they give us a hard time, and they are not pleasing,” Sister Sibi said. “We have to walk away and come back when they are calmer. Then as friends, we can talk to them.” Sister Sibi is referring to showing tough love and having healthy boundaries to avoid future escalations from developing.

“Some days are very hard. We try, but sometimes we fail,” Sister Rency said. “Then I pray, ‘I can do everything through him who strengthens me.’ 

Jaime Reyna, Director of Social Ministry for the Diocese of Corpus Christi, has been visiting with some of our homeless brothers and sisters by frequenting the old Central Catholic School campus grounds since May of this year. He said he quickly learned that they just want to be treated with some dignity. 

According to Reyna, they felt no one cared or wanted to listen to them. He began having lunch with them (donning a mask and social distancing), and they just talked. At first, when he was trying to interact with some of the people, he felt it was a “me” versus “them” relationship. He said it seemed to him that some people told him whatever they thought he wanted to hear. 

Reyna said that knowing someone’s name goes very far with building a friendship relationship. “Many homeless/displaced/unsheltered brothers and sisters have a profound loss of family or connection, and they so much desire one. Getting to know them by name and learning a little of their story builds a bridge that shows you care, and you are interested in them,” Reyna said.

“Also, I feel that sharing my struggles with them shows them I am not that different. Not all homeless people have the same struggles, either or the same advantages. I also share my limitations with what I can do to help. Sometimes people think you have to have all the answers or all the resources, but that is not the case,” Reyna said. “I accompany them by sharing my weaknesses, and sometimes I can only say, ‘I don’t know how to help with that, but I can definitely pray for you.’ 

“Just like family, my words and support are more receptive if the person knows that I care about them. Sometimes they may make choices that are not what I would make, or had what I would call ‘missed opportunities,’ but as my family, I must ‘accompany’ them without judgment,” he said, adding, “I just don’t know the whole story and it’s important that I see them as a person I care about and not as ‘a project.’ It helps me put things in perspective.

“Now that we have shared and gotten to know each other, we have created a family community, and they trust me, and I try to share my faith and love by listening to them and treating them as an equal family member,” Reyna said. “It’s hard to help someone, knowing that they did not follow through with an appointment or a plan of action, but I have to remember that we all have free will,” he said, adding, “And some of us have more challenges than others.  Their challenges and struggles are not like mine, and in time, they will get where they need to be when possible.” 

For many months Reyna and Father Pete Elizardo talked of getting port-a-potties set up for them on location. Father Elizardo is pastor of Sacred Heart Parish and is charged with the grounds and people residing on the old Central Catholic campus. He has also been like a pastor to the homeless, and they know him for his tough love and compassion.

“When we finally got two of port-a-potties on the property for their use, some cried, and everyone clapped with joy. Rose [Garcia] came to me and said, ‘I don’t care how long it took to get this and don’t care if it is here temporarily. I just want you to know that by having this here means that you were listening to our needs, which is more important than anything else.’

“In any relationship, we are called to enter and get to know one another. Not always, but many times our homeless brothers and sisters may have had a bad day or moment, and just like us, they may take it out on someone else. Sometimes their challenge is overcoming embarrassment, so the conversation may be awkward at first. But if they feel you are genuine and sincere about wanting to get to know them, then it’s the first step toward a friendship relationship. The relationship gets easier when you see the other as a friend, a brother, a sister – Christ,” Reyna said.

See story in Spanish here.
 

On Sept. 16, homeless representatives John Bailey, Roseanne “Rosie” Garcia, Larry Thompson, and diocesan Director Jaime Reyna of Social Ministry, meet with Bishop Michael Mulvey and Father Pete Elizardo, pastor of Sacred Heart Parish, also responsible for the old Central Catholic School campus. The three representatives thanked the bishop for seeing them, and each spoke of their past circumstances that led to their current state of homelessness.