By Anne Bernard, '04
Funding: Tucker Foundation
It is the kind of Mass that every child dreams of. Dress is casual, but if you have a skirt, a tie, or a ball gown, those are appropriate too. The children are under no obligation to sit quietly, and toddlers engage in a frenzied game of tag between, around, and under the benches. The music is loud and joyous, accompanied by as many as six guitars and a tambourine, with words of worship set to the tune of Simon and Garfunkel. "La Paz," (peace) is offered the way one would say "congratulations."
I worked as an intern for the Catholic Ministry, doing anything and everything: from teaching English to buying supplies for house-building. In Chamelecón, Honduras, where gang-related violence is responsible for at least one death every eight weeks, it makes sense that congratulations are in order among those who have managed to take the Lord into their lives, embrace peace, and survive long enough to attend another weekly Mass. Church is a place to reconnect with one's neighbors and enjoy the presence of family as much as it is a place to reestablish one's faith in the Lord.
If you were to walk through the dusty streets of Chamelecón during the day, you might not notice the presence of the mara, the name given to Honduran gangs, but you would notice the presence of the Catholic Church. Anyone in the community could tell you which houses were built by the church's construction crew, and if you stuck around for a few days, you could probably identify the members of that crew yourself; they walk, work, and play with an air of invincibility and pride that is rare in a community where most children have seen at least one dead body by age fifteen. The workers comprise a wide variety of ages, personalities, and diligence, but they all have one thing in common: they are part of a project that, under the careful guidance of Father Thomas Goekler, has built over 150 houses, churches, and public buildings in the past four years. This is how La Santisima Trinidad "builds a community" in Honduras.
Father Goekler will tell you, in English, the story of the Virgin of Guadalupé and her visit to Chamelecón. The story is almost as brief as her visit: she never stopped there. She continued on to Mexico, leaving a somewhat portentous mark on Honduras, but the people of Chamelecón do not know this version of the story, nor would they believe it if you told them. Thanks to Father Goekler and La Santisima Trinidad, these people do not feel forgotten by the Lord. They feel remembered and loved every time they see the Father driving around town in his red pickup truck, every time they go to Mass, every time they notice a new construction site, and every time they attend school with notebooks and pencils given them by the church.
In addition to the living project, there is a scholarship program that takes the kids-and adults-off the street and puts them in school. After a long day at work, adolescents and adults attend night classes in local elementary and high schools. Sometimes the students learn enough to fuel dreams of becoming a mechanic, teacher, architect, or doctor, but often it is just enough to further build that sense of pride that is so hard to come by in Chamelecón.
"The other day we had a woman in here who couldn't fill in the pre-marital questionnaire because she can't read," recalls Goekler. Facilitating marriage is another one of Goekler's many endeavors there. "She's twenty-three, a mother of three, trying to get married, and she can't read. So we put her in first grade. You should see the way she walks down the street with her backpack and brand new shoes every night."
You should see the way she does her homework, the way she regards herself and her family and the Maryknoll Priest who has helped her restore dignity in her life. You should see the way her soon-to-be husband holds their bouncing children on his lap at Mass on Sunday nights. All is done with an element of self-respect that would not exist were it not for Father Goekler and his dream of peace. Because, as Goekler notes, "How can we expect them to reject violence if they don't value their own lives?" Luckily, with the work of Father Goekler and La Santisima Trinidad, this expectation is becoming more realistic, and the dream of "paz" may someday be reality.
