Wednesday, May 14, 2014

Day 14 of the Camino - Dedicated to all Immigrants, refugees and the Undocumented

Before I speak about my walk today, I'd like to ask you to pray for my good friend, Mari Caballero, who just had heart valve replacement surgery in Houston. The surgery went well but now I ask that you pray for her recovery.

Today was day 14 of the Camino. Our destination was Castrojeriz (13 miles). The weather was cold and windy. I'm very grateful that my feet no longer have blisters but I ask for your prayers for Fr. Benjamin who continues to suffer from them. I dedicated my walk and prayers today to all immigrants, refugees and undocumented people.

Scripture teaches us in the Book of Leviticus 19:34 how we are to treat immigrants, refugees and the undocumented living among us with these words:  "You shall treat the alien who resides with you no differently than the natives born among you; you shall love the alien as yourself; for you too were once aliens in the land of Egypt.y I, the LORD, am your God."

So often we treat the immigrant, refugee and undocumented with such little respect and dignity. We often see them as a threat to our country, job or security. 

However, we don't have a problem offering them substandard housing with high rent, or hiring them to do menial or back-breaking jobs at a very low wage.  Truly, our treatment of them perpetuates the vicious cycle of human trafficking. 

Our Declaration of Independence states that "all men (people) are created equal."

The Book of Genesis 1:27 states that "God created humankind in his image; in the image of God he created them; male and female* he created them." For this reason, I believe that there should be no division among us, due to the color of our skin, the language we speak or the county of our birth. 

The parable of the Good Samaritan reminds us that "our neighbor" is the one in front of us that has need and as Christians we are called to offer help and compassion. 

I'm not asking any of us to break the law but I am trying to remind us that as Christians we have an obligation to love, serve and respect all people, including the immigrant, the refugee and the uncdocumented. 

Good night to all and Buen Camino!

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Pictures for today's walk.
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Beautiful Tree

St. James Cross along the path of the Camino.

St. Brigid's Hermitage

Arriving at Hontanas

A building made out of clay bricks in Hontanas.

The parish church in Hontanas.

A maple tree outside the city of Hontanas.

Old ruins along the Camino.

Ruins of San Anton Church and Monastery.

Ruins of San Anton Church and Monastery.

Ruins of San Anton Church and Monastery.

Santa Maria del Manzano Church. 

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