 |
| Fr. Gary Smith, S.J. |
Father Smith, who
spent the past decade working in refugee camps in Uganda, South Africa
and Kenya, shared reflections of his work to a standing-room only crowd
on Feb. 4. He was the first speaker of a “Jesuit Ministries Around the
World” lecture and discussion series, sharing stories and photos of his
years working with the Jesuit Refugee Services.
After a moment of thought, he answered the question.
“There were moments when I was very lonely and discouraged,” the priest said. “But even in my darkest moments, it felt like God was very near.”
He also experience joy like he’d never known; when you’re so deprived of creature comforts, he said, love and laughter become more pronounced.
During the lecture, Father Smith shared slides of photos of friends and people he met during his time in the refugee camps. During his time in Africa, he trained catechists and celebrated Masses under the trees in areas without chapels. He ran small Christian groups, where people could discuss passages of the scripture.
He offered counseling and training to the people who would run the refugee camps. In 2009, Father Gary Smith celebrated 50 years as a Jesuit, serving the poor. He ministered for eight years in the Old Town section of Portland. During Father Smith’s work in Africa there were scary times, such as encounters with the Lord’s Resistance Army. The violent rebel group led by Joseph Kony abducts Ugandan children and has brutally attacked thousands of people in the Democratic Republic of Congo, South Sudan and the Central Africa Republic. Hundreds of thousands have been displaced.
After a moment of thought, he answered the question.
“There were moments when I was very lonely and discouraged,” the priest said. “But even in my darkest moments, it felt like God was very near.”
He also experience joy like he’d never known; when you’re so deprived of creature comforts, he said, love and laughter become more pronounced.
During the lecture, Father Smith shared slides of photos of friends and people he met during his time in the refugee camps. During his time in Africa, he trained catechists and celebrated Masses under the trees in areas without chapels. He ran small Christian groups, where people could discuss passages of the scripture.
He offered counseling and training to the people who would run the refugee camps. In 2009, Father Gary Smith celebrated 50 years as a Jesuit, serving the poor. He ministered for eight years in the Old Town section of Portland. During Father Smith’s work in Africa there were scary times, such as encounters with the Lord’s Resistance Army. The violent rebel group led by Joseph Kony abducts Ugandan children and has brutally attacked thousands of people in the Democratic Republic of Congo, South Sudan and the Central Africa Republic. Hundreds of thousands have been displaced.
At times, bouts of malaria wreaked havoc on Father Smith’s body and mind. He also spoke of remarkable encounters — witnessing the birth of a baby girl. The priest (the only one in the village with a vehicle) and midwife couldn’t get the mother to the far-away clinic in time, so the baby was delivered on the side of the road. The mother, Mary, cradled her newborn, and asked Father Gary: “What’s the name of your mother?” “Eunice,” he said. That would be the baby’s name, too.
There
was an 11-year-old girl who had lived her entire life with a face
deformed by a cleft lip, a birth defect common with malnourished
mothers. Father Smith arranged the simple surgery for the girl, and
afterward the mother was so overjoyed she repeated, over and over, “It’s
a miracle.” He gave the little girl a mirror and watched as she gazed
at her new face during the long drive back to their village. “When we
got back to the village, it was like we were astronauts coming back from
the moon,” he said.
Link (here) to The Catholic Sentential to read the full story 
No comments:
Post a Comment