The Way God Works

Pax Christi vobiscum! Come Holy Spirit!

Amazing story to share with you, and this takes us back to a bit before Christmas.

So first, the background information. There are several families that sit/walk around outside of the University I attend in Rome, and they are always asking for some help ("qualche specie" - "some change"). A lot of people have given them the unfortunate title of "gypsy," which, while it may have some sort of historical root, has become a name meaning, "Someone who is just trying to pull one over on me, so I can ignore them." Now, some of them may be trying to pinch an extra buck here and there, and they may not always be telling the truth. The fact is, however, that they are poor, and the Gospel tells us to help the poor. It doesn't tell us to audit their taxes and see where they spent their money. And we should always love our neighbor, even if that's only with a listening ear. Okay, my soapbox is getting a little flimsy from standing on it for so long, so back to the story.

Well, there is one family in particular that spends a lot of time out front, and they have two young boys both under the age of 4. Some of us seminarians have decided to make sure they always get the food and other things they need, so we chip in every once in a while so they are taken care of. Well, as it turns out, they were hoping to get back to Romania so that the husband could see his mother, who is sick and in the hospital there. They were also hoping to catch up with their family, and get some medical attention with help from the government of their homeland. The husband had already collected something like 200 Euro to get back, but he needed more to pay for the 4 bus tickets.

Now for a little more background: Many of us, as you know, were going to be headed to the Holy Land starting the Friday before Christmas, and the last chance for the Romanian family to get back home was that Saturday, the day after we were set to leave. So his days were numbered with many potential helpers leaving before he would get the money.

Some guys heard about this, and one guy even went around trying to collect some money for the family. He was able to collect a little, but not too much--at least not enough to add up to what the family still needed. So he put that small amount, 20 Euro, in an envelope, and put it under the door of a guy who was not going to the Holy Land and would therefore be able to deliver the money to the family.

Well, I heard this whole story later from a friend of mine, who we will call Jack, who told me how the rest of it played out. Jack was the guy who received that one envelope with 20 Euro in it, but, as it turns out, he also received 2 or 3 other envelopes that same Friday morning, all of which were slid under his door during the night by guys who were heading to the Holy Land. None of the guys knew about the other ones, they simply all felt called to offer some money, and they thought Jack was the best guy to deliver it. Jack told me that one of the guys who had slid an envelope under his door had written in the envelope, "You know that guy that sits out in front of the Greg [our University]? I can't explain it, but this is supposed to go to him."

So that Friday morning, after all the Holy Land go-ers had departed, Jack met up with the guy whose family still needed a substantial amount of money to get home to see his mother. And he asked him, "How much money did you still need to get home?"

Disappointed that he was not going to be visiting his mother, the man responded, "I was so close, but I still need 120 Euro, and it's just too much."

Jack told him, "That is the exact amount I have in these envelopes."

Amazing. God answers prayers, and He uses us, with whatever openness we have, to deliver exactly what we need. Now, that family is back in Romania, spending time with their Mother/Grandmother, and hopefully they enjoyed the holidays together. The husband and father is also seeking some medical help while he is back home.

God really does move in our hearts to give others what they need. Yes, it stings a bit some times, but it's amazing to see/hear the results. As Jack tells it, the man practically did backflips when he heard the news. He was going to be able to see his mother at Christmas! And yes, it did require an openness on the part of some of the seminarians, but we gain more from the whole thing: we get the chance to practice love. That is what the poor always offer us, the chance to be loving, to grow in love. And so we should thank them more often than they thank us.

Again, Happy New Year, and please pray for our upcoming final exams (still from first semester...it's Italy, remember?). God bless!