From the Pastor's Desk

I hope you all have had a blessed week. During my readings this week I came across a powerful true story that illustrates beautifully what the Christmas season means. As Christians we celebrate the miraculous incarnation and birth of Jesus Christ but also celebrate, give thanksgiving and give glory to the One who loved us so much that he came to dwell with us. 

The story is told of Father Damien, who travelled to the island of Molokai (Hawaii) not for the reasons many people travelled there—that is to say—the quiet charm, the peaceful beaches and the gentle breezes. But father Damien came to this island for a very different reason. He came to help people die. He came to Molokai because leprosy had terrorised that little island. No one knows how this disease reached the land of Hawaii but its results were evident to all. As the disease spread, the government responded with a method of segregation. They transferred all the diseased to a thrust of land called Kalaupapa which was surrounded on three sides by water and the fourth side by the highest seawall in the world—making it a place hard to get to and even harder to get away from.

The lepers lived a discarded life in the land of Kalaupapa, occasionally ships would draw close to the shore and sailors would dump supplies into the water hoping that the crates would float close to the land. Society had sent a clear message to the lepers; you are not one of us, you’re not as valuable with your contaminating disease. But father Damien’s message was different, in 1873 at the age of 33 he wrote a provincial and offered, “I want to sacrifice myself for the poor lepers.” He decided to fully immerse himself into the leper's world by trading sores, hugging children, burying the dead, singing songs with them and providing communion to them—he whole heartedly ministered to them. When he referred to his congregation, father Damien didn’t say, “my brothers and sisters”, but “we lepers”—he literally became one of them. Eventually, as he ministered to the lepers, he became a literal leper and the disease eventually took his life on April 15, 1889. His name and legacy may not be well known, but for those lepers he did life with day in and day out—he was well known and loved. Father Damien followed Jesus’ example of eating, drinking, laughing, playing, talking, sleeping, hugging, curing, preaching, teaching and loving those who were the outcast of society.

Jesus is the ultimate example of someone coming to dwell with the lepers. The Darling of Heaven, worshipped day and night, the Creator of Heaven and Earth, the Alpha and the Omega, the only one true God, the King of Kings and Lord of Lords came to this leprosy-stricken world and dwelled with us so that we could be freed from the curse of leprosy. 

Jesus took an entirely different approach. He was all about including people, not excluding them. “The Word became flesh and blood, and moved into the neighbourhood.” In our lifetime, we are going to come across some discarded, outcast-labelled people and we get to choose—neglect or rescue—label them or love them. We know what Jesus would choose, what would you choose? 

Looking forward to seeing you all on Sabbath,

Blessings, David Peñate.