Guatemala’s Most Important Place of Worship, Most Ancient Place of Worship, and (soon-to-be) Newest Place of Worship

I recently had a two week visit from Garett Burns, a seminarian from the diocese of Wichita and the godson of a close friend. Together with Fr Tulio Privera, the pastor of the local parish, we took an excursion to Esquipulas and Tikal. Over the course of this time we visited the site of Guatemala’s most important place of worship, its most ancient place of worship, and spent time here at NPH, which will soon be the site of Guatemala’s newest place of worship.

Esquipulas, located in the southeast, near the Honduran border, is home to a basilica that houses a large crucifix, which is the center of much of Guatemalan popular piety. The image was carved 500 years ago, and this shrine draws between four and five million pilgrims each year. It is considered by many to be the most important religious shrine in Central America. We had the good fortune of arriving on a quiet day, and were able to celebrate the Mass at the main altar, and view the image close-up, without having to fight the crowds and long lines of pilgrims that often fill the church. Another exciting element of the visit was seeing the beautiful altar and presider chair made by an artisan from nearby Antigua for Pope John Paul II when he was here in 1992. I had the chance to visit with this artisan a couple of weeks ago in his workshop to see about the possibility of his crafting the altar, retablo, ambo and chair for our NPH chapel. Fr. Tulio has a personal relationship with him, and believes that we can get something beautiful at a reasonable price. He is currently working on a proposal, which I hope will be ready within the next month. How great would it be to have our altar appointments made by the same artisan who made those in the most important and famous basilica in Guatemala!

Tikal is the site of the capital of the Mayan empire, that once extended throughout present-day southern Mexican states as well as the northern Central American region.  Evidence of the early development of this civilization shows its existence already around the time of Moses and the Exodus from Egypt. A highly developed civilization, it began its decline within a century or two after most of the buildings uncovered at Tikal were built (8^th century AD). However, Mayan civilization continued to some degree  until the conquest of the Spanish in the 16^th century.

For centuries its buildings were hidden, covered by the thick jungle foliage that grew over them after the civilization mysteriously disappeared. In the mid-1800’s archeologists began excavations, and magnificent pyramidal structures restored, some reaching as high as 230 feet. These temple/pyramids were used to offer sacrifices to the gods. In addition to sacrifices of animals, humans were also sacrificed. (Mel Gibson’s movie, Apocalypto, portrays this culture in its decline, along with human sacrifice). It is an eerie place, set deep within the jungle of the state of Petén. Only a small portion has been restored. From the top of one temple/pyramid, we could see above the tree line an endless sea of green, looking out across the jungle canopy, with several of the restored temple/pyramids piercing the canopy and reigning above it. Numerous recent altars have been erected on the site, at which gather contemporary practitioners of the Mayan religion to offer prayers and sacrifices (chickens). 

Why Build a Chapel at NPH? 

(with some pics of the work in progress)

I had a couple of conversations last year with European fundraisers for NPH, who mentioned that the chapel here might be seen by some as an unnecessary luxury. At the very least, they said to me, the chapel should be a multi-use space, and not reserved solely for sacred use. Even though NPH was founded by a Catholic priest as a Catholic institution, it is a struggle to maintain the Catholic side of its mission. Many of those who work or volunteer here are not Catholic, or are Catholic but not practicing. And while I am on good terms with everyone (kind of the official “nice guy”), one of my greatest challenges is to carry the Catholic torch, with the hope that others may be touched and illuminated by its light. Many are committed to the humanitarian mission of NPH, but the religious element is seen by some as an “extra.” And to be honest, I think that downplaying the religious element of our mission makes fundraising easier in some settings.

Because NPH does not have official Catholic canonical status with the Church, its leadership is free to adapt the religious aspect of its mission as they see fit. The leaders I have met here are committed Catholics, and the great veneration that continues for Father Wasson, the founder who died in 2006, gives me hope that the commitment to raising kids in the Catholic faith will remain. In order to secure resident priests, NPH needs to be able to convince bishops and religious superiors of the centrality of the Catholic mission. Of course, the most important factor in all of this is the adults who live and work most closely with the kids in the homes. Just as with parents of children in the Catholic schools of parishes where I have served, we “religious types” can only succeed to the extent that the parents partner with us- as they are the primary evangelizers and catechists of their children. (I have found that within five or ten minutes in a school classroom I can tell which children come from families where the parents practice the faith and which do not.) Here at NPH, the care-givers in the homes where the kids live serve in this important role.

I have read that almost all Buddhist boys in the country of Myanmar (Burma) spend some time living and studying in a monastery. Even though the majority will not remain and will move on, marrying and working regular jobs, this time of intensive spiritual training will serve them throughout their lives. Going through intensive spiritual training will benefit them throughout their entire lives, even if they live in a country where the economy will never provide opportunities to thrive professionally or economically, as might be possible in a country like the USA.

Perhaps much is missing in the lives of the Pequeños of NPH. I arrived here with the idea that kids in the US enjoy many advantages not available to those here. And this is true. But I am convinced that the most important thing every human being needs is a powerful and personal relationship with God, mediated through Jesus Christ. And this should in theory be even more available to the children here, who do not suffer from the same spiritual distractions of money and materialism that are so apparent in my home culture. In addition, the culture here supports and even revels in the expression of Christian faith.

Granted…

• it could be that when they leave the home they may not find meaningful work or a job that pays well…
• it could be that when they leave the home they may continue to struggle with personal traumas from their pasts which continue to haunt them…
• it could be that, given the effects of growing up without parents and a normal family atmosphere, when they leave the home they may have difficulty maintaining healthy and stable personal relationships, …

…but if we focus on that which will help them not only in this life, but also in the next, I believe that we will fulfill our principal mission. The NPH pillars of love, security, sharing, work and responsibility represent a success formula with proven results. While perhaps not articulated as forcefully, the spiritual mission of NPH sets us apart from other merely humanitarian missions. Therefore, we need to concentrate specifically on the development of a spiritual life, a love of prayer, a personal relationship with Christ, a knowledge of the Bible and what it contains, an authentic, healthy and religious concern for the well-being of others, etc.

I am convinced that a beautiful chapel, centrally located and accessible 24 hours a day, will help the children here to discover the great love that God has for them, offering them a place not only to gather for Mass, but also to spend time in meditation and personal prayer. The presence of Christ in the tabernacle, in a building positioned to be at the heart of the campus, will serve as a magnet, drawing seekers and those who struggle with their faith to a place contemplation and reflection. The Eucharist celebrated there will fortify the faith of these little ones, feeding them the Bread of Life that will nourish their spirits and inspire them to make the world a better place.

Chapel Construction: One Month Down, Five to Go

 

 We are a month into the construction of the chapel, and I am amazed at the progress that has been made. The excavation was done quickly, digging trenches for the footings and foundation walls, as well as creating a small walk-out space that will be below the sacristy and part of the sanctuary. While it has rained almost every day, the construction workers have been able to take advantage of the mostly dry morning hours to weave steel re-bar and pour cement.

 

 

 As you can see in the pictures, cement is mixed a bag at a time, and carried by hand in five-gallon buckets to the pour sites. This is laborious and back-breaking work. The only piece of machinery here is the motorized cement mixer, something that we at home might rent for a weekend home improvement project. All of the cement blocks also need to be carried by hand to the places they will be laid, after having been unloaded by hand, block by block, from the delivery truck. Fortunately, we have had some volunteers from the USA visiting, and they have helped to move the blocks and carry the cement.

 Here are some additional renderings of the chapel, including a rendering of the sanctuary area.

The contractor plans to finish the construction within six months. After that we will work on the interior- painting, laying floor tile, working out the details of the altar, sound system, pews, lighting, etc. More updates to come soon!

Chapel Construction Has Begun!

On May 19^th the contractor arrived with his crew and earth-moving equipment and they began the excavation for the chapel. This date happens to be the anniversary of my priesthood ordination, and I could not have asked for a better present. In addition, work has begun to re-locate the electric poles carrying the high voltage lines that currently traverse the chapel site.

As you can see from the new drawing of the chapel design at the top of the blog page, we have simplified the design some to save money- but I am still thrilled with how it looks. It will fit in well with the rest of the buildings on the campus, but will also stand out in a dignified way. Since it will be built into a bit of a hillside (there is a four meter drop between the southwest corner and the northeast corner), we will take advantage of the slope to include a room beneath the church sanctuary that can be converted in the future into useable space.

With all building projects I have been a part of, we have dreamt big at the start and then chipped away at some features once the pricing brought us back to reality. This project is no different. But it has been a healthy exercise letting go of some features that might be important for a church in Chicago, but which are not essential for a church serving the poor. We are building a church that will be simple but still beautiful. And we want to be as economical as we can with the building itself so that we can put a little more into the interior. We have enough funds to complete the structure, and my hope is that a little more will come as we progress so that we can purchase pews, an altar, ambo, sound system, lights, etc. I am leery about committing to any of these interior purchases at this point because I have always found that surprises and change orders mid-construction end up increasing the cost of the building. Once we feel secure about the final cost of the building itself we can move forward with the interior furnishings and decoration.

The reason we are not yet sure of the final price is that we may be able to realize some savings based upon a relationship the local pastor has with the owner of a major Guatemalan building supply company. The contractor has agreed to work with us if we can obtain building materials at a price lower than he can get them. As things stand now, it looks like putting up the structure and moving the electric lines will cost $185,000. Thanks to the generosity of so many in the States, we have this amount, plus another $10,000 in reserve. I think that we will need another $30,000 or so to complete the interior, but am also hoping that some regular NPH donors will pitch in once the project is publicized and they see we are moving forward. This number will decrease, of course, if our building supply connection comes through for us.

The contractor is working fast at this point to get the excavation completed and the foundation laid because the rainy season is setting in. He feels that he should be able to complete the structure in about five months. This gives me hope that even if we are still working on the interior, we will be able to celebrate Christmas in the new chapel. And what’s more, we will be able to celebrate the feast for which the chapel is to be named the weekend after Christmas. (We have decided to name it the Chapel of the Holy Family.) Christians hold up the model of the Holy Family of Jesus, Mary and Joseph as a model for all families, and we pray that this may be a special source of hope and promise for our children here, for whom NPH may provide their only meaningful experience of family.

Thank you to all who have supported this project with your prayers and your gifts! It is especially exciting for the kids here to watch their chapel take shape. I promise to do my best to post regular updates during the construction, and post pictures so that all who are interested can follow its progress.

Leading Up to Holy Week and Short Chapel Update

Towards the end of Lent our local parish was host to a diocesan gathering of parish “confradías”- which are home-based prayer groups that are also caretakers of beloved holy statues or paintings. Along with the bishop, about 1500 people attended- many dressed in traditional outfits. These groups foster a devotion to the particular saint, or to a moment in the life of Jesus or Mary captured in the image they venerate.

The confradías and the popular piety they foster served an important role during the time in the 19^th century when the Catholic Church in Guatemala was persecuted through an anti-clericalism that left the country with few priests. Popular piety served to maintain and transmit the faith, and continues to be a vital expression for parishioners here.

Interestingly, while the Catholic Church sided with the wealthy and the powerful during the 19^th century (causing the anti-clericalism during the reign of liberal governments that had power then), during the conflicts and civil war of the late 20^th century the Church was seen by the government as inappropriately siding with the indigenous poor- and so worked to discredit and reduce the influence of Catholics. The local pastor here tells me that the United States’ CIA even funded Protestant missionary activity here in order to weaken the Catholic Church’s influence by depleting it of its members. (I haven’t been able to research this, though.) But the result of intensive American Protestant missionary activity is that towns and neighborhoods are now dotted with many small independent Protestant churches (charismatic and often virulently anti-Catholic). In addition, Mormons from the United States have asserted a strong presence here in recent years- all of the towns I have visited have Mormon churches, which are usually the most beautiful and modern buildings in the town. (In an effort to reject the yoke of colonial religion and the religious influence of American and European culture, many now seek to reclaim their ancestral pagan religions- seen even in some of the Mayan school projects required of the kids.)

Our parish has twelve of these confradías, and each year on the feast day of the saint whose image is captured in the statue or painting, the group in charge of the image builds an elaborate “float” (called a “procesión”) that is carried throughout the town on the shoulders of 20+ men (with replacements switching in and out throughout), accompanied by music, crowds and fireworks (usually long rolls of firecrackers and mortar-style noise-makers). The procession can last for hours, and ends at the parish for Mass. Mass is followed by another lengthy procession with all of the accoutrements of the first round, as the image is returned to the home where it is kept during the rest of the year. Our town of Parramos is often host to a war of sound- with highly amplified music and ecstatic preaching powered from within small Protestant churches were few are in the seats, but a mighty sound blares out into the neighborhood and even reaches my house at NPH. The Catholics do their part with the processions and fireworks, often beginning at 4am. I have often said that the noise pollution here has been one of the most difficult things for me to get used to.

Sadly, relations between Catholics and Evangelical Protestants here is generally not good. Each side tends to think of the other in terms of caricature: Catholics perceive the Evangelicals as led by pastors with no formal theological training, focused too much on individual religious experience, avoidance of vices like alcohol and tobacco, and pentecostalist-style worship.  Catholics are perceived by Evangelicos as idol-worshippers (reinforced by the regular processions through town) and drunkards (abuse of alcohol is indeed a problem here).

During the processions, the streets are covered with “alfombras” (literally, “rugs,” but made with pine needles, flowers and flower pedals, fruit, and colored sawdust), that those in the procession walk over.

The procession this day was that of the “Holy Innocents,” the patrons of our parish. It was amazing to witness the display of faith and piety by all who attended the event and walked in the procession, as well as that of those who elaborated the “alfombras” and lined the streets to watch it all.

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CHAPEL UPDATE

I had hoped to have a more celebratory update on the chapel construction prior to Easter, but we are still a few weeks away from signing a contract for construction. Happily, we have the final plans and bids from four contractors. Getting the project approved so that the money can be sent down here is a bit of a complicated process, put into place some time ago by NPH-International to avoid graft and corruption in the homes. In the parish we could work a bit more “on the fly,” and parishioners trusted that if we ended up with extra money for a project, we would have no problem putting it to good use. Here, we need to account for every dollar we need before the project can be approved and begin, which is difficult with something as detailed as a furnished chapel built to seat four hundred people. Also, because cash flow is so tight, we need to have the money in hand before starting.

Fortunately, we have enough money ($190,000) to build the structure and move the power lines that currently hang above the site. We’ll need about $40,000 more for things like the altar, sound system, pews, bell, etc. But I am confident we can get started soon; I will worry about funding these other items once we get moving. And I suspect that other donors may appear and help out once that they see that this project is a reality and in process. If need be, we can prioritize those items, and I can even work to fill in whatever gaps remain after I return to the States in June 2015. I think it will only take seven or eight months to build, and so I will be here see it completed and (I hope) consecrated by the bishop.

I promise to post again as soon as I have more information about the construction schedule, as well as updated images of the plans.

Wishing all who are following my journey here at Nuestros Pequeños Hermanos a Blessed Easter. Please continue to keep me and the kids here in your prayers, and be assured that I will remember you in my prayers, especially those at the altar as I celebrate Mass on Easter Sunday.

She Was Still Warm When She Went Into the Ground

Many of the kids at NPH are orphans, but most are not. They are here on order of a judge who deems their family situation to be dangerous. Some were abused by parents or other adults. Some arrived malnourished. Many have parents who are alcoholics. A portion of the population of kids here will remain intellectually stunted due to being born with fetal alcohol syndrome, caused by mothers who imbibed while pregnant. Some are here because their parents are in jail. A few kids come from healthy families, but their parents are simply too poor to care for them and so have asked us to raise their children (we recently accepted a family of six, including an 18-month-old). Relatives have the opportunity to visit one Friday afternoon each month, with a longer all-day Sunday visit once every three months. Also, during school vacations (especially during the month of December) many of the kids leave us to stay with parents or other relatives.

Last week four of our children who still had their mother suddenly became orphans. The youngest is four; the oldest seventeen. I do not know the specifics of their mother’s physical or mental health situation, but understand she worked as a street vendor in the capitol. She had been here to visit on Sunday, and died suddenly early Wednesday morning, aged 34. She did not have a fixed dwelling, and her relations were limited to her kids (whose father died a year ago), two brothers and a mother.

Since none of her survivors had any financial resources, NPH arranged the transport of her body from the hospital and the funeral/burial. Her kids were told about their mother’s death just before leaving for church, where they went to wait for the body to arrive. Since bodies aren’t embalmed in Guatemala, the dead are buried within 24-48 hours. Generally a wake is held at the house, with the simple wooden casket on a table. Some have little doors that open up, allowing mourners to look through a piece of glass and see the face of the deceased. But since this family could not afford the costs associated with a wake (need to provide food and drink to visitors, as well as candles and other decorations) so Heidi body, placed in a simple wooden casket, was brought straight from the hospital to the church for the funeral in the back of a minivan.

In Chicago, funeral arrangements can be elaborate. Families often wish to meet to discuss and “plan” the funeral, choose readings and songs, discuss the possibilities of a family member’s giving a personal reflection during the service. The funeral is often several days after the death occurred, allowing out-of-town friends and family time to journey for the service. These days Saturdays are becoming more popular, so that people do not have to miss work in order to attend to their responsibilities to the deceased. 

In addition to the small group of family members, about seventy-five of the kids from NPH attended the funeral at the parish church in town, which took place at 2pm. I found myself staring into the wide and teary eyes of children who had just found out about their mother’s death an hour or so before. The other children from NPH displayed remarkable solemnity and reverence, despite my imagining that they would be somewhat “hardened” from all they have experienced. They are used to change here- staff and children leave the home on a regular basis. I often ask how they are doing when I learn that someone I thought was a close friend or confidant of one of the children leaves, and the usual response is, “it’s normal.” I can’t help but wonder what long-term impact it has on a child’s emotional life when there is no sense of permanence among the people children develop relationships with…

After the funeral Mass, we brought the casket to the municipal cemetery about a mile away, the children and their “hermanos and hermanas” from NPH walking in procession behind the minivan with the casket. This was a do-it-yourself cemetery. Although owned by the town, people are on their own to dig the graves and erect grave markers- crosses are made out of welded metal or cement, with information about the deceased written or painted on by hand. Cement block is sometimes used to mark the perimeter. The various plots seemed laid out in a haphazard manner to me, although perhaps there is some kind of master plan.

I had never seen a grave dug by hand- using pickaxes and shovels, they tore into the hard earth (it is the dry season right now, and so the ground is solid). The older boys working in pairs took turns… Digging down about 5 feet took almost two hours, while the rest waited, prayed and wandered among the other tombs. Finally, using a rope, they measured the coffin and compared that to the opening in the ground to make sure that it would fit. Then, using the same rope, eight or so of the boys carefully lowered the coffin into the hole they had dug, and then pushed and shoveled the dirt back into it. I was treated to a new sound for me- the dull thumping of dry earth landing upon a wooden casket. Within five or ten minutes the hole was filled, including a well-patted mound on top to make up for the settling that will occur once the casket starts to rot and caves in upon itself. I noticed that we had a nice view of the entrance to our NPH home from that spot…

The two middle children shed tears. The youngest likely didn’t really understand what was going on (he slept through part of the funeral), and the oldest maintained a stoic posture. The brother, a university student who is also an NPH pequeño, was somber… Given that Heidi  had been taken off of life support and pronounced dead at around 9am, just eight hours earlier, it occurred to me that she was likely still warm when she went into the ground.

We said some final prayers and headed back to the home to greet a group of visitors who had just arrived from Canada. The kids who lost their mother were back in their sections after dinner, and that was the end of that… They would be at 5am up for school on Thursday-

(Pictures from this might have helped to give testimony to the intensity of this day, but out of respect for the solemnity of the events I did not take any.)

First Day of School

 First Day of School – 44 degrees in the house! (It will warm up to 70 once the sun comes up.) I have hot water, but except for the youngest children, most of the others have to shower with cold water. The school day begins with a 5am wake up call. (During their three-month “summer” vacation, they could sleep till 8.) Cleaning/bathing and chores go until 6, followed by a hot breakfast in the Comedor and the school bell ringing at 7.

 

Once at school, the children line up according to grade level on the cement playground, where they are greeted by their teachers. Once a week they perform their civic duty of singing the national anthem and pledging allegiance to their flag. This is also a time for any announcements regarding the day or the week ahead. Uniforms are required, and there is a strict haircut code for the boys. The school day runs until 1pm.

 

While we are working to improve the quality of education for the children here, we are bound by certain standards set by the Guatemalan Ministry of Education. A passing grade for a class is 60%- if a student fails a class due to homework that was not turned in, there is a short period of time at the end of the school year when this work can be made up. If it is due to failing tests, there is an opportunity to study and take the test again. The kids get to decide whether they want to bother with the “recuperación” or “nivelación,” or just accept the failing grade. The idea of making up lost work or failed tests seems fine. However, if after all of this a student still ends up failing even one class, then that student has to repeat the grade. One 17-year-old I know is repeating seventh grade for the third time.

 

A number our kids have to repeat a grade this year solely because they failed their class in Kaqchikel, an indigenous Mayan language spoken by about 400,000 people in the Guatemalan highlands (don’t ask me why this is a required class). In addition, a disappointing number of our high school students (almost half of the girls) also failed the year and need to repeat a grade. The policy of the house here is that any high school student that fails the year in school needs to spend a “year of reflection” back here on the main campus, which is basically an additional Year of Service. After this year, the students can return to repeat the grade they failed and continue with their high school studies.

We clearly need to do a better job monitoring our kids and their performance, and work on finding ways to motivate them to study and help them to learn.  The adults living and working with kids in the sections are mostly caring and concerned individuals, but are often themselves without much formal education, and so are not in the position to help the kids with their studies. We have some very dedicated teachers and staff, especially in the Montessori program (Pre-K – 1^st grade). But teachers are paid minimum wage, and most have at least one other job. The educational standards required to become a teacher are fairly low (just a high school education is needed to teach in primary school), and the classroom environments would not be considered adequate from the perspective of American learning standards. The kids do not have books; they take detailed notes in notebooks, often copying materials that the teacher has written on the white board. I think that the number of kids who failed high school was a wake up call for us, and we are implementing new safeguards, supports and programs to help ensure a more successful year this year. In addition, we are looking at how to work individually with the kids suffering from attention difficulties.

Indeed, some of our kids have excelled in grade school and high school, and we have a healthy population of university students pursuing their dreams. These serve as examples for our younger kids, and the fact that NPH works to support the kids through their university years speaks of how much stock they put into the value of education (most other orphanages/homes for kids kick them out once they turn 18).

 

Nuestros Pequeños Hermanos considers education to be the way forward for the children entrusted to our care. American educational consultants spend time with the school administrators and teachers helping them to do a better job. But given all this, I wonder what, realistically, their job prospects will be. Some of the kids talk about wanting to go to the United States, illegally if necessary, in order to find a better life. The outlook here in Guatemala, while perhaps improving, is still pretty grim. The economy is stagnant, and very few have the chance to live beyond a level that Americans would consider lower class. (Many in Guatemala live at a level that make the poorest in the United States look like they are doing pretty well for themselves.)

I see great potential in focusing on the kids’ religious development. This is something that need not be stymied by the educational or economic problems of the country. And even if, despite getting a decent education, they end up working the fields or manning a fruit stand in the marketplace or taking orders behind the counter at McDonald’s, a meaningful spiritual life will serve them both in this life and in the next. In addition to Sunday Mass, we have small group Masses with the kids during the week. Religion class is, unfortunately, only forty minutes/week (about half of what public school children at home get in their weekly CCD sessions, and a quarter of what most Catholic school children get). Fortunately, Guatemalan culture is infused with a sense of Christian identity, and popular piety and devotion also help to communicate the truths and the practice of the faith. The reality is that those in the First World do not have any advantages from a faith perspective. In fact, they are perhaps disadvantaged due to the distractions of materialism and consumerism. My sense from people I have gotten to know in the local parish is that while most here live simple lives and are much less educated, their level of theological and spiritual sophistication surpasses that of the average adult parishioner in the US. Perhaps this is because with less to distract their attention, and with a greater sense of dependence upon forces beyond their control, more energy is devoted to this part of their lives.