April 6, 2018 at 1:53 p.m.
REFLECTION
In memory of Matthew
You really couldn't miss him. Matthew came to Mass dirty, smelly and often reeking of alcohol. Sometimes, he would get up from his seat during Mass to have a smoke outside.
I remember the first time I saw Matthew at Mass. To be honest, I was nervous. His entrance was hard to miss; he stumbled, appearing under the influence.
He sat in the row in front of me and my family. My children wanted to know what was wrong with him, who he was, why did he smell, where did he come from?
With time, we learned more about Matthew. He was a man who suffered the tragedy of war, mental illness, addiction, family discord, and tried many times to turn his life around.
Then Matthew disappeared for awhile and suddenly, one Sunday, reappeared - clean-shaven, neatly groomed and dressed in a suit. Matthew had chosen to take the steps necessary toward recovery and new life.
Through our words and actions as members of St Vincent's, we strive to offer radical hospitality to all, to be "Church personified" - at Mass, in our neighborhood and in our community. Matthew joined us in a most holy sacrament and presented us with a challenge: Live up to the ideal that all are welcomed, blessed, belong to the body of Christ - even those who are strange or foreign to us.
Throughout Jesus' ministry, He demonstrated the true meaning of hospitality. Jesus sought out those who were marginalized: lepers, the disabled, sinners, cheaters. He touched them, literally. He looked beyond their outward appearance into their hearts and souls.
Aren't we all called to understand the parts of ourselves that are broken, hurting, lost?
We will never know for sure why Matthew decided to walk up the steps to St Vincent's, open the door and join us at Mass. Jesus says in the John 4:5-42, "If you knew the gift of God and who is saying to you, 'Give me a drink,' you would have asked him and he would have given you living water."
I am grateful for the gift of Matthew. His presence was a reminder to me that not all gifts that God bestows are easy to accept, to trust and care for...but I must, if I am to fully realize who I am to become.
(Ms. Warner is coordinator for service ministry and director of the food pantry at St. Vincent de Paul parish in Albany.)[[In-content Ad]]
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