"We want to build a community of faith on streets"

My visit to Cebu was fruitful and a wonderful experience. The first day started with a committee meeting as we tackled some issues and positive outcomes of the ministry all through the years.

I had the opportunity to catch up with Ma. Lina and Patricia, members of HSCASM Cebu, gave so much of their time, talent and total devotion to teaching Catechism to 50 children who just graduated!

We also initiated the rosary-making workshop, teaching young people and families to make Rosaries that we sell in Perth, as part of our fundraising project. We're driven by a profound desire to uplift the lives of underprivileged children through proper education,  as well as help homeless families build simple dwellings to keep them off the streets.

When you share with our fundraising projects, you are making a difference in the lives of every homeless family in Cebu City by alleviating the suffering of underprivileged children, the homeless, and the working poor by providing life-sustaining resources and a message of hope.

The highlight of my visit was the feeding of our homeless friends on the streets of Cebu City. It was an honour to be there physically, helping to hand out food packages.

While many people believe that feeding the homeless is bad because it encourages more homelessness, and in doing so society teaches the homeless to rely on free handouts, for me, personally, feeding the homeless is important because it is the right thing to do. It is also important because many of the homeless lack the means to feed themselves. It can be so easy to forget about the poor in our communities and the world at large.

But, as Christians, we are invited to live with a deep consciousness of our brothers/sisters. Whether it is through our giving, our prayers, or our time, we are to care for the poor. In Matthew 25:40, Jesus reminds us: ‘Amen, I say to you, whatever you did for one of these least brothers of mine, you did for me.’

This is my vision for the future- to build a vibrant community of faith in the streets.

As we remember Mary and Joseph’s difficult journey throughout the city of Bethlehem, as they searched for a welcoming, safe place for their child to be born, we hope to imitate this journey in the way that liturgy remembers: by inviting everyone to enact the journey ourselves. We are set upon the road with the Holy Family as we search for that safe and open space where something new can be born: a new family, a renewed community. We are invited to consider opening our doors to offer a sacrificial kind of hospitality to the stranger and build a community of faith.

Rebecca and Stephen participated in HSCASM's Sunday Feeding Program.

Rosary-making Workshop

Children Catechism Graduates