Joys and griefs

The joys and the hopes, the griefs and the anxieties of the people of this age, especially those who are poor or in any way afflicted, these are the joys and hopes, the griefs and anxieties of the followers of Christ. Indeed, nothing genuinely human fails to raise an echo in their hearts.Vatican II, Pastoral Constitution on the Church in the Modern World, Gaudium et Spes, ¶1

The first days of December have been filled with joys and griefs.

Coffee

The coffee harvest is beginning and people are glad that there is work in the fields, even though the pay is low – 30 lempiras (about $1.40) for every five-gallon bucket of coffee berries. Yet the price for coffee is low. Producers may get as little as 65¢ per pound of coffee that is dried but not completely processed.

The coffee sent by an association of small coffee producers in El Zapote de Santa Rosa is being sold at St. Thomas Aquinas Church in Ames, Iowa, this coming weekend and some has been sold to several cafés. The fifteen members of the association are working together and may have an agreement with a coffee processor in Santa Rosa de Copán to buy their quality coffee. They also have been able to get seven more solar driers, which they will pay for on credit.

Education

The school years is over, graduations are being celebrated, and people are thinking of next year.

St. Thomas Aquinas Church has been providing partial scholarships for student participating in Maestro en Casa, an alternative education program for middle school and high school for three years.

Today I just got requests from Bañaderos: twenty are asking for another year of scholarships and twenty-one are asking for a scholarship for the first time.  I’m still waiting for requests from five other Maestro en Casa centers in the parish.

Yesterday I went with Padre German, our pastor, to Tegucigalpa with eight young women and their parents who were eligible for complete scholarships for a middle and high school program run by the Hermanas de María. It’s a live in program that has more than 800 young women students who not only receive classes and faith formation but have opportunities to learn skills from swimming to playing musical instruments to sewing and working in agriculture. There were 12 eligible from our parish but I think only nine will go forward to take advantage of the scholarship.

It was a long trip. We left Dulce Nombre at 3:00 am and got back at 10:30 pm. But it was worth it since at least a few young women will have some opportunities for good education. But next year I’m going to search fro money to rent a bus to take them. Sixteen plus hours driving is devastating, though I had someone who drove my truck more than half of that time

Deaths

December 30 was the end of the novenario, the nine days of prayer, after the death of Arnaldo, the husband of one of the catechists in Plan Grande. Padre German celebrated Mass here. The final prayer was held in the house that night and I was asked to share a few words.

As I prepared for what I might say, I noted a beautiful sunset and recalled how the life of each person may show us the beauty of God’s love and mercy – if we have eyes and hearts open to see and contemplate God in each person and event.

Wednesday, January 2, Santiago Mejía, the mayor of Dolores, one of the municipalities in the parish, was killed and his wife was injured. Again violence has touched people’s lives here. It appears that a subject has been identified, which is unusual since most violent deaths (over 90%) go uninvestigated and never come to trial.

On Thursday, Padre Francisco Rivas, a priest of the diocese, was killed in a traffic accident. He had been the director of the diocesan Caritas office since last January. A funeral Mass was celebrated in Santa Rosa on Friday and his remains were taken to be buried in El Salvador, where he was from. In a diocese with a limited number of priests this makes the life of faith even more difficult.

This morning I read on Facebook that the father of a young woman in Quebraditas died. Another death.

The life of the church

The church here accompanies the people in many ways – and the people also accompany the church.

An example of thee way the people accompany the church is the parish coffee field, two manzanas, about three acres of coffee. Last week parishioner volunteers came on three days for the first harvest of the parish coffee fields. Not only was this the first ever harvest from the fields but it was the first of several that will take place during the harvest season. Next Friday and Saturday there will be a harvest. I hope to help one of those days.

Funerals have one of the ways the church accompanies the people here, but there are many other examples.

In Advent here in the parish we celebrate the Posadas from the beginning of December. In other places the Posadas don’t begin until about December 16. I will write about the Posadas in a blog entry in a few days, but, in short, they are re-enactments of Joseph and Mary seeking shelter (posada) in Bethlehem.

The first Wednesday of the month, December 2, the parish extraordinary ministers of Communion met, as is there custom. They discussed a number of concerns, including the formation process next year for new communion ministers. A particular ministry of the communion ministers here is visiting the sick and bringing them communion.

The Eucharist is an important part of the devotional life of the people, even though there aren’t as many communicants as one might expect – and hope for.

December 8 was the feast of the Immaculate Conception and the opening of the Jubilee Year of Mercy. As part of the celebration in the parish, a new chapel for the Blessed Sacrament was blessed. This will enable people to visit the Blessed Sacrament during the day when the church is not opened.

Tomorrow, I’ll be joining Padre German to go to two villages to celebrate feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe early. On Saturday, the actual feast day, the bishop will ordain two new priests and three new transitional deacons in Santa Rosa de Copán. Padre German and I will attend.

After that we will go to the city of La Entrada for the dedication of a new church in honor of Our Lady of Guadalupe. The mass will also be a celebration of the silver anniversary of the priestly ordination of our bishop, Monseñor Darwin Andino, C.R.S.

Sunday, I’ll join Padre German in the morning for a Mass in Camalote to celebrate their patroness, Santa Lucía – Saint Lucy. In the afternoon I plan to go to Gracias to a get together with the Dubuque Franciscan Sisters working there and the Honduran Franciscan associates.

Next week we will have our parish evaluation and planning meeting on Wednesday and Thursday. Lots to do and think about.

And so our life proceeds.

In this Advent, this season of hope, we look forward to celebrating the birth of Christ in Bethlehem, but we also open ourselves to celebrate His presence among us every day – amid the joys and the griefs.

Education alternatives and more

In many ways, the public education system here is a mess. Though there are primary schools and kindergartens in most rural villages, the teachers are often paid late – if at all. School supplies are inadequate. Some teachers’ positions are politicized; you need to belong to the correct political party in order to get a steady job.

Education beyond sixth grade is difficult to get. A study of a few years ago noted that only 33% of those who could go past sixth grade continue studying – and some don’t even go that far. In the parish of Dulce Nombre – 4 municipalities, more than 40 villages, and about 40,000 inhabitants – there are only four what we’d call middle schools; one of them has no budget to hire teachers and so the mayor’s office is paying. And in the whole parish there is only one high school.

To provide opportunities for young people a distance-learning, education by radio program has operated in the parish for years. The sisters in Dulce Nombre have run the Maestro en Casa for years and there have been a few other centers for the program. This year there are now eight centers which serve several hundred students.

At the suggestion of the previous pastor of Dulce Nombre, St. Thomas Aquinas raised money for partial scholarships for students this year. 105 students are being helped. Some of them would not have signed up to syudy if there had not been this financial support.

Today, Saturday, I decided to visit a few centers to see how things were going.

I first stopped in Dulce Nombre at the center run by the Oblates of Divine Love. Sunday there are classes for about 75 students in what we’d call middle school and high school. Saturday is for primary school classes, where the students can do two years study in one year.

Grades 5-6, Dulce Nombre Maestro en Casa class

Then I went to the new program in San Juan.

I didn’t know where the classes were being held and so I stopped by the primary school which was open. I was surprised to see two classrooms full of kids on a Saturday morning. They often have classes there on Saturday, in addition to the five weekdays, one teacher told me. That surprised and delighted me. Here were teachers willing to work more than mandated to help their students. 

Fourth to sixth grades in San Juan's primary school - with one teacher.

I finally found the Maestro en Casa program, which is small. There are classes for seventh and eighth grades. I watched as the seventh graders (which included a man in his thirties!) read about astronomy and astrology. With the teacher’s direction, they had an interesting discussion which include sharing about when one should plant certain crops. I shared the tradition to plant potatoes on Good Friday and the adult man shared how he plants beans on June 12 or 13, around the feast of St. Anthony of Padua.

Seventh grade Maestro en Casa class in San Juan

Even though the class meets only once a week in San Juan, there seems to be a lot of attention to the students, something I don’t always see here.

Afterwards I went to El Prado de la Cruz, about half an hour from San Juan. There I met the teacher in charge, who is also the village’s primary school teacher. He is – rightly – proud of the program. He has recruited eight other persons to give classes. I met three of them – one is a teacher in a nearby village, another is studying at the Teachers’ College in Santa Rosa, and the woman teaching when I arrived has a university degree in computers. His initiative in seeking others to teach really impressed me. 

Class in El Prado

After the visits, I went back to Dulce Nombre to discuss some details with the secretary. I arrived just at two couples emerged from their wedding Mass. I knew one couple, José, a catechist from El Zapote and his wife (whose name I cannot remember). I took pictures and will make copies for both couples, since there was no one there to take their wedding photos. (I'll print out copies to give them.)

José, his wife, and their padrinos

After I spoke a little with Padre German. He asked whether we can find some funding for a project to set up three small greenhouses on the parish grounds to grow tomatoes, green peppers, and some other crops. He wants to get people from the local area to take responsibility for the project which will benefit them as well as the parish. We’ll work on costs and I’ll contact  friend who has three or four large greenhouses in Intibucá where he raises a lot of tomatoes and strawberries.

I also mentioned to him my concern for the health needs of two people involved in the pastoral work of the parish. Fernando’s seventeen year old son has a spur on his foot that local doctors don’t seem to be able to treat. He walks with a cane but really wants to be able to work in the fields (as well as finish his education). Olvidio’s daughter has a displaced kneecap. Surgery to correct this would cost about $4,000, something well beyond his means.

And so as I rejoice in the great work being done in some of the Maestro en Casa centers and in the marriages, the difficulties of life – especially in terms of health – persist.

Education efforts

School starts next week.

Education in Honduras is a mess.

Some teachers work months, without being paid. I recently heard of a new teacher who worked for two years and never got paid. He went to the US to try to earn some money.

Then there are some teachers who hardly work, arriving on Tuesday and leaving Thursday. But they get their salaries.

I have also read of teachers with two or three teaching positions which they get paid for - although they don't teach in any of the schools where they have their plazas - tenured positions.

I know that some years the teachers have gone on strike and the students suffer. Sometimes the strikes are because the teachers haven't been paid; sometimes because they are opposed to new education policy proposals; sometimes because they are against other policies of the government.

But then there are the good teachers - who spend their own money for supplies, who stay overtime and work with the kids who need help, who really encourage their students to learn.

But then there are the schools.

In Honduras education is mandatory up to the sixth grade, but I often run across young people who haven't gone past second or third grade.

Also, for a number of reasons only about one-third of those who could go past sixth grade.

Why?

The price is one reason. Today I spoke with a pastoral worker who is sending a child to high school in Santa Rosa. It's a public school, but he's already spent about $250 for uniform, supplies, etc., and even though the child will live with relatives he will pay about $30 for housing and food each month. $550 for a year of high school is not cheap here.

Another reason is availability of schools.

About forty thousand people live in the four municipalities in the Dulce Nombre parish where I help. But there are only four public middle schools and one public high school. One of the middle schools does not have a paid teacher assigned, but the mayor has set aside public money for the salary.

And so what do the young people do?

Some go to school, walking or riding a bus to get there.

A few, if their families have some money or can scrape together some money, might go to a school in Santa Rosa or another town. These might be weekday or weekend classes. This means that there are extra expenses - travel, lodging, meals. This is not something many can afford.

Many don't go to school but join the family work force.

For a number of years in the parish of Dulce Nombre, some students have attended the weekend classes of  Maestro en Casa, a study-with-radio program. The students have work books; they listen to an hour long class each night on the radio; and they get together for about four hours each weekend to review the material and to get help for the more difficult subjects.

It doesn't sound like much, but it does offer an opportunity to young people; in fact, I know of a few professionals, some of whom now have university degrees, who studied with the program.

In the past few years the program has grown in the parish, much due to the initiative of Padre Efraín Romero, the former pastor.

In 2008 there were two programs, now there are six, and the mayor of Concepción, Copán, is trying to open two more this year.

The largest is in Dulce Nombre, run by the sisters who live there - the Oblates of Divine Love. It has had more than 300 student some years, though the number is down now that there are other sites. In the past some students walked, rode bikes, or sought other transportation to travel up to an hour or more from their homes just to get to Dulce Nombre.

But still, even though registration and fees are fairly low, there are students who have difficulty getting the money together. And then there are the travel expenses each week.

But there are students and parents who take major efforts to see that their children get a middle school or high school education. I heard of a parent who borrowed $20 to pay for part of the fees for her son. An older student has been working in the coffee harvest to have money to sign up.

In light of this, Padre Efraín suggested to St. Thomas Aquinas Church and Catholic Student Center in Ames, Iowa, that they provide some partial scholarships. A funding raising event last year enables us to offer scholarships. We will probably enable more than sixty students to begin to study or continue their education.

Since Padre Efraín was not around the parish much in January before his transfer and because Sor Pedrina, who had runt he program in Dulce Nombre, was transferred to Nicaragua, the details fell on me.

It's been a learning process, with a lot of ups and downs.

One center thought that all new students would get a scholarship. I ended up spending three hours last Tuesday trudging up and down hills in El Zapote visiting the families. It was a humbling experience, especially when I entered the first house. The floor was dirt; one daughter was white-washing the stove. The mother, pregnant with the fifth child was there with her husband and other children. The one daughter will be entering seventh grade and a fifteen year old son will be taking part in the third year of a primary school program that enables the student to finish six grades in three years. This family will obviously get a scholarship.

We did tell one family, though, that they weren't eligible. They have a truck, a satellite dish, and about five manzanas of  coffee.

Today, Saturday, I put over 50 miles on my truck visiting the sites of the program in Dulce Nombre, Prado de la Cruz, and El Zapote de Santa Rosa to make sure that worthy students would be able to attend classes.

Some of the scholarship recipients in El Zapote with their teacher, Melvin.

Sunday I'll head out to another site as well as meet with some of the students in Dulce Nombre. I'll report more on this tomorrow or Monday morning.