To the Band of Brothers: March 5, 2021

Good morning,

 

Yesterday, I had the opportunity to walk the chapel construction site with the architect. Even though I visit the site every day, it’s not often I get to do it with the man who designed it. I’m not complaining. I understand Jorge Hernández ‘74 has a lot going on. The Our Lady of Belen Chapel is not his only project. All over Miami, the guy has buildings and houses going up.

 

As we made our way through the dust and the clutter, we spoke about the impact the chapel will have on the Belen community. I reminded him that the reason this project is so important is because every member of the Belen community, from parents to students to alumni, will be impacted by this new building. It’s not just one more structure that’s going up.

 

Then, I was reminded of a beautiful experience.

 

When I was a seminarian, ions ago, I was sent to study theology in Brazil. Along with my studies, I was assigned to work at a very poor favela or shantytown. Most of these places began as abandoned government-owned lands invaded by squatters. The Brazilian campesinos would come into the cities looking for work and would find open lands and squat. They built little houses with whatever they could find. Cardboard, planks of wood, anything they could get their hands on, they would use to build.

 

At one point, the local government would get word of this and send out the police to tear down the shacks and disperse the people. Soon afterward the squatters would return and start putting up their poor houses again. The police came back and the whole process would start over again. Usually, this back and forth would go on a few times until the police grew tired and just left the settlement alone.

 

I was sent to work in a favela called “O Morro” (The Hill). The place was packed with little houses that went up and down the side of the mountain. The floors of the little huts were made of dirt and the roofs of tin. There were latrines all over the place. I especially remember how I would walk the roads that zigzagged through the settlement with dust so thick it would clog your lungs. When it rained, that dust became mud and it was so thick you would lose your shoes if you weren’t careful.

 

My job was to organize the Catholic community. I would go around and get to know the people. I created a census to identify the various Catholic families. I would then invite them to prayer meetings and catechism classes held in people’s houses. The problem was the houses were so small that most of the time I would sit in the living room with the bible in my hand while the crowds would be in the little space left, oftentimes pouring out the front and back doors and into the yard.

 

I realized then and there how important it was to have a place for worship. I realized we needed a chapel that could act as a point of reference for people to come together to celebrate being Catholic. While it is true the believer can offer up his prayer to God just about anywhere, it is in church, that holy and sacred space, where a community’s prayer is made more powerful. So, I made a few calls to Miami and asked very good friends to help me build such a place in “O Morro.” Within a few months, I had the necessary funds to build the Chapel of São José de Anchieta (named after a Spanish Jesuit who was sent to Brazil as a missionary).

 

You should have seen it. The day we consecrated the chapel the place was packed to the rafters. Catholics from all over the place came out in full force to be part of the celebration. The community became strong. Babies were baptized, couples were married, masses were celebrated, and “O Morro” became a vibrant, Catholic community. So vibrant that eventually they were recognized by local authorities, created a community council, had light posts installed, and roads paved. The chapel helped take barren land overrun by squatters and turned it into a neighborhood.

 

Since then, I’ve never underestimated the power of the presence of the Church and never underestimated the power of the presence of a church. There is no doubt God is everywhere, but within those four walls and under that roof, miracles happened. It’s exactly what I expect from our new chapel here at Belen. Those new walls and that new roof will help give life and stability to our school community. It will be a place where miracles will happen.

 

Auspice Maria