A Reflection for Friday of the Second Week of Advent
“Blessed the man who follows not
the counsel of the wicked
Nor walks in the way of sinners,
nor sits in the company of the insolent,
But delights in the law of the LORD
and meditates on his law day and night.” (Ps 1:1-2)
St. Juan Diego de Cuauhtlatoatzin, whose feast day is today, is someone I have met.
I am thinking today of some of the men I knew in the state prison where I volunteered and later worked. The men who frequented the Communion service that I facilitated weekly were not saints. In their past lives, they had definitely, as itemized in today’s responsorial psalm, followed the counsel of the wicked and walked in the way of sinners and hung out with the insolent. But now in prison they had plenty of time to meditate day and night on the law, both God’s and society’s. Many of them were lifers, working on making amends for their past and proving that they could be law-abiding citizens who would never come back to prison were they granted parole.
This prison housed a disproportionate number of Latino men. When the feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe came closer, the men who usually came to Communion services were keen to commemorate the day. We found a script that described the journey of Juan Diego in a template that mimicked the Stations of the Cross. The participants assigned themselves roles, and the narrator read the story as the actors practiced: They literally traveled around the small chapel and stopped after each piece of narration to form a tableau of Juan Diego’s journey.
At their last rehearsal, they asked me to play Mary.
Since I was the only woman around, I said yes. They asked if I could wear something blue for the Virgin Mary, a color that as an outside volunteer I was not supposed to wear into the prison. Only inmates wore blue. I tucked a blue sweater into my bag. It turned out to be one of only a few actual props. The narrator/director improvised a cloak for Juan Diego and a miter for the bishop and some roses fashioned from Lord knows what. The rest, like the revelation of the miraculous image on Juan Diego’s cloak, relied on their miming skills.
I can still picture the sweet earnestness of the young man portraying Juan Diego, as well as all of the men’s sincerity, apparent in spite of their swagger and shaved heads, their tattoos and scars. I can still hear the narrator’s clarity of voice. I can still feel the reverence of the congregation gathered for the event. I will never forget the palpable faith that lived in that chapel.
The men on that yard knew Juan Diego well. They faced many setbacks on their paths, as did Juan Diego. They were disregarded by powerful people, as was Juan Diego. They expected no favors and harbored no illusion of special treatment from authority figures. Nor did Juan Diego. Still, on that day, those men embodied Juan Diego’s genuine faith. They believed in a heavenly mother who spoke their language. They put one foot in front of the other, plodding toward the vision of mercy. Just like Juan Diego.
Some of those men later paroled. I pray for their successful re-entry into society, for their happiness. I pray that, as the psalm promises, “the Lord watches over the way of the just.”
St. Juan Diego de Cuauhtlatoatzin lived in the sixteenth century. He was beatified in 1990 and finally canonized in 2002. But I have met him many times on his journey. So have you.
Get to know Valerie Schultz, contributing writer
Favorite Advent or Christmas themed art
“The Work of Christmas,” a poem by Howard Thurman
Favorite Christmas Tradition
Our new tradition this year will be traveling to spend Christmas Eve and Christmas Day with our granddaughter, a gift from God in 2022. There’s no greater joy on earth than that toothless smile.
Article you are most proud to have worked on this year at America
Probably this essay about returning to Mass, but I am delighted and honored to write for the daily Scripture reflections all year long.
Favorite Christmas Recipe
Every year I have to make Cream Cheese Crescent Cookies. The recipe makes about 5000, so it’s a real time commitment, but my family devours them. They are awfully good.
Favorite Christmas photo
Yule Tide (our Christmas card, 1994)
