Take Care of Her, Dad!

          As part of my priestly ministry, I try to visit those members of our parish community who are sick or homebound, the large majority being elderly.  I’ve asked all of those who do home visitations to give me a list so that I, too, can accompany them (when I’m able).

          On one of those visits – last Friday, in fact – I met a sweet lady named Divolda.  Seventy years old, Divolda was diagnosed earlier this year with cancer, and unfortunately the treatments didn’t really help her very much.  When I met her she was in her bed in a very simple house located in one of the favelas of the parish.  A small, hot bedroom had become the extent of her world since it hurt too much to get out of bed anymore.  Because her children often had to work, the small whir of the fan in the corner was the only noise she would hear for many hours.  But she held on to her rosary and she enjoyed looking at a nice statue of our Lady the Mystical Rose.

          As I sat down at her bedside, she grasped my hand and tried to smile.  We talked a little bit about her family, about where she had grown up (in a little village in the forest on the banks of a tributary river to the Amazon), and she told me all about how much she loved Jesus and Mary.  I was touched to the depths of my being how this suffering woman was very concerned about her children and the nieces and grandchildren that she had raised.  “I can’t go, Father.  Who will take care of them if I’m not here?  Who will look after my autistic grandson?”

          When the conversation quieted down and the only sound in the room was the whir of that fan in the corner, I asked her if she wanted to receive the sacrament of reconciliation.  “Father, that would make me very happy.”  I was humbled by the simplicity of her confession and the great devotion she shared with me.  Here was a bed-ridden widow who, with simplicity of heart, made one of the most loving confessions I think I’ve ever heard.

          After celebrating absolution, we invited the rest of the family members in to celebrate with us the sacrament of anointing of the sick.  Divolda was so happy to receive the sacrament, and she participated very actively.  When she received communion a single tear rolled down her cheek.  I asked her why she was crying, and she said very simply, “I love Jesus.”

          Together with the visitation team and the family members we talked a bit more and, in its simplicity, the conversation was actually quite happy.  I left feeling very grateful to our loving God for having had this opportunity to share these sacraments with this lovely lady.

          On Tuesday morning I decided to check in on Divolda… I’m not really sure why.  I called up the visitation team and together we went to visit Divolda and her family.  Though poor themselves, the visitation team put together a basket with basic foods and coffee to help out Divolda’s family during this trying time.  We arrived at Divolda’s home and her neice told me that unfortunately her aunt really wasn’t up to receiving a whole bunch of visitors today… she was still sleeping and had been since the day before.  We talked for a few minutes and I let the niece know that I understood her concern for her aunt, but asked if I might just go in for a moment to say a prayer for Divolda and give her a blessing; the niece consented.

          I entered the room and the first thing I noticed was how hot it was in there, and how silent it seemed with just the whir of the fan.  I went and sat beside Divolda’s bed and reached for her fragile hand.  Holding it gently, I began to stroke her forehead and I asked her if she could hear me.  She didn’t respond nor did she open her eyes, but it seems to me that her hand every so softly tried to squeeze my hand.  In the silence I noticed that her breathing was quite labored and irregular.  I said a prayer for her… and then something inside of me took me back to my own dad’s bedside nearly 18 years ago.  And I remembered something that a very special cousin of mine had told me I needed to do as my own father was preparing to enter into eternal life.

          “My dear Divolda, you’ve run the good race and you’ve fought the good fight.  You shared your love not only with your own children but even with other people’s children, raising them to be good people.  You’ve done everything that God put you here on earth to do.  Now you can go home.  Jesus is there waiting for you with his arms open, ready to give you a great big hug when you arrive there!  And Jesus is just waiting to show you happiness and joy without all of the pain that accompanied this illness.  My dear Divolda, you’ve done all that you possible could, and your family will be fine.  They’ll be sad, but they’ll be happy that you don’t feel the pain in your body anymore.  Divolda, when you are ready, feel free to go home to be with Jesus and that beautiful lady that you’ve been admiring, the Mystical Rose.  When you’re ready, don’t be afraid!”  I gave her a kiss on the forehead, gave her a blessing, and I left.

          The visitation team invited me for coffee since it was mid-morning.  They shared their plans for their community with me and we talked about politics a little bit.  As we were finishing, we said a little prayer together.  And at the end of that prayer I said, “Dad, whenever she decides to come home, please take care of Divolda!”

          Later that afternoon I received a phone call that shortly after our visit Divolda passed from this life to the next.  Just as they are right now as I write this, goosebumps appeared on my arms and legs and my eyes welled up.  I thanked God for having given me the honor of celebrating – quite by chance! – the last days and the last moments of Divolda’s life here on earth.  I thanked God for the privilege of having had that one last moment to “give her permission” to go home.  And looking up into the sky I said, “OK, Dad.  Now it’s your turn.  Take care of her, Dad!”

From 1998: Dad celebrating as Deacon at my first Mass.

Mom, Dad, Michelle, my nephew Matthew and I at a family barbecue in 1998.

"I'm telling the Bishop!!!"

Picture with the "12 Apostles" after the Children's Holy Thursday Mass.

            One of my FAVORITE homilies that I’ve given so far here in Brazil was DEFINITELY “the one with the cell phone”.

            [Mass began as normal.] “In the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.  The Lord be… hang on my pocket is vibrating… oh this is important.  The Lord be with you (and with your spirit).  Hang on just a minute – I really need to reply to this message.”  [I spend the next minute tapping on the screen of my phone.]  “Thanks for waiting, it was an important message.  Today we are celebrating…”

            [During the second reading I again pull the cell phone out of my pocket and, pointing at it, I show the screen to the two altar servers on my left.  We are all laughing.]

            [After the Gospel I begin my homily.] “I need to admit that I really loved today’s readings.  In the first reading we see God speaking… to… hang on a second.” [Reaching into my pocket and taking out my cell phone, I look at the screen surprised.] “Oh, this is an important phone call, just one second.”  [I turn around with my back to the people, and “forgetting” that my microphone is on I speak into the phone.]  “Hey Fernando!  What am I doing?  I’m celebrating Mass, but that’s ok.  What’s up?  Spaghetti?  No I had spaghetti for supper yesterday.  Pizza?  Well sure, I’ll have pizza anytime.  Sure, noon is fine.  No, I’m not sure who is coming for baptisms next week at Sacred Heart, probably the deacon.  Ok, sure.  Yeah.  Give your mom a hug for me!” [Putting the phone on the corner of the altar, I continue my homily.]  “Now where was I?  Oh yeah…”

            Can you imagine how angry and really turned off people were?  BUT DON’T BE ALARMED!!!  It was all a part of the homily to show people how attached we are to these electronic methods of communication, how we send so many messages and write so much that we are actually communicating very little at times!  We spend time glued to the screens of our cell phones that we are losing the desire to sit face to face and get to know each other, and to really communicate about important stuff.  We’re so used to having what we want so instantly that many times – even when we are sitting talking face to face – we don’t know how to really listen.  And this can cause problems in our communication with God.  This also causes us to refrain from communicating with those who are less fortunate (in our case, I was speaking of the street people who sleep in the plaza in front of the mother church every night).  The homily was really about social ministries (visiting the jails, visiting the hospitals, visiting the homebound, etc.).  For these ministries to be successful we need to re-learn how to communicate on a human level and not just on a digital electronic level!

            After explaining the readings for that Sunday, I asked the people how many of them were upset that I was receiving messages – and answering them! – during Mass?  Some hands went up.  I asked them if they were distracted by my showing the altar servers internet images during the second reading, and more hands went up.  When I asked how many were really bothered and upset that I answered a phone call during my homily nearly all the hands went up!

            Each time that I “received a message”, was “looking at something on the Internet”, or “talking with Fernando” I made sure to show the altar servers the screen of my cell phone.  Before Mass I showed them that my cell phone was actually turned off!  So at the pre-determined point of my homily I asked them what they had seen on the screen of my phone, and they said “nothing, Father, your phone is turned off!  You told us before Mass what you were going to do”.

            Most of the people liked how the homily turned out and I received quite a few congratulations.  And I gave the same homily at all four Masses that I celebrated in the mother church that weekend.  Here’s the good news: the women’s group has decided that they want to begin offering soup to the homeless in the plaza in front of the church every Thursday morning.  Others have asked if they could start vising the homebound, and still others asked what they needed to do to be able to visit the people in jail.  All in all, a very successful homily!

            HOWEVER….

            Other stories were brought to my attention that day.

When I was answering a text message one gentleman become quite agitated and yelled out, “you’ve got to be kidding me.  I’m telling the Bishop!”  (Here in Brazil the people have this habit of running to the Bishop whenever they dislike ANYTHING – even the most minimal – that a priest does.  Sometimes they don’t even point it out to the priest; they just go straight to the Bishop or the Diocesan offices!!!!)

Another gentleman left during the homily while I was talking on the phone during the 7:30am Mass.  He returned for the 9:00am Mass, and when he saw it was me in the back of the Church before the procession he said, “Are you serious?.  That priest again?  I came from the other side of the city to be here for Mass and this guy talks on the cell phone the whole Mass!”  Luckily one of the Eucharistic Ministers (who had also been at the 7:30am Mass) took him aside and explained to him that I wasn’t really talking on my cell phone; it was just an illustration for my homily.  She convinced him to stay, and after Mass he came up and asked me to forgive him.  Not knowing what had happened, he explained it to me and said that he should have understood something was up.  I gave him a hug, and he is now signed up to take the two-day course to begin hospital ministry!

Finally, at the 7:00pm Mass Sunday evening another man was leaving the church during my homily, quite offended.  Luckily at the same time the parish treasurer was arriving in order to drop off some paperwork, saw the man, and asked what was wrong.  His timing couldn’t have been better – that man is a quite faithful and generous contributor to the parish!  The treasurer (who had been at Mass the previous evening) explained that it was just a visual illustration and the guy returned (thank goodness).  He was one of those who congratulated me on the homily!

Yes, I still do the “fluff” homilies (you know, the “let’s all feel good” kind) from time to time.  The majority of my homilies are still very catechetical.  But now I’m at a point in my life where I think my homily and our faith needs to challenge us – perhaps now more than ever – to be “different” than everyone else, to be willing to “go against the flow” when necessary, to be “more human” than society is at times.  Yes, I believe that homilies need to make us think and examine how we are living our faith.  And if that makes people uncomfortable at times, perhaps that is what needs to happen.  If it means conforming our lives a little more each day to that of Jesus whom we call the Christ, then I’m willing to take my lumps along the way to bring people to Him.

Celebrating Mass in Sacred Heart Church (one of the 12 which make up my parish of St. Benedict's).

In conclusion, even after that homily, this past Wednesday there was still a woman in the third row who during the brief weekday homily of that Mass had the courage to sit there and talk on her cell phone!!!!  My mom once told me of a priest who, when someone was talking on the phone during Mass, said, “that’s ok, we’ll wait for you to finish your call before continuing Mass so we don’t interrupt you.”  Do you suppose they’ll go to the Bishop over that?

God bless!!!

"Rainy days and Tuesdays..."

Off to the "Big City"

Giving a blessing to the people at the end of Stations of the Cross on Good Friday

            Many of you already know that at the end of December my beautiful experience working in the small city of Parintins – located on the banks of the Amazon River in the middle of the forest – came to an end.  I was asked by my PIME superiors to move to the city of Manaus to take over a parish on the outskirts of the city from an older PIME priest who was hoping to retire.

            Manaus, a city made famous for the rubber trade during the beginning of the last century.  Manaus, a city which sprang up in the middle of the Amazon Rainforest and has (unfortunately) continued to expand, destroying thousands of acres of virgin rainforest every year in order to make way for “progress”.  Manaus, a city which has grown exponentially over the past 30 years from 250,000 to more than 2 million today.  Manaus, the city to which people flock hoping to find work and prosperity, only to be relegated to the margins of society… poorer than ever.  Manaus, one of the great industrial poles of Brazil, where all raw materials arrive via ship and all finished products leave the ports via ship.  Manaus, my new home.

            Paróquia São Bento (St. Benedict Parish) is located north of the city of Manaus in an area known as Cidade Nova (New City), and consists of houses and businesses that began as a shanty town and squatter’s village 35 years ago and has been “progressing” into buildings of concrete and steel, homes of brick and mortar, and streets lined with shopping centers and small restaurants ever since.

People outside of the mother church as they prepare for a procession for peace on January 1st of this year.

            The actual “mother church” of the parish was built in an area which was surrounded by forest when built on the extreme end of the city; today it is quite far from the end of the city!  There are 130,000 souls in the territory of the parish… so you can imagine that I keep quite busy!!!  The majority of the people live in the areas which are known as “favelas”, or what we would call “slums” in English.

            My parish is made up of a whopping twelve churches (!) each with very large congregations!  In fact, if there were enough priests in the Archdiocese of Manaus, 8 of those 12 churches could be their own parish!!!!  It’s kind of ironic… When I was pastor in Detroit, the only thing I asked for was to please NOT be made pastor of a cluster parish… and here I am pastor of not two or three churches, but of TWELVE!!!!!

            These past few months have been spent meeting with the community council (like parish council) of each church so that I can understand the challenges and gifts of each community, its needs and what it can offer, and how they are striving to build up the unity of our parish community.  I’ve met with all the different pastoral groups within the parish.  I’ve had the opportunity to celebrate mass in each of the churches as least once, and I’ve made a point of being present at as many events as possible.  I’ve begun visiting the religious education children (approximately 700!).  These first three months were spent – more than anything – just observing and attempting to understand the reality.  No big changes, no big decisions… just status quo for now.  Observe, take note, study, try to understand, analyze.

Beginning of Good Friday devotions.

Presentation of the Cross during Good Friday devotions.

Presentation of the cross at Good Friday devotions.

            Now I have begun the “work” stage.  I am trying to follow Pope Francis’ example of “de-centralizing” a lot of the mundane everyday tasks, leaving those decisions to the local community (of course, under the guidance of the pastor) in order to eventually free myself a bit more for pastoral work.

            The pastor before me – a great and holy servant of God to be sure – was not much of an organizer, and consequently everybody basically did whatever they wanted, conflict between competing groups for the same parish resources and spaces was the order of the day, and the parish finances also went “into the red”.  So I have spent a lot of time and energy putting some semblance of order back into the administrative side of the parish.  It has meant a lot of mediating between different groups with opposing ideas, and a lot of explaining to different groups as to WHY they can’t just do whatever they want anymore.

            I’ve also had to put a lot of time and energy into confronting some abuses which were occurring liturgically, such as lay people giving blessings with the monstrance when a priest wasn’t present (!), people celebrating Eucharistic adoration my going up to the altar and hugging the monstrance and cradling it like a child (!!), and some people even opening the tabernacle to give themselves communion (!!!).

            The Archdiocese, upon my entering in as pastor, asked us (well, ordered us, actually!) to implement their centralized and computerized parish accounting system; obviously wanting to obey – and being new so not having any point of reference – I obviously said yes.  It was a bumpy road getting all the 12 churches on board (Brazilians don’t like change very much, especially if it means leaving behind bad habits!), but we’ve done it!  It hasn’t been an extremely smooth transition, and I had to do a lot of coddling and encouraging, but the system is in place and seems to be working well.

            On a more personal note, the house (rectory) and office were in very poor shape.  Poor lighting, cockroaches EVERYWHERE, furniture with bugs coming out of it, a refrigerator held closed with a rope (!), grey institutional-colored walls everywhere, lots of accumulated “junk”, and just a very depressingly sad atmosphere.  PIME gave the parish a $5000 loan so that I could at least paint the walls inside our house and get some decent lighting and furniture.  I used my own money to buy a decent bed (and sheets and pillows), a small tv, a comfortable chair for reading, a dresser, and some items necessary for my office.  Now, finally, the rectory house is CLEAN and feeling like a home.  The same is true of the pastor’s (my!) office.

At the back of the mother church (sacristy entrance) with some of our Missionaries of the Immaculate sisters.

            So, that’s what my life has been like for the past three-and-a-half months.  Most days I am up and around by 7am and finally in bed and asleep close to midnight.  With twelve churches I am often “out of the office” visiting one community or other.  The unfortunate result is that I haven’t been in touch with all of you as much as I would have liked… But now I plan to take every Monday as my “day off” (as do the rest of the priests here in the Archdiocese) and to use that time in order to catch up with everyone… and to try and write at least one blog entry!

            Please PLEASE keep in touch: I really love to hear from all of you!

Goodbye, Parintins!

A panorama shot of the Church with the friends who came to say goodbye at Mass tonight!

          Today is my last day in this beautiful rustic city of Parintins.  Tomorrow I will be headed to the periphery of Manaus to my new destination: São Bento (St. Benedict) Parish in the area known as "Cidade Nova" (New City).

          I really loved my time here in Parintins.  I got to know the people so well: their hopes, their dreams, their challenges, their sadnesses, their difficulties, etc.  I got to journey with them pastorally and I, too, grew as not only a priest but also as a human being and a Christian Catholic.  I learned what a truly joyful Eucharistic celebration entails.  I learned what it means to get by with less of the "top edge" technology and endless shopping possibilities that the big cities offer... and I was happy!

          At all the masses this past weekend in the mother Church of the parish as well as the four smaller churches I announced that I was being assigned to our parish in Manaus and that I would be leaving within just a few days.  It was very emotional for me, as it was for them, too.  You see, although I LOVE being a missionary, THIS is the part I don't like: become attached to a community and then having to leave.  But I know that God has always led me were I needed to be when I needed to be there, so how could I NOT trust in him this time?

Deacon Joao gave me a blessing in the name of the parish...

          Then, this evening, I celebrated my last Mass as a member of the São Jose Parish Pastoral team.  There were so many "thank you" speeches from each of the communities, so many special songs they sang for me, and so many special moments!  I was quite overwhelmed and touched!

With two of my elderly lady friends after Mass...

           It's no secret that my hope had been to continue on in Parintins and go on to become the pastor of this great community.  It reminds me so much of the communities which I knew in Cuanacaxtitlan, Mexico... as well as in Detroit!  For the past three months I had been telling every PIME priest that this was my desire... but also saying very clearly that I was putting NO conditions and that I was definitely NOT going to turn that desire into a battle.

With a couple of the youth after Mass...

          After Mass there was a dinner reception held in my honor.  I was truly surprised and felt quite blessed.  It was hard to say goodbye to everyone, but they all understood that sometimes God has plans that we don't understand!

          You know, the love and affection that the people showed me this evening was quite humbling.  I need to say that the support of the good people of Parintins was more than I ever expected; we just "clicked" somehow!  And with them I grew to love even more this missionary vocation that I have received.  You just give of yourself what you are able, you promise to journey WITH the people, you ask the Holy Spirit to be present... and great things happen!  Very humbling.

          I was ordained in June of 1998, and I had many of the same emotions and feelings that I remembered feeling all those years ago during my first Mass... and then again as I was leaving All Saints.  Special emotions and special moments which I'll never forget... and which - all things considered - make me love being a missionary!

          God is good, all the time!!!

My little buddy Thiago

          Recently when I was back in the USA, I went and had supper one evening with my good friends Charlie and Diane Jacobs.  During supper, all kinds of great, interesting (and sometimes weird!) topics came up... But one which caught my interest was when Charlie was speaking about using puppets as a teaching tool in his college.  He's been doing it for years, and it really makes learning both interesting and fun for the students.  Then after supper he brought a couple of his puppets out and I could already see the endless possibilities for using puppets in my missionary ministry here in Brazil.
          Charlie and Diane gave me a great sheep puppet to start with (I'm sure you can guess how that might be used!!!), and a couple of days later I bought a couple more.

          I've been using this little guy, Thiago (James in English) for several weeks for the homily during the children's Masses, for teaching a couple of lessons during our religious education classes, for visiting the children in some of the poorer and more deprived families in the parish, as well as while visiting the sick and homebound - old and young!  (Come on, who doesn't love a puppet!!!)

          Everywhere I go people ask me if Thiago is with me, and they tell me they can't wait to see him again!  He has now officially become a permanent part of my missionary evangelization!

          Sometimes we can get so caught up in doing things the same way over and over, and we may even be wary of anything that is different than "the way we've always done it".  But a missionary needs to be able to think outside of the box and needs to find new ways to get people excited about the love of our God and the message of Jesus Christ!

          Thanks, Charlie and Diane, for opening this new door in my preaching and teaching!

Merry Christmas & Feliz Natal 2015!

**English/Español/Italiano/Português**

English

Christmas greetings and blessings!  God has blessed us all immensely, and I know that the biggest blessing I’ve received in my life are you, my friends and family!  Merry Christmas 2015, and a New Year 2016 full of blessings!!!

Hugs!

~Fr. Guy Christopher Snyder, PIME!!! 

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Español

Saludos y bendiciones de Navidad!  Dios nos ha todos bendecido inmensamente, y sé que la mayor bendición que he recibido en mi vida son ustedes, mis amigos y familia!  Feliz Navidad 2015 y un Año Nuevo 2016 lleno de bendiciones!!!

Abrazos!

~Padre Christopher

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Italiano

Auguri e benedizioni di Natale!  Dio ci ha benedetti tutti immensamente, e so che la più grande benedizione che ho ricevuto nella mia vita è voi, i miei amici!  Buon Natale 2015 e un Anno Nuovo 2016 pieno di benedizioni!!!

Abbracci!

~Padre Cristopher

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Português

Saudações e bênçãos do Natal!  Deus nos abençoou imensamente a todos, e eu sei que a maior bênção que recebi em minha vida é vocês, meus amigos e família!  Feliz Natal de 2015 e um ano novo de 2016 cheio de bênçãos!!!

Abraços!

~ Padre Christopher

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The Mercy of our Loving God

        As you probably already know, we are now in the first weeks of a special “Holy Year of Mercy”.  Pope Francis has opened several of the Holy Doors of some of Rome’s Basilicas (and other places, too!), as have most dioceses around the world.  The same is true here in Brazil.

        Yesterday I had the privilege of concelebrating a special ceremony and Mass for the opening of a Holy Door in a Catholic center dedicated to helping young men who are attempting to break the cycle of drug and alcohol addiction.  This resident campus is known as “The Ranch of Hope” (A Fazenda da Esperança).  You may remember that I had written about it in my Christmas letter last year (December 2014).  Whenever I come to Manaus I love to go and celebrate Mass with the people there (and also at the women’s campus, a few miles down the road) together with the PIME bishop who helped found this life-giving experience here in Manaus – Bishop Mario Pasqualotto.  I’ve been privileged to get to know many of the staff and volunteers at the Ranch, as well as being able to talk with and listen to many of the residents.

        Because the residents aren’t allowed off grounds (unless they finish the program or decide to abandon the program early), the Archbishop of Manaus decided that the entire Ranch would become a “sanctuary of mercy” for this Holy Year!  That way all people who walk through the main entrance – if their intention is to receive God’s grace and to live their going in as a “pilgrimage” – will receive the exact same graces as if they had passed through the Holy Door in St. Peter’s Basilica in Rome!!!!!

        I was very happy and grateful to have been a part of our procession, the ceremony, and the beautiful Mass.  God bless us all… and have mercy on us all!  Amen!!!

        God is good, all the time.  And all the time, God is good!

And the Debate Continues…

I took this picture one evening with some of Maria’s friends from the parish; I had invited them for ice cream after Mass at the Cathedral since we are celebrating the Parintins Diocese Novena and Festival in honor of its Patron: Our Lady of Carmel.  For reasons I’m sure we can all understand, Maria really doesn’t want any pictures taken of her, so she is NOT one of these tweens or teens.

ENGLISH - Español por abajo; Italiano sotto.

***NOT a story for children!!!***

         For the last few months here in Brazil much discussion has been going on regarding the “right” age for trying children as adults in the courts of law… or even if there is a good reason for ever lowering that age from 18.

         Here in Brazil, the current law states that a person can only be tried as an adult beginning at age 18.  Any crimes committed by those who are minors (under 18 years of age) can be prosecuted, but only if the prosecution occurs and concludes before the youth turns 18.  Furthermore, any sentence to be served automatically expires and the youth is to be freed immediately upon his or her 18^th birthday.

         Perhaps that sounds good in theory, but let’s take a look at what that has come to mean in practice.

         In big metropolis cities like Rio de Janeiro and São Paulo – especially in the “favelas” – there are all of the problems and crimes associated with urban life.  But an interesting factor present is that many of the violent crimes have recently been committed by those who are 17 years of age.  Absolutely, because these 17 year-olds can only be held for a short time if they are caught and at the most they will serve several months in the jail!  Sure, why not!  Gangs are sending their members who are 17-and-several-months to kill other gang members because, after all, the sentence will be short!  Some 17 year-olds have been hired as assassins to kill local low-level politicians in several Brazilian cities because the “gain is great and the price to pay is low”!

         Politicians continue to argue back and forth about what to do.  Those in favor of lowering the age – only to 16 years of age – say that it will prevent this rash of 17-year olds being hired as hitmen.  Those against lowering the age continue to speak of reforming the kids with special programs, but admit that there isn’t really money to do this and so new taxes (already extremely high here in Brazil) would have to be levied to research and pay for the program.  Then there are those in favor of lowering the age – without any standard of age limitation (it would depend on each individual and the crime committed) – stating that programs to reform and recuperate the minor would definitely be part of the picture, but that real punishments consonant with the crime committed are necessary.

          And the debate continues… 

          I wrote all that to unfortunately share with you the story of a young lady – let’s call her “Maria”.

         Maria is a 14 year-old parishioner here at St. Joseph’s parish in Parintins.  About a month ago she and her cousin (let’s call him “Mark) where returning home one evening on Mark’s moped, and the section of the city through which they needed to pass is one of the undeveloped areas of the city/countryside, known as “mata”.  There are still original forest-growth trees, some fields for cattle, but nothing “developed”… and, unfortunately, certainly no street lights.

         As Mark and Maria were passing through this area, three guys jumped out of the tall grass with machete-like knives and, surprising Mark and Maria on the moped, easily brought the bike to the ground.  They beat Mark up pretty bad, then tied him to a tree.  They then beat Maria into submission and took turns raping her.  Afterwards, they told Mark and Maria to get back on their moped and to get out of there.

         Mark and Maria went immediately to the police station to file a report, and the police took off immediately for the area where the crime had taken place.  The idiot perpetrators of the crime were still there!  However, they were only able to catch one of them – since he was a little bit high on some kind of drug, and he refused to say who the other two were.  Mark and Maria had no problem identifying this youth since he was standing in front of them (she said it was his eyes and his smell in particular which confirmed her identification of him), but couldn’t really give an other-than-very-general description of the other two.

         Now here is why I’m telling this story:

         When they asked this kid why he had raped the girl, he said that it was a “birthday present to himself”!  (Believe me, I, too, want to throw up just writing to you about this.  Imagine how I felt hearing about it from Maria.)

         And just a few hours after he was arrested, this criminal’s mother showed up with his birth certificate which proved that, as a matter of fact, he was turning 18 the next day.  Now, the law doesn’t go by what hour you were born to decide if you are a minor or if you are an adult… just the day.  So at midnight the police had to release him, he went home, and now he has a clean record!

         What about Maria?  All I can tell you is that she is, of course, suffering the psychological ramifications of what happened, and I’m sure she will for many years to come.  She still comes to Church, and thanks be to God she still seems to have some hope for the future.  It warms my heart beyond any words that I can share each time I hear her laugh or see a genuine and happy smile.

         We’re not talking about teenage girls being provocative nor precocious.  We’re not even talking about the not-very-well-thought-out (or ill-advised) decisions of teenagers the world over.  We’re talking about something very horrible

which happened simply because Maria And Mark were riding the moped through the “wrong” area at the “wrong” moment.

         We’re not talking about filling jails with teenagers who steal a piece of candy or get in a fight at school.  We’re talking about truly violent and abominable crimes which – for all intent and purposes – are going unpunished… and about teens being aware of this and so being very bold to commit ever more heinous crimes.

         It’s not up to me to decide this issue for the Brazilian people.  And some Brazilian bishops have come out strongly against lowering the age of prosecution of minors as adults because they feel the Brazilian judicial and penal system is not equipped to adequately deal with the situation.

         The only thing that I can say is that every time I hear about this issue my skin crawls, my heart beats a little harder in my chest, and I almost want to cry as I think of Maria being the victim of some sicko’s birthday present to himself.

God helps us all.

                   And the debate continues… 

Father Guy Christopher Snyder, PIME

Parintins, Amazonas, Brazil

Friday, July 17, 2015

ESPAÑOL - Italiano sotto; English above

Tomé esta imagen una noche con algunos de los amigos de María de la parroquia; Yo les había invitado a por un helado después de la misa en la Catedral, ya que estamos celebrando el Parintins Diócesis Novena y Fiesta en honor a su patrona: Nuestra Señora del Carmen. Por razones que estoy seguro de que todos podemos entender, María realmente no quiere que ninguna de las imágenes tomadas de ella, así que no es uno de estos preadolescentes o adolescentes.

 Y el debate continúa ...

NOTA: Traducción hecha con Google Translate y NO revista.

Durante los últimos meses aquí en Brasil mucha discusión que ha estado sucediendo en relación con la edad "correcta" para tratar niños como adultos en los tribunales de justicia ... o incluso si hay una buena razón para nunca bajar esa edad de 18.

Aquí en Brasil, la ley actual establece que una persona sólo puede ser juzgado como un adulto a partir de los años 18. Cualquier crímenes cometidos por aquellos que son menores de edad (menores de 18 años de edad) pueden ser procesados, pero sólo si se produce el procesamiento y concluye antes de que el joven cumple 18. Por otra parte, cualquier sentencia que se sirve de forma automática expira y los jóvenes es ser liberado inmediatamente después de su 18º cumpleaños.

Tal vez eso suena bien en teoría, pero vamos a echar un vistazo a lo que ha venido a significar en la práctica.

En las grandes ciudades metrópoli como Río de Janeiro y São Paulo - especialmente en las "favelas" - hay todos los problemas y los crímenes asociados con la vida urbana. Pero un factor interesante presente es que muchos de los crímenes violentos han sido recientemente cometidas por aquellos que son 17 años de edad. Absolutamente, porque estos niños de 17 años sólo pueden celebrarse por un corto tiempo si son atrapados y como máximo van a servir para varios meses en la cárcel! Claro, porque no! Las pandillas están enviando a sus miembros que son 17-y-varios meses para matar a otros miembros de la banda, ya que, después de todo, la pena será corto! Unos 17-años de edad han sido contratados como asesinos para matar a los políticos locales de bajo nivel en varias ciudades brasileñas, porque la "ganancia es genial y el precio a pagar es bajo"!

Los políticos siguen discutiendo una y otra acerca de qué hacer. Los partidarios de la reducción de la edad - sólo 16 años de edad - dicen que evitará que esta erupción de jóvenes de 17 años siendo contratado como sicarios. Aquellos en contra de bajar la edad siguen hablando de la reforma de los niños con programas especiales, pero admitir que en realidad no hay dinero para hacer esto y así nuevos impuestos (ya extremadamente alto aquí en Brasil) tendría que ser aplicado a la investigación y pagar por el programa. Luego están los partidarios de la reducción de la edad - sin ningún nivel de limitación de edad (que dependerá de cada persona y el delito cometido) - indica que los programas de reforma y recuperan el menor sería definitivamente parte de la imagen, sino que los bienes castigos acordes con el delito cometido son necesarios.

Y el debate continúa...

Yo escribí todo eso para desgracia compartir con ustedes la historia de una joven - vamos a llamarla "María".

María es un feligrés de 14 años aquí en la parroquia de San José en Parintins. Hace aproximadamente un mes, ella y su primo (vamos a llamarlo "Mark) en regresar a casa uma noche en el ciclomotor de Marcos, y la sección de la ciudad a través del cual tenían que pasar es una de las áreas no desarrolladas de la ciudad / campo, conocido como "mata". Todavía hay árboles originales bosques de crecimiento, algunos campos para el ganado, pero nada "desarrollados" ... y, por desgracia, no hay duda, luces de la calle.

Como Mark y María estaban pasando por esta zona, tres chicos saltaron de la hierba alta con cuchillos machete similares y, sorprendiendo a Marcos y María en el ciclomotor, fácilmente trajeron la moto al suelo. Golpearon Marcos bastante mal, y luego lo ataron a un árbol. Luego golpearon a María en la sumisión y se turnaron para violarla. Posteriormente, le dijeron a Marcos y María para volver a su ciclomotor y salir de allí.

Marcos y María fueron inmediatamente a la comisaría para presentar una denuncia, y la policía tomaron inmediatamente para la zona en la que el crimen había tenido lugar. Los autores del idiota del crimen todavía estaban allí! Sin embargo, sólo fueron capaces de coger uno de ellos - desde que era un poco más alto en algún tipo de droga, y se negó a decir quién los otros dos eran. Marcos y María tuvieron ningún problema identificar a este joven ya que él estaba de pie frente a ellos (ella dijo que era sus ojos y su olor en particular, que confirmó su identificación de él), pero no podía dar otro-que-very- Descripción general de los otros dos.

Ahora aquí es por eso que estoy contando esta historia:

Cuando le preguntaron a este chico por qué él había violado a la niña, dijo que era un "regalo de cumpleaños para sí mismo"! (Créeme, yo también quiero vomitar sólo escribir con usted acerca de esto. Imagina cómo me sentí oído acerca de María.)

Y apenas unas horas después de ser arrestado, la madre de este criminal se presentó con su certificado de nacimiento, que demostró que, como cuestión de hecho, él se estaba convirtiendo 18 al día siguiente. Ahora, la ley no va por lo hora en que naciste para decidir si usted es menor de edad o si usted es un adulto ... justo el día. Así que a la medianoche la policía tuvo que dejarlo en libertad, él fue a su casa, y ahora tiene un expediente limpio!

¿Qué pasa con María? Todo lo que puedo decir es que ella es, por supuesto, que sufren las consecuencias psicológicas de lo que pasó, y estoy seguro de que lo hará durante muchos años por venir. Ella todavía viene a la iglesia, y gracias a Dios que todavía parece tener algo de esperanza para el futuro. Calienta mi corazón más allá de cualquier palabra que puedo compartir cada vez que la oigo reír o ver una sonrisa auténtica y feliz.

No estamos hablando de ser provocativa ni precoces adolescentes. Ni siquiera estamos hablando de la salida no muy bien pensado (o mal aconsejado) las decisiones de los adolescentes en el mundo entero. Estamos hablando de algo muy terrible que sucedió simplemente porque Maria Y Mark viajaban el ciclomotor por la zona "equivocado" en el momento "equivocado".

No estamos hablando de llenar las cárceles con los adolescentes que roban un pedazo de caramelo o se meten en una pelea en la escuela. Estamos hablando de crímenes verdaderamente violentos y abominables que - para todas las intenciones y propósitos - están impunidad ... y sobre los adolescentes de ser conscientes de ello y por lo que ser muy audaz para cometer delitos cada vez más atroces.

No depende de mí para decidir esta cuestión para el pueblo brasileño. Y algunos obispos brasileños han salido fuertemente en contra de la reducción de la edad de enjuiciamiento de menores de edad como adultos porque sienten que el sistema judicial y penal brasileño no está equipado para tratar adecuadamente la situación.

Lo único que puedo decir es que cada vez que oigo hablar de este tema mi piel se arrastra, mi corazón late un poco más fuerte en mi pecho, y casi me dan ganas de llorar cuando pienso en María ser víctima de cumpleaños de algún psicópata presente para él mismo.

Dios nos ayuda a todos.

Y el debate continúa ...

Padre Guy Christopher Snyder, PIME

Parintins, Amazonas, Brasil

Viernes, 17 de julio 2015

ITALIANO - Español arriba; English above.

Ho scattato questa foto una sera con alcuni amici di Maria della parrocchia; Li avevo invitato per il gelato dopo la Messa nella Cattedrale da quando si celebra il Parintins Diocesi Novena e Festa in onore del suo Patrono: Madonna del Carmelo. Per ragioni Sono sicuro che tutti noi possiamo capire, Maria davvero non vuole alcuna foto scattate di lei, così lei non è una di queste interpolazioni o ragazzi.

E il dibattito continua...

NOTA BENE:  Traduzione fatta con Google Translate e NON rivista.

Negli ultimi mesi qui in Brasile molte discussioni è andata avanti per quanto riguarda l'età "giusta" per cercare i bambini come adulti nei tribunali ... o anche se vi è una buona ragione per abbassare mai quell'età da 18.

Qui in Brasile, l'attuale legge stabilisce che una persona può essere giudicato solo come un adulto a partire dall'età di 18 anni eventuali reati commessi da coloro che sono i minori (sotto 18 anni) può essere perseguito, ma solo se si verifica l'accusa e conclude prima che il giovane compie 18 anni, inoltre, qualsiasi condanna da scontare automaticamente scade e il giovane deve essere liberato subito dopo il suo 18 ^° compleanno.

Forse che suona bene in teoria, ma diamo un'occhiata a quello che è venuto a significare in pratica.

Nelle grandi città metropoli come Rio de Janeiro e San Paolo - in particolare nelle "favelas" - ci sono tutti i problemi e di crimini connessi con la vita urbana. Ma un fattore interessante presente è che molti dei crimini violenti sono stati recentemente commessi da coloro che sono 17 anni di età.Assolutamente, perché questi 17 anni di età possono essere trattenuti solo per un breve periodo di tempo se sono catturati e al massimo serviranno diversi mesi di carcere! Certo, perché no! Gangs stanno inviando i loro membri che sono 17-e-diversi mesi per uccidere altri membri della banda, perché, dopo tutto, la sentenza sarà breve! Circa 17 anni sono stati assunti come sicari per uccidere politici locali di basso livello in diverse città del Brasile, perché il "guadagno è ottimo e il prezzo da pagare è basso"!

I politici continuano a discutere e indietro su cosa fare. Chi è a favore di abbassare l'età - solo per 16 anni - dicono che impedirà questa eruzione di 17 anni, di essere assunto come sicari. Quelli contro abbassando l'età continuano a parlare di riforma dei bambini con programmi speciali, ma ammettere che in realtà non c'è denaro per fare questo e così nuove tasse (già estremamente alto qui in Brasile) dovrebbe essere riscossa per la ricerca e per pagare il programma. Poi ci sono quelli a favore di abbassare l'età - senza alcun livello di limitazione di età (sarebbe dipende ogni individuo e il reato commesso) - afferma che i programmi di riforma e recuperare il minore sarebbe sicuramente parte del quadro, ma che la vera sono necessarie punizioni consonanti con il reato commesso.

E il dibattito continua ...

Ho scritto tutto questo per condividere con voi, purtroppo, la storia di una giovane donna - diciamo la chiamano "Maria".

Maria è una parrocchiana di 14 anni qui nella parrocchia di San Giuseppe a Parintins. Circa un mese fa lei e la cugina (chiamiamolo "Marco) dove tornando a casa una sera sul motorino di Mark, e la sezione della città attraverso la quale dovevano passare è una delle aree non sviluppate della città / campagna, noto come "mata". Ci sono ancora alberi originali bosco di crescita, alcuni campi per il bestiame, ma niente "sviluppate" ... e, purtroppo, di certo luci della strada.

Come Marco e Maria stavano passando attraverso questa zona, tre ragazzi saltò fuori l'erba alta con coltelli machete-simili e, sorprendendo Marco e Maria sul ciclomotore, facilmente portato la moto a terra. Hanno picchiato Mark piuttosto male, poi lo hanno legato ad un albero. Hanno poi battuto Maria alla sottomissione e si sono alternati violentarla. In seguito, hanno detto Marco e Maria di tornare sulla loro motorino e per uscire da lì.

Marco e Maria sono andati immediatamente alla stazione di polizia per sporgere denuncia, e la polizia ha preso immediatamente per l'area in cui il reato ha avuto luogo. Gli autori idioti del delitto erano ancora lì! Tuttavia, sono stati solo in grado di prendere uno di loro - da quando era un po 'alto su una specie di droga, e si è rifiutato di dire chi gli altri due erano. Marco e Maria ha avuto nessun problema identificando questa giovinezza da quando era in piedi di fronte a loro (lei ha detto che era i suoi occhi e il suo odore, in particolare, che ha confermato la sua identificazione di lui), ma non poteva davvero dare un altro-che-very- descrizione generale degli altri due.

Ora qui è per questo che sto dicendo questa storia:

Quando hanno chiesto questo ragazzo perché aveva violentata la ragazza, ha detto che si trattava di un "regalo di compleanno per se stesso"!(Credimi, anch'io, voglia di vomitare solo a scrivere a voi su questo. Immaginate come mi sentivo sentito parlare di Maria.)

E poche ore dopo essere stato arrestato, la madre di questo criminale si presentò con il suo certificato di nascita, che ha dimostrato che, come un dato di fatto, stava girando 18 il giorno successivo. Ora, la legge non passa a che ora sei nato per decidere se si è un minore o se sei un adulto ... proprio il giorno. Così a mezzanotte la polizia ha dovuto liberarlo, lui andò a casa, e ora ha un incensurato!

Che dire di Maria? Tutto quello che posso dirvi è che lei è, naturalmente, che soffre le conseguenze psicologiche di quello che è successo, e sono sicuro che lo farà per molti anni a venire. Viene ancora da Chiesa, e grazie a Dio che sembra ancora di avere qualche speranza per il futuro. Si scalda il cuore al di là di tutte le parole che posso condividere ogni volta che sento la sua risata o vedere un sorriso genuino e felice.

Non stiamo parlando di ragazze adolescenti di essere provocatorio né precoce. Non stiamo nemmeno parlando del-out non molto ben pensato (o mal consigliato) le decisioni di adolescenti in tutto il mondo. Stiamo parlando di qualcosa di molto orribile che è accaduto solo perché Maria E Mark cavalcavano il ciclomotore attraverso l'area "sbagliato" al momento "sbagliato".

Non stiamo parlando di riempire carceri con gli adolescenti che rubano una caramella o entrare in una rissa a scuola. Stiamo parlando di crimini veramente violenti e abominevoli che - per tutti intenti e le finalità - stanno andando impuniti ... e su ragazzi di essere consapevoli di questo e di essere molto audace per commettere crimini sempre più efferati.

Non sta a me decidere questo problema per il popolo brasiliano. E alcuni vescovi brasiliani sono usciti con forza contro l'abbassamento dell'età di perseguimento dei minori come se fossero adulti perché si sentono il sistema giudiziario e penitenziario brasiliano non è in grado di affrontare in modo adeguato la situazione.

L'unica cosa che posso dire è che ogni volta che sento parlare di questo problema la mia pelle striscia, il mio cuore batte un po 'più difficile nel mio petto, e ho quasi voglia di piangere come penso di Maria essere vittima di compleanno di qualche psicopatico presenti a se stesso.

Dio ci aiuta.

E il dibattito continua ...

Padre Guy Christopher Snyder, PIME

Parintins, Amazonas, Brasile

Venerdì, 17 luglio 2015