- Carlington Wlimot/Freelance Photographer
Folding laundry at the Lord's Place.
THE OLD Suzuki Ignis jerks to a halt at the stoplight.
"In the name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit."
As he waits for the light to turn green, Father Bryan Kerr of the Missionaries of the Poor uses the opportunity to pray for journeying mercies as we make our way to Our Lord's Place, one of the Catholic order's care centres for the poor and destitute of Kingston.
In this place also are many who are dying from HIV/AIDS.
Father Bryan is a leader in the missionary order. He has spent 23 years of his life serving the poor, choosing this vocation soon after finishing his A'levels at St. George's College - a life of unpaid service to those who cannot even feed themselves.
He is the only Jamaican member of the order to the Missionaries of the Poor, aside from founder Father Richard Ho Lung, and is just one of nearly 200 missionaries in the Caribbean-based international Catholic order.
The relatively young community was recently elevated to religious institute status by Pope John Paul II. It is the first (and so far the only) male religious community founded in the English-speaking Caribbean to attain this status.
While other orders are declining for want of members, the Missionaries of the Poor now have to put many of their would-be entrants on a waiting list.
We are curious to find out what lies behind the success of the movement.
The Missionaries of the Poor are next door to The Gleaner Company on North Street, with several other locations on Hanover Street, Highholborn Street and Tower Street, all located in Downtown Kingston.
But, only after three attempts were we able to catch up with the busy-as-bees brothers who begin their day at 5:30 in the morning. On the first attempt, the brothers were deep in morning meditation. On the second attempt, the large iron doors of the order on Hanover Street, the width of two sedans, side by side and the reddish colour of blood, were closed.
We arrived at 6:30 a.m., and again we had missed the opportunity to share worship with them. Through the door's high slit was an empty courtyard, except for two fat pigeons taking their morning constitutional on the cool pavement.
Inside, the Brothers were praying.
The missionaries spend three and three-quarters of an hour in prayer and worship every day. The morning begins with 45 minutes in prayer, 45 in meditation and 45 in worship. As the day progresses, there is more prayer to come. After morning meditation, all engage in a candid session where they point out each other's faults. It is accepted in a spirit of gratefulness, as criticism can only lead to a correction of the problem and the final goal character building.
The exercise is preparation for the day ahead. Afterwards the Brothers will disperse to engage in their lifetime occupation of caring for the sick and poor in their downtown hostels, or administering to the needs of the sect.
On the third attempt we succeed in interviewing several Brothers and getting a guided tour of the missionaries' work in the inner cities of Kingston.
The Missionaries of the Poor, as their web site says, is characterised by an austere and contemplative life in community and joyful service of the 'least' of this world.
Everyone who visits the homes and ministries of the missionaries is left wondering: How are these young men so happy when they live such simple lives in the community and dedicate themselves daily to prayer and free-service to the poorest in the inner-city?
At least six years of training is reflected in the stoic happiness of the missionaries. Only after this period are they allowed to take vows of poverty, chastity, obedience and service to the poor. The missionaries are the only order which takes a vow of service to the poor.
Finding Jesus
Each missionary seeks to find Jesus in every poor person for whom they care.
Faith abounds within the orders' walls.
Father Richard Ho Lung, head of the order, told Outlook, "We take nothing from government, and yet somehow the mystery of it is that we survive. People keep giving. Look at what God has done."
Yet another miracle is in the presence of the Brothers themselves. Although in 23 years, only two Jamaicans have emerged as members, men of other nations are enthusiastically asking to join. Many of them college graduates or fully employed, leave the pursuit of secular gains to clean and provide medication for HIV/AIDS, handicapped children, old people and many others who are abandoned and have no homes.
Shelters
Currently, the primary works of the missionaries around the world are the following:
In Kingston there are five shelters for the homeless where more than 500 destitute persons are sheltered and cared for permanently, including orphaned and disabled children, crippled and incapacitated adults, sick, elderly and AIDS patients. The Brothers also run a feeding programme for more than 200 poor families. They are also engaged in the building and repairing of houses of the poor in the ghetto. They have constructed a night shelter for street people and Bethlehem House for young homeless boys.
In Haiti (Cap-Haitien) the missionaries give permanent shelter and care for 160 homeless people, including children and AIDS patients. This includes orphans and disabled children, crippled and incapacitated adults, sick, elderly and AIDS patients and a feeding programme for poor school children.
In the Philippines (Naga City), they offer basic education and feed slum children. They also care for the mentally ill and shut-ins as well.
In India (Andhra Pradesh), the missionaries take carloads of lepers to be bathed and fed. They also feed and educate children of poor labourers. There is a prison ministry there as well.
In Uganda they provide basic education and feeding for slum children.
Soon the missionaries might be present in Guatemala, where they have been invited by the government to look after people with HIV/AIDS. No other body wants to look after them. They may also go to Mexico.
When we arrive at Our Lord's Place, we are greeted with smiles everywhere. The polished, un-tiled floor in the home gleams with cleanliness. We arrive right during pre-lunch worship, so our tour of the sleeping areas, kitchen, room for dispensing medicine and the rest of the complex is done in relative seclusion.
Death
There is only one woman lying in bed. "When they are closest to death, they get depressed and stop eating. We have to encourage them to value their lives, even if they are critical or terminal," said Father Bryan.
Usually there are about 40 residents in the home, but today there are only 25. Quite a number of those with HIV/AIDS have succumbed to the disease.
"The problem we have is that many only come to us when they are dying, when everyone in the community knows," Father further laments. Since the establishment of this refuge for those affected by the disease, the brothers have buried in the region of 200 Jamaicans.
As we depart from Lord's Place, we see one woman waiting to be admitted at the office. The Brother in charge asks her to wait, then turns around to ask Father Bryan if he can officiate at a funeral this evening. There will be three funerals this week.
We move on to Tower Street, where the doors to the street are also closed until we knock and are identified. There we meet many of the disabled who surge happily towards us in greeting. They are in the middle of eating lunch now.
We leave Tower Street to return to Hanover Street, where we meet another large group of women who entertain us revival style. They do not want us to go.
But move on we must. As we move away from the Kingston waterfront, Father Bryan comments, "I used to work at the Bank of Jamaica down there."
He lives in a whole different world now.
The poor in Kingston are all the better for the choice he and other brothers, Missionaries to the Poor, have made to cut their ties with the material world.
