Jesus said, “Whoever welcomes you welcomes me, and whoever welcomes me welcomes the one who sent me. Whoever welcomes a prophet in the name of a prophet will receive a prophet’s reward; and whoever welcomes a righteous person in the name of a righteous person will receive the reward of the righteous; and whoever gives even a cup of cold water to one of these little ones in the name of a disciple– truly I tell you, none of these will lose their reward.” Matthew 10:40-42

It wasn’t what I expected but I wasn’t really sure what to expect.

We have been in quarantine for more than two months. It seems like ages. We knew that there were going to be some changes in the streets and our ministry. We have had contacts regularly with some of the teens during this period but this week it was time to venture back to the streets. I decided to try it on my own first. The opportunity came when Wallace called and said that he lost his documents. We had copies of some of them in our home. We arranged to meet in one of our regular spots. I was curious to see how things were in the streets.

Normally, two months of absence is not really anything to write home about. We have been away from the streets before for this time frame before. Mostly, life goes on as usual in our absence and then when we return we try to slip back into the routine. However, nothing is normal or regular with this pandemic. It appears like the whole world is on transition. Everything came to a pause of time standing still. Now, everyone is trying to scramble around to regain normalcy even though we are not sure if the time is right to do this. It appears that we are rushing to rescue something that may not be there anymore. We will never know unless we take the time to reflect before we act. Nevertheless, everything did appear to be like before. Stores were crowded. The streets were busy as usual. Everything looked exactly the same except that people were wearing masks. Yet, there was a subtle difference. Something has changed. As I was walking along a pedestrian strip, a delivery person on bicycle cycled swiftly past me and yelled, “Get out of the way, you imbecile!” Not quite the welcoming words that I was expecting. His harsh words penetrated my soul. He was a young man very much like our homeless teens. However, he was in the world and working. He needed to get somewhere fast. I was an obstacle in his path even though it was not a place for him to be riding a bicycle at such high speed. It did not matter to him. Only what he desired mattered and he wanted me to out of his way. Anyone in his way was an imbecile according to him. I just happened one of the many.

I waited for Wallace in the square where we used to work. Things have changed drastically here. Before the Pandemic, our teens were a small percentage of the homeless population; there were about hundred of them and the adults were at least five times more. Now, there were an overwhelming number of families with young children sleeping in tents in the streets. It was quite disturbing even though I should be more accustomed to these things by now. Unfortunately, this was beyond the norm. I am afraid that this is perhaps what is the new reality now.

There were tons of children under the age of five running around without any masks and their parents interacting with them in the same manner. None of these faces were familiar. These people are new arrivals to the streets. I imagine that the loss of employment and income coupled with the lack of support from the authorities has brought many of these families to the streets. I saw a father playing soccer with his young son. It would have been a pleasant scene in another time. However, you can see that he would rather be doing something else for his family. His face revealed signs of resignation. Nonetheless, he is holding on to his fatherhood. He gently kicked the ball to his son.

Everything looked chaotic and I felt a little uncomfortable. Not that I feared some kind of violence or anything of that sort. I just did not expect things to fall apart so quickly. Wallace did not show up. I found out later that he got confused with the time and had come earlier than the time we arranged. I wasn’t disappointed. It got me back to the streets. On my way there, I saw Bruno begging outside a fast-food restaurant. I went to see him instead.

I was planning to sneak up on him and surprise him. Unfortunately he spotted me first. He immediately stood and yelled out my name with a welcoming smile. He knew that we shouldn’t hug so he extended his elbow to me. This is our new “hug”. It was quite different welcome than the one I received from the cursing cyclist. Bruno’s reaction touched my soul in a different way. It gave me the feeling like I was at home again. He immediately asked, “Where’s Mary?” All the teens consider us as a family package. They feel something essential is missing when they just see one of us. I explained that everyone needs time to come to terms with the pandemic and Mary will be back when she is ready. Bruno understood without any hesitation. “These are strange times.” As usual, he bombarded me with questions. He wanted to know about the previous pandemics that the world has experienced. There was something going on in his mind. He was silent for a brief moment. I asked him what was his opinion about the present state. “It seems every period has to go through something disastrous as such.” This was his answer. It was a good one. He wanted to talk more. He said that he missed our times together. I made plans to meet with him again. He wanted me to assure Mary that when she comes to visit, he will wear a mask and practice social distancing. Then the police started showing up all geared up as for a war, The stores began their process of closing. No businesses are allowed to be open after 3 pm. It was strictly enforced.

On my way home, I ran into Aline and her new boyfriend. We have known her for a few years. She always has been a very open and sweet girl but we never really had any in-depth conversations. Nevertheless, it is always pleasant to see her. Her boyfriend, unfortunately, is part of the one of the dangerous gangs in the São Paulo. He smiled and was genuinely happy to see me even though we hardly know him. I don’t even know his name. He asked about Mary. I told them what I said to Bruno. Her boyfriend nodded and said, “Everyone needs time to feel safe.” It was quite amazing to see such a sincere and loving gesture from a young man who has been exposed to violence most of his life. It was quite different from the reaction I got from the cyclist. This young man will never shout at me, “Get out of the way, imbecile.” I hardly know him and yet he made my soul feel at home with him.

My walk back home was much more peaceful because the children and teens are always there ready to hand us a cup of water to refresh our souls. We are not obstacles in their way. We are people to them. I suppose this is what Jesus meant about being welcomed. In this sometimes hostile city, I always have been welcomed by these children and teens. In this time of isolation and quarantine, it is good to know that whenever we return to this place where homelessness and desperation seems to abound, there is also a place for us to call home in the hearts of these precious people. They are our reward in life and hopefully in some way, we are their reward too in this strange world.

“Everyone therefore who acknowledges me before others, I also will acknowledge before my Father in heaven; but whoever denies me before others, I also will deny before my Father in heaven.” Matthew 10:32-33

It is hard to describe the past two weeks. Our neighbor was infected with the virus bringing the reality of the pandemic right to our doorstep. We live in a relatively small building with only four apartments on each floor, sharing the same common area with our neighbors and also the elevator. Therefore, it was recommended that all of us remain in strict quarantine. For more than two weeks, we had hardly any contact with the rest of the world. Nevertheless, we could hear helicopters and police sirens to remind us of the civil unrest in the streets. There were the protests and riots. They happened all over the world and here they were due to the threat of a possible military dictatorship. It seems more imminent as the times goes by. As the news of our situation began to spread all the over world, a childhood friend from Singapore got in contact with me. He was concerned about our welfare and he asked the pivotal question, “Is this the end of times?” It seems like everything is falling apart. It’s possible that the end is near. No one can know for sure even though I have my doubts. Most likely it has always been like this and we are just beginning to see how things as they really are. Maybe more of us are seeing what some people have experienced their whole lives. Everything is coming out into the open. This may not be necessarily bad. It might be the first step towards the Truth.

The first few chapters of Genesis give us more information of our humanity than any news media or political analyst. Not because these are not good sources of information, they just don’t see beyond the superficial. Religious myth goes deeper into the depth of our humanity. Adam and Eve are not just our distant parents. They mirror us, ancient and modern human beings. They testify to our desire to usurp God’s place in our lives and in this world. The world was perfect, according to the story, with perfect harmony in nature. However, humanity was not satisfied until everything was under their dominion without giving any role to God. Cain and Abel tell us how we cannot stand it when our brother or sister is considered better than us. We would rather see them destroyed than let them be more successful than us. In the Flood narrative, we are warned how easy it is for us to be so lost in our willful desires that we fail to see the signs of our self-destructive habits. The tower of Babel reveals the deep rooted desire in humanity to stretch the limits of their power and knowledge without acknowledging God.

Human desire to be god is greater than our desire to live in a harmonious world. This is the reality in which we find ourselves. This is our weakness as human beings although some might consider it their strength. Despite what we think, we know in our hearts that we are not god. We might feed on lies telling us that we can do everything. The result is what we are seeing now; this present turmoil in the world. Gratefully, we are assured that the situation is not hopeless. It is exactly in this kind of circumstance that Jesus tells to acknowledge His presence before all peoples. We have to be careful here. We are humans who can take powerful and life transforming words and twist them until they become banal. I know because I have done this before. After all, I live in this world too and I share humanity’s desires to be god. I have the ability to reduce these powerful words of Jesus to superficial acknowledgement of Jesus in this world so His divinity and authority has no influence in my actions. I did it many times even when I served as missionary to the children and teens. Now, it is time for a change. Not a mere change but a total and utter transformation. I have to figure out what Jesus is asking of us when He told us to acknowledge Him in this world. There are only two options available to us. Either we acknowledge Him or deny Him. However, before we proceed, it is good to heed the words of Jesus when He said,

“For I tell you, unless your righteousness exceeds that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.” (Matthew 5:20)

Being religious is not the same as acknowledging Jesus’ presence in this world. The Pharisees were extremely religious yet Jesus tells us that we need to be better than them. Therefore, we need to look elsewhere to learn how to acknowledge the presence of Jesus in this world. If we look at another fellow human being, we know it will be just a question of time before we will be disappointed. After all, we are all the same and subjected to the corruption and deceitfulness of this world. Therefore, we need some serious help. There is no simple solution that is going to work for everyone. Maybe this is the best place to start. Spiritual laws or practices cannot be universally applied to all peoples in any situation or time. It is incumbent on each individual to seek what it means to be His testimony in this world.

Thankfully, Jesus did not just leave us without any aid. He lived His life as a constant testimony of God’s love. He served those whom the world neglected and continues to neglect. He did not take His place among the kings and high priests of His society. He did not choose reality from their perspective. Instead He made His bed with those whom society considered as worthless, or rather, whose lives did not seem matter. He ignored the “generous” donations of rich patrons of the temple and paid attention to the sacrificial contribution of a nameless poor woman. He ignored the rich man and honored the beggar, Lazarus in his parable. He acknowledged the unconditional love of the Samaritan instead of the bulwarks of religion of His time. The list is long and it is all there in the gospels. Therefore, we have to heed the words of Jesus when He tells us, “A disciple is not above the teacher, nor a slave above the master.” This only means that the people He chose to be with and support and heal are the ones whom the disciples should seek to be in His Kingdom.

Jesus has given us a powerful and life transforming example to follow. An example to serve us in all times and seasons. An example to help us in our consideration on how we are going to act in the situation in which we find ourselves. Presently, we find ourselves in a time and place where sickness and injustice and utter disregard for the human life are seemingly becoming the norm. In this environment, we have to move in the opposite direction. We cannot seek to maintain the peace and ignore anti-Christ attitudes. It is a time for prayer and courage to act and live in a way that acknowledges the presence of Jesus in our lives. We hope that at the end of the day, Jesus will also joyfully acknowledge us before the Father.