Trinity
Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.)
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April 2003
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Passion/Palm Sunday (April 13, 2003)
“The
Refugee and the Refuge”/“El Refugiado y el Refugio”
Dr. Van Kemper
Texts: Isaiah 50:4-9a and Philippians 2:5-11
SERMON
It
is sometimes said that our names signal our destinies.
For instance, we have taken our son John to a pediatrician named Payne;
my wife and I both have gone to a dermatologist named Cheek; and, taking
a broader perspective, most of us have heard of a pretty good golfer named
“Woods.”
This
morning I want to share with you a story of a man whose first name is José
del Refugio, a man who also found his destiny in his name – as he was
forced to become a refugee ( un “refugiado”) when it became unsafe for him
and his family to remain in his home community.
It
is a familiar story. Since the beginnings of what is euphemistically called
“civilization,” empire-building has been accompanied by violence, coercion,
and people seeking refuge from evil.
En
la historia mundial, la historieta personal de un hombre nombrado “José
del Refugio” puede ser replicado miles de veces en miles de lugares.
En el caso actual, “Refugio” empezó su vida en un pueblo pequeño,
viviendo entre los pobres de la comunidad.
A los pocos días de ser nacido, como consecuencia de las acciones del ejército
del territorio, su familia tuvo que huír del lugar y abandonar su tierra natal.
Forced
out of his native land as a baby and taken by his parents to a foreign land to
escape death from the authorities, José del Refugio began his life as a
refugee. After some years had
passed, and the political leader of their home country had been removed from
power, it seemed safe for “Refugio’s” family to abandon their exile –
although still afraid to return to their home village, they traveled to the far
northern section of the country where they settled down in obscurity –
literally hiding out from the authorities.
And for many years, the family prospered and little “Refugio” grew
into a man known for his wisdom and for his teachings.
Después
de haber pasado algúnos años en el exilio, la familia de “Jose del
Refugio” tomó la oportunidad de regresar a su país natal, aunque se tomó
toda precaucíon en moverse al otro lado del país.
A pesar de todas las precauciones, siempre vivían en el miedo de ser
descubiertos e identificados por las autoridades.
En tal situación, el jóven “José del Refugio” creció en sabiduría,
hasta ser reconcocido por los residentes de la región como un “sabio.”
The full
story of “Refugio’s” life as an adolescent and as a young adult has been
lost amidst the violence associated with the foreign occupation of his country.
What we do know is that, around the age of 30, he emerged from obscurity
when he spoke out for social justice, proclaimed that the poor people of that
land would be freed from their oppression, and declared that a new era was on
its way for all of the people. But
now that he had spoken up, the leaders feared him so much that they determined
to kill him, and for a second time his name was his destiny – as he again
became a refugee.
Después
de haber declarado tan abiertamente su posición en contra a la situación política
y económica, José del Refugio tuvo que huír y de nuevo su nombre era su
destino. Y luego, José del Refugio
empezó de viajar por todos lados con la finalidad de ayudar a la gente,
sobretodo a los pobres y a los enfermos. Pero
cada vez que prestó ayuda a un desafortunado, las autoridades se pusieron
enojados e intentaban a perseguirle. Y su fama creció por todas partes.
And
though now a double refugee, he persisted in working with the poor and the sick
to bring them good news. “Refugio”
was becoming known far and wide as one who stood up to the authorities, who
accepted their challenges to his power, and continued to help the needy in the
face of threats on his life. Like
the teacher in this morning’s Old Testament lesson from chapter 50 of Isaiah,
“Refugio” knew how “to sustain the weary with a word.”
He did not turn away from the challenges before him.
He did not hide his face from insults from those in power.
Pasando
el tiempo, las impugnaciones y las amenazas en contra de José del Refugio
llegaron a ser más serias y directas. Siempre
trabajabando entre los pobres y los enfermos, ofreciendoles la esperanza y la
nueva vida, José del Refugio mostró el verdadero espiritú del siervo. Como dice el profeta Isaías en la lectura del capítulo 50
– José del Refugio no dejó de “hablar palabras al cansado.”
El
hizó todo el sacrificio para los demás. Como
muchos líderes a través de la historia, sufrió los tiempos encarcelados; y
pasó varios días en ayunas. José del Refugio empezó de entender que el
sufrir personalmente le enfocó y se concentró en su destino.
Lo
mismo que han entendido los grandes hombres de la historia mundial tal como
Muhatma Gandhi, lider del movimento para la independencia de la India; César
Chavéz, fundador del sindicato be trabajores del campo en California; Nelson
Mandela, lider del movimiento anti-racista en Africa del Sur; y Martin Luther
King, siempre al frente de la “resistencia sin violencia” durante los años
sesentas.
Like
Muhatma Gandhi, like César Chavéz, like Nelson Mandela, and like Martin Luther
King, “Refugio” came to understand that his destiny was to be a suffering
servant-leader. In working to transform injustice into justice wherever he
traveled, “Refugio” began to appreciate that self-sacrifice would be his
mission in life.
And
then one day, while he and his followers were spending the evening before Palm
Sunday at a modest roadside inn, he encountered a Bible on the bedside table.
Remembering the story of Jesus’ entry into Jerusalem on a path strewn
with palm branches, José del Refugio began to see some similarities between his
own life and the life of Jeus. And,
he was very quiet and deep in thought for a long time.
Then,
with renewed inspiration, he flipped through the pages of the New Testament,
looking for some idea of what might be ahead for his own life.
Finally, having turned many pages, he came upon Paul’s Epistle to
the Philippians, where the passage that we have as our lesson for this
morning grabbed his attention.
La
lección de Filipenses 2:5-11, conocido como un himno de alabanza a Cristo, le
impresionó mucho a José del Refugio. Pensando
en su situación personal, y comparándolo al sacrificio de Jesús hasta la
muerte de cruz, José del Refugio entendió su propia vida desde una nueva
perspectiva. Y se sintió una calma y tranquilidad muy sabrosa.
Por fin, José del Refugio apreció que su nombre y destino eran
intimamente relacionados. Y apreció claramente que su nombre fue “del
Refugio” y no “auto-Refugio.” Es decir, el refugio no estaba dentro
de él mismo, sino estaba en algo mucho más grande.
And
reading a second time through the Philippians passage, he saw that what Jesus
had suffered on the cross showed that, in the end, all of us have our refuge not
in ourselves but in God. As José
del Refugio reflected on his life, he saw the hand of God at work.
What others might have interpreted as a life of suffering, he came to see
as a life of opportunity, as a life of service.
With renewed confidence, he assembled his followers, the other men and
women who also had dedicated themselves to the cause of social justice.
And José del Refugio began to challenge them with the very questions on
which the prophet Isaiah had reflected many hundreds of years earlier.
And José del Refugio urged his followers to stand up together, to form a
circle, and to give thanks for their solidarity as a community. And he concluded
their meeting by proclaiming, “It is the Lord God who helps us.”
En
ese momento, José del Refugió reconoció que su ayuda no vino de sí mismo,
sino del Señor Dios. De la misma manera en que José había ayudado a muchas
personas durante su vida, ahora José entendió que su vida siempre había
estado en las manos de Nuestro Señor.
¿Y nosotros?
¿De donde viene nuestra ayuda? ¿Dónde
encontramos el refugio? ¿Y hasta
donde vamos a llegar en nuestras vidas sin reconocer que no somos auto-suficientes?
And what
about us? From where does our help come? Where will we find our refuge? And how
long will it take us to realize that we are not self-sufficient?
Al
final de todo, debemos apreciar lo que José del Refugio llegó a reconocer –
que ser “del refugio” quiere decir que nuestro refugio no es por
nuestra propia cuenta, sino que es el regalo libre de Nuestro Señor Dios para
nosotros. Ninguno tiene que sufrir
como “refugiado,” cuando “el refugio” siempre está a la mano.
All of us
can learn what José del Refugio came to understand: no one has to suffer as a
“refugee” when our “refuge” always is at hand.
Amen.