A powerful experience in San Salvador

"Rejoice in hope, endure in affliction, persevere in prayer. Contribute to the needs of the holy ones, exercise hospitality.”
~Romans 12:12-13

Eight years ago, I had the privilege of traveling to El Salvador for the Called to Witness program through Catholic Relief Services (CRS).  After we settled in San Salvador, we were blessed to travel to different parts of the country to see the different ways CRS was working with the people of El Salvador.  
Our first location was a training center for young people.  This center was in the middle of one of the communities.  The purpose of the center is to teach young people the professional skills needed to find and keep a job so they can support themselves and their family.  We were able to sit in on the training and get to know the participants.  We listened to their stories and the obstacles that they had to overcome in order to be a part of the training and heard their hope and expectations for the future.  It was inspiring to hear their stories and what they hoped to achieve.  I was especially moved by one young man who shared all that he had overcome on the streets of San Salvador prior to being accepted into the training program.  His life was literally saved by this opportunity. 
After the training, one of the young men showed us his home and the piñata business that his mother started.  The mother is a single parent and to support her family, the mother crafted piñata and sold them on the street and also to businesses.  She shared the struggles to get started and some of the challenges with some of her orders that were cancelled by businesses looking for cheaper products.  Despite these challenges, she was able to support her family and she was very hopeful for the future of her family.  When I see a piñata now, I think of this hard-working woman and how much she put into each piñata she made.
We were able to visit the San Salvador Cathedral which was packed.  This was the site of the funeral of Saint Oscar Romero and his tomb.  Thousands of pilgrims visit the tomb each year and there was an especially large number of people leading up to the beatification.  It was extremely impactful for me to pray at the tomb.
We then went to where St. Romero lived and ultimately died.  He was the Archbishop of San Salvador, but lived a very simple life.  The car that he drove throughout the country was in the same spot that he parked.  A worker in the museum shared the story that then Archbishop Romero would travel by himself when he went on visits so that he would not put anyone else’s life in danger as he was aware of the threats to his own life.  The tape recorder, phone and typewriter that he used were on display in the room that he lived in.  The blood-soaked vestment that he was wearing when he was shot was in the residence.  It was like traveling back in time.  We concluded with a visit to the chapel where he was assassinated while celebrating Mass.  This was another powerful prayer experience for me.  It was a little overwhelming to pray where St. Romero lived and died.  We were only a couple of days into our journey, and I had already experienced a lot of emotions from listening to so many stories and spending time in the same locations as St. Romero walked and prayed with the people of El Salvador.
Next time:  Out to the countryside of El Salvador.  
— Tex Phelps is the Director of the Office of Youth and Young Adult Ministry for the Archdiocese of Mobile. He may be emailed at [email protected]
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