I just watched the movie, Molokai: The Story of Father Damien. Absolutely fabulous, wonderful, heartwarming, gut wrenching. Wow!
You see how God uses Fr.Damien’s humiliations, weaknesses, injustices against him, to further help the forgotten suffers of Hansen’s Disease (leprosy) during the 1800s in Hawaii. At that time, all people with the Disease were exiled to an island where they were forgotten by families and their government. The Catholic Bishop wanted to serve the people by providing their spiritual needs so Father Damien went. And the rest is history or his story really. Beautiful, but it sure shows how Satan tries to tear down God’s saints via any method, but how God can use anything intended for Evil into the Good.
This story touched a nerve in me because I had the life changing opportunity in college to volunteer with El Rostro de Cristo mission in Ecuador. Part of their mission is to help Sister Annie Credidio’s Padre Damien’s house in Guayaquil, Ecuador. I was able to spend time with the patients, hold hands, hug them, sing with them (Alabare always makes me cry when I sing it). Touch is SO crucial for those suffering from Hansen’s Disease because many who have it are shunned by society, much like those suffering from AIDS in the early 80s. I have wonderful memories from my experiences with those wonderful men, women, and children I met at Sister Annie’s house, I am so happy to watch the movie about the Saint who made change possible. When you click on the link above, all the patients who share their stories are patients I was able to spend time with. Carlos makes the most beautiful crosses that he sells in order to raise for his medications and expenses.
Watch the movie. Learn about a holy man. And consider donating to Damien House located in Ecuador. They serve the poorest of the poor.
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