Jamaica Mission Trip #4 - Out of many people one

This Spring Break, a group of Seminarians from Saint John Paul II Seminary have the chance to serve with Mustard Seed Communities at Jacob’s Ladder, where over 150 disabled men and women reside. Here is the fifth installment, where Stephen Wong reflect on coming back to his home country. 

Stepping onto Jamaican soul for the first time after 30 years, I was filled with anxiety and excitement. My anxiety stemmed from not knowing if I would feel or experience a sense of belonging in my home country. On the other hand, I yearned to reminisce on the island where I was born—to rekindle the rhythm and freeness of spirit of the Jamaican people.

En-route from Baltimore to Jamaica, I prayed not only for myself but our team that God would bestow His many blessings and reward us with His presence, maybe in a laid back Caribbean way, by working through the Jamaican people and laboring at Jacob’s Ladder.  

Upon landing in Montego Bay, I was immediately struck by the friendliness of the immigration officer. He immediately recognized me as a native. “Once a Jamaican always a Jamaican, he said, “so yu ha won ha we.” That’s translated as, “you are still one of us.” I praised and thanked God as my anxiety quickly disappeared and I felt God working among us.  

After a few days talking to my Jamaican brothers and sisters, it was like I had never left. I assimilated immediately into the culture, its language, and its people. Because of the trust I gained from some of the locals, I heard stories otherwise told to others. I learned about their many sufferings to meet basic needs and why people must often revert to crime. However, I sensed fertile grounds for the message of the gospel to change their lives.  

Prior to my trip, I contacted Archbishop Charles Dufour, my parish priest during the 1970s. He surprised us with a visit. He conveyed some insights to Fr. Regan and myself about religion and the state of Jamaican politics. We were also blessed when he took time to meet and speak with the mission team. We needed his encouragement.

The past few days brought loads of rain due to an unexpected cold front that prevented JPII’s mission team from working on some construction projects. To complicate matters, the Coronavirus precautionary measures also limited our visits with the residents.

Instead of hugging the residents we settled for touching elbows.   

Our desire to help them was strong so we prayed for the rain to stop. Our prayers were answered on Tuesday, March 10th when the great Jamaican sunshine graced the commencement of our labour. Along with the Mustard Seed maintenance crew we worked extremely hard, hand in hand, making concrete, moving heavy debris, and installing poles and fences.  

Hours of making and shoveling cement produced a lot of sweat, but also accented friendships we developed with the seminarians from Mustard Seed. The most blessed and rewarding experience was witnessing 16 of the residents participating in the Stations of the Cross.   

I would like to leave you with the Jamaican national motto because it really solidifies our experience in working together with our Jamaican counterparts. The motto is “Out of many people one.” There is an informal interpretation, “no matter a person’s background, if we work hard then collectively we will reap the benefits together.”