The last few days have been a bit of a whirlwind. A first early rise brought us to Lago Atitlán, a beautiful volcanic lake in central Guatemala. While partially a stop to see the lake, this stop is also a chance to understand the links between Guatemala and the United States.
Crossing the lake from our hotel, we arrive at Santiago Atitlán. A missionary priest from Oklahoma, Stanley Rother, was martyred here by government officers for his impassioned defense of the Mayan locals during Guatemala’s civil war. Now beatified, Blessed Stanley—or Padre A’plas as he was known by the people here—is a reminder of the long-standing interconnectedness of our two countries and the Church in North and Central America.
Our final reflection on Sunday was highlighted by the powerful testimonies of the entire Ixim group—both from the United States and Guatemala. Chrystal Kozol, a St. James parishioner, enumerated several times she witnessed scripture being lived out by both the Ixim missionaries and the Guatemalans we lived with and worked alongside. She encouraged the Ixim team to continue to care for our mission because any project that allows space for the word of God to be present and lived out is needed greatly in our world.
Another early rise took us to the airport in Guatemala City. Due to a cabin crew illness, our flight was delayed, causing us to miss our connection and spend the night in Houston. While having had a wonderful time together, we all wanted to be with our families and return to our lives, yet it wasn’t quite time for that. This inconvenience is a reminder of how little we control. While our relative wealth grants us innumerable benefits over the lives of the people with whom we just spent the last two weeks, we are still often as impotent as any when it comes to the complexity of our age. It is just as important for us to trust in Christ’s presence in our lives and seek to find Him during every obstacle as it is for our Guatemalan hosts who can find God in the simplest of moments.
I appreciate all the wonderful feedback I’ve received on these emails throughout our mission. We hope you were inspired by the openness of our missionaries and our Guatemalan hosts. If you’d like to support Ixim to ensure that experiences like these continue, please consider visiting our donation portal at: https://app.aplos.com/aws/give/IximSpiritofSolidarity/Donate
