Today was spent doing more acclimatizing to the heat - it really sucks the energy out of you! I'm getting more used to it now. Jogging at night helped a bit, I suppose.
I went exploring today - trying to get off the beaten path and see the locals. Funny thing - I haven't been able to get a meal of the local culture yet. Every time I want to - something gets in the way. So today, I decided I was going to veer out and see if I could. Well - in taking the local transport I was impressed to hear on the loudspeakers the call to prayer of the Muslims. Friday, being their holy day, gave the place a small change to the regular routine. The change wasn't so drastic that you really knew it was a different day... unfortunately, just like back at home with our Sunday. From what I gathered, today was just business as usual... except for the people heading off to the mosques. Well, in my travels, I bumped into a very nice person who informed me that there is a Catholic Church in town! I was totally impressed. I wanted to make a special trip out there to visit Our Lord, and just spend time with Him. Having the Blessed Sacrament at school just down the hall is quite the luxury... and us in the West have no idea how much of a privilege it is! Anyhow - after quite a number of requests for assistance in finding the church (from friendly looking people who I could count on), I was able to locate it. I was also pleased to find out that while I was praying, people started to set up for Holy Mass! The place filled up, and sure enough, I was about to attend Holy Mass... but in Tamil, or something. I was so happy to be at a Mass, I sang along with the people - though probably butchering the language. It brought tears to my eyes that here we were - in the middle of a place where Catholics are a minority, and people were coming in from far and wide to go to Mass. I was touched by feeling that they knew the importannce of the Holy Eucharist. Sometimes, I guess we don't know what we have until it is taken away. At the end of Mass, I stayed to do my Thanksgiving... to see the church filling up again! This time - it was a Mass in English! I just HAD to stay again - if only to hear the readings and sing some hymns. In the recitation of the Creed - it was something else... especially in this large church (the only one around), shadowed by a humongous mosque, whose own creed was being shouted aloud through gigantic microphones into the city streets. Two faiths - one God. On exiting the church, I did see something that made me smile. The church was not decorated with a cross, or crucifix, or anything Christian. But there - in a tiny grotto - was a statue of Our Lady. She is the key to the hearts of the faithful from both religions. I left there with the courage givenn by the Gos[el of Sunday's liturgy (celebrated today in these parts): "Do not fear those that cann only harm the body." Courage... we walk in the shadow of Our Lord and uder the mantle of Our Lady.
I went exploring today - trying to get off the beaten path and see the locals. Funny thing - I haven't been able to get a meal of the local culture yet. Every time I want to - something gets in the way. So today, I decided I was going to veer out and see if I could. Well - in taking the local transport I was impressed to hear on the loudspeakers the call to prayer of the Muslims. Friday, being their holy day, gave the place a small change to the regular routine. The change wasn't so drastic that you really knew it was a different day... unfortunately, just like back at home with our Sunday. From what I gathered, today was just business as usual... except for the people heading off to the mosques. Well, in my travels, I bumped into a very nice person who informed me that there is a Catholic Church in town! I was totally impressed. I wanted to make a special trip out there to visit Our Lord, and just spend time with Him. Having the Blessed Sacrament at school just down the hall is quite the luxury... and us in the West have no idea how much of a privilege it is! Anyhow - after quite a number of requests for assistance in finding the church (from friendly looking people who I could count on), I was able to locate it. I was also pleased to find out that while I was praying, people started to set up for Holy Mass! The place filled up, and sure enough, I was about to attend Holy Mass... but in Tamil, or something. I was so happy to be at a Mass, I sang along with the people - though probably butchering the language. It brought tears to my eyes that here we were - in the middle of a place where Catholics are a minority, and people were coming in from far and wide to go to Mass. I was touched by feeling that they knew the importannce of the Holy Eucharist. Sometimes, I guess we don't know what we have until it is taken away. At the end of Mass, I stayed to do my Thanksgiving... to see the church filling up again! This time - it was a Mass in English! I just HAD to stay again - if only to hear the readings and sing some hymns. In the recitation of the Creed - it was something else... especially in this large church (the only one around), shadowed by a humongous mosque, whose own creed was being shouted aloud through gigantic microphones into the city streets. Two faiths - one God. On exiting the church, I did see something that made me smile. The church was not decorated with a cross, or crucifix, or anything Christian. But there - in a tiny grotto - was a statue of Our Lady. She is the key to the hearts of the faithful from both religions. I left there with the courage givenn by the Gos[el of Sunday's liturgy (celebrated today in these parts): "Do not fear those that cann only harm the body." Courage... we walk in the shadow of Our Lord and uder the mantle of Our Lady.
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