Breaking Barriers – Your Catholic Weekly Reflection from CMMB
In today’s Gospel, Jesus visits the house of two sisters, Martha and Mary. In these times, women like Martha and Mary were marginalized in society. It was unheard of for a woman to be a disciple.Yet Mary chose to sit by Jesus’ side and listen to him teach, as a disciple would. Martha couldn’t understand why Mary would act in this way. But Jesus defended Mary, and Jesus showed us that everyone can be his follower.
Here, Jesus breaks with the social conventions of his time. We are called to be like Jesus and to break down barriers that were constructed to separate people from one another. When we pray, we call God “Our Father,” meaning that we are all his children; no boundaries should separate us. Barriers can take many forms—in Mary’s case, she broke through the boundaries of existing society to become a disciple of Jesus. In the Kingdom of God there are no distinctions or boundaries between its members.
Meet Maria. Maria lives in a remote community in Kenya with her four children. Born into extreme poverty, Maria’s life has been filled with challenges and loss, including the death of both her mother and father to illness. Maria didn’t allow herself to dream, she didn’t believe her life could change. She felt that as a woman, there were barriers set and any chance at opportunity did not apply to her. She, like Martha and Mary, felt marginalized.
Then Maria learned about a women’s savings group in her community and decided to join. She spent time listening and learning from the other women in her group and got the courage to ask for a loan. With her first loan of $200, Maria bought six goats, which provided nutritious milk, fertilizer for her home garden, and a source of income. As she reared her goats – which produced kids that she could sell – she started to save money. She paid back the loan ($27 a month) and with the extra money she managed to save, she started a small hotel in her hometown. As she saw her life improve and her hard work pay off, Maria started to dream big. She took out an additional loan and bought two cows and a bull and her next plan is to get the funding necessary to build herself and her family a new home.
“My life is changing. My children are eating better and sleeping better and learning better. I don’t feel helpless anymore. And I will do whatever I can to make sure my children have a better education and a brighter future.”
Maria continues to work very hard every day. She is the manager, accountant, cook, and host at her hotel, all while raising her children. The difference is that she now feels in charge of her life and her future.
Maria stands in front of her hotel in Kenya
Maria has succeeded in an area that is typically dominated by men, and in that way has broken through barriers as Mary did in the reading.
Through the Raskob Women Economic Empowerment Project, CMMB helped to break barriers for 323 vulnerable women in rural Kenya by successfully providing them and their families a safe place to save their money and access small loans. The project, which ran from June 2017 to March 2019, provided training and loans that channeled almost $20,000 into women’s groups.
Let us pray for the grace to break down barriers to love, tolerance and compassion for those that need it.
CMMB/Healthier Lives Worldwide
*Today’s reflection was inspired by Loyola Press.
