While in Haiti I had the grace of visiting a few houses of the Missionaries of Charity and spend time with “Mother Theresa’s nuns”. As always, they are women of few words. But those words can be sharp as a knife or rich enough to fill a spiritual book. This time I had a chance to have a chat with Sr. Abba, MC the Superior of the community of Jacmel. She is 78-years-old, and walks with a cane because she suffers from a degenerative knee condition that is already affecting her hip. She has been in Haiti for 38 years and has seen it all: floods, hurricanes, tropical storms and of course the last tragedy the earthquake in 2010.
I asked her if she could tell us the secret for a happy and fulfilling life such as hers. After a small giggle and laugh, she replied. “Mother always told me, you are leaving everything to follow Jesus, only Jesus. Never forget that”. So I kept those words engraved in my heart. So you see, it is like a drunk man — he is so full of alcohol that you can smell it. You see we have to be just like that, so full of Jesus that we also smell like Him. That’s what the people around us should smell, only Jesus.”
So there you have it, a drunkard of Jesus. What simple advice. So let’s all go out and have a drink, yes let’s all go out and get drunk with Jesus’ love. Where do we get a Jesus-drink? In the sacraments: Eucharist and confession. Also in the works of mercy: feeding the hungry, sheltering the homeless, visiting and tending the sick.
We are staring lent: 40 days of accompanying Jesus during his time in the dessert, getting ready for the big moment of salvation. Let’s live it going out and getting drunk on Jesus, so the people that we meet can smell Jesus and only Jesus.
