by Alberto Reyes Pías
I have been thinking about Saint Joseph as a point of reference.
Christ will always be our ultimate reference, but the saints—by sharing our same fragilities and, despite having fragilities like we do they manage to live faithfully the Gospel—they become models and sources of inspiration, points of reference for us.
Saint Joseph is someone with whom the Cuban people can easily identify, because the conditions in which he lived are very similar to those we are living in today.
Saint Joseph lived in a time marked by poverty and need, by insecurity and despotic power, by a lack of rights and justice, because the country was in the hands of an authority without limits, creating an atmosphere of insecurity and fear.
In the face of this, Joseph is entrusted by God with being the guide for His Son. Therefore, he is the man who, first of all, is present and attentive to his family: he commits himself to his family, he struggles, works, protects, cares… In the midst of a troubled world, he is a rock for his family.
He is also the man who remains faithful to God at all times, without protest, without questioning, thus conveying a key message: when a person has God at the center, they lose fear, they gain strength, they cannot be manipulated or blackmailed.
Joseph served as a reference of a good man to his son, and he is also a reference for us, because he is the one to whom we can say: “help me with my work, help me care for and protect my family, and help me center it on God.”
Taking Saint Joseph as a reference allows us to also become an example for our children.
We are living in a country that needs healing. Cuba has been hurt by an oppressive government for many years. For generations, we have grown up in lies, in double standards, in pretense, and in fear. Our country needs to be healed. We must work toward a completely different world for our children. It begins with healing, with trust in God, with effort to do the best we can for our children. Our children need us to be their reference, their good example for a better future.
When we tell a child, “be careful, don’t say what you think, that can lead to trouble , don’t say what you believe, say what everyone else says…,” we are teaching them to be a slave.
When we allow our children to take part in “acts of repudiation”, which express hate toward our neighbors because they do not agree with the government, or when we let our children join “rapid response brigades,” we are teaching them to be intolerant and violent. We are teaching them to express hate.
When, out of fear, we prevent our children from going to Church, we are taking away the greatest strength they can have. We are taking away their trust in God who is the truth they can rely on.
In short, we are causing our children to grow up wounded if we do not teach our children courage and values. If we do not act with courage ourselves we will grow old watching our children live in submission—unless they choose to say, “I’m leaving here,” and go seek a new life elsewhere… because we did not offer them opportunities for a better future. There is a possibility we will grow old alone separated from our children who go live in exile, because we did not teach them to heal, we did not teach them to grow in truth, we did not teach them to believe in God.
A life grounded in goodness, truth, justice, and freedom is something that is built. Just as for years a society of lies, injustice, fear, and submission was built here in Cuba , now it is up to us to build a better future in a new, different, free, and above all, healthy society.