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NACO — “We pray that the fears that divide us may cease, that the walls in our desert will not separate us one from another, that the laws of our nations will be based in justice for migrants and refugees ...”
Such was the prayer offered Sunday afternoon as nearly 100 people gathered along the U.S.-Mexico border in Naco to express their common faith in Christ and God and in each other.
It is the second time the border procession has made the long walk from St. Michael’s Church in Naco, Ariz., down the dusty border road separated by a wall that means freedom and prosperity on one side and poverty and oppression on the other. The joint Episcopal and Presbyterian show of support for Hispanic immigrants and refugees was meant as a protest against the wall-mentality of the United States legislators.
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“This is a good thing. We need to show our support. Immigrants have always come here to work and to prosper. We need to express our ideas and help those less fortunate. All they want is to work,” said John Applegate of Philadelphia, Pa.
Applegate is on vacation visiting his brother John Mather, a deacon at Trinity Church in Phoenix, and carried the church banner during the procession.
Members of Citizens Border Solutions were there, as well.
Emilie Vardaman, Naco, expressed her thoughts, “It’s important to support events like this. I support anything that has to do with friendship across the border.”
The crowd crossed several generations from the very young to the very old, from the healthy to those who struggled to make the walk, like Carmen Guerrero, peace and justice officer of the Episcopal Diocese of Arizona in Phoenix.
Using a walker is no easy feat on a bumpy dirt road and Guerrero said she had to stop and grab a ride to make it all the way to the arranged meeting place where the giant wall gives way to railing.
“This is a great turn-out,” she said. “I’m hoping for two things. First, a miracle. Second, that somebody will pay attention to the injustices these people have endured. We need to let the Mexican people know we share their suffering and that we do care.”
“This brings people together. It lets the Mexican people know we care about them, that we aren’t buying into the aggressive tactics that seem to be so prevalent,” he added.
For Padre Guillermo Coronado, La Iglesia San Jos/, Naco, Sonora, it is all a matter of faith.
“We have a father who loves us, and this father is for all people — for the good and bad, the short and tall, the Mexicano and the gringo. If God is good, then we need to be good.
“This is a sign of what needs to be done in all the border states rather than rejecting and ignoring other human beings. If we believe in God, we can believe there is a solution. The greatest gift we have is that we are human beings with a mission to love and be happy. God has no borders,” he declared.
Before breaking bread and sharing glasses of grape juice, the Rev. David Fife of Covenant Presbyterian Church of Bisbee said, “Christ unites us. Where do we belong? Not to a place. We belong to Christ. This wall will come down when we feel Christ in our hearts.”
Two lines formed on each side of the border, though it seems as if it no longer existed for the crowd. They smiled, spoke and shook hands.
There were murmurs of peace, of thanks, of friendship and many, many smiles exchanged between the peoples of two countries most of whom did not speak the other’s language.
Yet they understood each other enough to know that a common faith transcends any border issue.
Herald/Review reporter Shar Porier can be reached at 515-4692 or by e-mail at shar.porier@bisbeereview.net.
nicole ray wrote on Jun 21, 2009 3:35 PM: