Traveling for Fair Trade and Faith

Katy and I are putting the final touches on the next edition of our Fair Trader, an electronic newsletter that we hope you subscribe to. Just as we try to post to our blog twice a week, the two of us work to write a newsletter every two months (do you see a pattern here?). This edition of the Fair Trader will feature tales from our travels this spring. We’ll also be sharing results of World Fair Trade Day activities. Did you hear that more than 12,000 North Americans participated in a Fair Trade beverage break on May 10? Check out the video and look for the Fair Trader in your in-box on Friday!

Of course, we aren’t the only ones on the road for justice. We’ve recently heard stories from members of the Newman Club at Florida Atlantic University who traveled all the way to New York City to participate in Pope Benedict XVI’s visit to the United States. Peter Fernandez spoke of his trip as “…the experience of a lifetime. I truly felt like a disciple of Christ on a pilgrimage to join the great celebration of unity which was the Holy Mass at Yankee Stadium.”

Because this photo shows that Peter and fellow traveler Andrea Panayiotou were fueled in their travels by Divine Fair Trade chocolate, we thought we’d share some of their experience as told by Andrea:

“The opportunity to make this adventure was a rare gift and one that I’ll treasure forever….My first time in New York City was an invigorated and holy time. Our group visited Town Square, St. Patrick’s Cathedral, and Ground Zero. We attended a fair, picnicked in the park, dined at a small Indian restaurant, sang on street corners, rode the subways, walked and trekked through the night and through the day. We witnessed powerful prayers as well as protests. We met people from every walk of life – on subways, on the streets, serving in the Papal Mass, playing music in the city – we encountered splendor, joy, faith, worry, bitterness, destitution. Our volunteer service with the Midnight Run [for the homeless] was perhaps the most powerful point of our trip. We drew strength from the people we met, as they found strength in us. I know with joy and commitment that ministry to people in need, in every walk of life, is our Christian mission. Worldwide, as with Catholic Relief Services, and here at home in our country, our neighborhoods… our families….

Every spot we tread and person we met has become unforgettable to me. I learned how to truly meet Christ in each person and in every corner of creation. The possibilities for my future have expanded, and my understanding of American society – its structure, intricacy, and struggles – has deepened. Pope Benedict XVI’s homily has become a song and a constant encouragement to me to live the apostolic life as a young person….As my gaze quietly looked over a wide, blessed field – where the miracle of our salvation was shared by millions of people – I saw the contrast of the green, the gold, the glory, the peace, with the sparkle of billboards, the drab grayness of flat rooftops, and the hectic rumble of the rushing subway. I learned an immense peace which has remained with me: the peace of knowing that Christ is the Savior of all, and that His love is infinitely merciful and present in every corner of the earth… in the longings of every heart….From this trip I’ve found the joy of being part of a universal human family.”

This entry was posted on Wednesday, May 28th, 2008 and is filed under Beyond Fair Trade, Chocolate, Events . You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.

Traveling for Fair Trade and Faith

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