The Jesuit Border Podcast

In this bonus episode, Brian and Joe share stories of Easter joy. After a season dedicated to Lenten themes, this bonus episode shares moments of joy that break through even the most challenging moments of life, like a migrant journey. Brian recounts a recent trip to St. Louis, where he became travel partners with Oscar, a Honduran migrant who had lived at Casa del Migrante in Reynosa for months. They decided to surprise Oscar’s family when they got to St. Louis, and the plan came together perfectly. Joe tells the story of Marta and her five daughters, who waited for their CBP One appointment for eight long months. When Brian and Joe weren’t able to give them a proper send-off before their appointment with immigration, they made a plan to surprise them as they finished their appointment and walked into the U.S. There were shouts of joy, tears, and (of course) a trip to McDonald’s. The big question was: would the ice cream machine be working??

For our final episode of Season 6, we are pleased to welcome Fr. Alejandro Olayo-Méndez, SJ, a Jesuit priest and Assistant Professor in the School of Social Work at Boston College. Alejandro’s expertise is in migration, refugees, and humanitarian interventions, especially along migration routes in Mexico. He has led small groups of Jesuits to follow the migrant route from Central America to the U.S. He shares some of the takeaways from that experience, including the challenges to traversing all of Mexico, the stories that migrants carry, and the deep spirituality of migrants. He also reflects on his experiences of celebrating Holy Week with migrants and the meaning of those services in the migrant context.

Brian and Joe talk about the Paschal Mystery that is celebrated during Holy Week: the suffering, death, and resurrection of Jesus. It is a dynamic that we live in our own lives, and a dynamic that is revealed profoundly in the lives of migrants. Brian and Joe share the story of Luis, a migrant from Venezuela, who rose from the hardships of the migrant journey, including being kidnapped in Mexico, to eventually enter the U.S. with a scheduled appointment. Now he is living in Denver and has his drivers license, work permit, and a job at a downtown hotel restaurant. Luis is truly a success story who has overcome so many obstacles to seek safety and opportunity. 

Enjoy this final episode of Season 6, and blessings on your Holy Week.

We are pleased to welcome Michael DeBruhl, the shelter director at Casa del Sagrado Corazón in El Paso, TX. Michael also worked as a Border Patrol agent for 25 years, so he brings a wealth of experience to the interview. He reflects on the dual desires of most Americans to both secure the border and provide welcome to migrants, and how those two desires do not have to be in direct opposition. He also comments on the current situation in El Paso, where the Texas Attorney General is launching an attack on Annunciation House, a Catholic nonprofit serving migrants and asylum seekers on the border.

Brian and Joe reflect on Palm Sunday and the entrance of Jesus into Jerusalem, as we recall the palms laid before Jesus as he entered the city. Unfortunately, that is not the welcome most migrants receive upon entry into the U.S. Brian shares the story of an Ecuadorian father who had reached the U.S. with his son, but had an ankle monitor strapped to his leg and a credible fear interview scheduled in just ten days, not nearly enough time to seek the legal counsel that would best serve his case. It seems like an inconsistency between the values we profess as a country and the policies we enact. In contrast, Joe highlights the consistency of people like our guest, Michael DeBruhl, along with so many advocates on the border, and those who have visited us for immersion experiences. Of course, Joe can’t end without giving a shout out to his home Diocese of Pensacola-Tallahassee, where parishioners have been sending us rosaries to share with migrants.

We are excited to welcome Amaya Valcárcel, International Advocacy Officer with Jesuit Refugee Services (JRS) in Rome, who also works in the area of research and reflection in the Dicastery for Promoting Integral Human Development at the Vatican. Amaya helps to broaden our perspective beyond the US-Mexico border to recognize the harsh reality of forced migration around the world. She echoes the words of Pope Francis calling for a culture of encounter as a remedy to the globalization of indifference that causes societies to build more policies of resistance rather than welcoming for refugees and asylum seekers. 

This past Sunday, we celebrated Laetare Sunday (from the Latin for “rejoicing”) in the middle of our Lenten journey. Drawing from that theme, Brian and Joe share stories of joy that breaks through even the harshest of circumstances. Brian tells the story of Kayla, a 4-year-old girl who he baptized in Senda 2 in Reynosa. Despite the harsh conditions of the shelter and the desperation of a long wait to enter the US, Kayla’s parents took advantage of their time at the shelter to have their daughter baptized, which was a moment of joy for all who joined in the celebration. Joe recalls the birthday/farewell party for Carlos, a migrant who was staying at Casa del Migrante in Reynosa. The joy reached a new level when Sor Edith, an 80-year-old Daughter of Charity, broke into dance to the delight of all. If you want to see her cut a move, there’s got to be a Tik Tok video of her out there somewhere!

We are delighted to welcome Sr. Rose Patrice, IHM, who is a member of the community of Immaculate Heart of Mary (IHM) sisters based out of McAllen, TX, and working at migrant shelters on the border. Sr. Rose shares the story of how the IHM sisters recently started a community in the area, and she describes the work they do accompanying migrants. Reflecting on the Lenten theme of almsgiving, Sr. Rose talks about how generous people have been supporting their ministry, which they use for a variety of things, including buying shoes for migrants wearing flip flops before they board buses for the colder northern parts of the U.S.

Brian and Joe also reflect on the Lenten theme of almsgiving. Joe shares the recent example of a group of students from Boston College High School who extended charity by buying lunch for migrants they met at Whataburger. Beyond that, Joe also shares other ways that he saw the students giving of themselves in their time spent on the border, from helping to translate for a nurse to playing soccer with kids. Brian shares a remarkable story of self-gift through a young woman who put her talents and experiences to use in an emergency situation. The story begins with someone at the U.S.-Mexico bridge asking a group of migrants if any of them have medical experience. When Katy, a nurse from Venezuela, raised her hand, she had no idea what she was going to encounter as she went running onto that bridge!

We are thrilled to welcome Rafael Cortes to this episode of the podcast. While he works professionally as a pilot, he spends his days off joining us for our migrant ministry. He tells the story of how he connected with the Jesuits and started by making sandwiches at their sides. He became involved with the Catholic community at the plaza in Reynosa, and now he helps lead a men’s prayer group at Casa del Migrante by sending them a nightly reflection every day. He also loves to play favorites, so he shares the story of Eric, a young boy from Honduras who stole his heart with a hug.

Brian and Joe also reflect on the Lenten theme of prayer. Brian talks about the unaccompanied minors who write down their prayer intentions on little pieces of construction paper before Mass. It’s remarkable to hear the affectionate ways that they address God, and the moving prayers that they offer. Joe shares the story of Isis, a Venezuelan migrant who used to be a seminarian. He started leading a nightly rosary in his shelter in Matamoros to gather the people together for daily prayer. Joe and Brian have a good laugh about his name, Isis (pronounced “EE-sis” in Spanish). Rest assured, when we say that “Isis is at our border,” we’re not talking about terrorists!

We are excited to welcome Eleanor Acer, who is the Senior Director of Refugee Protection at Human Rights First. Established in 1978, Human Rights First works in the U.S. and abroad to promote respect for human rights and the rule of law. Eleanor shares how her pro bono work with asylum seekers inspired her to shift her legal career from securities litigation to human rights defense. Addressing the theme of fasting, Eleanor talks about the many essentials that migrants don’t give up willingly, but are denied, including access to safety and the protection of their rights.

Brian and Joe reflect on the ways that many migrants they encounter “fast.” Joe shares the story of Guerline, a migrant from Haiti who embodies the spirit of fasting in the sense of denying oneself in order to help others. Brian talks about unaccompanied minors in the U.S., like Carmen, who are forced to fast from cell phone use while they are in centers and their case is being reviewed. It often provokes self-reflection from the teenagers as they are freed from the distractions of social media. Of course, that doesn’t mean you need to force a cell phone fast from teenagers in your own family!

Eleanor also encourages listeners to contact their representatives in Congress to let them know that the protection of access to asylum is an important issue for you, especially in this election year. If you would like to call your own representative, you can find their information by inputting your address on this page.

For our first episode of Season 6, we are thrilled to welcome back to the podcast our former co-host, Louie Hotop, SJ, who is the Assistant Principal for Mission at Arrupe Jesuit High School in Denver, CO. Louie is helping us launch the Lenten theme for this season by sharing the moving experience of celebrating Ash Wednesday in the camp in Matamoros last year. He reflects on the theme of repentance as we enter Lent, and shares stories of some of the people whom he continues to carry with him even as he has moved on from the border. Plus, he talks about the time he heard confessions while sitting on an overturned bucket crammed between tents in a migrant camp.

In this episode, Brian and Joe talk about moments of repentance and God’s healing mercy. Joe reflects on the importance of discernment with feelings of guilt and sin. He shares the story of a young girl carrying a guilt that she needed to free herself from, to be able to see the way God was looking on her with love. Brian shares a time he responded uncharitably over text in a conversation with Yurlin, a pregnant woman who was in Reynosa. It didn’t take long for him to remember that a pregnant single mother of two young girls living in a shelter in northern Mexico deserves a little more compassion and respect!

We are getting ready for Season 6 of The Jesuit Border Podcast! As we continue to learn about the migrant situation at the U.S.-Mexico border and the humanitarian response of the Catholic Church, we will continue to share stories and experiences with you, along with great interviews with people dedicated to the accompaniment and protection of migrants. This season will be specifically designed for Lent. We will cover Lenten themes like prayer, fasting, and almsgiving. Join us every Tuesday this Lent to reflect on the themes of the liturgical season in light of the migrant experience.

The first episode of Season 6 will come out on Tuesday, February 13, 2024.

Earlier this season, it was our pleasure to welcome Susan Bigelow-Reynolds, Assistant Professor of Catholic Studies at Emory University. If you enjoyed hearing from her in Episode 2, here is the full interview. Susan shares her experience of living in Brownsville years ago and watching out her front window as the border wall was being constructed, an experience that helped inspire her to study theology. Susan spent Holy Week with us in April 2023, so she reflects on that experience, and especially the power of the liturgy and its symbols in the midst of marginalized communities like a migrant camp.

The full interview also includes her reflections on the contrasts and commonalities between her experience living on the border, and her experience in the diverse parish of St. Mary of the Angels in the Roxbury neighborhood in Boston. Susan also advocates for the value of doing theological research on the ground to become more intimate with people’s lived realities.