Msgr. Ratermann is a Saint Louis priest missionary, serving in Bolivia since 1956, and is a founder of the Latin America Apostolate.
On Sunday I celebrated an early Mass in one of our outstations. Upon returning to the central parish I was asked to visit an eighty-seven year old man named Mariano. Getting to his house was a chore: a ten-minute walk up a steep grade. The last few steps were on a very narrow path with no handrail and with steps that were very uneven. I climbed very carefully to avoid a fall.
Mariano was unable to talk even though his eyes were open. I was hoping that he could see me and also hear me. I prayed with him and with family members gathered in a very small room, obviously the home of a very poor man. After that I gave him Sacramental Absolution and also the Anointing of the Sick, plus a Blessing for the Dying. I was certain that he would die very soon. Getting back down on that narrow path was more of a challenge. A nice lady whose “center of gravity” was much closer to Mother Earth offered to go down the narrow path in front of me, telling me to put my hand on her shoulder in order to steady my steps in the descent. No misstep and I made it back to the parish church a bit tired but in good shape.
Two days later, on Tuesday morning after Mass, the family was there again and asked me to return to conduct a funeral service. I was more than willing to oblige, but I had misgivings about the last few paces to get to the one room house. Once again I made it without a mishap. They had washed the body and placed it in a very simple wooden casket with no ornaments. Embalming is very rare here. A dozen people managed to crowd into that small space leaving very little room to move around. About half of them knew the prayers and even were able to join in the singing. The room was austere in some ways and yet very prayerful and friendly. At the end they asked me whether I expected to be “paid." I said: “It is obvious to me that you folks are not rich. Yet if you wish to take up a collection it would help with the many expenses we have to keep the church and the parish available to the thousands of people who come asking for such service." Mariano’s funeral was number 295 in the funeral register that we started in January of 2006. They responded by giving me 30 bolivianos and 50 centavos, which comes to approximately $4.07 USA.
Once again with help I negotiated the narrow and steep path leading down to the street and as I walked home alone I wondered how they were going to manage taking the casket down that very narrow path. Then I began thanking God for the privilege of serving in this poor part of town. I have received many lessons here. I was reminded of a quotation from Blessed Teresa of Calcutta printed on a remembrance card at the time of Father Dan Stretch’s funeral in August of 2002:
“I have learned from the poor that we are really the poor ones. They give us more than we can hope to give them: their joy in the midst of very real poverty, their love for life and their simplicity in accepting life as it is.”
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