Brief Background:

St. Peter Claver (1580–1654) was a Spanish Jesuit priest and missionary who served in Cartagena, Colombia, a major port for the transatlantic slave trade. For nearly 40 years, he ministered to enslaved Africans arriving on ships, bringing them food, medicine, comfort, and spiritual care. He famously described himself as “the slave of the slaves forever.”



St. Peter Claver is the patron saint of enslaved people, interracial justice, and ministry to African peoples, and is often invoked in efforts for human dignity and racial justice.

REFLECTION:

It was a busy weekend for me. On top of finally moving from the house on Dole Street into the actual rectory next to the church, my family gathered for the first-year death anniversary of my aunt. From there, it turned into a small family reunion with our extended family here on O‘ahu. We ended on Sunday with Mass here at Sacred Heart, followed, of course, by dinner.

During dinner, people were invited to share some reflections, especially the elders of the family. Eventually, it came to my turn. And when you're the priest in the family, everyone suddenly expects you to say something profound!

I spoke about the younger generation. Two of my nieces and nephews are running their own businesses. Another niece is getting married next year. There are careers being built, families beginning, and dreams being pursued. But I reminded them: don't forget the foundation that our great-grandparents built for us.

They were devoted Catholics. They built our family upon faith. They invested in something they knew would last beyond them.

That came back to me when I heard Saint Paul today: “For the world in its present form is passing away.”

Paul isn't saying that success, business, marriage, money, or accomplishments are bad. They are good things. But they cannot be our foundation because eventually they pass away.

Jesus says something similar in the Gospel: “Blessed are you who are poor… blessed are you who are hungry… blessed are you who are weeping.” Jesus turns the values of the world upside down. The world says we are blessed when we have more. Jesus reminds us that what matters most is what leads us to the Kingdom of God.

St. Peter Claver understood this. He spent his life serving enslaved Africans arriving in Cartagena. The world looked at them and saw people of little value. Peter Claver looked at them and saw children of God. He famously called himself “the slave of the slaves forever.” He invested his life in what would last: faith, dignity, compassion, and love.

And that brings me back to the question I left with my family.

Our great-grandparents built something for us. Now, what are we building for the next generation?

One day, the house will belong to somebody else. The business will belong to somebody else. The money will be spent. Our accomplishments will eventually become stories told at a family reunion.

But hopefully, the next generation can look back and say: They taught us to pray. They showed us how to love. They taught us to serve. They showed us that when life became difficult, we turned to God. They gave us faith.

Because the greatest inheritance we can leave the next generation is not simply what we place into their hands.

It is the faith we place into their hearts.