As we enter 2005, I am aware that Christians are celebrating the 25th anniversary of the assassination of Archbishop Oscar Romero on March 24th. He is the one who reminds all of us who are working for justice and doing so out of a biblical faith perspective that: “We are prophets of a future not our own.” KAIROS tries to keep alive the prophetic Christian tradition to speak truth to forces and structures that oppress. This tradition has deep biblical roots and is the inspiration that animates all of us who are known as the KAIROS family.
KAIROS is the Christian churches uniting for justice, peace and the integrity of creation in Canada and around the globe. Working ecumenically and with partners in varied countries of our world is a precious moment and true gift. We are very grateful for the support and solidarity we receive from Canadians and others. It is truly a privilege to be working and living in this grace filled time.
The KAIROS family is deeply concerned, among other issues, about the plight of our brothers and sisters especially in Africa who are suffering from HIV/AIDS and the genocide in the Darfur region of the Sudan. We are deeply committed to walking with partners in the Middle East who seek a path to lasting peace. We are in constant touch with our partners in South East Asia who have suffered recently the terrible tsunami. Here in Canada we are concerned about justice for our Aboriginal peoples and corporate responsibility as we join with others who are working on behalf of refugees and are concerned with the trafficking in women. And there is more.
Allow me to say thanks on behalf of our KAIROS board to our supporters and fellow travelers in this work of justice. Allow me to do so by reminding us of a few lines from a prayer that Archbishop Oscar Romero wrote and prayed just before he was shot while celebrating the Eucharist.
“This is what we are about: We plant seeds that one day will grow. We water seeds already planted, knowing that they hold future promise. We lay foundations that will need further development. We provide yeast that produces effects beyond our capabilities. We cannot do everything, and there is a sense of liberation in realizing that. This enables us to do something and to do it very well. It may be incomplete, but it is a beginning, a step along the way, an opportunity for God’s grace to enter and do the rest. We may never see the end results, but that is the difference between the master builder and the worker. We are workers, not master builders, ministers, not messiahs. We are prophets of a future not our own.”
Paul Hansen C.Ss.R.
Board Chair
