I used to be always afraid of homeless people. I would try to avoid them and not make eye contact. If a homeless person were to approach me, I'd jump in my own skin and walk away as fast as I could. Why was I so scared of them? Was it because of their dirty appearance? Was it because I feared that they would harm me? The truth was yes...but the real reason why I was afraid was because I was ignorant that the homeless are people too.

Living in a big city Los Angeles, I see so many homeless people everyday. It makes me realize that being homeless can happen to anybody at anytime. With the cost of living rising, It can be so easy to find yourself thrown out in the streets. People say that the poor chose to be homeless. That is not necessarily true. A lot of homeless people have no choice. Many suffer from health problems, especially war veterans who suffer from mental illnesses. Because they do not receive enough funding for health care and other living expenses from the government, many of the homeless find themselves dying out in the streets. While a big cause of homelessness is drug and alcohol addiction, we must realize that these people need serious help. The reason why they turn to drugs and alcohol is because they need to escape their suffering that they are going through. We cannot ignore their existence. They need our support. They need to know that they have hope. They need to be prayed for.

Although I'm not a millionaire, I don't need to be rich to give to the poor. Yesterday on my day off from work, I made bologna sandwiches and spent the day distributing sack lunches to the homeless. A little act such as making sandwiches can mean so much to a person who is used to getting food from the trash. Even smiling or acknowledging a homeless person's presence would make all the difference.


So why should we be so afraid of the poor? They are people like you and I.

As Mother Teresa once wrote:
Who is Jesus to me?
Jesus is the Word made Flesh.
Jesus is the Bread of Life.
Jesus is the Victim offered for our sins on the Cross.
Jesus is the Sacrifice at Holy Mass
for the sins of the world and mine.
Jesus is the Word - to be spoken.
Jesus is the Truth - to be told.
Jesus is the Way - to be walked.
Jesus is the Light - to be lit.
Jesus is the Life - to be loved.
Jesus is the Joy - to be shared.
Jesus is the Sacrifice - to be given.
Jesus is the Bread of Life - to be eaten.
Jesus is the Hungry - to be fed.
Jesus is the Thirsty - to be satiated.
Jesus is the Naked - to be clothed.
Jesus is the Homeless - to be taken in.
Jesus is the Sick - to be healed.
Jesus is the Lonely - to be loved.
Jesus is the Unwanted - to be wanted.
Jesus is the Leper - to wash his wounds.
Jesus is the Beggar - to give him a smile.
Jesus is the Drunkard - to listen to him.
Jesus is the Little One - to embrace him.
Jesus is the Dumb - to speak to him.
Jesus is the Crippled - to walk with him.
Jesus is the Drug Addict - to befriend him.
Jesus is the Prostitute - to remove from danger and befriend her.
Jesus is the Prisoner - to be visited.
Jesus is the Old - to be served.
To me Jesus is my God,
Jesus is my Spouse,
Jesus is my Life,
Jesus is my only Love,
Jesus is my All in All,
Jesus is my Everything.

Amen.