Tuesday of the 3rd week of Lent, 6th March

Lenten Journeys

Tuesday of the 3rd week of Lent, 6th March

Rose encounters goodness in her fellow citizens, despite facing torture by the military

06 March 2018

Tuesday of the 3rd week of Lent, 6th March

From Today’s Daily Mass Readings:

In you I hope all day long because of your goodness, O Lord
Psalm 24

As we journey through Lent, we introduce you to some of the refugees JRS accompanies. Where in their stories do we sense the Lord’s goodness?


Rose’s Story

As the military’s violence and abuse against the Congolese people continued, Rose and her teammates could not stand by in silence. However, the more Rose spoke out against the government, the more problems she encountered. Finally, Rose decided that she could no longer be affiliated with the government. She attempted to leave the team for good, but things turned nasty: “The general called five soldiers… they beat me and beat me and broke my right leg … they threw me in the river and left me for dead.

Rose had suffered terribly at the hands of the government, but she found compassion and help in her fellow citizens. She was taken, covered in blood, to a hospital where she spent the next 8 months. But Rose was not left to recover in peace. She was continuously harassed by the army, resulting in her constantly moving between hospitals, until she finally found temporary respite at her mother’s birthplace.

Slowly Rose was able to recuperate, gradually building up her strength, until she was able to start running and training. She eventually began to play football professionally again; spurred on by her family’s financial needs.

Join us tomorrow where we will rejoin Rose on her journey

#Do1Thing

At JRS UK, we try to counter the hostility and isolation that our refugees friends often face. We work to ensure they are met with hospitality and welcome, to ensure that the innate human dignity of each person we serve is respected.

The refugees we serve in London are destitute, and therefore they have very little money to spend on basic items. Our refugee friends often have to make difficult decisions, balancing what they need most and what they can afford. By providing monthly toiletry packs at our Day Centre, we aim to remove the need to spend money on essential toiletries, allowing our refugee friends to spend their money on other necessities.

In order to provide these toiletry packs we rely on donations of good quality toiletries from our supporters. Today we invite you to consider donating toiletries to JRS, allowing us to continue this service for our refugee friends. If you would like to donate toiletries to JRS then get in touch. If you don’t live in London, consider donating toiletries to your local refugee charity.


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Rose’s story was first published in ‘Journeys of Hope‘, a JRS Europe publication.We are grateful to JRS Europe for allowing us to share this story with you.
Image credit: Women sits outside village home. Masisi, DRC (Peter Balleis SJ/JRS)

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Jesuit Refugee Service UK
The Hurtado Jesuit Centre
2 Chandler Street, London E1W 2QT

020 7488 7310
uk@jrs.net

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