Just before the holidays, Father Peter gave a mass at Boston College dedicated to the six Jesuit priests who were martyred in El Salvador in 1989. Throughout the mass, specifically in his welcome and the homily, Father Peter discussed a bit about his story, the history of the Jesuits’ “charter” in the second half of the 20th century to “live faith in action” by caring for those on the margins, and the background of the Civil War in El Salvador in the 1980s and 1990s.
Father Peter highlighted how the Catholic faith has a strong and important dogma, but really emphasized that it is not enough. We have to go farther by living our faith in action. He discussed how, when he was discerning his direction, he knew that two-thirds of the people in this world would never have the opportunities that he had, and he wanted to spend his life serving and getting to know the people in that two-thirds. When he turned to discussing those six Jesuits, he noted how they really lived out their charter by going to the margins, serving the most vulnerable, and living God’s love and truth in action. Father Peter noted that we do not live in a world that accepts this way of living; it’s why Jesus was crucified, and it’s why these six Jesuits were murdered by government paramilitaries in El Salvador.
Father Peter’s message and delivery was powerful, and I also found a lot of hope from the number of students who attended the mass. Father Peter commended the work that the campus ministry programs at BC do as a whole, and noted how he appreciates the partnership between BC and A Faith That Does Justice.