Boise

Country: United States
State or province: Idaho

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Lucy Stamm
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Hostility perhaps increased, but the Rosary still attracts - 2020-05-02

May 24, 2020

Hostility perhaps increased, but the Rosary still attracts. So thank you again for your prayers for the Boise Catholic street evangelization effort. Two evangelists were available last week.

As evangelist Chuck was walking toward the place we usually set up, he passed several skateboarders, late teens to early 20s, who were practicing their skateboard tricks. Two preteen boys stood watching, their boards in hand. Chuck hadn’t yet donned his mask, one of the preteens pointed at him and said, “Hey, you’re that guy.” He recognized the boy as having gotten a Rosary in the past and they exchanged greetings. Later, he and his friend skated past where we were praying, and he smiled and waved. Later, Chuck remembered his face as part of the ketchup kerfuffle from some months past. May our presence at the Grove bring remembrance in people of Christ’s love and sacrifice for us all.

Early on, a man with his perhaps 10-year-old son passed. He started chanting something out loud, evidently to drown out the sound of our praying the Rosary. The speakers on the outside of the restaurant also seemed to increase in volume during the session. Another person passing by turned up the volume on his boom box.

Because foot traffic was light, we mostly prayed the Rosary out loud. As we began the 5th Luminous Mystery, we had our first visitors. Two homeless-looking men, stopped to ask if we had any spare change. We said no, and evangelist Lucy offered him a Rosary. He declined and started into a rant about the Catholic Church. Evangelist Lucy tried reasoning with him. He said he honored our efforts, but that we were wrong. He got more riled up and started yelling his conspiracy theories as his friend led him away.

Another man immediately stopped. Apparently also poor, but not so shabbily dressed as the previous two, he told evangelist Lucy he was a close relative to the England’s queen mother. A Boston newspaper, he said, carried an article about JFK’s congratulations on his birth. He said he knew all about the Rosary, yet declined receiving one. Though his manner remained pleasant, he didn’t seem aware of social distancing guidelines. May He who is the Real Presence heal his troubled soul.

Another homeless man passed, ignoring us. He met “Walt” partway across the square. Then both passed by, Walt talking animatedly. He didn’t see us.

When we reached the 5th Sorrowful Mystery, e. Chuck greeted a man passing by. Since he didn’t respond, he continued leading the Rosary. The man turned and asked if e. Chuck was talking to him. When e. Chuck told him no, he asked if he wanted to kiss his ring. “What?! No.” The man then angrily asked him to stay out of his business. Odd.

A family of six passed by, declining our offer of a free Rosary. A short time later, they returned, the father leading them straight toward us. They were Catholic, and were happy they had been able to attend the first Spanish-language Mass in the area since the shutdown. We gave everyone but the baby in the the stroller one of our new, fancy, chain Rosaries. We gave the family two of the English Rosary brochures with pictures, e. Lucy dug in our bag for some Spanish-language ones. (We don’t have our table set up yet. A benefactor is devising a Plexiglas shield for it first. May God bless him!) We encouraged the family to pray it together. They already knew of the Pope’s request that everyone pray it daily during May, and now they had the Rosaries to do so!

It was good to be out there again last week. Altogether, the two evangelists gave away 5 Rosaries and 3 Rosary pamphlets (2 English, 1 Spanish).

We are planning to do another stay-at-home prayer session today. One evangelist is unavailable, and the other inadvertently ruined her last disposable mask. (She still has a reusable one, but it renders her inaudible from 6 feet away.) Please join us in prayer? Please ask God to grant people the grace to perceive their need for Our Savior and His Holy Catholic Church, and mercifully to grant abundant good fruit for His Kingdom.

God rewards our frequent, visible, Catholic witness with peace. So thank you again for your ongoing prayers and support for this apostolate! In turn, may God protect and greatly bless you and all those you love!

“May your ears be attentive, and your eyes open, to hear the prayer that I, your servant, now offer in your presence day and night” (Nehemiah 1:6).