Remembering refugees with Saint Bernard de Clairvaux

Reading Hélène Goulet’s wonderful article about St. Bernard’s tribute to Charlotte Davidson (Crosstalk, April 2023) for her 40 years of providing Christian education to children in the parish brought to mind a wonderful and repeated experience of the stories of refugees in our community and in this community in particular.

I was involved with St. Bernard from the beginning (1978) and have fond memories of this small community meeting at Saint James, Hull and informally gathered around the altar with Charlotte, as always, caring for the children, which at times seemed to outnumber the adults. When I was the Bishop of Ottawa and while the congregation was still in what was then called Hull and before it re-located to Aylmer and now to St. Alban’s, Ottawa, I made an annual visit and always, at their request, at the same time. It was Epiphany and I felt that it was because they wanted to share something with me, as well as their usual kindness.

In place of a sermon was the ‘Living Nativity Scene,’ and one might expect the familiar tableau of Christmas pageants and, of course, this was a part of it enacted by children and adults. However, the story did not end with the shepherds and Magi visiting Bethlehem. It continued with the flight into Egypt and it became clear why this part of the story was particularly important to the cast. Many of them and much of this congregation had come, some recently, as refugees from Africa. I then remember how, after the play, they would stand at the chancel steps and tell their story of having been refugees. It was so moving for me that I have shared the experience as I visited throughout the Diocese.

The Holy Family’s story was their story of escaping violence, of being displaced, of living in refugee camps, of having hopes and disappointments and waiting for a permanent and safe home. As The Word became incarnate in Jesus, it did so in the lives of the experience of these people, God’s people, in this case as refugees in Africa who would, in time, come to safe haven. Their story is a familiar one but sadly it is repeated and many have not yet found that haven. This story is also that of those who are displaced in our own communities by violence, rejection or for any cause and are homeless or otherwise vulnerable and also seeking that haven. They too have their story. “Those who have ears to hear…”.

The beauty of the Incarnation is that God enters our experience and accompanies us and calls us to accompany each other so many ways and on so many journeys. I just give thanks for those who have reminded me that this is so by sharing their story.