Living Sanctuaries
Youth from Tres Ríos, Mission and Palo Duro presbyteries gather once again for a time-honored event
At the very beginning of the year — Jan. 1-3 — about 40 young people, mostly middle schoolers from the presbyteries of Tres Ríos, Mission, and Palo Duro, gathered at Circle Six Camp in Leonora, Texas. The leadership of the Presbytery of Tres Ríos invited me to serve as the event’s keynote speaker and preacher, and I happily said yes.
We called the event Living Sanctuaries, and together we explored Romans 12 through games, songs, energizers, small groups and art. We wondered together what it means to present ourselves before God as living sacrifices, to be God’s hands and feet in the world, and what it means to be living sanctuaries for others and for ourselves.
I often remind myself that I learn more from young people than they learn from me — and this weekend certainly proved that to be true.
That Saturday, the U.S. military enacted an attack on Venezuela. Our young people were made aware of what was happening, and they understood that because I live in Puerto Rico, in the Caribbean, I might not be able to get home. The island’s airspace was closed. No one could enter or leave that weekend except the military.
After worship, two young people came up to me to share their concern about my ability to return home, given what was unfolding in the region. They offered their prayers and words of care, and each handed me a drawing they had created during the Visio Divina sermon we had engaged in earlier that morning.
I was moved — not only by their words and prayers, but by what that gesture revealed. At 12, 13, 15 and 16 years old, they understood that global is local, and local is global.
Our young people take their cues from us. It matters how we teach them that we are all in this together — that the way we do church and the way we are church is deeply connected to how we relate to and care for one another. That same Saturday afternoon, they spent time assembling Presbyterian Disaster Assistance hygiene kits. They didn’t know where those kits would go, but they knew they were going somewhere — to someone — where they would make a difference.
Even at that young age, they understood that the way they were being church in Texas could make a difference both locally and globally.
The way I see it, this is the heart of ministry. We pay attention. We tell stories of love, grace and connection. We listen for where the Spirit is already at work, and we join in, offering presence, deep listening, shared space — and, when needed, tangible ways of being the church together.
When we offer concrete ways to live out God’s love, there is a future for the church and for the world. Sometimes that future begins with a group of middle and high schoolers in Texas.
A view from Tres Ríos Presbytery
The Rev. Laurie Barker, the pastoral presbyter for Tres Rios Presbytery, said Tres Rios Youth Connection has a long history, but was interrupted by Covid.
“When I called Vilmarie, I was worried about her coming all the way out to west Texas and there only being 10 kids,” Barker said. “She didn’t hesitate, saying it was worth her time whether we had 10 or 100.”
“One thing about being out here on the edge of civilization is that borders or boundaries, such as those between presbyteries and synods, are rather permeable — even imaginary at times,” Barker said. “Folks out here are used to driving hours to go to school events, doctors and even grocery shopping.”
“This is part of the great value of having an event like Tres Ríos Youth Connection in an area like ours,” Barker said. “Our youth do not have a lot of opportunities that Presbyterians with large cities or even large churches … can provide.”
Barker called Cintrón-Olivieri “such a tremendous leader and model to these kids. Her willingness to share her own fear and anxiety about what happened that weekend in her hometown with the closing of the airspace and the effects of the Venezuelan situation made that current event become truly real for these students.”
So often, youth and others are far removed from events happening across the globe, Barker noted. By “sharing her life and faith with these kids, she created a bond that made all of us look at the situation differently,” Barker said. “When you personally know someone affected by some world event, it brings it so much closer to your life. Your engagement, care and concern are raised to a higher level.” Barker called that “one of the biggest and best benefits of sharing stories and lives across those boundaries which we too often use to separate and keep others at a distance.”
“This word/thought/idea that was important enough for Vilmarie to share with a group of kids in far west Texas didn’t stay stuck with the tumbleweeds and pumpjacks,” Barker said. “As with so many of God’s gifts of faith and grace that are shared with us or by us, it didn’t sit stagnant. It has tendrils that are constantly growing, searching for new relationships to wrap up into — new and different people to pull together in understanding, concern and commonality.”
“The consideration of what sanctuary is, or can be, built bridges between cultures, across county lines and national borders,” Barker said. “This is the power of the good news found in Jesus Christ.”
Vilmarie Cintrón-Olivieri is a PC(USA) ruling elder, educator and Global Ecumenical Liaison serving the Synods Boriquén, Mid-America, South Atlantic and The Sun. She was Co-Moderator of the 223th General Assembly (2018).
Mike Ferguson of Presbyterian News Service contributed to this report.
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