David Gayes currently serves as an English Language teacher at the Tolton Center in Chicago. He also serves at Casa Juan Diego, an after school program.
I love the Mexican tradition during the fourth week of
Advent called Las Posadas. “Las
Posadas” literally means “the inns.” During the nine days leading up to
Christmas, through music and song, communities reenact the story of Mary and
Joseph looking for a place to stay. Two people dress up as Joseph and Mary, who
often rides on a donkey, and look for an innkeeper to take them in for the
night. Every member of the community takes a part in the story, singing the
dialogue between Joseph and Mary and the innkeepers. The people who sing the
part of Joseph and Mary remain outside, walking from house to house while the
people who play the different innkeepers are inside, rejecting them. In the
last of many exchanges between the groups, Mary and Joseph are finally given a place
to stay for the night, and everyone enters the “inn” for a lively celebration.
Image of a traditional "Las Posadas" celebration.
(Photo from universaldomainexchanged.com)
Here is a link to Las Posadas sung in Spanish, with Spanish subtitles:
English Translation:
Mary and Joseph:
In the name of Heaven
I beg you for lodging,
for she cannot walk
my beloved wife.
I beg you for lodging,
for she cannot walk
my beloved wife.
Innkeeper:
This is not an inn
so keep going
I cannot open
you may be a rogue.
so keep going
I cannot open
you may be a rogue.
Mary and Joseph:
Don't be inhuman;
Have mercy on us.
The God of the heavens
will reward you for it.
Have mercy on us.
The God of the heavens
will reward you for it.
Innkeeper:
You can go on now
and don't bother us,
because if I become annoyed
I'll give you a trashing.
and don't bother us,
because if I become annoyed
I'll give you a trashing.
Mary and Joseph:
We are worn out
coming from Nazareth.
I am a carpenter,
Joseph by name.
coming from Nazareth.
I am a carpenter,
Joseph by name.
Innkeeper:
I don't care about
your name:
Let me sleep,
because I already told you
we shall not open up.
Let me sleep,
because I already told you
we shall not open up.
Mary and Joseph:
I'm asking you for
lodging
dear man of the house
Just for one night
for the Queen of Heaven.
dear man of the house
Just for one night
for the Queen of Heaven.
Innkeeper:
Well, if it's a queen
who solicits it,
why is it at night
that she travels so alone?
who solicits it,
why is it at night
that she travels so alone?
Mary and Joseph:
My wife is Mary
She's the Queen of Heaven
and she's going to be the mother
of the Divine Word.
She's the Queen of Heaven
and she's going to be the mother
of the Divine Word.
Innkeeper:
Are you Joseph?
Your wife is Mary?
Enter, pilgrims;
I did not recognize you.
Your wife is Mary?
Enter, pilgrims;
I did not recognize you.
Mary and Joseph:
May God pay, gentle
folks,
your charity,
and thus heaven heap
happiness upon you.
your charity,
and thus heaven heap
happiness upon you.
Innkeeper:
Blessed is the house
that shelters this day
the pure Virgin,
the beautiful Mary.
that shelters this day
the pure Virgin,
the beautiful Mary.
Everyone in unison:
Enter, holy pilgrims,
receive this corner,
for though this dwelling
is poor,
I offer it with all my
heart.
Oh, graced pilgrim,
oh, most beautiful
Mary.
I offer you my soul
so you may have
lodging.
Humble pilgrims,
Jesus, Mary and
Joseph,
I give my soul for
them
And my heart as well.
all bearing in mind
that Jesus, Joseph and
Mary
honor us by having
come.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
I am moved by the joyful welcoming of Joseph and Mary in the
Las Posadas tradition. After being rejected many times, Joseph and Mary finally
encounter an innkeeper who accepts them and recognizes the beauty of their
situation. The final innkeeper welcomes them unconditionally and commits to
offer himself to help them.
“I give my soul for them
And my heart as well.
Let us sing with joy”
He does not turn them away, but rather welcomes the
strangers, offering a place to spend the night.
I can relate to this final innkeeper in my year of service
with Dominican Volunteers USA. I teach English as a second language with the
Tolton Center in Chicago. The people with whom I serve are strangers to the United
States and to American culture. Many have been rejected—some having only
recently arrived in the United States, while others have been here for a while.
They have a desire to not just survive, but to thrive. They want to help their
kids get into good high schools and colleges. They want to learn English, so
they can understand their bosses’ directions and move forward in their place of
employment. They seek to make American friends, understand American culture,
and become full, active United States citizens.
David (center) with coworkers Ana and Peggy (left) and three English language students.
Our job at Tolton is to be welcoming innkeepers. We offer
free classes and accept anyone who wants to learn, regardless of immigration
status. We strive to create a warm, fun, nonthreatening environment with many
games and activities. We try to respect every student as an individual with his
or her own story and personal goals. We seek to create a place where no
individual who wants to learn English will be turned away.
I am grateful for the people at Tolton for modeling for me
the role of a hospitable innkeeper. I am thankful for my clients who openly and
enthusiastically share their stories. I am appreciative of Dominican Volunteers
USA for giving me this amazing opportunity.
In this Christmas Season may we learn to be welcoming
innkeepers, giving our hearts and souls in service to the strangers in our
midst.
David's student shares pictures of her grandchildren. David helps her
learn English so she can communicate with them.
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