The Carmel of Saint-Joseph and the Josefa Foundation
Are we not all journeying, together, everyone, potentially or actually, being enriched by one another, as a result of each other? No person is a stranger on this earth and each person can become whatever he makes of what others think of him.
Who, better than ourselves, can truly speak of our own migrations, either free or forced?
We should, at this point, take a moment to remember all those who have suffered or currently suffer from forced migration.
What then can be said about our history? That war and peace inhabit our all too humane humanity; that the land of exile and the land of hospitality are one and the same, one land of which we are responsible for preserving the present and the future, for its guests of tomorrow.
Why then have the Carmelites of Saint-Joseph and the Josefa Foundation united their mission? To live more deeply the mystery of hospitality! This hospitality that brings us together, throughout the world, and allows us to move forward; with the intent to build a true fellowship, in the footsteps of Abraham, the quintessential host (as a reminder, Josefa is open to all, whether on a cultural or religious journey).
The Carmel of Saint-Joseph and the Josefa Foundation are looking to us so that together we will ensure that the Josefa House never loses the memory of its migration and its mission of housing and hospitality.
So, what is our will? To produce fruit, together, with those who join us, who will join us in the heart of the Josefa House so that we may be, together, faithful to our hospitable humanity, whether as a guest or as a host.
Josefa, most importantly, is about accepting the wealth of our vulnerabilities; it’s about embracing the conversion of our perspective, towards others, towards ourselves, and therefore renewing our view, my view, of the one who, as a foreigner, offers the gift of hospitality.
So together with all of you, let’s ardently wish that the Josefa House may offer hospitality and peace, in abundance, to all of us migrants.
