Liam Farrer, pictured with Franciscan Friar of the Atonement Fr. James Loughran, is a participant the Franciscan At-One-Ment Mission Project—a summer discernment internship which includes living with the Friars and ministering to men suffering from chemical addiction at St. Christopher’s Inn:
“On Friday nights at St. Christopher’s Inn, the men have two options for evening prayer. They can either go to the regular meditation based on the 11th step, or they can join Janet, the kitchen supervisor, for the Stations of the Cross.
Since I’m working in the kitchen, I elected to do the later. It was probably the most powerful time I’ve prayed that prayer. The Stations of the Cross has always been very personal for me. I appreciate it because I get the opportunity to unite my sufferings with our Lord’s Passion but this time I felt a strong sense of community.
As I sat listening to how Jesus suffered to redeem these men of their addictions to drugs and alcohol, I started to think about my own sins and shortcomings and the times I hadn’t trusted in Jesus, my higher power, to remove my shortcomings (Step Seven for those unfamiliar with the Twelve Steps.) It was the first time I felt in totally in communion with the Brothers Christopher. I realized that my faults, while they may not appear to the world to be as bad as those the Brothers Christopher may have committed, were just as responsible for nailing Jesus to the Cross. It was an excellent dose of humility for me and I am grateful to God for allowing me to experience it.”