An Image Reflection for the Saturday of the Third Week of Lent

STM's Assistant Chaplains and members of STM's staff will share an image and reflect on it each Saturday. This Saturday, Assistant Chaplain Allan writes about part of a mural by Jesus Alvarado entitled “El Corrido del Segundo Barrio.” The mural is located in El Paso, TX.

David Romo, a historian from El Paso, TX, spoke to our Alternative Spring Break group about the “gasoline baths” at the border that started in 1917. During that time, the government of El Paso feared that immigrants were carriers of lice and needed to be deloused to prevent typhus, an infectious disease that had a high mortality rate during that time. The gasoline baths were meant to “disinfect” immigrants by having them take a bath in a mixture of kerosene and vinegar. Immigrants entering El Paso were also required to strip naked for inspection, undergo a lice treatment and have their clothes fumigated in a steam dryer with hydrocyanic acid.

This humiliating practice went on for decades, long after the typhus scare ended. As David noted, immigrants were treated as “second class,” and thus subjected to dangerous and embarrassing inspections. We can only imagine how dangerous it is to take a bath in a flammable substance and be sprayed with insecticides like DDT. All this can cause serious health problems. This inhumane treatment also caused a lot of shame and enforced the inferiority of others, especially those on the margins.

The theme of superiority is present in today's gospel reading. A Pharisee entered the temple to pray and talk to God about how good and righteous he was and how superior he was compared to others. He bragged how he had faithfully observed fasting and paid tithes on his whole income. He even looked down at the tax collector who was also praying in the temple. Instead of praising God, the Pharisee was praising himself. In contrast, the tax collector humbly begged for God’s mercy and acknowledged his sinfulness. He even bowed his head and was unable to look at God. The former wanted to be justified by exalting himself and relying on his achievements while the latter recognized that only God can justify and forgive him.

As we journey through the remaining weeks of Lent, let us remember those moments when we thought that we were better than others, when we treated others with contempt, when we thought we were superior to others. Let us also take comfort in knowing that even as sinners, God’s forgiveness and mercy is always present and available for us. May we also be mindful of the people our society has deemed inferior or outcast. In God's eyes, we all share the same humanity and dignity. May we walk in solidarity with them during Lent and beyond.

The picture above is part of a mural by Jesus Alvarado entitled “El Corrido del Segundo Barrio.” Here, migrants cross a bridge called El Puente Negro that was used to get to El Paso from Juarez, Mexico. You can find more information about the gasoline baths through David's book, Ringside Seat to a Revolution.