The Bus Preacher

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I never quite understood why this guy was preaching in the bus. People were ignoring him, were indifferent to what he was saying. Sometimes, in different occasion, a bus driver came up to him and asked him to get down the bus, explaining to him that preaching in the bus is prohibited by the management. The preacher was booted out. With no sign of being hurt and remorse, he thanked the irked bus driver and even prayed for him and for our safe journey. As a Roman Catholic priest, I was touched by how this bus preacher has been doing about his mission. In fact, he was reaching to more people than many of us mainline Christians have been doing. When I say the Mass, I am guaranteed of a hefty mass stipend, given by my church. Indeed, I live comfortably. But this fellow was often derided, cajoled, ridiculed by many, and oftentimes, came away with a pittance, an amount which was not enough to pay for the needs of his family. Offhand I remember the Gospel passage which encouraged Simon Peter to cast his nets in the deep. “Duc in altum!” is the Latin word for putting out the net in the deep. It is a command by Christ to be missionary – to proclaim the Good News everywhere - at school, in the market places, at home, in offices. I am sure Christ would be happy if we also include the most unlikely of all places – the buses.