Witnessing and relationships are his tools

He is: Father Edilberto “Eddie” Ramon, pastor of St. Francis de Sales Parish on the Southeast Side. Born in Mexico in 1972, he was ordained here by Cardinal George in 2004 after attending Casa Jesus and Mundelein Seminary.

Youth: His home village is not far from Acapulco. “My dad was a farmer and supported our family of six children. I helped sowing corn. I learned from my mother, ‘Give yourself for the sake of the other.’” He went to high school in Acapulco. “Our small youth group gathered on Saturdays. An elementary school teacher ran it -- a layman connected with the church. We met in each other’s houses to pray, read Scripture, meditate on them. We did plays based on the Bible and presented them in Church.” After university he worked as an accountant.

“I believe my vocation to priesthood came from seeing the pain of the homeless on the streets of Acapulco. They touched my heart. At first it was just by sight, but eventually I spoke to them and saw Jesus in the person of the poor. The idea of priesthood followed.”

Ministry to poor here? “Actually there are poor all over the place. Not as much physically as in Mexico, but spiritually as well. There are poor in my parish. I remember in Waukegan, people coming to the rectory asking for food, and help. We had a shelter in the church basement. We gave food and let them sleep there in the winter. The poor always come to knock on my heart. I’m involved in our food pantry here.”

Another ministry: “Our Living Way of the Cross gathers youth, families and people of all ages. I guide them to live the spirituality of the passion of Christ all year long. Then on Good Friday we reenact the living Stations. You form a bond between the people during the months before they practice the reenactment itself. It isn’t like putting on a play. It is a ministry. The people involved become active in church, some are lectors, ministers of Communion, they visit the sick, help with catechism. The crowning of the year is the Passion of Good Friday but what comes before is the preparation in your life. They talk with each other, go out of their way to reach out to each other. If a family member dies, we go together to the funeral parlor, make phone calls, visit the family, beautiful things.

“In the neighborhood of Queen of the Universe Parish, my first assignment, we did it three years. Also on Palm Sunday we enacted the Gospel in the liturgy of the Passion in the Spanish Masses, doing and saying the different roles. The group had about 40 members. It was a unique experience for me as well as for them. On Good Friday we’d go into the neighborhood representing each station.

“This has been another ‘calling’ for me. I don’t believe it is a usual practice. It takes effort, trust and enthusiasm. We have done it wherever I went. Some people have told me, ‘I’d like to participate, but I’m not good at acting.’ I say, ‘Don’t worry. This is not about acting. It is about living your faith and giving witness. If you want to be an actor it will be hard for you.’ I see the Living Way of the Cross as a way of evangelizing. — moving hearts in God’s direction.” 

Relaxation? “I sleep in, then visit friends. I like to read the lives of the saints, Scripture, and books about family life and marriage. I’m passionate about working for and with families especially on marriage. Families who come here from Mexico get so busy working. Sometimes it’s a need, but sometimes they get trapped in materialism.”

Bridging the gap: “There’s a tendency for people to be drawn to their own culture and people. American-born priests have helped make me feel part of the bigger group. We have a large presbyterate and blessed to have such diversity in Chicago priests. It’s hard to connect with everybody, so who will be the bridge or help you be the bridge?”

Saints and Scripture: “Favorite saint is Alberto Hurtado, a Jesuit priest from Chile who worked with the poor in the 1940s. He shared his vision about finding Christ in the homeless with some women of means and they started ‘El Hogar de Cristo,’ the ‘Home of Christ.’ I also like John 10 — the Good Shepherd; and the Scripture verse: ‘I came not to be served, but to serve.’”