The Corner of Church and Gay

The other day I was asked by a friend about the place that I come from.

“What part of the world is it?”  “What is it like?”

My answer was quick, as we had to begin our days…but her questions lingered long after we said our good-byes.

Driving away I thought about the simplicity of my answer and how little my description did to convey the beauty found within the community in which I come from.  The more I drove, the more my thoughts painted a picture of the wealthy town that we left.

I thought about the buildings, the parks, the restaurants, the people.  Until finally I found myself thinking about the corner of Church and Gay Streets.  So much so that if I had to answer again, I would spend all of my time telling her about the beauty of Church and Gay.

For it is on the corner of Church and Gay Streets you can catch a glimpse of “earth as it is in heaven”. It is on the corner of Church and Gay you can see strangers being neighbors.  You can see love without assumptions.  You can see friendships without pretenses.  You can see sacrifice bringing new life.  And you can meet and see the richest members of our community.

I would tell her that if she does ever come and visit my town of Phoenixville, to go to the corner of Church and Gay on a Wednesday morning.  For it is here that she would be able to see it for herself.  She would see a wealthy group of friends standing together, in community, despite their differences, enacting what it means to be children of “Our Father”.  She would see a man pull up in his pick-up like he does every Wednesday morning with a trunk full of groceries.  A man whose acts go unnoticed by many but helps “deliver people from evil”.  She would see those who work and volunteer their time, those doing “thy will” of a different kingdom, come out of the building to unload the truck.  She would then see the group of friends, the rich friends, go into the building one by one to receive their “daily bread”.  And if she was lucky, she would see these rich folks come out of the building and freely share their bread between themselves.

I would ask her to try not to stare at those who live in poverty in our town.  Those whose impoverished state keep them from ever seeing and participating in this beauty.  Instead, I would ask her to please pray that they too could one day come to see and experience the great riches of this corner.

Being unwanted, unloved, uncared for, forgotten by everybody, I think that is a much greater hunger, a much greater poverty than the person who has nothing to eat.  

-Blessed Teresa of Calcutta

Finally, depending on how much time that she had, I would tell her about all of the other beautiful places to visit in our town.  Places like 141 High Street or 209 Emmett Street on the North Side of town.  Or right up the road from the corner of Church and Gay where she could find 143 Church Street.  And while she was there stay for lunch at 121 Church Street.  And finally, if she had time, she could go to the newest place of great beauty and wealth, 148 Church Street, especially if it were on a cold brisk Pennsylvania night.

I don’t know if my family will ever again live in this beautiful town…only God knows that.  But if we don’t, I hope to visit often, maybe even with my new friends from Switzerland, so we can all experience the great beauty and wealth of Phoenixville, PA.

We have all known the long loneliness and we have learned that the only solution is love and that love comes with community.

– Dorothy Day