Order of Malta - Houston

“What does love look like? It has the hands to help others. It has the feet to hasten to the poor and needy. It has eyes to see misery and want. It has the ears to hear the sighs and sorrows of men. That is what love looks like.”― Augustine of Hippo (Picture of Order of Malta Houston Region at Catholic Charities Mamie George Food Distribution)

YEAR IN REVIEW Now is the traditional time to review the year, as we await our Savior’s birth and its promise of renewed hope for the new year. To say that 2020 was an unprecedented year is an understatement! We started the year with a renewed commitment to our founding principles, summarized in our motto “Tuitio Fidei et Obsequium Pauperum”: nurturing, witnessing, and protecting the faith; and serving the poor and the sick. In March, we added “Sub tuum praesidium” (Beneath thy Protection) to our Latin lexicon, with our prayer, “We fly to Thy protection, O Holy Mother of God; Do not despise our petitions, our necessities, but deliver us always from all dangers, O Glorious and Blessed Virgin.,” If one reflects on the 907-year history of the Order of Malta; from Jerusalem, to Rhodes, to Cyprus. to Malta, and finally to Rome, the Order has proven itself resilient each time. 2020 was no exception. We in Houston certainly proved ourselves resilient in responding to the challenges of the pandemic and its opportunities to witness to the faith and to serve the poor and the sick. For example, our work at Catholic Charities’ Mammie George Food Fair, expanded from feeding 250 families once a month to over 1,500 families, multiple times a month. We also proved adaptable through technology to nurture our faith though weekly online rosaries, virtual pilgrimages, and other spiritual events. Each of us should be very proud of our response to the challenges and opportunities in 2020. As a result, 2020 with its pandemic provided a year of growth in both our works and our faith. Thank you for your service in 2020, and praying that each of you receive all His blessings now at Christmas and in the New Year.