GOD & TEXAS: A goat is the mayor

The mayor of Lajitas, Texas, is a beer-guzzling goat named Clay Henry IV. He comes from a dynasty of even-toed ungulates who have served as elected officials in this remote Brewster County town. Overlooking the Rio Grande and Big Bend National Park, Lajitas boasts ample cactus, wild donkeys, and the incredible four-star Lajitas Golf Resort.

With fewer frills, the famous ghost town of Terlingua is just minutes northeast of Lajitas. In the mid-1880s, quicksilver was discovered in the surrounding hills, and Terlingua was transformed into a thriving mining village of a thousand settlers. The Indians had used the highly toxic rare earth element cinnabar for warpaint. When early pioneer Frederico Villalba realized that mercury is derived from cinnabar, mining companies flooded the area in a short-lived attempt to get rich. Villalba became a successful merchant and beloved advocate for the rights of the Mexican workers.

Despite harsh weather, deadly epidemics, and failed industry, these two towns have stubbornly survived in the heart of the Chihuahuan Desert. Lajitas still serves as a port of entry on the Rio Grande. In 1916, Lajitas hosted the army of General John “Black Jack” Pershing as they unsuccessfully hunted Mexican bandido Pancho Villa. Artisans in Lajitas were the first to establish a thriving candelilla wax business.

Terlingua was a rugged and mulish mining town. The sudden population growth caused much civil unrest between the new laborers and the local citizens. Soon, racial conflict led to a community rift, and the Study Butte Mine company store became the dividing line. At day's end, Mexican workers went east to their homes, while the Anglo workers went west.

There were two places where citizens met collectively. One was in the Terlingua Cemetery. Even today you can walk through the unkempt graveyard and see both Mexican and Anglo graves resting side by side. The modest grave of civil rights leader Villalba reposes near the flamboyant tomb of David “Boss Bird” Tinsley with a larger than life plastic chicken on top. Several lawn chairs dot the cemetery grounds where mourners come to reminisce.

The other place of mutuality was in St. Agnes Church. In the late 1700s, Spanish missionaries established outreaches to the Chisos Indians in what is now Big Bend National Park. The Chisos Mission became St. Agnes church in 1914. Once a month, a visiting priest holds services, and officiates baptisms, weddings, and funerals. St. Agnes church was, and remains, a cherished unifier in the community.

In the High Priestly Prayer of John 17, Jesus prays for Himself, His disciples, and for all Christians. His desire for unity among Believers is underscored in John 17: 21-23, where Jesus repeats the words, “That they may be one” even as Christ and His Father are One.

In these days of adversity and turmoil, St. Agnes church provides a positive example of the love of Jesus and the ministry of His Church endeavoring to make us one in Christ. May it be so.

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