A friend who knows how much affection I have for all things Franciscan sent me a text message when our new leader’s name was announced. It affected me so instantly and deeply.
NBC News shortly thereafter followed by saying, “Cardinal Dolan confirms Francis named himself after St. Francis of Assisi. He says the Pope specifically explained that to the Cardinals.”
The joyful message, still ringing in my heart:
The voice of God that spoke to St. Francis of Assisi now echoes forth from the conclave, “Francis, rebuild my Church.”
And now, we thank you, our God, and praise your glorious name! Amen.
Well, I’ve adopted my cardinal. I’m following @PapalSmokeStack on Twitter, and I’ve signed up for the “Pope Alarm”. I mean, it’s time to rock and roll on this whole matter of the conclave, right? I mean no disrespect to the men in black (and red) when I say, “Let’s get ‘er done fellas!”
My “adopted” Cardinal Claudio Hummes of Brazil
I was with some Jesus gals this morning. We took a few minutes to pray for our Holy Mother Church and the Cardinals in Rome now. We all expressed our fervent hope that the Holy Spirit will be powerfully present. We prayed that pride would be set aside and God’s choice would be made powerfully clear to the College of Cardinals by His grace.
As history is made, it’s pretty exciting to be a witness. My oldest, a 15-yr old, reminded me of this fact the morning that we heard about Pope Benedict’s resignation. As we watched Matt Lauer interview Cardinal Dolan last month, my son recalled vividly being a 2nd grader during the last conclave and described in fairly impressive detail the exuberant reaction of his classmates when the new Pope Benedict stepped out onto the “loggia”. He clearly felt that as a defining moment in his Catholic journey when he said, “I think I got it for the first time then that I am part of something really big. Being Catholic I mean.”
Still, as much as we have heard about the “papabile” the last few weeks, participated in prayer and guessed about who our new leader will be, ultimately, a large part of my internal thought process was in sync with a friend who wrote me today to say that it’s simply all in the hands of the “important people” or the “elite” of the Church.
Then, moments later I heard the following. It was written by Fr. Mattias Scheeban, a relatively obscure German theologian from the mid 1800s. In this I heard God speaking to me. I hope you will too.
“The soul adorned with grace becomes a new reality, an ennobled tree which is always green, always in bloom, always bearing fruit. If you knew yourself, Christian soul, how you would treasure and esteem yourself! If you but knew yourself, O saintly soul lived and dwelt in by God…lovely paradise of your Creator, splendid tabernacle of the Holy Trinity…if you but knew yourself daughter of the Father, Sister of the son, (spouse) of the Holy Ghost, Associate and companion of the whole blessed Trinity! If you only knew yourself, how highly you would prize yourself, not because of what you are (in and of) yourself, but because of the dignity that Grace brings to you!”
Is not God reminding me through Fr. Scheeban of how highly God prizes each of us, hearing us and our prayers clearly even despite how invisible or sinful we may feel? Are you and I impossibly unimportant in the big picture here? Or, are we all terribly vital and equally valued and loved in the sight of God at this moment and always?
Dig into the memory banks for a moment and remember with me a parable….. the tax collector who stood at a distance and would not even dare raise his eyes to heaven? Perhaps you recall him too? He’s the publican in Luke 18 who says “O God, be merciful to me a sinner.” Little and despised though he was in the eyes of men, God heard him and he was justified.
Where am I going with all this? Though we may feel of little consequence, though we may feel invisible, our task is to become more like Mary, especially now during this important time for our Church universal. A faithful soul that magnifies the Lord can ask anything and it will be given. We have to know who we are in Christ. If we pray often, give all the praise and honor to Him, He will continue to bless us and guide us on our journey to Him, serving Him in ways big and small– though we may not ever realize what He has accomplished through us—or what He plans still.
So, as the dental hygienist worked on my teeth this afternoon, I never dreamed we would be talking about the conclave. She quizzed me about prayer as we chatted about THE smokestack and I confessed about my morning and my prayers and then she said, “Can I ask you something? How do you know what to do, what to say? I just really feel weird about prayer.”
I said, “Don’t worry about how to do it. Just be who you are. Try to be patient with yourself. God knows you. Just talk to him. Just be you.”
Then, I smiled and I dug in my purse to give her a copy of some terrific wisdom from Cardinal Mercier. You may have seen this before, but it’s worth reading again and again. One of the Jesus gals gave it to me this morning, and since I had seen it before, I almost said “thanks, anyway.” I felt nudged to grab it, and I’m so pleased this time I listened.
PRAYER TO THE HOLY SPIRIT
I am going to reveal to you the secret of sanctity and happiness. Every day for five minutes control your imagination and close your eyes to the things of sense and your ears to all the noises of the world, in order to enter into yourself. Then, in the sanctity of your baptized soul (which is the temple of the Holy Spirit) speak to that Divine Spirit saying to Him:
O, Holy Spirit, beloved of my soul, I adore You. Enlighten me, guide me, strengthen me, console me. Tell me what I should do….give me your orders. I promise to submit myself to all that you desire of me and to accept all that You permit to happen to me. Let me only know Your will.
If you do this, your life will flow along happily, serenely, and full of consolation, even in the midst of trials. Grace will be proportioned to the trial, giving you the strength to carry it and you will arrive at the gate of Paradise, laden with merit. This submission to the Holy Spirit is the secret of sanctity. –Card. Mercier
Note to self: Silly woman, when someone offers you the secret of sanctity and happiness, take 2 copies.
Two trimesters into our family’s likely 30 trimester experience at Guerin Catholic High School, I am feeling grateful to God and therefore I am compelled this day to share 10 things I love about this high school.
1. The first all school mass of the year. A standing ovation to welcome the freshmen? You gotta be kidding me. AWESOME!
2. Long Live the GC Student Section! Experiencing the rowdy, smiling fools– dressed in God knows what crazy theme on any given night—totally fun!
3. Boys who know how to tie their own tie.
4. Deacon Rick’s weekly letter. Man oh man, I’m gonna miss that guy!
5. Purple Pride. This one was almost a deal breaker for us choosing GC. Think LSU colors. Yikes! But now, I admit, I find myself searching out purple accessories. It grows on you.
6. Ash Wednesday Lunch: A bowl of soup, a piece of bread. Hello, Lent.
7. Fr. Joshua Janko: Fantasy conclave pushing, mass before finals celebrating, oversized basketball jersey wearing PASSION.
9. Community Service Day: “Be a Servant. Be a Leader” (X 750). Powerful.
10. Teachers who get it: Here’s the sort of thing that happens in every department, with consistency. These people just get it. This letter went out to Spanish students yesterday. Remember, this isn’t from the Theology teacher.
Estudiantes,
Final exams have been graded and plugged in. The overall grade you see listed is your FINAL grade for the course. There is nothing more you can do, even if you are only .0000000001 from whatever the next grade up may be. If you wish to see your final exam, you may come check with me after the last final exam period is complete. I thank you for a good trimester together and would like to leave you with a quote from Fr. Michael Keating, an associate professor of Catholic Studies at St. Thomas University in Minnesota that recently struck me as the reality of this statement is stunning. He said, (referring to eternity) “You will either be a creature of eternal light and rule with Christ in His Kingdom, or you will be an eternal horror full of darkness in the depths of hell. You are not called to just be a ‘nice’ person.” I don’t know about you, but I find that to be absolutely amazing and terrifying at the same time. Let us pray today for the grace to live a holy life, so that we can live forever as creatures of eternal light. Your life may be the only Bible some people read. – Author Unknown
It is impossibe to estimate what a Christian education does for these young people. — St. Theodore Guerin
Great Catholic schools everywhere deserve our thanks. They are filled with amazing educators, administrators and volunteers who aren’t in it for the money, that’s for sure. What do you love about your Catholic school??
My friend Kit Kleck is rather an inspired mom, if you ask me. She’s a common sense organizer type. It would be a piece of cake to give you multiple examples of her simple genius, but my favorite today is this quarterly service project she has coordinated for the junior high kids at St. Louis de Montfort for the past couple of years. There has been bell ringing for the Salvation Army, feeding the homeless downtown, collection of clothing, etc.
Her inspiration for this ongoing project is the Corporal Works of Mercy:
•To feed the hungry;
•To give drink to the thirsty;
•To clothe the naked;
•To harbor the harborless;
•To visit the sick;
•To ransom the captive;
•To bury the dead.
The idea here is that the children (and their families too) will have the opportunity to practically experience going outside oneself in service of another. Mercy used in this context is said by St. Thomas Aquinas to be a virtue influencing one’s will to have compassion for, and, if possible, to alleviate another’s suffering.
Kit put me in charge of the 3rd quarter project, and with the help of my good friend, Julia Mattei, I elected to use my moment in charge to organize a trip to St. Augustine’s Home for the Aged, on 86th St. in Indianapolis, which is operated by the amazing Little Sisters of the Poor. It’s Lent, I reasoned, and one way to give alms is to share our time.
The uncomplicated opportunity was playing BINGO, talking to, and serving treats to the nursing home residents – and if you’ve ever done it you know it is just a darn good way to spend an afternoon.
Here’s a little peak at our experience with the SLDM 7th graders and about 40 St. Augustine’s residents this past weekend.
My new best friend, who would prefer that I call him “Vincenzo Giuseppi”, told me as I suggested he might want to cover “B 6” (if he has any chance to beat Adele at the next table over), “You are outgoing and fun. This is the best time I’ve had in a long while!”
As we began, the kids were timid and quiet. They had obviously not spent much time in a room full of seniors. The residents weren’t so sure about us and our squirrely crew either! However, it didn’t take long before I started hearing kids saying things like “Yes, I agree, chocolate chip cookies are definitely the best” or “You have 3 brothers? Me too!”
The charming activities director with the Peruvian accent was brilliantly accommodating. She allowed the kids to assist the residents, call out winning numbers, and run the numbers board………generally just take over the day’s event.
I brought along my 2nd grader who plopped himself down between two charming Bingo- loving old gals who paid so much attention to his every silly word that he said (beaming) “I was like a celebrity Mom. They loved me!!”
As we were leaving, “Vincenzo” insisted we wait until he made a quick trip to his room. When he returned, he handed me two puzzles. They must be 1000 piece puzzles, put together and glued in place. Obviously, these were treasures. The larger of the two was a Christmas puzzle. He whispered to me it was a personal favorite because it’s of Rockefeller Center in NY, and although he likes to joke that he is old Italian mafia, the truth is that his last name is Bennett, and he is from NY.
A Christmas picture, huh? How appropriate, I can’t help thinking. Vincenzo? You and your friends brought Jesus to life for us on Saturday.
That’s how it always goes, doesn’t it? You do something “to be nice” and what happens is that you end up being the one to whom the gift was given. I know this. Sometimes, I just forget. In this case, the gift is mine applies literally and figuratively.
When we try to be the face of Jesus, we can be certain then that we will find Him and our gift inevitably is joy.
“…Amen, I say to you, what you did for one of these least brothers of mine, you did for me.” (Mt. 25:40)
Yesterday, I was chatting it up with the CVS store clerk as I waited for the pharmacist. I remarked about her truly cute haircut and bemoaned my own overly gray “situation”. The sweet young gal said “Nobody will even notice your bad hair day because we are all thinking about your dirty forehead.”
I began to giggle at her honesty and I said, “Ashes?” She truly looked at me like I needed to put down the crack pipe. It was then I explained, “It’s Ash Wednesday. Today’s the start of Lent. It’s a Catholic thing.”
“Oh!”
It wasn’t the most impressive evangelization effort, that’s for sure.
We find ourselves in the midst of those 40 days which began with us each being literally marked as sinners. To dust we shall return. If that seems a wee bit morbid, well, I think that’s the point.
Shouldn’t we be interiorly restless as it relates to the fundamental question of sin—especially as it speaks to eternity? How likely are we to use our freedom to choose God if our minds are focused on the question of our own salvation?
“Enter by the narrow gate, for the gate is wide and the way is easy, that leads to destruction, and those who enter by it are many.” (Mt. 7:13)
Yikes.
Lent is an excellent time to reflect on the reality of our own mortality and ask to be filled plentifully with grace, loving Him enough to repent for sins large and small.
Bishop Fulton Sheen said “Conscience tells us when we do wrong so we feel on the inside as if we have broken a bone. The bone hurts because it is not where it ought to be.”
In this increasingly secular world, it’s easy to forget about salvation and focus on what is of this earth, what is finite. During Lent, the Church wisely suggests we take a pause from those things which cause us to drown out that voice of God within.
I know what some of them are for me and what I am going to work on. What about you?
“Seek eagerly after love. Set your hearts on spiritual gifts.” (1 Cor 14:1)
I move that we all embrace the austerities of Lent, find our way to a confessional, and pray for properly formed consciences, through which (with our cooperation) the Holy Spirit will encourage us after each mistake to turn towards our God and walk in His light once more.
P.S.
Oh, and don’t forget to use some of that prayer time to ask the Holy Spirit to be powerfully present for our Cardinals too as they choose our new Pope!
“Souls do not wish to be bullied, but gently brought back; such is the nature of man.”
–St. Francis de Sales
After carpool dropoff this morning, I made a trek to Northside Radiology. Being an expert, I had worn the sports bra and a pair of pants without a zipper. All this would save time and a little naked humiliation I reasoned as I carefully chose my wardrobe this morning. Once there, I shed all my gear that could possibly contain metal, and I found myself once again laying down on the X-ray table. As I did the “breathe in…now hold it” routine, I was pondering about how long the doctor’s appointment would last because after that I needed to get to the lab to draw 2 blood samples today for the endocrinologist, Dr. Baker. On my mind, too, were my in-laws and my own parents who have had more than their share of waiting rooms over the last year. I wish things had been easier for them all. It’s easy to take good health for granted.
The X-ray tech waved goodbye, and within just a few minutes I was inside the office of my urologist, Dr. Dave Hollensbe. The doc is a good Catholic guy and terrific at what he does. He has a dry and sarcastic sense of humor. Hollensbe strikes me as rather a smart ass, if I’m completely honest. Since most the men in my family share that trait, I feel right at home with him. I have gotten to know him better than many docs I’ve seen over the years because he’s performed 3 or 4 kidney stone procedures on me. I have a special gift for churning out stones. Try not to be too jealous.
We chatted and he gave me some input and a question to ask the other specialist when I see her next week. As we were finishing up the doctor said to me, “Are you okay? You seem agitated.”
The truth is I was agitated, and perhaps even a bit despondent. However, I was really surprised to be called out. I thought I was cloaking those feelings with cheerfulness pretty well. Clearly I was not. I could defend myself by giving you a few decent sounding reasons why I woke up on the wrong side of the pillow. I will spare you.
The truth is I should be living in joyful awareness of God–instead of dragging my cross behind me so everyone can choke on the dust.
Mother Teresa said this, “When I see someone sad I always think, she is refusing something to Jesus.” It was in giving Jesus whatever He asked that she found her deepest and lasting joy. She said, “Cheerfulness is a sign of a generous and mortified person who forgetting all things, even herself, tries to please God in all she does for souls…for God loves a cheerful giver.”
I want to live in joy. So rather than depending on something to change so that I can be joyful, I choose joy right now. Greeting others warmly, speaking encouragement and affirmation, my own joy will increase as I share positivity and focus on positivity. This is not new news. Oftentimes, I simply forget.
Have you ever read the book of Job? I hadn’t until this week. It’s worth a look if you aren’t familiar– or even if you are. This poor guy’s life went from incredibly abundant to complete depravity nearly overnight. He lost everyone and everything. Knowing his own righteousness, he cried out to God in long pathetic speeches. The Lord ultimately replied, “Will one who argues with the Almighty be corrected? Let him who would instruct God give answer!” The Lord seems to challenge Job to play God. When Job realizes what he has done and to whom he has been railing, he says to God, “I have spoken but did not understand; things too marvelous for me, which I did not know…therefore I disown what I have said and repent in dust and ashes.”
The message I hear is the one Mother Teresa shares which is: God loves us and wants us to trust His will for us will always be an expression of that perfect love, however impossible it is for us to comprehend His marvelous designs.
“Be glad in the Lord and rejoice.” (Ps 32:11).
Thanks, God, for gently bringing me back to reality today through the good Doc. I wasn’t giving the world my best this morning.
I am issuing a challenge to myself and to anyone else out there who might feel called. Do something today to share joy, INTENTIONALLY, with another. It’s an act that really is also a prayer– something beautiful for God. It’s really all between you and Him anyway. Then, repeat tomorrow.
Recently, I was asked to write an editorial style article on the topic of sin. In essence, the assignment was to share what is sin, from my perspective here at the back of the carpool line.
I began by pounding out paragraphs containing several fairly impressive adjectives essentially describing sin as whatever separates us from God. I then consulted the Catechism as it relates to “venial” vs “mortal” sin. Nothing in the writing moved my heart whatever. I simply wasn’t “feeling it”. Hmm.
My own struggle with this topic seems to be that I am interiorly restless as it relates to this fundamental question of sin—especially as it relates to eternity. Do I believe we are all sinners? YES. Do I believe Jesus died to save us from our sin? YES. Do I believe we are FREE to choose God or choose to curse His holy name? YES.
Assuming you are still with me, let’s engage in some speculative theology for a moment. Is hell empty, or is it crowded?
The Catechism of the Catholic Church states: “The teaching of the Church affirms the existence of hell and its eternity. Immediately after death the souls of those who die in a state of mortal sin descend into hell, where they suffer the punishments of hell, ‘eternal fire.’ The chief punishment of hell is eternal separation from God, in whom alone man can possess the life and happiness for which he was created and for which he longs” (CCC 1035).
“Enter by the narrow gate; for the gate is wide and the way is easy, that leads to destruction, and those who enter by it are many. For the gate is narrow and the way is hard, that leads to life, and those who find it are few.” (Mt 7:13-14)
All of this is rather heavy stuff for a gal such as yours truly whose faith is strong but simple. As a mom, I love my boys. They make many mistakes, and still I stubbornly love them. That inherent, God-given, and sometimes irrational, foolish love seems to me the example Christ provides in my life to help me grasp how much He must love me. The words of Christ on the cross to the good thief are also a clear sign which moves my spirit to hopefulness as it relates to the great love of God and our hope for eternal life.
My small minded, baseball-mom thinking boils down to this. “If I love these sweaty, stinky boys so much, and NO MATTER WHAT and can’t imagine not wanting them near me….how much MORE must OUR AWESOME GOD desire the same of all His children?”
Further, the Catholic Church has made numerous proclamations about people in heaven—the saints! It has never made a similar proclamation of even one person being condemned to hell, because we Catholics commend all people to the mercy of God.
So, even though some of my Catholic “heroes”, who were clearly brilliant and divinely inspired people (examples such as Sts. Thomas Aquinas and Augustine) believed and wrote extensively about how few the “elect”, and even though Jesus spoke about that narrow gate, I choose to put my trust in the love of God.
At the end of the day, here’s what I learned from my assignment on “sin”. It makes a ton of sense that my tolerance of myself and my own sinfulness is very much a pendulum which runs from nearly presumptuous patience to fairly reproachful scrupulosity.
After all, part of me wonders if only the “lucky” who live a good life and who quit breathing shortly after the perfect confession will see God forever. HOWEVER, the larger part of me is much more Universalist. Perhaps that’s naïve, overly hopeful, or presumptive. Perhaps it’s just my way—BUT– as the simple and usually sunny mayor of “Shellyville”, I choose hope. I hope that I will live in eternal happiness with God. I hope He will fill me with enough grace that I will love Him enough to repent for my sins large and small. I hope I will do so more out of love than fear.
Bishop Fulton Sheen said this, “Conscience tells us when we do wrong so we feel on the inside as if we have broken a bone. The bone hurts because it is not where it ought to be.”
With all the authority I have as mayor of (very) sparsely populated Shellyville, I move that we all pray for properly formed consciences, through which the Holy Spirit will encourage us after each mistake to turn towards our God and walk in HIS light once more, like little children, submitting to the will of our loving Father, simply because He is our Father and He knows best.
This reached me and was felt in the most interior places in my heart. As difficult as it is, I hope that you will appreciate seeing it and be moved to pray. And buy a stamp.
I received this from Fr. Christopher Roberts of St. Alphonsus Catholic Church in Zionsville, Indiana. The note below is from the sister of Fr. Luke Suarez, Associate Pastor at St. Rose of Lima Catholic Church in Newtown, CT.
From the sister of the Associate Pastor at St. Rose of Lima:
My friends,All of you, I am sure, have heard so much about the tragedy in Newtown, CT. Many of you have received emails from me about my younger brother, Father Luke Suarez, who is a priest at St. Rose of Lima parish, a Catholic church just down the road from Sandy Hook Elementary. He, and his pastor, Monsignor Weiss, arrived at the school within moments of the shooting, and have been caring for the community ever since. The picture I have included was taken at the school.
Father Luke has an impossible task before him. His diocese is without a bishop right now…. Monsignor … is personally devastated by the losses. The parish is very large…. The rectory has received serious threats, and as my brother gave the homily Sunday at the noon mass, the church had to be evacuated by SWAT teams. After experiencing identity theft and online hacking incidents, he had to erase all of his internet accounts. After a weekend of endless media requests, notifications and vigils with heartbroken families, and little sleep, he now has two wakes and two funerals every day, until the fourth Sunday of Advent. Father Luke has not even been ordained two years.
My large family has been trying to send Father Luke our love and support from afar, and one of my brothers was able to visit with him briefly a couple times. All he asks for is prayer.I have been wracking my brain, trying to think of a way that our beautiful, loving community could tangibly reach out to Father Luke, Monsignor Weiss, and the St. Rose parish, to support them in this most awful of times. I have sent many prayer requests, and I am asking for more prayers again. But I also want to ask everyone to search their hearts, and if the Holy Spirit moves you,please consider sending one of your family’s Christmas cards to the rectory, with a few words of love and encouragement. Here is his address:
Father Luke Suarez
46 Church Hill Road
Newtown, CT 06470
My brother has said over and over again that without the prayer support he is receiving, he could not keep going. And this week is only the beginning. Everyone there is still in shock. Their peaceful home has been desecrated by violence. They will need to live with this sorrow forever.
But in our weakness is His strength. Grace abounds. Can you help me carry him through this time of trial?On a hopeful note, Father Luke did say that no media coverage has even touched the deep, beautiful awakening of faith that has occurred there. Their tiny church, where my children have received sacraments and where Luke was ordained, has been full of people in prayer without ceasing since this tragedy happened. Love is stronger than death.Please feel free to share the address with your family, friends, and community. An outpouring of love will sustain these good priests through their impossible ministry–impossible on their own, but possible with God.I am so grateful to live in this community. We are all so blessed with one another. Every day, I see you all loving one another as Christ loved.
Today, I returned to a place I had vowed to avoid—the perpetual adoration chapel at Our Lady of Mt. Carmel (OLMC). OLMC is conveniently situated a couple of miles to the west of my son’s high school, Guerin Catholic. It’s much closer if you want to make 8am mass after carpool than my own parish—which I want to state for the record that I love– before you read on.
Still, I have been steering clear of OLMC. Allow me to explain.
Several months ago, I visited the OLMC chapel during my son’s baseball practice which was nearby. 40 minutes or so with Jesus would be good, I thought. So, as I walked in there, I think I spot a friend (which I am not expecting since it’s not my parish)….so I am distracted a bit. One hand is in holy water, the other holding my purse, and my shoes are damp from the wet pavement. All this and I am attempting to genuflect. I fall right on my rear. I kind of land half in the lap of some old gray haired guy. I take a big, dramatic, humiliating tumble.
The man is worried am I ok, and I get up as quick as I can, find a seat, and just put my head down hoping to never raise it again. My cell phone starts to buzz. I drop it on the floor grabbing for it, and parts scatter. No one is praying at this point, and I am officially a menace. There were probably 15 people in that chapel. It was a full house.
Then, a woman says, “let us pray together the litany of humility”. The gray hair comes toward me, puts his hand on my back, kind of rubs it….and hands me the prayer. He whispers, “maybe you want to pray along.”
Humiliating? Yes.
For the unfamiliar, here is the dreadful prayer.
LITANY OF HUMILITY
O Jesus! meek and humble of heart, Hear me.
From the desire of being esteemed,
Deliver me, Jesus.
From the desire of being loved…
From the desire of being extolled …
From the desire of being honored …
From the desire of being praised …
From the desire of being preferred to others…
From the desire of being consulted …
From the desire of being approved …
From the fear of being humiliated …
From the fear of being despised…
From the fear of suffering rebukes …
From the fear of being calumniated …
From the fear of being forgotten …
From the fear of being ridiculed …
From the fear of being wronged …
From the fear of being suspected …
That others may be loved more than I,
Jesus, grant me the grace to desire it.
That others may be esteemed more than I …
That, in the opinion of the world,
others may increase and I may decrease …
That others may be chosen and I set aside …
That others may be praised and I unnoticed …
That others may be preferred to me in everything…
That others may become holier than I, provided that I may become as holy as I should…Jesus grant me the grace to desire it.
I decided after that day that the people of OLMC deserve a break from yours truly. A permanent break.
Today, I returned to morning mass at OLMC because a friend wanted company. I admit my own tank was a little low, as was my enthusiasm.
But then, I arrived. As I walked in, I remembered they observe a beautiful holy silence in their chapel and in the church. Jesus is present in the tabernacle behind the altar, and also in the perpetual adoration chapel nearby. You cannot miss this fact, because you feel the respect of everyone present by their observance of silence.
As with most daily masses everywhere I’ve been, morning mass is quick at OLMC, but here it’s not rushed. The friend who accompanied me noticed a “special vibe” in that place. She noticed it after mass in the chapel where we prayed kneeling next to each other. She noticed it in the beautiful wall tapestries which contain images of several saints. Most of all, she noticed it in the amazing numbers of parishioners who were present to receive the Eucharist and to pray in His presence in the chapel. Joy was palpable on her face and in my own heart too from the lovely grace-filled morning.
This is when I had today’s light bulb moment.
Gathering as a community does not make a group holy, any more than attending mass makes an individual holy. God uses grace as a tool to mold His church, to correct her, to grant us a collective passion for others, and to enable us to love Him, each other and the world. Some means of grace are personal—like solitude, or the sacrament of reconciliation. Others are corporate—like the mass—or a Jesus loving parish who welcomes visitors with the gift of holy silence and their collective witness of faith. It’s about doing small things with great love, just as Mother Teresa famously said.
People of OLMC, my hat is off today to you.
Thank you for preparing for mass in prayerful silence. Thank you for sharing your well prepared priest, Fr. Adam Mauman, and for the witness of the reverent server (whose name I do not know). Thank you for reaching with two hands at the sign of peace. Thank you for sharing your sunshine filled adoration chapel. Thank you for knowing all the words to “Sanctus” in Latin. I’d like to learn them. It was all beautiful.
I left OLMC having received bread for the journey, my empty tank refilled and my heart renewed today with love of Jesus I saw in those around me.
“If only one little child is made happy with the love of Jesus…will it not be worth…..giving all for that?” Mother Teresa
Bear one another’s burdens and so you will fulfill the law of Christ. (Gal 6:2)
Two days ago, I posted the following note on my Facebook page, and initially, it was emailed it to the 7th grade families at my son’s school, St. Louis de Montfort Catholic School (SLDM), in Fishers, Indiana.
SLDM Friends,
Over the weekend, SLDM teacher, Kelly Hauschild, who teaches 7th and 8th graders, suffered a house fire. She has a large family (7 in all) and they are now in a hotel until temporary housing can be secured. I am collecting money tomorrow morning in front of church before mass (I have a light blue minivan), and also in the narthex after mass for this family. In addition, I will be in the carpool line tomorrow afternoon (Wed. 14th). If any of you would like to make a contribution, I will add your generosity to our “gift card” fund. We are getting gift cards to a few restaurants as well as a superstore where she can get needed food, clothing, and household items as they are necessary in the next several weeks. I’m putting a short leash on the collection time frame so that I can get her the gift cards by Thursday. I realize that many of you have young children and haven’t met Kelly yet. As a parent of 2 children Kelly has taught the ins and outs of Algebra, Geometry and Religion over the past 3 years, I can tell you she is an outstanding and faith filled woman. I know she will be humbled and truly grateful for any support from the SLDM family. If you are unable to assist monetarily, that is absolutely fine. Your prayers will be needed and appreciated as well!! Feel free to pass this along to anyone you think who might like to help.
Now, it’s Thursday. Help came.
Will $3000 worth of gift cards and cash magically solve the challenges faced by the Hauschild family? Of course it won’t. They have months of recovery ahead of them, temporary housing to locate, a home to rebuild and a Thanksgiving and Christmas around the corner that no longer looks as they wish and certainly not as they anticipated.
If you can’t feed a hundred people, then just feed one. –Mother Teresa
A hastily gathered gift, given in love, will hopefully help bridge the gap until insurance paperwork and inevitable red tape leads to actual assistance, a temporary housing solution and life back on track. Kelly’s co-workers and the administration at SLDM are collecting funds, and clothing is being gathered as we speak for the children. When I saw Kelly and Jeff yesterday, her jacket covered in ashes from sifting through the damaged house, and him with a harrowing story of escaping the house during the fire, I could clearly see there will be an ongoing need for help. I am certain it will be forthcoming.
BUT. To me, here’s the silver lining.
Yesterday, in ONE DAY, with no time to think, the amazing people of St. Louis de Montfort wrapped Kelly, Jeff and their 5 children in love. They simply rolled down their car windows and emptied their wallets, no questions asked, to do what they can.
My beloved faith community– YOU were the face of Christ.
The Kingdom of God is among you. (LK 17:21).
One of my favorite authors and homilists, the charmingly abrasive Fr. Larry Richards, said this morning via Twitter, “We are to bring God’s kingdom to everyone—He is within you so show Him today!”
And that is just what you did, SLDM. I am so proud to call you friends. Nicely done.
He Never Misses 