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“Maybe Jesus came by…”

Abraham and Three Angels, Marc Chagall (1966)

Hospitality is a wonderful facet of Benedictine life (and we’ve had the honor of doing a lot of it lately!). Most Benedictine monasteries are marked by an accompanying guesthouse to fulfill this “mini-apostolate” within our contemplative vocation. St. Benedict encourages us in his Rule to “welcome guests as Christ” (RB 53.1), and St. Paul also says: “Do not forget to show hospitality to strangers, for by so doing some people have shown hospitality to angels without knowing it!”

Recently we had a lovely group of nine young women from western Massachusetts stay with us for a retreat of prayer and fellowship, and also to take part in our liturgy, meals and monastic work. The souls that come to the monastery seeking God and a better understanding of our vocation are a great gift, and the sisters are always enriched by their presence. During this season of Lent, it is a wonderful way to “give alms” for those of us who have taken vows of poverty, by giving our time and solicitous hospitality to our guests. After all, as Bl. Pier Georgio Frassati (whose biography we’ve been reading in the refectory) said when a poor man came to the door of his family home: “Maybe Jesus came by…”

We Adore Thee, O Christ!

Lent is such a special time of year, such a beautiful liturgical season. Not that we enjoy mortifying ourselves outright, but I think many of us feel an underlying desire for penance, acknowledgement of our sin, reparation and repentance. Some of us even look forward to Lent, knowing that it is a time of renewal and return to the God of our peace, the God of our true joy. In a way, we want to turn from the counterfeit pleasures of life or whatever sin holds us in bondage, for in the deepest part of of us, we all just want to be with God.

“We adore Thee, O Christ, and we praise Thee, for by Thy holy cross, Thou hast redeemed the world.” These words will be forever emblazoned in my memory—the words that accompanied each Station of the Cross prayed in my childhood parish church. There was such profound solemnity about this event, such reverence for Christ as we genuflected at each station. The spiritual implications were beyond my human intellect, but even as a child I knew that God needed to be adored, and it was right and fitting for us to be there. In a sense, I felt truly real. Lent is like that: a return to what is most genuine in our lives, a return to Reality with a capital “R”… a return to our truest selves, in Christ.

May this grace-filled season of Lent be a truly life-changing one for each of us. And may it catapult us all into the Heart of God!

Benedictine Links

Disputation of the Holy Sacrament (Raphael)

This week our twin community of monks, St. Mary’s Monastery, is hosting a brother monk from their motherhouse, Pluscarden Abbey in Scotland. It is a special joy to be reminded of the “interconnectedness” of the Benedictine family in such a concrete way, knowing that there are monks and nuns all over the world praying as we do. Living the Rule of St. Benedict, chanting the Divine Office, seeking God with singleness of purpose: all of these elements make a monk or nun feel right at home in any Benedictine monastery, whatever the location may be.

Receiving visitors from other monasteries also helps to strengthen and confirm our faith. We all know that the Divine Office is prayed throughout the world, and what an amazing reality that is! But there are times that we forget the body of the Church to whom we are united in Christ, and to be reminded of that beautiful truth is, well, a touch of heaven. How incredible it will be when all the invisible realities will be made visible—the choirs of angels, all the saints of ages past, and all the members of the Church spread throughout the world—when in heaven we will all be singing God’s praises together!

 

Look at the Birds in the Sky!

BirdsThis last Sunday of Ordinary time is the perfect time to think about God’s care for all his creation. In the the first reading today God reminds the people of Israel and us that he will never forget us. This is further reinforced in today’s gospel, where Jesus exhorts us not to worry because God takes care of us. The message of the Gospel hit home today in a very real way. I was the cook and although it was a fairly simple meal, it always seems like there is not enough time. I kept being reminded to look at the birds in the sky they do not sow or reap, they gather nothing into barns, yet your heavenly Father feeds them (Matt. 6: 26). “Why worry? God has everything under control,” I thought.

But of course, me being  the human being that I am, I quickly forgot. Suddenly, it was 9:45 AM, 15 minutes before Mass, and I had a large ball of bread dough in front of me that needed to be divided and formed into buns! Yikes! I started to worry! “How will I make it to mass and finish the buns?!” Just as I was finishing this thought, Sr. Gemma popped into the kitchen to see if I needed anything! “Yes, yes,” I replied. I took a breath as I recalled the end of the Gospel, “Your heavenly Father knows that you need them all.” Indeed even before we ask he knows what we need. Sr. Gemma and I finished the dividing the buns and forming them for their second rise in five minutes. I even had enough time to wash the dirty dishes and clean myself up before Mass!

I pray that both you and I can carry this lesson into our Lenten observances: remembering that God cares for us, won’t forget us and will provide for our needs.

Contemplation is for All

As a Benedictine contemplative nun, I am sometimes asked what makes someone a contemplative. Since there is a contemplative vocation in the church, people often think that living a contemplative life is meant only for a few, and that it is only possible to do so within the walls of monastery. True, it may be easier to devote oneself to contemplation of God when the context of one’s life is predisposed to it, but when the vocation is distilled down to its essence, it is easy to see that everyone is called to contemplation at some level. For after all, contemplation can be thought of as simply being with God. Thinking of him, loving him, being a constant companion of Christ who dwells in the soul—this is all the prayer of a contemplative.

And what of the question, “Can it be done anywhere?” Catherine Doherty, the Russian-Canadian wife, mother and founder of Madonna House, sums it up beautifully: “When you are in love with someone, it seems that the face of the beloved is before you when you drive, when you type, when you are taking out insurance, and so on. Somehow or other we can encompass these two realities, the face of the beloved and whatever we happen to be doing. Prayer is like that.” Perhaps, then, we could think of every human heart as a potential “monastery”—the place where one can abide with God.

Live for Christ!

St. John Paul II

St. John Paul II is a beloved saint for many of us young people, myself included. He was the pope of our childhood, a beacon of light for the Church we grew up in. One could say that his love for the youth was the vocation within his vocation; he loved us and we loved him. During his pontificate, we saw the growth of Eucharistic Adoration, devotion to the Rosary with new mysteries, and the initiation of the World Youth Day phenomenon. Indeed, even now his spiritual influence is profound, as he continues to be a true father for us all.

St. John Paul was a man who understood vocations. He saw the beauty in and cherished each one: marriage, the priesthood, men and women religious, lay vocations. He always encourages us to be courageous, to be the saint each is called to be. Here is a bit of his wisdom on the topic of vocation that he knew and lived so well:

“Every vocation is part of a divine plan. This means that in God’s creative initiative there enters a particular act of love for those called not only to salvation, but also to the ministry of salvation. Therefore from all eternity, since we began to exist in the plans of the Creator, and he willed us to be creatures, he also willed us to be ‘called,’ preparing in us the gifts and conditions for the personal, conscious, and opportune response to the call of Christ and of the Church. God who loves us, who is Love, is also ‘He who calls’ (Rom 9:11)…. Therefore, in the presence of a vocation we adore the mystery, we respond lovingly to the initiative of love, we say yes to the call…. Let yourselves be seized by Jesus and try to live just for him!”

Gloria in excelsis Deo

Today is the 6th Sunday of Ordinary Time, but there has been nothing but ordinary about this weekend. We’ve been hammered with snow, and after a full Saturday of plowing, another storm has come our way.

The liturgy today seemed to speak, or rather to sing, of all that was in my heart this morning. As we were chanting Kyrie Eleison, Christe Eleison at Mass, I could see through the windows across the choir the light snow just beginning. Lord have mercy on us! I thought a littly wryly. Then, Wash me and make me whiter than snow, I prayed as the brothers sang in their turn.

And then I looked to my left to help our observer with her books. I was sitting at choir in a different place than usual, sandwiched in between our new postulant who arrived last evening and our observer who has been here for two weeks now. Again the liturgical chant resonated in my heart: Gloria in excelsis Deo! Yes, glory to God in the highest, for he is doing great things in our community. He is bringing more young women to this life of love and prayer. More  women to pray for the world, more women to declare the love of God with their lives! And again the liturgy spoke of the joys and mysteries that are taking place: Eye has not seen, nor ear heard, nor has it entered the human heart, what God has prepared for those who love him! (1 Corinthians 2:9)

A Week of Martyrs

St. Agnes, Burgos Cathedral, Spain

The liturgical calendar of the past week has been filled with the celebration of martyrs: Bl. Benedict Daswa on February 1st, St. Blaise on February 3rd, St. Agatha on the 5th (hidden under the Sunday liturgy) and St. Paul Miki and Companions on the 6th.  (The newest of these pronounced martyrs by the Church is Bl. Benedict, who was killed for the faith in South Africa in 1990.  He was declared a blessed in 2015.)  The liturgy reminds us of the immense trials they underwent to become martyrs, or witnesses, of Christ.  We, in turn, are encouraged to strengthen our faith in order to stand firm in the face of opposition, which comes at some point in the life of every Christian. Perhaps this beautiful hymn written in honor of St. Agnes, attributed to St. Ambrose will be another means to strengthen us!

Agnes beatae virginis (att. St. Ambrose)

The blessed virgin Agnes flies
back to her home above the skies,
and she is born in heav’n above
because she gave her blood in love.

Mature enough to give her life,
though still too young to be a wife,
what joy she shows when death appears
that one would think: her bridegroom nears!

Her captors lead her to the fire
but she refuses their desire,
“For it is not such smold’ring brands
Christ’s virgins take into their hands.”

“This flaming fire of pagan rite
extinguishes all faith and light.
Then stab me here, so that the flood
may overcome this hearth in blood.”

And she was stabbed, and she was brave,
and dying, further witness gave,
for as she fell on bended knee
she wrapped her robes in modesty.

O Virgin-born, all praises be
to You throughout eternity.
and unto everlasting days
to Father and the Spirit, praise.

A Pinch of Salt!

You are the salt of the earth (Matt. 5:13). Every time I read this gospel, I can’t help but think of cooking. Salt is an essential ingredient! It not only gives flavor, it brings out the flavor of everything else. Hence we say “a pinch of salt”—just enough to bring out all the the essence of the other herbs and spices in whatever dish one is preparing. Jesus today calls us “salt of the earth.” That gives us all a very clear purpose: to be the flavor of the earth, to bring out the wonderful essence of the earth, of all things.

But what is this essence that we are to bring out on the earth? I would suggest that it is the very image and likeness of God. All of us, and all in this world, are created by him: that is the real source beauty in all things. Yet Jesus also warns us that if the salt has become tasteless, how can it be made salty again? It is no longer good for anything, except to be thrown out and trampled underfoot by men. What is this taste? How is it that we are salt? Christ himself, dwelling in us, is the “taste, the flavor, the saltiness” of our salt! We ourselves cannot be salt without flavor, thus without him. Let us all strive then to be ever closer to him!

Open to the Spirit

Holy Spirit, Bernini

Our community has been recently blessed with an observer in our midst: she has come to stay with us for four weeks to experience the rhythm of our contemplative life. I am always so struck with the beauty of an observer’s disposition, or even that of a new postulant or novice. So open, so unknowing and unassuming, so willing to be led. It is the beauty of a spiritual child, a child with an open and trusting heart, the child that we are all called to be before God. Here Pope Francis encourages us to be led by the Holy Spirit in our daily lives:

Let’s ask ourselves: are we open to the Holy Spirit, do I pray to him to enlighten me, to make me more sensitive to the things of God? And this is a prayer we need to pray every day, every day: Holy Spirit may my heart be open to the Word of God, may my heart be open to good, may my heart be open to the beauty of God, every day. But I would like to ask a question to all of you: How many of you pray every day to the Holy Spirit? Eh, a few of you I bet, eh! Well, a few, few, a few, but we realise this wish of Jesus, pray every day for the Holy Spirit to open our hearts to Jesus. (Vatican Radio, May 15, 2013)