Union and Charity

Catherine's quote:


"I very much desire that nothing but perfect union and charity
should exist among us."


Perfect union and charity.... that's a tall order! Let's see, it doesn't mean to be in total accord, thinking alike, or every liking the same thing. It does mean that as we grow in our spirituality and love for God we are able to melt or soften our hard angles and become softer in our outspokenness, to become more caring of the other's point of view than of our own. It means we don't need to continue to push a point or get bent out of shape if things or persons don't see
"eye -to-eye" with us.

I think it means that after a strong conversation in which disagreement has been aired, we part as friends and honor the best in the other. I think it means that we listen to the other, even when we have other things to do, that we care how our conversations and actions affect others.

It is something to strive for. I know I have some spots in my life that need a little improving, so i guess I will start today to strive perfect union and charity with those whom I meet.

O what joy!

A quote from Catherine for today:

We shall all meet in heaven. Oh! What joy even to think of it.


This is not quite what I want to think about today! but on the other hand, I cannot wait to be with God and to meet Catherine face-to-face! To be re-united with loved ones and to be able to ask some people questions that I am pondering today is reassuring. I'm not sure I will need the answers to the questions by the time I get there but it's reassuring to think I might be able to ask.

Each day should be the day we wake up and say, "Oh! Another day closer to heaven!" And yet we are still in this world. How will I spend this day getting closer to heaven? How do I make heaven here on earth, especially for the people around me?

Prudence

A quote from Catherine...

"No virtue is perfect without prudence."

Often when working with children in school, we do a series, usually during Lent on virtues.
It's so interesting to see how full-hearted they go about doing the "virtue of the week"and so wanting to please. Little do they understand that letting everyone know about what they did is not being prudent. They just have to tell; it's bursting from them! They're children and working on the virtues is one way for them to be aware of ways they can improve and live a life closer to God's way.

As adults we know that a virtue well-practiced becomes part of your very self. We know, as the saying goes, 'When you have arrived you don't need to shout about it." It is indeed a good idea to take stock of what virtues we have and which we still need some work. For me the gifts of the Spirit from Galatians 5 comes to mind. If we could but practice them, we would certainly bring about joy in our lives and in the lives of others. Another is the very book we use in schools, William Bennett's book, The Book of Virtues.

So today, take stock of your virtues. Are you prudent with them or are they so exaggerated that they become more of a fault? Are they lacking in being lived consistently? Have you thanked God for the grace to continue the virtue and ask for perseverance for those on which you still need some work?

Raise Your Heart to God

A quote from Catherine:

Often in the day raise your heart to God and beg grace to spend
this day at least in His service.

We have heard in Paul's letters about praying often or praying unceasingly. This is the simplest way to do it. Catherine had the right idea so long ago. We cannot be about our minds fixed on God so much we cannot do the work of the day, but we can bring ourselves back to God in so many ways during the day.

Working with young adults on Busy Person Retreats, I find that they want to be more connected to God in their daily life, so we look for ways. Each time they walk into a classroom, pray for the professor and the students there. Do you answer the telephone often? Then a quick prayer for the person on the other end as you reach for the phone. Drive a lot? A quick prayer at every red light might be the right thing. A working mother, every time you lift a child, lift your heart to God. Work in an office? Each time you go to the copier a moment to raise you heart in prayer or to say a prayer as you wait. The list could go on and on, but you can see that there are ways to pray often.

We have only today, we have only now. Are you praying?

Peace of Mind

Catherine says:


If our peace of mind depends on the tone of voice, manner, words, etc, of others,
it is on their good qualities we depend, not on our own.

This morning I was talking to a friend about the work I was doing yesterday. After finishing she went on and on about how I am working too hard, not taking time for myself, working overtime, etc. I could look at this in several ways.
One that she wanted me to just work my scheduled hours and quit for the day,not concerned for the needs and schedules of others. Two, look at it as not being supported in my ministry and therefore, my work is not valuable. Three, feel bad because she was putting me down. Four, think about what she said, reflect upon it and decide for myself if what I am doing is too much.

Our peace of mind needs to come from our own reflection of who we are and where God is calling us to be this day, this moment and this work. Other's opinions matter, not because they control us, but at they may have some wisdom we are missing in our own lives.

Today, let us reflect upon advice given lately, pray about it and then do what we know needs to be done, even if others do not understand it.

Inconsistency

A quote from Catherine:

We must often beg of God to preserve us from the dreadful inconsistency, of
contradicting our faith and our religious profession, by our actions.

The old saying, "actions speak louder than words" comes to mind as I reflect upon this saying today. What are my actions toward all whom I meet this day. Do I walk away in midstream of a conversation instead of staying in the now? That's one of my bad habits. How do I stop and really listen to another?

I have a song playing on my computer right now, "...Show me the way all through the day..."
I think that will be my theme song today. "Show me the way"...so that my actions will speak of my faith and not contradict it. "All through the day"... so that I will not be a contradiction to my profession.

View of Your Life

A quote from Catherine:

A religious ought not take a gloomy view of the passing events of her transitory life, but raising her heart and thoughts above them, view them all in the light of faith and love.

Today is my birthday. I was thinking of the journal entry my grandmother wrote on this day. "Joan born at 8:20, Oct.15, Hot day about 80." I was baptized four days later while my mother was still in the hospital. In those days the mother did not go to the baptism. As I look back, I recall my youngest brother's baptism. Mom was not there either.

I am reflecting back today on the birthdays I have had. It was so exciting when I was young. The anticipation was so great. We received our birthday gift at the breakfast table. The cake would be at dinner. As we got older we sometimes delayed the birthday cake to the weekend when grandparents and other family would be present. It was okay. My sister's birthday was the day before mine and my mother's birthday 5 days after. we had lots of cake that week!

As I recall all those memories, I also recall that it was in the light of faith within the family that we celebrated most events. There was always meal prayer, in October, the rosary at night. When much smaller, it was night prayer before going to bed.

Today may your life be filled with memories. I know mine will as I go about my day, thanking people for the good wishes and the cards, all signs of love, the love that first came when God and my parents loved me into being. Blessings on your day.

Expect a Change

From Catherine...
Even our nearest and dearest friends expect to find a change in us after we have embraced the Religious State of live, they look for something different from themselves.

Change does not happen overnight. We all struggle with changing our bad habits whether it is in the food we eat, what we say, how we act, or our response to the call of God in our life. and yet, as we embrace that call from God, there should be a change in our demeanor. We are taking on a different set of values, a different way of looking at life and a different way of being who we are. Hopefully it is a better, more authentic way of being.

No matter in what state of life you are, if you are tuned into God's action in your life, there will be a marked difference in who you are. Can you friends and family see it? Is it noticeable? Or as the old saying goes, "If you were on trial for being a Christian, would there be enough evidence to convict you?"

Comfort from Trial

A quote from Catherine:

The comfort soon comes after a well-received trial.

I was reading a novel this week called Cloud Nine. In it, several stories intersected into the life of one woman, Sarah who was dying. It was amazing to see how her words and her simple joy brought hope and love and even laughter to those who were mostly full of fear, anger, sorrow and heartbreak. A man who lost his son to drowning even as he was trying to save him, a young girl whose parents had divorced, her own son who felt the call to leave her and go back to the island where his grandfather lived to seek his roots all felt her deep serenity despite her own struggles with illness and her respite from it.

Of course it is a tear jerker story, but there is something so full of blessing to have come across such a character. No less for us who know Catherine McAuley. Her story, filled with faith, with struggle, and pain has to it a wonderful ending, the growth of the women who have known her, the growth of the Congregation.

I wonder sometimes how my words and life bring comfort to those who are having trials. In the novel, it wasn't the words of comfort as much as it was how life was lived and people were acknowledged that made a difference. May I make a difference in someone life today by the way I live my life...

Mercy Response

M. Joanna Regan (biographer of Catherine McAuley) on reflection of Mercy:

"Mercy responds always to the cutting edge of human misery."

This week is Respect Life week here in the U.S. Many of our parishes and schools celebrate it by looking at life issues. For many this stops at considering the unborn. Yet, the Church promotes respect for the life and dignity of all persons. The person who lives in a shack, the person who is dying, who is trying to feed a family by migrating, the person who is starving n the Sahara and the the person being detained in our penal system are all children of God and we should be looking at them as such. What a long reach that is for so many of us! Yet, Catherine did just that. She visited the sick poor in their homes, visited the hospitals and the jails. She bettered the lives of so many and the Sisters of Mercy are still doing the same.

For me, this week helps me to focus on some priorities. Today is a day of fast for peace. So many people live in areas where peace is a fragile word. What am I doing about it?

Our Sister Martha is in Palestine and she wrote a moving e-mail of the conditions of the Palestinians who live in that area. Their lot is less than second class citizen. Animals are treated better. Their homes are bulldozed, they move, more homes bulldozed, all on their own land!

What can we do about it? If we have the attitude that one voice can't make a difference, then we are wrong. One voice is all it takes. One voice added to one more voice, added to another does make a difference. I can make a difference and so can you. So this week, let's both DO SOMETHING!

Pray Well

A quote from Catherine:

Let us pray well and never grow weary.

The other day one of my friends and I were sharing some reflections for our morning prayer. We were sharing some experiences of the women who had influenced us in our choice of being in Mercy and staying in Mercy.

As I shared about a wonderful Sister, Sr. M. Teresita and her way of teaching me about being Mercy, I realized that part of her example was that she was a woman of prayer. She had been in community at that time for 50 years and she was still faithful to prayer and even spent extra time praying for the needs of others.

She visited the shut-ins of the parish and friends of shut-ins who weren't of the parish. She visited relatives of some of the families in the school who were not active in the parish any more. She had a small loaf of sweet bread she would take or some fresh jam or a loaf of homemade bread.

On Sundays, I would drive her to the hospital or another nursing home to visit someone she knew since she did not drive. She gave meaning to the term "walking Sister".

I think that this quote would fit her, just as it fits Catherine. She prayed and seemed to get energy from her prayer so that she could go out and do what she did. May my prayer today give me energy to the work I do and help me be the Word in the world today.