One Posed Question

A quote from France Warde, American Foundress of the Sisters of Mercy and dear friend of Catherine McAuley's:

One question proposed with simplicity is often
the occasion of many instructions.

We would see that this often is the case; ask a simple question get more answer than you bargained for! But in Frances's case, I believe that what she was trying to say is to look at what is behind the question. People ask a simple question which then can lead to instruction.
She was an unconsummated teacher, always ready to stop and instruct people in the ways of God. Her forte seemed to be with adult learning of the faith. I think she would be delighted with our RCIA process.

I recall a parish visitation program that I work on a number of years ago. We were to simply visit the homes of the parishioners and had a list of ten questions to chat with them. It wasn't so much the questions as it was the connection of home to Church and that someone cared enough to stop to visit. The results were number of marriages cases, people returning to the practice of their faith, and a larger enrollment in the school-all because someone stopped by on a summer day.

Today, listen to the deeper part of the question? What is someone trying to really ask? What are you asking for in your questions? Is it recognition, assurance, importance, just facts, a social moment?

www.sistersofmercy.org

God is All-merciful

A quote from Mary Cecilia Maher a contemporary of Catherine McAuley:


It is well for us that God is all-merciful.

In this month in the reflection booklet I use to jump-start my morning time of prayer the theme is reconciliation. The stories are poignant with emotion, with conversion and with forgiveness. Yes, it is well that God is all-merciful because them we, too can model God's forgiveness and mercy to others. God leads the way in how to do it. All we have to do is follow.

Doing so is not always easy. We have to give up some of our opinions, our ways of thinking and what we think is important. One way to do this is to say to yourself, "Would this matter 15 years from now?" If it does not, then let it go!

Sometimes we like to hoard things, saving for a rainy day. That may not be bad in some cases. But do we hoard our generosity, our love, our forgiveness, saving it for the future instead of using it now.

One woman I know had a conversion experience that resulted in her using her good linens for everyday, her silver for more than just the best occasions and used her wedding china more often. She felt liberated and free from hoarding things.

What might there be in your life that you need to reflect upon God being all-merciful and what could you do to stop hoarding forgiveness, generosity, kind words or love?

www.sistersofmercy.org

interior Upheaval Can Bring You Nearer to God

A quote from Catherine McAuley:

The matter which causes the greatest interior upheaval is the very thing which,

if properly used, will bring you nearer to God.

What is the interior upheaval happening in our lives today? I was reflecting up this matter a while back and wrote this reflection.

Sometimes in our search for God we look to the latest fad, the best homily, the most moving music, great community of faith and or course, the latest, most up-to-date books on God. All of these can lead to God, but god is not found in them.

If God were, then so many hearts would have changed, the books would have been multi-million dollar best sellers, the church would be packed, the homily would be televised for all the world to experience.

No, God touches us differently. God touches us in our hearts. It's in the depths, the quiet where you and God connect. Now this can happen with the music, the homily, the community of faith or a book. For many it does. But it is still the heart that is touched.

For others it's the moment; the birth of a child, a marriage vow, an ordination, or religious vows that finally seal that God-moment that stays with you forever. If you have not had that God moment, maybe you have not looked for it in the right place. Maybe you need to look within.

www.sistersofmercy.org

Never Let Anything Cause You Trouble

A quote from Catherine McAuley;

Never let anything cause you trouble or disquiet which is not an offence against God.

Catherine had the sense that if it is in God's plan it will work out. There were many hardships in her life, yet her eyes and heart were centered on God. She helped her younger sisters realize that the small things are not to be fretted over, if they are not offensive to God.

As a younger sister living in the Novitiate, we often had two to a room. In the summers there could be three. There could have been times of disquiet and turmoil, but with good practice of this maxim, there seemed to only be fond memories left of those times.

today we have so much of our own space and we complain when anyone invades it, spills over from their own or needs more than "her share". It would be good to re-look at this saying and see what needs to be shored up in our lives and to get back to that sense of equanimity.

And how about you?

www.sistersofmercy.org

Instrument of His Glory

A quote from Catherine McAuley:

May God make you an instrument of His glory.


This morning I was reflecting on being called. We all are called, not just the prophets or the saints. All of us have been called! what does that mean to be called?

I think that Catherine had the right idea, we are all to be instruments of God's glory! That is our basic call. To be instruments we need to be in touch with God's will through prayer, study, reflection and practice.

I know i need to continually do these things. How about you?

www.sistersofmercy.org

Religious Life...A New Style

A quote from Dorothy Campion about Catherine...


Catherine's "dream did find fulfillment within the boundaries of religious life...but of a new style..."

During these weeks of summer I am using a reflection book that has a theme of dreams for the future of religious life. Each day there is an author who has reflected upon the theme and has written a page.

As we walk into a new concept of religious life going from an independent region within the Institute of Sisters of Mercy to a Community of 6 regions becoming one, we have the chance to invent a new way of looking at ourselves and of serving the world. It is a challenge as well as an adventure. There is hope and there are fears. We have new governance in place, some new practices in place and some policies which are new to us. Even the way we relate to our leadership is new and different.

Catherine had a dream, too. She did not set out to be a religious community, but when the spirit led her to do so,she undertook it despite some difficulties ans apprehensions. She also molded and crafted it so that it would be a new style of life.

Next week is my last week of being a vocation minister. I have served in this capacity for six years ans now embark on a year long sabbatical. It is is time to renew and remold my life. It's a time to sit back and listen quietly to the spirit's prompting in my life as I prepare for the next phase of my ministry journey and the next phase of my life. I have some dreams that I hope will be fulfilled. I have some time to do them and I hope that I don't let the days whittle away so fast that I do not get them accomplished.

And how are you crafting your dreams today? Do you need to take some time and just list the dreams you have, the goals you can accomplish in a day, a week, a year, three years? Take some time this weekend and write them down, then post them so you are reminded to not let the regular work of the day impede you from attaining your dreams.

www.sistersofmercy.org

Relief of the Poor-Limits of Prudence

A quote from M. Clare Moore early Sister of Mercy, contemporary of Catherine McAuley:

"Catherine's 'spirit of mercy made her adopt plans for the relief of the poor which to some appeared beyond the limits of prudence.'"

Today as we face another step in the massive cleanup of our city, we are in the dilemma of what will people do and where will people live. The shelters are stretched to the limits, people are getting restless and children are getting tired of being cooped up. The relief of the poor,the displaced, the homeless are constantly on my mind as I prepare to move to another place as we close our House of Welcome.

What should I keep? What is usable for someone else? What is just junk? All these things are pressing on me as I begin to pack. The poor do not want ragged discards. What do I have in my possession that is of value to someone else? These are things I ponder today.

Catherine had a passion for the poor, even using up her vast fortune to help them, leaving her own sisters in a literal poverty. There were so many poor! There was so little help! There was such passion!

What about you? Could your closet stand a good cleaning? Do you have more than 2 of anything? Could you find a way to get it to the poor?

www.sistersofmercy.org

Take All Bitterness Away

A quote from Catherine McAuley:

Pray fervently to God to take all bitterness from me.

Sometime we think that saints had it easy, that they did not have to deal with life as we do. But this is not the case. Saints had to live out their mundane, difficult, crisis-ridden lives just as we do, one day at a time and sometimes one hour or one minute at a time. It's how they did it that makes them the saints they are. We too can do the same thing, living out our lives one day at a time.

In our hard times it's great to have a support system..., group..., friends..., whom we can count on to help us through the difficult times. Catherine had such a group, her sisters. They were in it together and felt the privations and difficulties of their leader. She relied on them for prayer and support as well. Today can still do the same.

How often do we say to someone, "I'll be praying for you"? or whom do we ask to pray for us? In parishes there are prayer chains, in most convents there is a intention book for whom the sisters pray. There are those wonderful people called grandmothers and great-grandmothers who still pray for their children and grandchildren. There are the shut-ins in a parish who have a ministry of prayer. If you need prayer today, connect with them. If you are on-line here are two Mercy places to request prayers: www.sistersofmercy.org and www.mercycr.org.

Acceptance of Your Will

A quote from Catherine McAuley:

I ask that you grant me acceptance of your will...

This quote is a prayer we all need at some time of our life. Today I am listening to the news here in Cedar Rapids. The people who thought they could go back into their homes were told that they could not...acceptance of your will...

Tim Russert, a longtime friend of the Sisters of Mercy who died...acceptance of your will...

The loss of a friend, death of a loved one, someone moving away, a promotion you didn't get...acceptance of your will...

Today what do you need to pray for "acceptance of your will"?
www.sistersofmercy.org

If There Were a Hundred Regulations...

A quote from Catherine McAuley:

Remember if there were a hundred regulations to be observed, the most important of these is charity.

The Scripture readings for today and Catherine's quote really go together today. Love of God and love of neighbor are the two sides of the same coin. You recognize the coin no matter which side is up. sSo, too, in our love of neighbor and love of God.

Catherine was also trying to instill in her Sisters that same love for neighbor as each one had for God. And you? How do you equate it?

www.sistersofmercy.org

Joy and Sorrow from the Lord

A quote from Catherine McAuley:

If we take joy from the Lord, must we not accept sorrow?

This is such a hard saying to really live out. It is so easy when things are going easily, but when things get hard we don't want to accept the trials and tribulations in our lives.

I want to complain to the Lord and doubt God's love when things get hard. Then I beg and bargain so that I get my way instead of lifting up these trials as gifts from God.

I feel so foolish then, when I visit with our elder sisters and see what they go through and suffer each day. One cannot speak well, another's hands don't work for her, another cannot walk and another has chronic back pain. I guess I need to work a little harder on giving all of my life, the joys and the tribulations to the Lord.

What about you?

www.sistersofmercy.org

Waiting by our Wayside

A quote from Sister M. Carmel Bourke early Sister of Mercy...


Jesus waits by our wayside, hidden in the circumstances of our lives.

The circumstances of our lives...Hmmm... Today I helped an elder move into her new rooms at our retirement center, then back to our office to begin packing it up to move. When I get home, I have my own stuff to pack and we have to pack up the house... I guess I could say I am "on the move"!

To find Jesus in the circumstances of our lives is easy if we just slow down. Unpacking with the sister, we had some time to chat as she shared some of her life, back in the office I had time to recall how I used each piece of office stuff as I decided whether to keep or pitch it out, at home the same process will be the same, only take a little longer as I reflect on the significance of the item.

Where is Jesus in the recalling, in the work I have done, in the people I have met? These are good times to reflect as well as move forward. Perhaps today you need to do some housecleaning. Where was Jesus in the circumstances of your life as you clean out the closet or drawer?

www.sistersofmercy.org

Nearer to Perfection

A quote from Catherine McAuley;

Each day should bring us nearer to that perfection to which we are bound to aspire.



Have you ever wondered how you will get to heaven? Are you good enough? Have you prayed enough? Have you done good works? Is your relationship with the Lord close enough? I'm sure Catherine and her Sisters wondered the same thing.

Catherine, in one of her instructions to her young sisters gave the advice in the quote above. In those days the sisters were doing austere penances like wearing a hair shirt, beating them selves with little whips or cords, sleeping on the floor and all sorts of things. Catherine would say to do all in moderation. She also said that each day should bring you closer to the perfection. It's one day at a time and one hour at a time in the midst of the work that you do.

So today, look at the work or study you do and see how it can bring you one day closer to the perfection you wish to have in your life.
www.sistersofmercy.org

No Act not Taken into Account

A quote from Catherine McAuley;

There is no act of ours that the Almighty will not take into account.

This past week I was on vacation visiting some family of a friend of mine. It was a great time to be away and not have to do anything except be present and enjoy the moment. it gave me some time to do some reflection as we travelled and listened to lots of music. one of our passengers was a little fellow , 6 years old. As a new first grader her loves to sing. He loves to sing the same thing over and over! Between "County Roads" and "Grandma Got Run over by a Reindeer" there was little to do or say, but it was a great time to think about the joy of a 6 year old, of how even those two songs gave praise and glory to God since it brought out the best in him.

The adults in the car who allowed the child to listen over and over were very generous. They could have said no after the fifth time.

These are actions that the Lord accounts as good. They re not necessarily pious or holy, yet they raise the simple act of caring for another to a higher level of love. today look at how you are indulgent in your loving and in your actions. Remember the Lord take all of our actions into account, not just the time we are at prayer.

www.sistersofmercy.org