The Observance of Lent

 

The Observance of Lent

            Chapter 49 of the Rule of Benedict is devoted to “The Observance of Lent.” Including among many suggestions Benedict tells us to devote ourselves to prayer and to reading. It has become a custom in our community for each sister to choose a book for her Lenten spiritual reading.

            This year I had no need to search for a book; the book found me. During a phone call with a cousin he asked whether I had ever heard of St. Faustina Kawalsko. Yes, I had heard of her, but that was the extent of my acquaintance. My cousin told me that he had read her diary and would send me a copy.  He thought I would really enjoy it.

            When the package arrived, I was surprised to find a tiny 7 by 5 inch book that I assumed would be easy reading—likely not enough to last through Lent.  Upon closer inspection the little inspirational book was printed in small print and also a Lenten penance for my 92 year old eyes, but I decided to finish this unusual story.

            Helen (Faustina’s baptismal name) was from a poor Polish family of 20 children. At her First Communion, age 9, she knew she was being called to be a nun. At the age of 19 while at a dance with her sister. Helen had a vision of the crucified Christ. This confirmed her decision to enter a convent and she now wished to do so as soon as possible. She heard God telling her to travel to Warsaw, 85 miles from home to enter a convent. She obediently made the trip. After being refused by two communities, she was admitted to the Congregation of the Sisters of Our Lady of Mercy. At age 20, she was clothed in the habit and received the name Sister Marie Faustina of the Blessed Sacrament.

            Both Jesus and her spiritual director had asked St. Faustina to record her visions and what she had heard God saying. These notebooks are known today as loving messages of Divine Mercy. Almost every entry speaks of God’s mercy and describes her many visions and messages from God.

            St. Faustina died of tuberculosis at age 30 and has been called “The Apostle or Secretary of God’s Mercy.” The Church now celebrates Divine Mercy Sunday on the first Sunday after Easter.

            Of course, I have long been aware of god’s mercy, but I now think of it every day and have a new sense of gratitude for God’s mercy. I highly recommend the Dairy, but suggest the reader have a good magnifying glass or a coup with large print.

Sister Victoria Eiseman, OSB

 

 

Visiting Kentucky's Death Row

          On the day of posting this blog, November 6, 2019, I am visiting the men on Kentucky’s Death Row at the State Penitentiary in Eddyville along with seven other religious women and one man, representing 6 religious communities. A group of us (Religious Communities Against the Death Penalty) have participated in this annual event almost every year since 1997. Our commitment to this practice began with awareness and the need to witness to the value of all life in opposition to the culture of death pervasive in our society.

           At the present time there are twenty-eight men and one woman under the sentence of death in Kentucky. I rejoiced when I just now checked the list online to see that one man whom we have visited for years has been resentenced. Usually “resentenced” means he is now serving “life without possibility of parole” which certainly satisfies the requirements of justice for him and safety for society. According to the Kentucky Department of Public Advocacy, since the death penalty was reinstated in 1976, ninety-seven persons have been sentenced to death in Kentucky. They report that fifty of those sentences have been reversed on appeal or post-conviction.

          Only three men have been executed since the state reinstated capital punishment in 1976 after a hiatus of several years in which the state tried (but failed) to ensure that it was administered fairly. The last execution was eleven years ago of a man who rejected the appeals to which he was entitled and chose to be executed as soon as possible. Many of us see this as a form of state assisted suicide.

          In 2010 a judge ordered a stay of executions in Kentucky while attorneys argued over, among issues, protocols involving drugs used during lethal injection. This has not yet been resolved and, thankfully, there does not seem to be any motivation for resolution at this time. It is our hope and prayer that Kentucky will soon pass legislation to abolish the death penalty and rely upon the other sentencing options to administer appropriate justice to victims and offenders.

          So today we will pray and visit with some men whom we have known for over twenty years even though we see them only once a year. Some are newcomers; our latest friend came in 2014. Usually twelve to sixteen come over to the chapel/visiting room to be with us. We often celebrate Mass with their regular chaplain; today we are glad to have our own Glenmary Father John Rausch preside. It is an awesome experience to pray with men who so sincerely lay their souls bare to God’s mercy and beg for grace upon all persons they have touched in their lives, especially their victims and all who suffer violence.

         After Mass we sit in twos and threes to share what’s new in our lives, our hopes and concerns for about 30-40 minutes. We have come to know about their families and their backgrounds and to appreciate their personalities and their gifts. They always express their profound gratitude to us for coming the distance and for our letting them know that we love and respect them as our brothers in God’s family. They always remind us, more by their example than their words that, “No one deserves to be judged by the worst thing s/he ever did.”

          Sr. Dorothy Schuette, OSB

Inspired by Psalm 90

To you, O God, I cry.  You are our refuge, age after age.

You are God from all eternity and forevermore.

You, who can turn us back to dust in a single second,

hear our prayer,           

  …for all those…

driven from their dwelling places, plundered by enemies,

swallowed up by the seas, splintered by raging winds  -

For your people of Myanmar, Mozambique, Egypt, Peru,

Kashmir, Darfur, South Sudan, Somali, Afghanistan, Ukraine,

 Iraq, Syria, Texas, Mexico, Florida, the Caribbean Islands, and more…

Up, cry out in the night-time, in the early hours of darkness!

Pour out your heart like water before your Creator,

Stretch your hands to God for the lives of your children.

Little ones and old ones are lying on the ground in the streets;

Virgins and young men have fallen by the sword.

Huge as the Sea is our affliction, who can possibly cure us?

 You, alone, O God.

Open our eyes, ground us in love, and strengthen our will.

Inspire us to act.

 Renew our lives as in times past. 

Then, at sunrise, filled with your mercy,

We will sing your praise and rejoice in your loving kindness!

      Sr. Sharon Portwood, OSB

Let us hold onto the Year of Mercy

        Many times in the Gospels this week Jesus calls out the Pharisees and scholars. He minces no words in pointing out the obvious disconnect between how they see themselves and what motivates them. Jesus describes their inner states; “you are like unseen graves over which people unknowingly walk” (Luke 11:44)  . . . and their outer states; ”you impose on people burdens hard to carry, but you yourselves do not lift one finger to touch them.”(Luke 11:46) I have thought about the woes Jesus might be saying to me, have you?

        Paul succinctly in the first reading on Tuesday prescribes the antidote to the Pharisees behavior by stating “but only faith working through love” (Galatians 5:6) can the outside behaviors and the inside motivators keep us aligned with Jesus.

         There are many who exemplify their faith through actions of love. Isn’t this where continued growth needs to take place? “Today God loves the world through you and me. . . God proves that Christ loves us that he has come to be his Father’s compassion” wrote Mother Teresa. Is this not part of Pope Francis message when declaring in this Jubilee Year of Mercy that we must “Be merciful as our heavenly Father is merciful.” (Luke 6:36) We continually are called to “presence” Christ in our lives and the way we live them. When our lives are in harmony with the merciful, compassionate Jesus, the likelihood of being called out with “woe to you” is replaced by “Come all you blessed ones.”

         The solemnity of Christ the King on November 20 formally closes out the Year of Mercy. Doesn’t it seem way too soon for the year of mercy to end? With all that is occurring in our country and throughout the world would it not be helpful to extend the Year of Mercy for another year or a decade, better yet forever? 

        Sr. Aileen Bankemper, OSB

Misericordia and The Year of Mercy

On Saturday, October 31, Msgr. William Cleves, pastor of Holy Spirit Parish in Bellevue, Kentucky, presented a day of reflection entitled  The Quality of Mercy at our monastery. Throughout the upcoming Jubilee Year of Mercy the approximately 120 attendees and I will be processing and mining the many ideas and insights Fr. Cleves shared with us.

    Fr. Cleves talked about the many words for mercy in the Judeo-Christian tradition including the Hebrew words hesed and rahamin used in the Old the Testament and the Latin word misericordia. Misericordia is the word that resonated with me and it is the official word used by Pope Francis in decreeing the Jubilee Year of Mercy.

During the past months I have been moved—often to tears—by news items in the newspapers and on the Internet about violence and cruelty done to innocent babies, children, and animals. I’m beginning to find myself not wanting to see any news feed or hear any news broadcast. I read a book last week written by an emergency room doctor at the Bellevue Hospital Center in Manhattan, New York. She spoke of finding herself “emotionally incontinent” in response to the many circumstances she encountered in the ER there. What she meant by the phrase is the almost involuntary spasm of emotion that wrenches the gut and leads to tears that cannot be contained, I thought what a wonderful phrase it was for the times when we cannot help but weep for the world.

And that brings me back to the word misericordia, coming from miser and cor or cordis, which mean a misery or suffering in the heart, a wrenching of the heart. Fr. Cleves told us that in earlier times cordis did not so much refer to the heart but to the core of a person, the viscera or the gut. So misericordia can also mean a wrenching of the gut.

If that is what happens when we are moved by events, stories and the plight of those we love, is it not what happens to God when God is moved by our circumstances? Fr. Cleves talked about the ever present mercy (misercordia) of God throughout salvation history. When Pope Francis established the Year of Mery, he said, “… mercy is a key word that indicates God’s action towards us, not limiting it to merely  affirming his love, but making it visible and tangible. …Love, after all, can never be just an abstraction. By its very nature, it is something concrete: intentions, attitudes, and behaviors that are shown in daily living. The mercy of God is loving concern for each one of us, desire for our well being, for our happiness, full of joy, and peaceful.”

Pope Francis concludes “In this Holy Year, we look forward to the experience of opening our hearts to those living on the outermost fringes of society. … How many uncertain and painful situations there are in the world today! … Let us open our eyes and see the misery of the world, the wounds of our brothers and sisters who are denied their dignity, and let us recognize that we are compelled to heed their cry for help! May we reach out to them and support them so they can feel the warmth of our presence, our friendship, and our fraternity! May their cry become our own. “

           During the coming Year of Mercy, may we experience the misericordia of God for us and be one with God in our misericordia for others. Sr. Deborah Harmeling, OSB

Be merciful O Lord, for we have sinned.

     This psalm antiphon (in the title above) for Ash Wednesday Mass says so much to me as the psalmist speaks so well to God on my behalf.

     My relationship with God has grown over the years and yet the posture of asking for mercy is most basic for me and I pour all of my trust in God’s loving providence for me in this petition. I have sinned. I take responsibility for failing to respond appropriately and adequately to God’s love, and instead so often chose my own desire for prestige, power, possessions (cf Jesus’ temptations). And taking this responsibility implies the willingness to make needed changes with God’s help.

     Can I chalk it up to maturity that I do not need to think of myself as perfect, that I no longer need others to think I am perfect? Perhaps it’s the natural maturity of aging. But probably even spiritual growth just takes time. At any rate, it’s easier for me now than it was when I was younger, to admit my faults and failings to myself, to God and to others.

     Another dimension of Lenten practice is that we participate in this penitential season together – “we have sinned”. There is something strengthening, even comforting about the mutual support and mutual desire for healing among others who are “in the same boat”. (Read here: “The Bark of Peter”.)

     As I continue my Lenten prayer, Be merciful O Lord, for we have sinned, I will keep you in mind.

        Sr. Dorothy Schuette, OSB