REJOICING IN THE LORD

In the Roman Catholic calendar, the fourth Sunday of Lent is celebrated as Laetare Sunday.  "Rejoice" is the word of the day.  It is curious why the idea of rejoicing is celebrated by the Church  halfway through our observance of Lent.  At morning Mass today, Fr. Jim wore the famous (or infamous) rose-colored vestment which I personally find to be beautiful and cheerful. Not many would agree as I smile writing this comment.  But maybe the idea of a bright color breaking the dreary color purple mostly worn during this penitential season forces us to think differently. Maybe there is something here.  The Gospel reading of the age-old story of the Prodigal Son adds a seriousness to the message.  Mercy...Forgiveness...Rejoice.  Maybe that is the message of why we are exhorted to rejoice!

A heart that rejoices does not mean not experiencing sadness.  Or not feeling discouraged.  Or not feeling abandoned.  These are all part and parcel of the human condition.  To rejoice means to live in constant hope that despite all that we endure in this side of heaven will end -yes, even our troubles.  If joy is temporary, so is sadness.  "All things pass" says Saint Teresa of Avila. To rejoice means to know the love of God and to experience that love in the everyday and in the ordinary events of life.  To rejoice means that I am a sinner and precisely because I am a sinner that I have a claim in this love of the Father.  To rejoice means to understand that I have been given this divine life at Baptism, and to live this life, I have been given all the graces I need through the gifts of the Holy Spirit to bring this life to fruition.  To rejoice means to remember that Jesus promised me a mansion in heaven, and that He will return to bring me back with Him, to inherit the kingdom He has won for us.  To rejoice means to not allow the trials of this human life to oppress me into submission, and discouragement and despair, holding on in faith that these must happen because of my own bad choices, or sins, or simply because I am a limited being living in a limited world.  To rejoice means to live in the supernatural, by an act of the will, instead of being moved by fleeting feelings and emotions.  To rejoice means to be thankful for my life even though its circumstances may not be ideal or pleasant.  It also means to look intently at the blessings God has given us of friends, loved ones, health, and so many more.

Our definition of joy and happiness may differ.  God has his own definition and it is shown in the life of His Son Our Lord Jesus Christ and to find and understand that life, we must study it.

 Saint Teresa has a very famous bookmark:

"Let nothing disturb you,
Nothing frighten you.
All things are passing.
God never changes.
Patience obtains all things.
Nothing is wanting to him who possesses God.
God alone suffices."

Happy Sunday!

Love Makes The Difference

"I understood that if the Church had a body composed of different members, the most necessary and most noble of all could not be lacking to it, and so I understood that the Church had a Heart and that this Heart was burning with love. I understood it was love alone that made the Church's members act... I understood that love comprised all vocations, that love was everything, that it embraced all times and all places, in a word, that it was eternal! My vocation is love!"- St. Therese

Oh love, the most abused and misused word of all!

I love chocolate with nuts.. I love suspense movies... I love the ocean.. I love history.. I love silence and solitude... I love certain people... I love gardening, I love nature... I love pink and so on and so forth. Get the idea?

But this is not real love.

According to St. Paul this is True Love:
"Love is patient, love is kind, love does not envy, is not pretentious, is not puffed up, is not ambitious, is not self-seeking, is not provoked; thinks no evil, does not rejoice over wickedness but rejoices with the truth. It bears with all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. " (1Cor 13:4-7). This is a beautiful point of meditation for today.

This was me when I was a Novice (white veil).  Well, not really.. But it sure brings me back to the times when responsibilities were lesser and all I had to worry about was to learn- learn how to pray, talk, walk and eat like a nun, and getting to chapel on time.  Of course, I'm being funny because I learned more than these... or did I?

Daily "Yes"

This is a favorite statuette I keep in my room at home. I bought it from a gift shop over 10 years ago.

When the Angel Gabriel visited Mary at the Annunciation, he proclaimed the most amazing news of God coming to earth in the form of a baby, and Mary was the mother of choice. Faithful as she was, Mary had a hard time absorbing this and asked, "how can this be?" Once explained by the archangel that the Spirit will bring this about and all that was needed was her consent, Mary unhesitatingly said, "let it be done to me as you have said." And the mystery of the Incarnation took place. And that was that.

Wrong.

That was just the beginning. The "yes' that Mary uttered that day was repeated many more times throughout her lifetime: on her journey to Bethlehem, her giving birth in a cave, her flight into Egypt, at Calvary, etc.

It is the same with us. God comes to us at every moment of our life and continually asks us, "will you do this for me now?" And over and over, we try to surrender our will and say daily, "Yes, Lord, let your will be done as you please." It is our daily "annunciation."

Love at First Sight!

I picked up one of our Sisters who went home to visit her sister in Marlton, NJ for a week.  I opened their door and this beautiful dog came running to me! He was so cute and really friendly.  He didn't stop jumping and when I sat on the sofa he jumped up and cuddled  on my lap! Now who would not fall for a dog like that?  His name is Jack and I believe he might be a Maltese terrier.  I wished we could have taken him home with us for a short while.  When I was in high school I got a dog I named Snoopy after the famous Charlie Brown character.  He was a lovable dog.  He died by the time I went to college.  I wish I had a dog but I would not want it in the convent.  Maybe someone in NJ would give it to me as a gift.. (sigh)!

It's Been a While

It was pretty ambitious of me to try to maintain 4 blogs! I thought I could pull it off but then I noticed that this site has not seen the light of day since October.  I am inclined to write more on my Mount Carmel blog than on this one.  But nevertheless, here I am again.  The Northeast is still recovering from the major snow storms which descended upon us.  I have never done so many long distance driving since this winter.  The other day I attended a funeral service in Allentown, PA and it was a terrible trip.  The early commute was just the time when the snow started falling and the night before,  I was debating with myself whether to go ahead with my plan or not.  But guilt prevailed over common sense and so there I was along the many cars crawling along West 46, West 78 and US 22 to Allentown, PA.  My wipers had no sympathy for me and it was a strain to see where I was going.  Incidentally the night before my brother asked me if I had good windshield wipers for the trip and I readily said, "Oh yeah, they're good!"  I spoke too soon.  But the weather cleared up in PA by the  afternoon.  I had plans to return to Germantown, NY but the storm was already headed there  creating a lot of problems with snow and very poor visibility according to the forecast.  So I decided to stay in NJ overnight  and providentially  because one of the Sisters called me later on informing me that Germantown was closed off to non-emergency transportation.
I finally made it to the Motherhouse the day after and when I drove up the driveway, this was the scene  I saw..

How beautiful! The brightness of the white snow on trees and grounds was breathtaking. I pulled over on the side and took more photos:

Admiring the beauty around me,  I marveled at  how something unpleasant, terrible and dangerous as a snow storm, could produce something beautiful as this.  It drove home once again one of life's lessons- everything is grace.  That darkness gives way to light.  That good can come out of something bad.  What a beautiful reminder!

 

They say that laughter is the best medicine.  Does it always work? There are times when I just don't feel like putting on a happy face when I feel bad inside.  They told me that I have a very expressive face, meaning that I don't succeed very well in hiding my feelings.  But on the whole, I have a smiley face.  I just don't feel that way tonight.  St. Therese said there is such a thing as "holy hypocrisy."

Just trying to be funny!

I thought of a nice idea to let the Sisters know if I'm in the office or not- put up a sign.  So I thought hard of what sign I could put up, even something funny.  And then it hit me.  I always wanted to go fishing  even though nobody wants to go with me.  I don't want to make it a hobby, just something to experience.  So I googled and came up with this perfect sign on my door:

So, every time I leave the office the Sisters know to come back later! Only problem is I've got no fish to show for it!

Snoopy Says Thanks!

Well, my birthday just didn't come, it came with my facebook friends!  There are different ways of looking at birthdays, either you love them or you hate them.  I propose a third approach- it's both!  Why do I hate it?  Well, for the obvious reason that I'm a year older (hopefully a year wiser too!).  It doesn't make me ancient but just the thought of advancing in years is kind of unsettling.  When I was thirteen, I thought anybody beyond the 30 or 31 days in the calendar, was old.  Well, I sure fit that bill now.  Second reason, I don't like all the fuss and the questions.  Gladly this year there wasn't much fuss even though there were still  lots of questions.  But there are plenty more reasons why I like it.  First, I got to request for a special meal. This year (as from previous ones) I asked for shrimp scampi and pasta. Boy, it was so good! Of course I had my cake and ate it too! We had our usual morning Mass and Father was kind enough to offer the Mass for me.  I got two Masses today since my brother-Priest also offered his Mass for me in a Marian Shrine in Switzerland where he is vactioning with Dad.   Then I got a lot of greetings from my facebook friends.  Imagine getting all this from strangers.  I think facebook is great!  I also love the fact that I was born on the feast of Our Lady.  THAT is my greatest joy.  I feel so lucky.  Then there were the gifts by special people who went out of their way to think of  gifts to give me and then buy and wrap them.  That took some love and attention. Then my sister called and my family's card from CA made it just in time for this day. Overall, I had a nice birthday.  It's a good time to re-examine one's life in the light of graces received from God.  What a great gift life is!  I never want to take it for granted.  God placed us in this world for a reason and He sure wants us to be happy.  Life is too short for petty things.  I pray that the best birthday gift I receive is to recognize what battles to fight.  Birthdays are reminders of what should really count in life.  The best thing about being in a convent on your birthday is that I got to spend all the time I wanted before the Blessed Sacrament in our Chapel in the evening.  So, my friend Snoopy and I would like to say, "Thanks!"

It's one of those days when you think you were busy but really has nothing significant to prove it.  We are gearing up for a mock "Chelsea Wedding Rehearsals" tomorrow!  Trust some people to come up with something funny.  Since the town of Rhinebeck has been the center of the press coverage recently, we are going to join the fun in our own way.  More soon!

O Sister!

One of our Sisters found some humor in the readings for Mass today.  Because of the memorial of Blessed John Soreth, the first reading was taken from the Book of the prophet Ezekiel.  It was the passage on God shepherding Israel (Ezekiel 34:11-20).  There is a phrase which mentions God's care for all His sheep: ".. I will take care of the fat and the healthy"   Sister turned to me and said with an impish glint in her eye: "God is with us, don't you see?  He says he'll take care of the fat and the healthy! He means ME!"   I could not help  but laugh! Oh well, at least she has that good sense of humor.

You Gotta Love Them!

These creatures roam our Convent grounds and we see them often enough.  We have gotten used to them and sometimes don't give them any mind.  But seeing these photos taken by one of our Sisters, you just gotta love them!!

Write Your Caption!!

I can make a good story out of this.  Can you?

Sunday is My Day

Our convent here at the Motherhouse is usually quiet, but on weekends, it is exceptionally quiet.  So it is this Sunday.  It was nice looking out the river today after that exciting flashes of lightning after midnight and the heavy rainfall overnight.  It was so tranquil and not a ripple that I can see on the surface of the river.  The air was much cooler too.  Once a month, we have Exposition and adoration of the Blessed Sacrament for religious vocation to our Congregation.  After our 9:30 am Mass today, we did just that.  I just came out of my 2 - 3 pm "watch" where I kept Our Lord company.  I wasn't much of a company since I was falling asleep!  Oh well, God bestows His blessings even when we slumber!  God is so good!  I am so blessed to be living in the same house with Him.  "One day within your court is better than a thousand elsewhere!"

Getting Ready

It always get me excited as the Solemnity of Our Lady of Mount Carmel approaches on July 16th.  I consider this day to be my special anniversary.  This afternoon the Sisters gathered in Chapel to practice for the chanted Vespers we are going to have tomorrow evening.  How we look forward to this feast of our Order's Patroness.  I hope to remember my friends on that special day and those who are close to me.  May our Lady obtain for us her maternal intercession and grant us the deepest desires of our hearts!

The heat wave that has been with us for the past few days is really oppressive.  I can't imagine the difficulties poor people or homeless people are experiencing out there.  Even though we live in the convent, and even though most of our hallways feel like the tunnels of hell, we can still find places of sanctuaries to cool off and be comfortable, like in our rooms and common places.  I wonder when this heat is going to break?  I know that complaining about it will not help us a bit.  But it's hard not to talk about it when you go out in a habit in a 105 degree heat!  Let the Psalmist's words be fulfilled: "Let the heavens open and pour down rain!"

Caught on the Spot!

Just before leaving Church after the 9:00 am Mass last Tuesday, I was approached by a Religious Ed teacher in my pew.  "Sister, I hate to put you on the spot but I have a group of third graders who want to meet you.  We've been discussing about religious life, and about priests and nuns, and they saw you in your habit!  Can you talk to them for a few minutes and take questions?"  Well, all I can say was, "yes, of course!"  The kids looked at me with curiosity and there were about 20 plus of them.  Some of their parents were present.  I put on my "kids hat" and they began to look at ease.  I spoke to them about the topics their teacher wanted me to talk about: What  is a Sister?  Why do I wear a habit? What do Sisters do?  What is my day like?  As I began to relax, I found that it was pretty exciting!  Then the questions came pouring in!  "Where do you sleep, in bunk beds?"  "No, we sleep in our own room.  We need to be alone so we can pray and read, and do our own work, without being disturbed."  Why do you wear your uniform?" "I wear mine to show people that I belong to Jesus.  If I didn't wear my habit -that's what we call it- you wouldn't have recognized me and I would not be speaking to you right now, right?"  "What kind of sports do you play?"  "Well, the Sisters like to play basketball, Wii, ping-pong."  "What do you like?"  "I like to play Scrabble."  "Do you get to see your family?"  "Yes.  I visit my family in California every year.  I also visit my other family here in New Jersey.  Once a week I get a day-off."  "What happens if you decide not to go back to where you live when you're here?"  "Hmmm.. I think that will be a big problem, wouldn't it?"
The children seem to be enjoying putting me on the spot until the teacher had to intervene and said, "Okay, one more question.  We'll let Sister have her day-off!"
I never thought I would enjoy it!  It sure was fun.  The teacher seemed to be content with how things  went and suggested I should be a teacher!  The lesson of the story is:  You just don't know what God will ask of you from one moment to the next!

Bethlehem Retreat

I was blessed enough to be given permission to spend my retreat this year away from the Motherhouse.  I consider it a great grace.  I decided to spend a week in a place called Bethlehem Hermitage in Chester, NJ.  It's a perfect place for what I was looking for even though my original choice was the Hermits of Carmel hermitage right next to Bethlehem.  The Carmelites do not offer retreats since they have no available hermitages.  Preached and Directed retreats are fine but they can get me distracted.

God is in the solitude and He speaks in silence and in silence He must be heard.  St. Teresa used to say that prayer is being with a friend, and in this particular case, a Friend who loves us so as to desire to lead us into the desert as the prophet Hosea says: "I will allure her into the desert and speak to her heart."  In a nutshell that was my experience.  But along with the holy, I also experienced the silly.  Without ruining the spiritual nature of the retreat, I will share with you some laughable moments which I should be ashamed to recount but I will nonetheless!
What can I tell you about my seven days in the desert?  All the time it made me think and reflect of the early hermits on Mount Carmel in Palestine over 800 years ago.  For this was exactly the type of life they led.  The early Carmelites were eremitical; they spent most of their time in prayer and meditation in their caves and met only for the Sacrifice of the Mass.  My experience gave me a renewed love of our Holy Order of Carmel.
Since God did not call me to a life of absolute withdrawal from the world and silence but to a life of ministry to our beloved elderly, I am at least grateful that He had shown me a "wadi" where I could refresh myself like our Holy Father St. Elijah in Mount Horeb. (1 Kings 19:1-7).  Before I proceed with the delights of silence and solitude, let me share with you the silly reactions I had which you might find amusing.  On my first three days in my hermitage, my imagination was on full gear.  The hermitage, situated in the middle of the woods, made me feel like a frontier woman.  I looked out the forest trees and I imagined savage Mohawks peeking out of the bushes!  I also imagined having a starving bear at my doorstep at night while I was asleep.  Or find the sorts of creatures you'd find in the forest like snakes, salamanders, spiders, etc possibly finding entrance into my little cottage in the dark of night.  Or worse yet, could it happen that an escaped prisoner might just have been hiding in this particular Chester forest and would notice my light in the dark of night?  Aside from earnest prayers rising up to heaven, I also took refuge in the Tylenol-PM tablets to lull me to sleep so I could be oblivious to what was happening around me!  When I read the passage in the Gospel of St. Mark about Jesus in the desert with the wild beasts, I thought of the creatures of my imagination as my wild beasts!  But I'm happy to report that after the third night I slept like a babe with no worry about anything.  I was then able to open myself more to the still small voice within and around me.
The Scriptures were my constant companion.  Retreatants were not allowed to bring any other book even spiritual ones.  I read mostly the commentaries on the Book of Kings from Jerusalem Bible and it became my spiritual meat.  The readings reminded me that of the many Kings Israel had, only three really found favor in God's eyes: David, Hezekiah and Josiah.  It reminded me that even if there are only two people who love God and obey His commandments, these two can make a difference.  It's a lesson to our day.  The Parallel Gospels were also another source of spiritual insights.  The time alone with my Spouse in the quiet was precious as He reminded me once again the meaning of my consecration to Him.  The liturgy as celebrated by the hermits was another pearl.  The slow rhythm of reciting the Office, the 20 minutes contemplative prayer after Holy Communion (to replace the homily) and the daily Hourly Eucharistic Adoration, were all means of finding God again.  It's funny I just said that.  Solitude retreat is really not about us finding God, but God finding us!  In the busy schedule of our lives we somehow "get lost."  St. John of the Cross said: "If a soul is looking for God, the more God is looking for the soul."  There is so much more to shar but this will suffice for now.  The secrets of the King is better enjoyed in the silence of one's heart.
Enjoy some of the photos!

   

(article also posted on "Mount Carmel" blog)