Monthly Archives: May 2013

News, Vocations, Women's Communities

The Call in the Desert

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Sr. Jennifer Kane (right)

If you were to ask someone to name the largest order of religious women in the world, my guess would be that the Salesians would not be at the top of many people’s lists. Yet the Salesian Sisters of St. John Bosco, who number 15,000 sisters, are indeed the largest congregation of women in the world.

Founded by St. John Bosco and St. Mary Domenica Mazzarello, their official name is Daughters of Mary Help of Christians or in Latin Filiae Mariae Auxiliatrice, hence the initials after their name: F.M.A. As Don Bosco said, “Times are so bad that we need Our Lady to help us to be faithful and defend our faith.” How true is that!

One women had a very circuitous path on her way to the Salesians. In a story from the Catholic News Service, Sr. Jennifer Kane recounts her journey from the Air Force to religious life. While working in the Air Force in Montana, she attended a Cursillo that greatly deepened her faith. After leaving active service, attaining the rank of captain, she joined the Air National Guard and was deployed four times: to Iraq (three times) and Saudi Arabia. Living in the desert, Jennifer devoted a lot of time to reading the Bible and realized: “The call from God was definitely there. I guess I was in denial a long time. (I would say to God), ‘I worked on nuclear weapons, I was a bomb loader, you can’t be talking to me.”’

Jennifer entered the Salesians in 2009. In their houses, she says, you experience a sense of joy and family spirit. This truly is in the spirit of Don Bosco whose mission was to educate young people, especially the poor, and to do it with a spirit of love.

After her first profession of vows in August, Jennifer is looking forward to her involvement with the Salesian schools, retreat centers and campus ministries. “There’s always been the hand of God in all of this,” she said. “God knows every move you make. He’s got this all planned, if you’re willing to accept his will and plan for you. Ultimately God gets you to the final destination.”

News, Reflection

God is a Gentleman

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 “God is a gentleman. He will not shout us down.”   Fr. Herbert Schneider, OFM

Then the LORD said, “Go outside and stand on the mountain before the LORD; the LORD will be passing by.”  A strong and heavy wind was  rending the mountains and crushing rocks before the LORD–but the LORD was not in the wind. After the wind there was an earthquake–but the LORD was not in the earthquake. After the earthquake there was fire–but the LORD was not in the fire. After the fire there was a tiny whispering sound.  When he heard this, Elijah hid his face in his cloak and went and stood at the entrance of the cave.

1 Kings 19:11-13

News, Saints, Women's Communities

Cause for Parish Visitors’ Foundress Moves Forward

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The cause for the canonization of Mother Mary Teresa Tallon, foundress of the Parish Visitors of Mary Immaculate, has moved another important step forward. On February 20, 2013, the Archdiocese of New York received the Nihil Obstat from the Congregation for the Causes of Saints indicating that the Archdiocese is free to pursue her beatification and canonization.

On April 16, 2013, the cause for beatification and canonization officially opened in the archdiocese for Mother Mary Teresa. She is now recognized as a Servant of God.

“The diocesan tribunal officials who would be working on the cause officially took their oath before the cardinal,” said Sister Maria Catherine Iannotti, P.V.M.I., vice-postulator, who also took the oath April 16.

Those on the tribunal will now interview witnesses who knew Mother Mary Teresa. There are two sisters still alive who knew Mother Mary Teresa who died in 1954. They have already given written testimony.

In signing the edict related to the cause, Cardinal Timothy Dolan invites all the faithful to submit any writings or helpful information, favorable or unfavorable, about the Servant of God to the Tribunal of the Archdiocese. All the information collected will give a true picture of the life of Mother Foundress and hopefully pave the way to her elevation amongst the saints.

The Parish Visitors are neighborhood missionaries, imitating Christ’s own way of life through the vows of chastity, poverty and obedience, bringing the message and love of the Good Shepherd to all and seeking those Catholics most spiritually deprived and distant from the Church.

Mother Carole Marie Troskowski, P.V.M.I., superior general of the Parish Visitors, credited “Divine Providence” with introducing the cause of Mother Mary Teresa “in a time of the new evangelization, which is put before the whole Church as of greatest importance.”

For more information, visit the Parish Visitors website or see the article in the Catholic New York.

News, Papal Address

Pope Francis: Be Mothers, not “Spinsters”!

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Pope Francis continues to puncture the vast blog-o-sphere with his direct, challenging and fresh way of expressing Church truths. In an address earlier today to the plenary assembly of the International Union of Superiors General (UISG), the Holy Father spoke to the sisters about obedience, poverty, and chastity. His reflections are not just for religious but for all people.

Poverty: “Is also expressed in a soberness and joy of the essential, to put us on guard against the material idols that obscure the true meaning of life. …. Theoretical poverty doesn’t do anything. Poverty is learned by touching the flesh of the poor Christ in the humble, the poor, the sick, and in children.”

Chastity: “Please, [make it] a ‘fertile’ chastity, which generates spiritual children in the Church. The consecrated are mothers: they must be mothers and not ‘spinsters’! Forgive me if I talk like this but this maternity of consecrated life, this fruitfulness is important! May this joy of spiritual fruitfulness animate your existence. Be mothers, like the images of the Mother Mary and the Mother Church. You cannot understand Mary without her motherhood; you cannot understand the Church without her motherhood, and you are icons of Mary and of the Church.”

Obedience: “It isn’t possible that a consecrated woman or man might ‘feel’ themselves not to be with the Church. A ‘feeling’ with the Church that has generated us in Baptism; a ‘feeling’ with the Church that finds its filial expression in fidelity to the Magisterium, in communion with the Bishops and the Successor of Peter, the Bishop of Rome, a visible sign of that unity….It is an absurd dichotomy to think of living with Jesus but without the Church, of following Jesus outside of the Church, of loving Jesus without loving the Church.”

This is a call to all Christian people—to physically be with the poor, to actively evangelize and beget spiritual children, to be united in all things with the Rock of Peter.

News, Women's Communities

Singing Praise to the Angels and Saints

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Tomorrow, May 7th, is the day that the Benedictines of Mary, Queen of Apostles, will have their second CD of sacred hymns released to the general public. Titled Angels and Saints at Ephesus, this CD follows on the heels of their chart-topping first album, Advent at Ephesus, which was #1 on Billboard’s Classical Music Chart for 6 weeks!

“The Benedictines of Mary have again created a beautiful recording to connect us to the oldest traditions of European monastic chant and hymns,” said Costa Pilavachi, Senior Vice-President, Classical A+R Universal Music Group International.

The second album features 17 English and Latin hymns sung a cappella honoring feasts of the holy saints and angels. Songs include:  Ave Regina Cælorum, Let All Mortal Flesh Keep Silence, Virgin Wholly Marvellous, Lorica of St. Patrick. The sisters hope that this music will draw more people closer to the Lord through these most powerful intercessors, the angels and the saints.

The Benedictines of Mary are a young community that is growing. Following the Rule of St. Benedict, they are privileged to daily partake in the Extraordinary Form of the Mass (1962) as well as the 1962 Monastic Office, with its traditional Gregorian Chant, in Latin, continuing the rich legacy of their predecessors.

As it says on their website: We have been richly blessed by God thus far with vocations, zealous young women imbued with the call to offer their lives to Jesus, through Mary, on behalf of all priests. Please pray that God Who has begun His work in us may bring it to fulfillment.

Ordering directly from the nuns allows more of the proceeds to go directly to them which helps to alleviate their debt and realize more of their new projects. Click here for more information on how to order.

Prison Ministry

Monks in Blue

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We at the IRL are thinking about getting more deeply involved in the prison ministry field. We get many letters from prisoners, mostly men, asking for donations of prayer cards, books and bibles. Some however are asking to do more for the Church. One group of men describes themselves as “monks in blue.” They live a monastic life in the confines of their cell and seek personal holiness while trying to be evangelists to others. Our main correspondent will be receiving a degree in theology this year through a correspondents course.

We got another letter today from a regular writer who relayed to us a beautiful story. He is a very active evangelist in prison with the heart of a lion. Their prison chaplain retired, so they have volunteers who come to distribute communion. Here is a story from last week:

Today there was a mixup and two groups were scheduled to be in the chapel at the same time; ours and the Buddhists. The Buddhists got there first. But, instead of going home, the volunteers asked if we could have it outside. We did and it was awesome. It is a powerful thing to have a Communion service right in the prison yard with the prison staff going on all around us and the devil couldn’t do a thing to stop us. This is my monastery and my mission field. God, is that cool!

These men ask us what they can help us do with their prayers. We sometimes give them the names of faithful communities who are struggling with vocations. These are very sacrificial men, seeking to be men of God in trying circumstances. How beautiful is their ministry.