All posts by Anne Tschanz

Men's communities

Following the Basepaths to a Vocation

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In the news over the past year has been the story of a star baseball player who turned in his glove for the life a Nobertine monk. A long story in Yahoo! Sports tells the story of Grant Desme who was a second round draft pick signed by the Oakland Athletics for $430,000 but said, “I had everything I wanted, and it wasn’t enough.” Wrist and shoulder injuries sidelined him for long lengths of time (Sounds like the story of St. Ignatius of Loyola!) and he got frustrated. He talked to priests and started to wonder what life was all about. When his injuries healed, he became one of the only minor leaguers in history to reach the 30-homer, 40-steal mark in the same season.

But the empty feeling persisted and he realized that he got more enjoyment out of talking about God in the dugout than in the home run he might have hit the inning before. As the article said, “The first phone call went to Billy Beane. It was less than a month before Grant Desme needed to report to spring training, and he was about to call one of the most powerful men in the game to which he dedicated his life – the person Brad Pitt would portray in the “Moneyball” movie – and tell him he was quitting to spend the next decade becoming a priest. ”

His new name in religious life is Matthew because, as his Abbot said, Matthew the tax collector was rich “and I was a rich baseball player.”

May God bless Frater Matthew and his community.

The Norbertines of St. Michael’s were founded by a group of Norbertines from Hungary who escaped Communist persecution in 1950. They worked for almost a decade before saving up enough money to buy the 34-acre parcel of land in a then-uninhabited section of Orange County, California. One monk remains from that group, Father Gerlac Andrew Horvath, 91. The Norbertines have 52 priests and 24 seminarians, a Catholic high school and two albums of Gregorian chant.

May God bless Frater Matthew and his community.

The Norbertines are an IRL Affiliate Community. There is the men’s community and two women’s communities (active and contemplative).

General interest

We Are Not Alone

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We have been surrounded by feast days of the angels lately and as today is the Feast of the Holy Guardian Angels, I thought I would link to an article on the Ignatius Press blog written by Peter Kreeft. He lists the 12 top things you should know about angels.

“Do not neglect hospitality, for some have entertained angels unawares” (Heb 13:2).

By the way, Peter Kreeft will be speaking at an IRL event called A “Day of Faith” for the Year of Faith to be held on October 13 at Marytown, Libertyville, IL. The title of his talk is: “Defending the Faith: Catholicism is Reasonable.”

News

Nuns News Post

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An anchoress by the name of Elizabeth Scalia compiles an annual “Nuns News Post.” In it she summarizes all the good news coming from many, many, many men’s and women’s communities across our nation. Reading the litany of vocations, professions, aspirants,etc., one can truly see the Holy Spirit at work across our country and Church.

Women's Communities

With Zeal for the Lord of Hosts

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In 1925, the Bishop of the Diocese of Monterey-Fresno happened to be in Rome for the canonization of St. Therese of Lisieux and was so moved that he asked Pope Pius XI for permission to found a Carmel in Carmel, California. Five months later on the Feast of the Archangel Raphael, 5 nuns established their home in the diocese. There are currently 9 members in the community.

The first Carmelite foundation in this country was established at Port Tobacco in Maryland in 1790, and the Carmelite Monastery in Carmel traces its origin back to this monastery. But what is interesting is that the name “Carmel” was given to the area much earlier, in 1602, by Carmelites who were chaplains aboard the Don Sebastian Vizcaino expedition. They were struck by the similarity between that area of the coastline of California to that of the coastline of Mount Carmel in the Holy Land. And so, as the Patroness of the journey was Our Lady of Mount Carmel it was only fitting, and all agreed, that the area should be called Carmel.

The Carmelite motto is: “With zeal have I been zealous for the Lord God of Hosts.” May the Carmelites around the world be renewed with zeal for the Lord of Hosts on this feast day of the Little Flower.

News, Resources

Novena to the Mother of God for the Nation – September 29 – October 7, 2012

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We fly to your patronage, O Holy Mother of God, despise not our prayers in our necessities, but ever deliver us from all dangers, O glorious and blessed Virgin.

Fr. Frederick Miller of Mount St. Mary’s Seminary in Emmitsburg, Maryland, has composed a novena to make us more aware of the truths of our Faith and to call us to deeper conversion of heart and a life of greater charity. EWTN Global Catholic Network has organized the novena to  pray for the country ahead of the November elections.

Catholics have always turned to Mary when in need so we entrust our cares to her as we pray for religious freedom in our country. Since 1792 our country has been entrusted to Mary and in 1846 we recognized her as our patroness under the title of The Immaculate Conception.

The novena begins on September 29 and ends on October 7, the Feast of the Holy Rosary. Each day delves into a different aspect of Mary’s life:

Day 1: The Immaculate Conception of the Mother of God
Day 2: Mary’s Desire for Virginity
Day 3: The Annunciation
Day 4: The Visitation
Day 5: The Divine Motherhood of Mary
Day 6: The Wedding Feast of Cana
Day 7: Mary at Calvary
Day 8: Mary and the Mystery of Easter
Day 9: The Assumption of Mary into Heaven

Father says that the proximity of the Novena to the 2012 Presidential Election will offer an opportunity to pray for all of our government officials and seek Divine Assistance in the elections. Join EWTN for Mass every morning at 8 am ET starting September 29 and continuing through October 7. Bishops from across the country will lead the Novena to the Mother of God for the Nation. The novena can also be found in the September 23rd edition of the National Catholic Register. O Mary, our Mother, pray for our country!

Cloistered life, News, Women's Communities

Carmel of the Holy Family and Saint Therese

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The IRL welcomes the Carmel of the Holy Family and Saint Therese of Georgetown, California, as a new Affiliate Community. There are 12 sisters in the Carmel with one in temporary vows and 2 novices. They joined the Diocese of Sacramento in 1935.

They live the traditional Carmelite life of prayer and penance seeking union with Christ in order to participate in His salvific mission

A second Carmel is also part of the IRL family as a our last Board Meeting: the Carmel of the Assumption in Latrobe, Pennsylvania. They were established in  1961 and have 13 solemnly professed nuns. The land for the monastery was purchased because of its proximity to the Benedictine Archabbey of St. Vincent. The monks have served as chaplains, confessors and spiritual directors to the community from the very beginning.

The Carmel of the Assumption is self-supporting.  The community supplies altar breads to the parishes of the diocese, and supplement their income by rosary making, icon plaques and bee keeping.

Cloistered life, Women's Communities

A Carmel in the Desert

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I once went out of my way to go to Mount Carmel, Utah, thinking that a Carmelite Monastery might be nearby, only to discover that it hosted a three way stop sign and a motel. That was about it. It was beautiful country though.

As it turns out, there is a Carmel in Utah that happens to be in Salt Lake City. This IRL Affiliate Community recently hosted a Fair which provides them with their main source of income for the year. The sisters also make altar breads, carmels, peanut brittle, fudge, toffee, note cards and Carmelite dolls. There are 11 nuns living at the Carmelite Monastery of the Immaculate Heart of Mary which was founded in 1952 as a foundation from the monastery in Alhambra, California. The purpose was to establish a Catholic presence in a state where Catholics were a distinct minority.

The reason for the Carmelite life, its prayer and austerity, its silence and enclosure, is to allow the Carmelite Sister to devote her entire energy to the worship, the contemplation, and love of God.  A Carmelite Sister is dedicated to pray for the needs of the Church, the Pope, Bishop, Priests, religious, laity, and especially for the diocese in which the Carmel is located. She prays for the return of lapsed Catholics to the spirit and practice of the Faith, for the conversion and salvation of all peoples, and recommends to God their needs in all circumstances of life.

 

God gives Himself wholly to the soul

which gives itself wholly to Him.

(St. Teresa of Jesus)

Women's Communities

Celebrating 150 Years

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On August 8, 2012, the Feast of St. Dominic, the Dominican Sisters of the Immaculate Conception concluded a year-long celebration in honor of the 150th anniversary of their founding.Earlier in the year they also celebrated the first professions of Sr. Maria Rosaria Freeland and Sr. Maria Vianney Kysely who exchanged their white veils for the black.

The community was founded in 1861 in Poland by Róża Białecka (Mother Maria Rose Kolumba) to combat illiteracy and poverty. Besides seeing to their spiritual needs, Mother provided sacramental assistance so that all the people could live and die reconciled to God.  The first Sisters came to the U.S. over eighty years ago, and for over seventy-five years they have served the elderly in Justice, IL. The Sisters also teach in St. Fabian Polish School in Burbank, IL and in the parish of St. Walter, in Blue Island, IL. The retreat house run by the Sisters opens its doors to many groups that come for one-day, weekend, or week-long retreats and formation meetings.

Outside of Illinois, the sisters have homes in Wisconsin, Arkansas, Canada, Europe and the countries of the old Soviet Union.

To read more about the foundress, please visit their website where Mother Kolumba is featured in an ongoing blog. You can also watch a short video in which singer and songwriter Sarah Bauer visits the sisters to find out about their life and to spend a day living their life.

Cloistered life, News, Women's Communities

Help Wanted: Long Hours, Hard Work, No Pay

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The Poor Clare Monastery of Our Lady of Guadalupe in Roswell, NM, put out a funny vocations brochure in 2009 which just came to my attention. Here are some tidbits from their brochure:

Hard Labor: If you have ever secretly supposed that the contemplative life to be a leisurely round of devotional exercises, punctuated by strolls in the garden and a spot of embroidery now and again, FEAR NO  MORE!….Here you will be given ample scope and freedom to pursue an ambitious career as a fully-certified, full-time lowly servant of God.

Long Hours: Imagine the joy! Each night you will leap from your sleep at the enchanting hour of 12:30 a.m.!!

No Pay: Yes, say goodbye to that jingle in your pocket for there are no salaried positions to be had in the monastery, no payroll, no wallets, not even a piggy bank.

For as there can be never be labors too hard, nor hours too long in the service and praise of God and in the life and death struggle for souls, it follow that…

THERE CAN NEVER BE TOO MANY POOR CLARES!

The Roswell Poor Clares were established in 1948  as a foundation from Chicago. Since then they have established 6 daughter-monasteries over the years including one in the Netherlands and one back in Chicago. There are currently 23 in the community.

 

Women's Communities

A Moo-ving New Vocation for the Benedictines of Mary

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The Benedictines of Mary, Queen of Apostles, continue to welcome new members into their community, though one is of the four-legged variety! Sweetpea was born in June to Ephy, the Sisters’ dairy cow, who gives them up to 8 gallons of milk a day!

The sisters also rejoiced on September, 15, 2012, when three postulants received the habit: Sr. Gina, Sr. JoAnna and Sr. Margaret Mary. That same day they welcomed Regina Shannon as a new candidate.

Aspirants are welcome to visit, usually staying for a week at a time. As the sisters say, “We surely don’t mind bumping elbows at the refectory in order to help them discern their own vocations.” They also welcome priests and seminarians who want a quiet place for a retreat.

Please pray that God who has begun His work in them may bring it to fulfillment!