All posts by Anne Tschanz

Reflection

Five Ways to a Closer Relationship with Christ by Br. Daniel Sokol, OSB

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Five Ways to a Closer Relationship with Christ  &
Five Steps to Living Our Faith in Christ
  1. Social

Exemplary, Holy People:  We want to imitate the behavior of people who are doing or have done well, e.g., Apostles, Saints, Good Parents, Mystics, recent Popes, Spiritual Writers, Good Relatives that made a positive impression on us, etc.  We want to imitate them so we can become good like them!  Note that we are not highlighting self-help programs or gurus that do not include God, but real, known, certified and proven life-long Holy People who have earned their measure of Goodness and Respect.  They have earned their status as Noteworthy Persons to imitate, each with his or her own unique set of Virtues.

Ourselves:  We must recognize and acknowledge our God-given Goodness and Dignity, our call to Holiness.  By “owning” the Positive Aspects and Truths of our Faith and the Rewards that follow, we Cooperate towards building up the Kingdom of Heaven, the Mystical Body of Christ.

  1. Rewards

Benefits of Following Christ.  Authentic following of the self-emptying Example of Christ and known Saints makes us feel better about being a Good Citizen, a Good Catholic, a good all-around, Well Adjusted, Highly Motivated, Positive Human Being.  Worthy People are the ones we like to associate with and imitate, thus we know that we are doing right for God. They truly Live the calling to Imitate Christ; they Affirm and Inspire us by their Holy Example.  Living the Christian Virtues brings about its own rewards, such as Freedom, Peace, Harmony and Happiness.

Rewards of Heaven.  The knowledge of Being Happy in Heaven forever and ever and ever makes us want to go there—more and more and more!  Eternal Happiness in God is well worth any price you can name, especially in light of its permanent, eternal nature.  As we become more Christ-Like, we enjoy a Greater Share in His Divinity; We become more “Divinized”.

  1. Marks of Progress

We can log our daily Progress in Honest Journaling, marking of Calendars, charting our Progress.  Remember the Good we have Accomplished by Participation in the Graces that Christ earned for us, and still offers twenty-four hours each and every day and night.   Journals or notes help review the trials we encountered and Progress Achieved.  They recognize and Appreciate the many graces God has Gratuitously Bestowed upon us for our good and our work to Share these gifts with others.  It is good to Savor these Precious Moments and to Offer Thanks.  This is expressing pure Honesty, not false pride.  And remember that Heaven will be filled with Grateful People.

  1. Keep Good, Healthy Control of our Own Environment(s)

We want to maintain Healthy Control of our own environment for the Good of our souls.  Think about how we Want to Change for the better, and devise a Plan.  We can Simplify our home, our heart and our environment.  We work to Maintain clean, Healthy Living conditions both physically, mentally and especially spiritually.  We put good, Achievable Limits on the use of the TV, Internet and cell phones.  Turn them off and Enjoy the Silence.  Bring in Prayer, Contemplation, Reading of Sacred Scripture and Spiritual Writings such as the Fathers of the Church, Lives of the Saints, Documents of the Church, Catechism of the Catholic Church, etc.  Abbot Claude used to say, “Don’t read good books, read only the best.”  We can Capitalize on how to Improve our internal and external environment without becoming a fussy perfectionist.  Enjoy your own yard, take a walk around the block, visit a park for a time of Rest and Refreshment.  Bring your lunch and Enjoy the day as yet Another Gift God has given to us.

  1. Spiritual, Physical, and Healthy Asceticism
    (Self-denial for the sake of the Kingdom)

We can focus on how to make Holy Progress in the proven, ancient and Holy Art of Asceticism.  How?  First of all, we must recognize that no true Spiritual Progress can be made without our own Cooperation, our own Sacrifices, and our own authentic Participation in the life and example of our Savior.  Being of Service to our neighbor is one of the marks of Healthy Asceticism.  Being Fair and Civil to people we don’t like generates Peace and Trustworthiness.

True Sacrifice will often cost us some time, some inconvenience, some effort.  Jesus Christ was constantly dying to Himself in order to Accommodate the teeming masses of people ranging from the merely curiosity seekers, those outraged at His behaviors, the hungry, the weak, the envious, the rule-bound religious authorities, the faint-hearted, those who had nothing else to lose, and the Holy Remnant who had enough faith to follow and Believe in Him who is and was.  Christ endured with Holy Love for our Eternal Salvation inconvenience, suffering, being degraded and death.

So, how are we to map out ways to more Fervently Accomplish the will of Christ in our own daily lives?  What are some Positive Steps we can make to Improve the lot of all mankind?

Five Steps to Living Our Faith in Christ

 Step #1: Ask God to Enhance our own Faith, regardless of how little or how much we already have.

Step #2: Learn how to die to ourselves often, so that we can Accommodate the manifold Graces Offered, and become more Available to our neighbors.  Thank Him for any Progress made.

Step #3: Seek out our own Peace in God by fostering this Peace and Harmony among all people we meet or associate with, often at the cost of our own inconvenience.

Step #4: Be more eager to practice Sufficiency and not excess, to Fast, to Prayerfully Read Scripture, to Contemplate God’s Love for us and His Love for our neighbors.

Step #5: Become more Approachable by being Patient, Kind and Accommodating.  Learn how to give Support and Encouragement to one another.  Always be Grateful for what you receive.

Perseverance in these proven methods will reap multiple Rewards, the most important of which is following after the will and Example of our Lord and Redeemer, Jesus Christ of Nazareth, while working towards Achieving the Kingdom of Heaven, both here and hereafter.  Christian Discipline brings on great and Lasting Benefits for ourselves and for the entire Body of Christ.  For some who are well-versed in the practice of all of the Virtues, their Hope is a Positive, ever-present reality and source of Divine Energy throughout their entire lives.

Brother Daniel Sokol, OSB, is a Benedictine monk at Prince of Peace Abbey in Oceanside, California.

Cloistered life, Women's Communities

A Remedy for a Plague: Sr. Anne Madeleine Rémusat & Devotion to the Sacred Heart

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During the years 1720-1721, an outbreak of the bubonic plague occurred in Marseilles, the largest French city on the Mediterranean Sea.  Sr. Anne Madeleine Rémusat, a Visitation nun and mystic, received a revelation that led to the end of this plague on humanity, sometimes called the Black Death.  Prayer and penance to the Sacred Heart of Jesus on her part and the cooperation of the diocesan Bishop, Henri de Belsunce, resulted in the cessation of this terrible trial.

While in adoration, Christ revealed to Sr. Anne-Madeleine that the plague would lead to the institution of the feast in honor of His Sacred Heart. Just a few days later, He made known to her the conditions. The message was immediately transmitted to Bishop de Belsunce who published an order establishing the Feast of the Sacred Heart in his diocese. On November 1, for the first time in the world, he solemnly consecrated the city and the Diocese to the Sacred Heart of Jesus.

In what historians call the appeasement, sufferers began to recover and the mortality rate fell dramatically. The brief outbreak in 1722 was the last appearance of the bubonic plague in Western Europe. However, a side note about that! The plague ceased for good when the bishop AND civil authorities walked in procession with a banner of the Sacred Heart.

Pray to the Sacred Heart of Jesus during this current worldwide health crisis! Consecrate yourself, your family, your parish, your diocese to Jesus. Dear Sacred Heart of Jesus, we place all our trust in you!

For more information about the Visitation Order, visit their website.

News, Vocations

‘Uplift Your Priest’: A Campaign To Inspire Laity To Support and Encourage the Clergy During COVID-19 Pandemic

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Houston, TX, April 14, 2020 – As the COVID-19 pandemic continues to spread, priests are being called into great heroic action by offering the sacraments to the sick and dying, finding creative ways to serve parishioners, and maintaining empty parishes with limited staff support. In response, Houston-based Vocation Ministry is set to launch the first-ever nationwide “Uplift Your Priest” campaign from April 20 through May 1. The campaign is designed to inspire the laity to support and encourage their priests who are now on the front lines of the COVID-19 pandemic and to let clergy know that their people recognize their current sacrifices. 

“Our priests are in a vulnerable position like never before,” said Rhonda Gruenewald, founder of Vocation Ministry, an international organization whose mission is to equip dioceses and parishes to promote vocations. “They need to know that we are behind them.  They need to be ‘uplifted!’”

The “Uplift Your Priest” campaign will use social media and resources available in both English and Spanish on www.vocationmininstry.com to promote a variety of ways the laity can “uplift” priests over the next two weeks. Ideas include offering a spiritual bouquet, drop off or have lunch/dinner delivered, text/email/write a note of encouragement, challenge three families/individuals to pray a Rosary for their priest (think ice bucket challenge on social media), or deliver protective gear or cleaning supplies to the rectory. 

“The possibilities are endless,” stated Gruenewald. “We hope by offering concrete and practical ideas that we can mobilize Catholics everywhere to uplift their priests and be a source of encouragement during this stressful time.”

Since its founding in 2015, Vocation Ministry has become a driving force for promoting vocations in North America. Through their hands-on Hundredfold Workshops, Vocation Ministry focuses on establishing and sustaining parish-based vocation ministries to create a vocation-friendly environment that inspires adults and children to consider a supernatural call to the priesthood, consecrated life, or to sacramental marriage.

“Uplift Your Priest” begins Monday, April 20 and will continue through Friday, May 1. Vocation Ministry will be circulating ideas and resources through Facebook, Instagram, and through the resource page found on their website: www.vocationministry.com. 

To schedule an interview with Rhonda Gruenewald to discuss how to promote this campaign and “uplift” our priests, contact Carrie Kline at carriek@revolutionizingmissions.com

Cloistered life, Women's Communities

Letter from Cardinal Ouellet to the Poor Clares of Assisi

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Letter from Cardinal Marc Ouellet, Prefect of the Congregation for Bishops, to Mother Clare Agnese Acquadro, Abbess of the Protomonastery of the Poor Clares of Assisi.

Dear Mother Agnes, you phoned me about the coronavirus pandemic. It was the time when Pope Francis asked families in involuntary isolation that their hearts go beyond the home. Cor ad cor loquitur. We helped each other to respond in faith and you begged me to write a few words to your nuns.

I do this willingly out of friendship, but above all in the name of Jesus who one day called you to voluntary isolation out of love. Are you not blessed because you walk with Him to the heart of the pilgrim Church, opening your soul more and more to the secrets of His Heart? It is sometimes thought that you have fled the world to rejoice peacefully in God’s friendship. Current events free us from this partial vision. In fact, at a time when, despite the heroism of men and women working in health care, so many families suffer the illness and death of their loved ones in solitude, without being able to accompany them or give them the final farewell, you, contemplatives of the Crucified One, are at their bedside, you to whom the Spirit enlarges the heart to the most hidden frontiers of suffering humanity.

Dear Mother Agnes, the pandemic which confines us in our house is your hour, the hour of contemplative life which brings humanity and the Church back to God, to the essentials of faith, prayer and communion in the Spirit. You, brides of the immolated Lamb, bow maternally over those dying during the day and those struggling with despair during the night, and invoke on every pain and every death the consolation of Hope which does not disappoint. Your discreet and widespread presence, carried by the Breath of the Risen One and the fragrance of His nuptial Love, is a balm of tenderness and peace on the wounds of all brothers and sisters in humanity.

How is this possible? This question is asked by a generation paralyzed by the globalization of indifference and blinded by the cult of Mammon. Yet, in the great test of today, each conscience is questioned by this planetary arrest which resembles a universal Lent. The fear of uncontrollable contagion, the collapse of financial stock exchanges and social paralysis force us to open ourselves to more essential questions. One day, the Virgin of Nazareth, astonished by the Angel’s Annunciation, asked a question that was vital for the whole of humanity: How will this happen, since I know not man? The divine answer, unheard of, came down from heaven: The Holy Spirit will descend upon you and the power of the Most High will cover you with his shadow. This response inaugurates the last stage of God’s plan, his marriage to his creature in Jesus Christ, He who raises his created bride to the highest peaks of Love.

This dream was that of divine Wisdom at the origins of creation, when the Spirit hovered over the primordial waters, preparing the Garden of Eden for the happiness of the human family. The Lord created me as the beginning of his activity, before all his work, at the origin. When the abysses did not exist, I was generated (Pr 8:22,24). Wisdom was not at all upset by the madness of humanity, she was able to lead it back from its bewilderment with the madness of Jesus’ Love until death on the Cross. For this reason, God exalted him and gave him the name which is above all names, so that in his Name we too might share in the prerogatives of his creative and redeeming love.

Dear nuns and contemplative souls who guard the hope of our threatened land, the Love of the Redeemer who married you, this Love without frontiers and without limits in the freedom of the Spirit, allows you to fly high and far like messenger doves of Peace and Hope. The Love that has been charged with our sorrows and our errors, that was made sin in our favor (2 Cor 5:21) and that has overcome evil, death and Hell with its obedience, this immolated and victorious Love leads you with it in its race towards the most suffering victims of its mystical body.

Saint Teresa Benedicta of the Cross (Edith Stein), destined for the hell of Auschwitz, one day expressed it this way: Do you hear the moans of the wounded on the battlefields? Do you hear the rales of dying people’s agony? Do the moaning, thirst and pain of men move your heart? Do you wish to be near them, to help them, to comfort them and to heal their deepest wounds?

Embrace Christ. If you are united to him with the nuptial bond, his blood will flow in your veins, his blood that heals, redeems, sanctifies and saves. Joined to him you will be present in all places of pain and hope”. (Ave Crux, Spes unica, September 14, 1939).

In the days of that horrible tribulation, Etty Hillesum, another sacrificed Jew, in ecstasy by a joy wholly Christian because of a fascinating intimate discovery, tenderly held her God to help Him, because she felt Him wounded by an unspeakable hatred.

It is true that we are not all chosen souls, the weight of error weighs down our wings of compassion, but is not our contemplative life wrapped up in Mary’s immaculate offering, indissolubly united to the Easter sacrifice of her divine Son? What is the point, then, of mourning heavily for our sins? Let us forget our misery and have eyes only for this infinitely fruitful Covenant of which we bear joyful witness to the world. Because of the voluntary isolation of our souls hidden in the cracks of the rock, are we not the Church-Bride dedicated to the worship of the Bridegroom God, representing the whole of humanity, ardently awaiting his return like the sentinels of dawn?

Dear contemplatives of the Lord’s Passion, you find in this suffering of Love all humanity and all divinity united in one flesh. You are lovingly present to God and in God to all creation which He carries in His sovereign hand. In love, you move the stars, you move the mountains, you irrigate the earth with subterranean and purifying living waters, you turn the hearts of Angels and men towards peace in history, you embellish the Church with flowers and tasty fruits, in short, you cheer the Heart of the Holy Trinity with your resonant praise to the Glory of his Love.

Since you are in the front line of the Church in all the battles of the Spirit, we, priests and laity grappling with the urgent needs of the field hospital, lift our eyes to the light that shines on the Tabor of your cloisters. We stand in the plain supported by your listening to Jesus and your arms raised to heaven. Your life illuminates our life and makes us more alive from this divine Life to be given to the beggars of this world. Be blessed and thanked by Him whose intimacy fills every desire and even more so. Take care of us in your prayer, together with the Successor of Peter who implores you to assist him always and above all in this hour of the pandemic.

Dear Mother Agnes, in this unprecedented time of Lent and hope, I remain united and grateful to you for your call, glad of this deeper communion which rekindles our hope in the Risen Christ. Glory to God, Thanks be to you, Peace on this Earth in the midst of its tribulation!

 

Cloistered life, News, Women's Communities

Passionist Tri-Centennial Jubilee Icon

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This beautiful icon was commissioned by the Passionist Fathers as a part of the celebration of the 300th anniversary of the year their Founder, St. Paul of the Cross, received the charism to found their Congregation.

The figures in the main part of the triptych are Jesus, experiencing His death on the Cross, with the Blessed Virgin Mary on one side and St. Paul of the Cross on the other.  Saint Paul has his hand over his heart, where on the Passionist habit is depicted the beautiful “Passionist Sign” or emblem (pictured above Jesus).   Below the Cross is the devil, about to experience  his final defeat.

Tot he left and right are two angels carrying instruments of the Passion – the spear and the reed of hyssop. The Passionist saints on the left are St.  Gemma Galgani and Bl. Isadore de Loor. On the right are  St. Gabriel Possenti, with the skull, and Bl.  Dominic Barberi, who played such an instrumental role in the conversion of Bl. John Henry Cardinal Newman.

For a detailed description and for more information on the Jubilee celebrations, visit the Passionist nuns’ website (PassionistNuns.org)

I pray to a merciful God to console you in the great trials you are presently experiencing. However, don’t stop placing them all in the Most Holy Wounds of Jesus.  This will ease them for you.  Also place them under the mantle of Mary’s Sorrows. She will bathe and soothe your heart with her tears.  —St. Paul of the Cross

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News

Religious Communities: Lighthouse Keepers in the Storm of COVID-19

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A Reflection by  Mother Olga of the Sacred Heart, servant mother of the Daughters of Mary of Nazareth in the Archdiocese of Boston

During these very difficult times of dealing with the Coronavirus and its effects, people are struggling in so many ways, grief for the loss of loved ones, physical pain for those who are infected by this virus, emotional struggle living in this unknown situation and the fear of what comes next, financial challenges for all those whose businesses and jobs have already been jeopardized in recent weeks, the impact of which might be carried for months and years ahead for so many people.

In the midst of all this, people have mixed spiritual struggles as well. Some are relieved that the Church has been following the government restrictions regarding all the faith gatherings, including Sunday Masses, others are struggling from missing the essential part of their spiritual life, the Holy Eucharist, which is the summit of our Faith. Many are turning to God, the Saints, and spiritual devotions to look for hope, others are looking for an answer, “Where is God in the midst of all this?”

Throughout history, human tragedies have fallen upon humanity; epidemics, wars, recession etc. Across the centuries, the Church has been the source of comfort and aid when people suffer the most. During the Middle Ages, Monasteries and Convents were the key medical centers of Europe and the Church established an early version of a welfare state. During the Influenza pandemic of 1918-1919, Religious Sisters of numerous Religious Orders played an indispensable role in fighting the flu.

Just like the early Religious Communities in America, who are remembered as the pioneers for healthcare and human services in the history of our nation, Religious men and women today in the face of COVID-19 crisis serve as lighthouse keepers in the storm of this epidemic. Lighthouses are meant to be seen as a directive point at the shoreline. Today many people have been writing, calling, reaching out to Religious Men and Women for help, comfort, consolation and spiritual support.

Many Religious Communities have increased their prayer hours, started many novenas, increased other spiritual practices for the intentions of the world that has been shaken by so many lost lives because of this virus.

Just like lighthouse keepers, the light comes from within the lighthouse and the keeper of the lighthouse is there to serve the purpose of the lighthouse. We Religious Men and Women believe that Jesus is the ultimate lighthouse and we are only His instruments.

Power of Prayer: In these days and weeks of affliction, prayer has become like the air that helps people breathe, the hope that they desperately need; the hope of returning back to their parishes and their faith communities, the hope of going back to a secure job and financial stability for their loved ones, the hope to find comfort in being with one another, etc. Our life of prayer and hours of Adoration is what we have to offer to kindle this hope in the hearts of people around us and beyond.

Our community has been keeping daily Adoration from 12:00 p.m.-7:00 p.m. Our time in the Chapel adoring the Lord and interceding for people has become our daily offering for God and people. First, to console the Heart of Jesus Who is suffering with His Mystical Body, the Church. He longs to be one with His people in the Holy Eucharist, “How many times I yearned to gather your children together as a hen gathers her brood under her wings” (Lk 13:34). Second, to console hearts of people who long to be one with Him, “My soul yearns and pines for the courts of the Lord (Ps 84:2).

Our Adoration time and daily intercessory prayers and devotions are like the two oars that we carry in the boat of “aid and support” to all who are in need. The aid we give is our supplication before the Lord to care for His people during these trying times. It is in silent Adoration and heartfelt love before Christ present in the Most Holy Sacrament that we pray for our people to receive comfort that our Lord is close to the brokenhearted and a “very present help in time of trouble” (Ps 46:1).

Sister Mary Ruth from the School Sisters of Christ the King in Lincoln, Nebraska shared, “During this global health crisis, we realize that we are called to fervent intercessory prayer, begging Our Merciful Lord to bestow healing and consolation upon all those suffering in any way. We are more aware than ever what an immense privilege it is to be able to assist at Mass each day in our chapel and to receive Holy Communion, offering this prayer for so many who are currently unable to do so. On the third Sunday of Lent, our chaplain led us in a Eucharistic procession around our Motherhouse grounds as we chanted the Litany of the Saints. We have continued to pray this Litany daily after mass for an end to the devastation caused by COVID-19. At 3:00 each afternoon, the Blessed Sacrament is exposed in our chapel and we gather to pray the Divine Mercy Chaplet.”

Outreach through service and social media: Some of the Religious Communities who have ministries within their own convent like Missionaries of Charity and the Little Sisters of the Poor continue their faithful and joyful dedication to the residents.

Join to the Little Sisters in saying a million rosaries to end the pandemic.

As Mother Margaret Charles from the Little Sisters of the Poor in Palatine, Illinois, wrote, “As Little Sisters of the Poor, we are exactly where we should be – in the midst of our elderly brothers and sisters, caring for them, doing our utmost to keep them safe and happy. Our elderly suffer from the sudden isolation, they miss their friends in the common dining areas and activity rooms. They miss their families. We try to help them reach out through Skype to their loved ones. We sing, celebrate birthdays, and call Bingo from hallways.”

The Franciscan Capuchins from Capuchin College in Washington, D.C. make lunch bags and deliver them to people who experience homelessness. They leave lunch bags for them on a table under a bridge so the homeless can come and pick up their food, even though the Brothers continue to follow the order of social distancing, they still wanted to reach out to those most in need around them. The Brothers also have many musical talents and have desired to sing outside the building of nursing homes across from their monastery to comfort the elderly and the staff as they watch them from the windows of their rooms, as Brother Michael Herlihey O.F.M. Cap. said, “We are hoping to bring to them the joy of music and the praise of God.”

In our community we have made a list of names of the seniors who live alone in their neighborhood to reach out to them on a regular basis to help them with their grocery shopping since the elderly feel vulnerable to be out in public places. Also, recently we made a delivery of flower arrangements to twenty-four locations around our city; post-office, CVS, three grocery stores, eight Fire Department stations, Police Department, two emergency rooms, one hospital, another urgent care center, etc. I wrote them a letter on behalf of the community titled “Hidden Heroes, Good Samaritans, and Next-Door Saints.” Each Sister wrote a personal note with each flower arrangement. It is our little way of expressing our gratitude with the assurance of our prayers for those who put their lives every day at risk for the people of our city and beyond.

Many Communities who are very active in social media have taken these tools of evangelization to be out there for people who are in need of words of encouragement and support. The Maronite Servants of Christ the Light from the Maronite Eparchy of Saint Maron of Brooklyn have created a special phone call line called “Need a prayer? We care and we are here for you.”

When we read the story of the Bible, the storms were never evidence of God’s absence. It was the opposite; the storms were the arena in which God moved to show us His presence. Jesus calmed the storm because He was there. That is true then and it is true now. In the book of Ecclesiastes 4:12, we read “The chord of three strands is not quickly broken.” As we continue to weather the storm of COVID-19, we journey together in prayer and service, placing our hope in the Lord Who said in the Gospel of John 14:27, “Peace I leave you; My peace I give you […] do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid.”

Let us keep our gaze on the Lord, our Lighthouse, trusting in His promise that no harm will overtake us, no disaster will come near our tent (Ps 91:10).

News, Resources

“Home Again: A Prayerful Rediscovery of Your Catholic Faith”

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Behold, I make all things new (Rev 21:5)

It does us all good to refresh, renew, and rediscover what it means to be human, to be a child of God. In this new book by Fr. John Henry Hanson, O.Praem., he shows you how to come “home” through a prayerful revitalization of your faith in God’s plan for you by recalling its incredible beauty and depth. 

“…if people are still people, and the world operates according to all the patterns Ecclesiastes says it does, with sunrise and sunset, rivers flowing to the sea, and the birth and death of all living things (cf. Eccl 1, 3), we should look deeper for an inner renewal caused by grace. Change without grace, renovation without interior renewal, is spiritually worthless. The thing remodeled, so to speak, remains what it always was. The most important kind of regeneration isn’t outward or skin-deep but takes places in the hidden depths of the soul.” 

Allow yourself to be reminded that God is a lover Whose very desires for you will lead you directly to fulfillment and everlasting joy. The author hopes for you to live the resounding cry:

“My story must flow from Him, and return to Him.” 

You can order this book from Scepter Publishing.
1 (800) 322-8773

News, Vocations

Free Graphic Design Assistance for IRL Affiliate Communities

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Vocations Outreach, an outreach of  Franciscan University of Steubenville, offers free graphic design to religious communities. Since Vocations Outreach has an ongoing partnership with the Institute on Religious Life, communities may request this service if they:

1. Are participating in the Day in the Life series

2. Are an Affiliate Community with the Institute on Religious Life

Vocations Outreach will assign one of their interns to work with your community to design brochures, flyers, social media posts, and other marketing materials as requested. This is an ongoing resource you can request at any time.  If your community is interested in their graphic design services, then we recommend also requesting their photography services to receive new pictures their interns can use while designing. At this time, they are not able to help with website design or to print designed materials.

Please contact them if you are interested in receiving graphic design services.

Complete a digital resource application if your community is not an IRL Affiliate or if you would like to receive additional digital resources for your community.

General interest, Resources

“The True Spouse of Jesus Christ”: A Classic Book Reissued!

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The Ideal Book for Every Religious Community Is Back

A review by Trent Beattie

I keep an old, dilapidated copy of a Catholic literary classic that has helped me tremendously over the years. So impressive was this work that, despite having been written most especially for nuns, I used it in 2010 as one of the sources for a little book of short meditations called Saint Alphonsus Liguori for Every Day.

It was certainly a step in the right direction to get some of the tremendous wisdom of the Redemptorists’ founder out to the general public in a compact format. However, I was disappointed that the entirety of the old source book—The True Spouse of Jesus Christ, also known as The Nun Sanctified—was not currently in print. Despite its title, not only can women religious profit from the book, so can men religious, priests, and single or married laypeople. Because of its far-reaching value, I lamented for a long time how the only copy I knew of was falling apart.

Last year, though, my “book of lamentations” transformed into a “book of consolations” as I learned that Refuge of Sinners Publishing, located in southern Indiana, was currently printing it!

There appears to be no better way for anyone—but especially a religious sister or brother—to delve more deeply into the ascetical teachings of Saint Alphonsus than through The True Spouse of Jesus Christ. This 700-plus page masterpiece contains sound doctrine on, among other topics:

  • the desire for perfection;
  • the value of obedience to the rule and superiors;
  • charity in thoughts, words, and deeds;
  • humility of the intellect and of the will;
  • the immense benefits of Marian intercession;
  • the joy found in penance and resignation to God’s will;
  • the necessity of mental prayer;
  • patience in sickness and in spiritual desolation,
  • and dealing with scruples.

The wisdom in The True Spouse of Jesus Christ comes, not only from Saint Alphonsus directly, but also from other Western saints and Eastern ones, both men and women. From hermits to bishops, hundreds of years’ worth of thoroughly Catholic teaching is being passed along to readers again. Saints Basil, John Chrysostom, Augustine, Catherine of Siena, Teresa of Avila, and Francis de Sales are among the many whose advice rings true for the one who desires to do what is most pleasing to God.

Saint Alphonsus arranges the vast array of holy advice amid his own. Here is one such example, where the “Most Zealous Doctor of the Church” assures those uncertain about the dispositions of divine providence:

It is certain that all [God’s] arrangements are intended for our good. Our Lord said one day to Saint Gertrude: ‘With the same love with which I created man, I ordain for his good all the prosperity or adversity which I send him.’

It is easy to forget that God does not judge us on the outward results of our actions, but on the good will behind them. Saint Alphonsus says the first mark of determining whether our actions are truly done for God is to meet material failure with equanimity of soul. When we have done the right thing but do not obtain the desired result, we should not be upset. He says:

…when your undertaking has not been successful, you are not disturbed, but remain as tranquil as if you had attained your object. This will certainly be the case when you have acted only for God, because when you see that He has not wished to crown your efforts with success, neither will you wish it—for you know that He demands an account, not of the success or failure of your undertaking, but of the purity of your intention.

Founder Statue at St. Peter’s in Vatican City

Purity of intention will determine not only our final destination, but, assuming we cooperate with grace in at least the most basic way, the precise part of Heaven we inhabit. This is one of the great advantages of religious life, according to Saint Alphonsus, who thought that getting to Heaven was incomparably easier to do in a convent or monastery than in the world, saying:

I hold as certain that the greater number of the seraphic thrones vacated by the unhappy associates of Lucifer will be filled by religious. Out of the sixty during the last century [the 1600s] who were enrolled in the catalog of saints or honored with the appellation “Blessed,” all, with the exception of five or six, belonged to the religious orders.

Saint Alphonsus also taught that a foretaste of Heaven is possible in this life…

To be a good religious and to be content are one and the same thing; for the happiness of a religious consists in a constant and perfect union of her will with the adorable will of God. Whoever is not united with Him cannot be happy, for God cannot infuse His consolations into a soul that resists His divine will.

If a religious finds it difficult to actualize resignation to God’s will, possibly the missing link is mental prayer. Merely reciting the divine office or other vocal prayers will not bring all the graces necessary for one’s own circumstances. Familiar conversation with God is foundational, according to Saint Alphonsus:

If you see a tepid religious, say that she does not make mental prayer and you will say the truth. The devil labors hard to make religious lose the love for mediation, and should he conquer them in this, he will gain all. St. Philip Neri used to say, ‘A religious without mental prayer is a religious without reason.’ I add: She is not a religious, but the corpse of a religious.

Even for active orders, mental prayer is a staple, and this can be seen more extensively in The True Spouse of Jesus Christ, which is one reason I would assert that it, too, is also a staple. It does not matter whether a community specializes in education, healthcare, or contemplation, nor does it matter whether the community is Byzantine Catholic, Roman Catholic, or any other rite.

Saint Alphonsus said that “A single bad book will be sufficient to cause the destruction of a monastery.” The opposite is also true: A single good book is sufficient to make a monastery thrive—and The True Spouse of Jesus Christ is probably the one most likely to make this happen. Thanks God for such a blessing being available once again!

Trent Beattie is a freelance writer whose articles have appearing in periodicals such as the National Catholic Register, Catholic Digest, and The Latin Mass. He has authored two books: Fit for Heaven (Dynamic Catholic) and Scruples and Sainthood: Accepting and Overcoming Scrupulosity with the Help of the Saints (Loreto Publications) and edited three others: Saint Alphonsus Liguori for Every Day (Paulist Press), Finding True Happiness (Dynamic Catholic) and Apostolic Athletes (Marian Press).

How to get a copy of The True Spouse of Jesus Christ

Rose Michna, the general manager of Refuge of Sinners Publishing, has put into effect a ten percent discount for any religious community ordering The True Spouse of Jesus Christ—and any other books from Refuge of Sinners for the first time— before May 1, 2020. The code— 10%WELCOME2020 —can be entered in online orders, written in mail orders to Refuge of Sinners Publishing 5271 E Mann Road  New Pekin, IN 47165, or mentioned on phone orders at 812-967-253.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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In hoc signo vinces – An Atheist Doctor Comes to Believe

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This was sent to me by a Little Sister of the Poor. It came from a doctor who is on the front lines fighting the coronavirus.

“In this sign thou shalt conquer”

—A LIGHT IN A DOCTOR’S DARKEST NIGHTMARE—

Never in my darkest nightmares did I imagine that I would see and experience what has been going on in Italy in our hospital the past three weeks. The nightmare flows, and the river gets bigger and bigger. At first, a few patients came, then dozens, and then hundreds. Now, we are no longer doctors, but sorters who decide who should live and who should be sent home to die, though all these patients paid Italian health taxes throughout their lives.

Until two weeks ago, my colleagues and I were atheists. It was normal because we are doctors. We learned that science excludes the presence of God. I laughed at my parents going to church.

Nine days ago, a 75-year-old pastor was admitted into the hospital. He was a kind man. He had serious breathing problems. He had a Bible with him and impressed us by how he read it to the dying as he held their hand. We doctors were all tired, discouraged, psychologically and physically finished. When we had time, we listened to him.

We have reached our limits. We can do no more. People are dying every day. We are exhausted. We have two colleagues who have died, and others that have been infected. We realized that we needed to start asking God for help. We do this when we have a few free minutes. When we talk to each other, we cannot believe that, though we were once fierce atheists, we are now daily in search of peace, asking the Lord to help us continue so that we can take care of the sick.

Yesterday, the 75-year-old pastor died. Despite having had over 120 deaths here in 3 weeks, we were destroyed. He had managed, despite his condition and our difficulties, to bring us a PEACE that we no longer had hoped to find. The pastor went to the Lord, and soon we will follow him if matters continue like this.

I haven’t been home for 6 days. I don’t know when I ate last. I realize my worthlessness on this earth. I want to use my last breath to help others. I am happy to have returned to God while I am surrounded by the suffering and death of my fellow men.