October 2013 by St. Anthony Messenger

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ST. ANTHONY OCTOBER 2013 • $3.95 • FRANCISCANMEDIA.ORG

Messenger

The Spirit of

St. Francis 7 Key Moments in the Life of St. Francis St. Francis and Jesus Pope Francis: Why the Name Fits ALSO IN THIS ISSUE:

St. Thérèse, My Spiritual Companion

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CONTENTS

ST. ANTHONY

❘ OCTOBER 2013 ❘ VOLUME 121/NUMBER 5

Messenger ON THE COVER

SPECIAL SECTION 29 THE SPIRIT OF ST. FRANCIS

He was a nature lover, a people lover, a God lover who saw in all things the image of our Creator. St. Francis of Assisi, to this day, is the most popular of saints.

30 7 Key Moments in the Life of St. Francis These events in Francis’ life brought him closer to Christ. By Jack Wintz, OFM

Illustration by Chris Koehler

36 The Ultimate Disciple In poverty, he found the greatest of riches. By Murray Bodo, OFM

D E PA R T M E N T S

40 Pope Francis: Why the Name Fits

2 Dear Reader

This first Jesuit pope chose the name Francis. His actions are telling us why. By Pat McCloskey, OFM

3 From Our Readers 6 Followers of St. Francis Father Jerry Bleem, OFM

8 Reel Time Grace Unplugged

Extra Virgin

F E AT U R E S

12 Church in the News

16 St. Thérèse: My Spiritual Companion

20 Editorial Women Leaders in the Church

What I thought was a brief walk with this beloved saint turned into a lifelong journey of love and admiration. By Heather King

22 A Portrait of Sister Wendy Beckett

10 Channel Surfing

44 Year of Faith Our Gaze Fixed on Jesus

46 Living Simply

This hermit has charmed TV audiences worldwide with her art commentary. Now, she shares her own story. By Alicia von Stamwitz

54 Ask a Franciscan Monks, Friars, Brothers

56 Book Corner Discernment

58 A Catholic Mom Speaks

50 Fiction: Rescue Work

How I Pray

Family can heal a broken heart. By Kathleen O’Connor

60 Backstory

ST. ANTHONY M

DEAR READER

essenger

Imitating Christ

Publisher/CEO Daniel Kroger, OFM

Saints—the formally recognized ones and the many others whom we have known personally—always point us to God. At the same time, they automatically help us to recognize all women, men, and children as people made in God’s image and likeness. Saints may not be famous, but they are certainly real. St. Francis of Assisi (1182–1226) clearly impressed his contemporaries that way. Living a Gospel-based, generous life was for here and now, not simply for distant times and faraway lands. People saw themselves differently because of what Francis said, but, more importantly, because of his actions. Francis once warned his friars not to think that praising the holy lives of other people could excuse them from constantly giving good example to their contemporaries (Admonition VI). Although Francis received on his hands, feet, and side the marks of Christ’s passion, he knew that this was an unusual gift from God and never a reason to boast. Francis frequently urged his followers to preach by their good example. He was canonized two years after his death in 1226. The Church worldwide honors him on October 4. May we be living examples of God’s mercy and compassion!

Chief Operating Officer Thomas A. Shumate, CPA

Director of Content Creation and Services Jennifer Scroggins

Editor in Chief John Feister

Art Director Jeanne Kortekamp

Franciscan Editor Pat McCloskey, OFM

Editor Emeritus Jack Wintz, OFM

Managing Editor Susan Hines-Brigger

Associate Editor Christopher Heffron

Editorial Assistant Sharon Lape

Director of Marketing, Sales, and Internet Barbara K. Baker

Advertising Fred Limke

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ST. ANTHONY MESSENGER (ISSN #0036276X) (U.S.P.S. PUBLICATION #007956 CANADA PUBLICATION #PM40036350) Volume 121, Number 5, is published monthly for $39.00 a year by the Franciscan Friars of St. John the Baptist Province, 28 W. Liberty Street, Cincinnati, Ohio 45202-6498. Phone (513) 241-5615. Periodicals postage paid at Cincinnati, Ohio, and additional entry offices. U.S. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to: St. Anthony Messenger, P.O. Box 189, Congers, NY 10920-0189. CANADA RETURN ADDRESS: c/o AIM, 7289 Torbram Rd., Mississauga, ON, Canada L4T 1G8. To subscribe, write to the above address or call (866) 543-6870. Yearly subscription price: $39.00 in the United States; $69.00 in Canada and other foreign countries. Single copy price: $3.95. For change of address, four weeks’ notice is necessary. Writer’s guidelines can be found at Franciscan Media.org. The publishers are not responsible for manuscripts or photos lost or damaged in transit. Names in fiction do not refer to living or dead persons. Member of the Catholic Press Association Published with ecclesiastical approval Copyright ©2013. All rights reserved.

St A n t h o n y M e s s e n g e r . o rg

FROM OUR READERS

You’re Welcome! I wanted to send a note to let you know how much we enjoy our St. Anthony Messenger. The articles are timely, balanced, and informational. We especially enjoy Sister Rose Pacatte, FSP’s “Reel Time” column. Father Bryan N. Massingale’s August cover story, “‘I Have a Dream’: 50 Years Later,” was excellent—a reminder of the long history of the civil-rights movement, how far we’ve come, and how far we have to go. Thank you from two longtime subscribers. Keep up the good work! Carol and Henry Schuberth Chicago, Illinois

Calm and Chaos I really enjoyed reading Kristina Santos’ August article, “Stopping by Church on a Summer Afternoon.” I

What’s on Your Mind? Letters that are published do not necessarily represent the views of the Franciscan friars or the editors. We do not publish slander or libel. Please include your name and postal address. Letters may be edited for clarity and space. Mail Letters, St. Anthony Messenger 28 W. Liberty St. Cincinnati, OH 45202-6498 Fax 513-241-0399

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felt as though, in almost every line, she was describing the many quiet moments I have spent in our empty church in the middle of my otherwise hectic day. How lucky we are as Catholics to be able to be physically present with Jesus. When I sit down in the pew and feel his presence, I am instantly and powerfully reminded that, despite my hectic life as a mother and wife, Jesus is always present, always available, always waiting for me to come to him and lay my troubles at his feet. I, too, hear in the silence the echoes of the many Masses, weddings, funerals, and Baptisms that have already taken place there, even though our beautiful church is just over one year old. Thank you for such an enjoyable article! Christina Leatha Woodinville, Washington

Religious Life Defined The item in the August issue’s “Church in the News” about the meeting of Pope Francis with leaders of the Latin American and Caribbean Confederation of Men and Women Religious may have given an incorrect impression by describing the group of priests and nuns. Male religious communities include both priests and brothers. Some male religious communities are entirely brothers, while others, such as the Franciscans, include both priests and brothers. The brothers, unfortunately, are often ignored as the priests’ ministries tend to be more visible. St. Francis of Assisi was a brother, not a priest. Pat Sullivan, OFM Cap Okinawa, Japan

The Big Picture I agree with Diana Meyer, who wrote the letter “Life Must Be Honored First” in the August issue’s “From

Our Readers.” I venture to guess that a large percentage of abortions take place because of the prevalence of poverty and hunger in the world. In our time, a lot is being said—and rightly so—about abortion. At the same time, not enough is being said or done about the poverty that often leads to abortion. It might help Ms. Meyer to read what the US bishops have said in the past, prior to presidential elections about how to choose a candidate. The point of their remarks was that we must weigh our choices based on the overall qualities and positions of each candidate and not vote based on only one issue. Peggy Doherty Vallejo, California

Not All Catholics against Prop 8 First, I was happy to see that letters were printed in the August “From Our Readers” that supported pro-life issues and did not support Sister Simone Campbell. But in August’s “Church in the News,” there was a news item about same-sex marriage. The picture used in the news item gave attention to two young men who were obviously happy with the Supreme Court decision that ruled against Proposition 8. Why would they be given attention in this shameful decision, especially since the citizens of California had voted twice to pass Proposition 8? What group is the Public Religion Research Institute? Why is this group given press for their information that 62 percent of Catholics in this country support same-sex marriage? How did they arrive at this number? This group didn’t ask our opinion. We need to have our Catholic magazine be Catholic in their facts and in their news items. Al and Jane Klein Palatine, Illinois O c to b e r 2 0 1 3 ❘ 3

I was very disappointed in the letters condemning the article about Sister Simone Campbell in the August “From Our Readers.” I think that some people missed the point. I do not see that her address to the Democratic National Convention was an endorsement of the presidential candidate. She was addressing the party that works more purposefully for the poor and sick—as Christ commanded us to do. I am a Catholic Democrat and a member of Feminists for Life and Democrats for Life, so I, like many Catholics, am in the party because it does the most for social concerns. Sister Simone was at the convention not to endorse abortion rights, but to endorse what all political parties should do for us. I admire Sister Simone for what she did: she reminded America that Jesus wants us to care for each other, especially those in most need. I have read far too many articles and letters that would lead readers to think that the Church only cares about contraception and same-sex marriage. Whatever one’s views on those topics, they are not the essential message of Christ. I believe that too many Catholics think that they are. Get out the New Testament and remind yourself of what he emphasized. Dorothy Carter Lexington, Kentucky

of the Sisters of the Holy Cross from St. Mary’s, Notre Dame, Indiana. In an excerpt from The Journey Continues: A History of the Sisters of the Holy Cross, written by Sister Campion Kuhn, we read, “In October 1861, six months after the outbreak of the Civil War, Governor Oliver P. Morton asked Father Sorin (superior for the sisters) to send some sisters to care for the Indiana troops then serving in Kentucky. The morn-

ing after the request, six sisters under the direction of Mother Angela Gillespie left for Paducah. Before the war ended, approximately 80 of the 160 Sisters of the Holy Cross in the United States served in the western theater of the war and for one year in a military hospital in Washington, D.C. Four of them served on the Red Rover, the first Navy hospital ship.” I appreciate the articles in St. Anthony Messenger and pray that the staff will continue to do interesting articles in the future. Sister M. Genevra, CSC Salt Lake City, Utah Correction: On page 25 in our September issue, a proofreader’s error resulted in an incorrect wording. The sentence in “‘As God Is My Witness’” should read, “Mitchell also contrasts Scarlett and her mother, Ellen, writing that the former ‘was driven. . . .’” We said, “latter.”

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Good Habits As a member of the Sisters of the Congregation of the Holy Cross, Notre Dame, Indiana, I found Elizabeth Bookser Barkley’s July article “Nuns on the Battlefield,” very interesting. Many of the members of my congregation also served as nurses during the war as well. The illustration that appears in Barkley’s article of a soldier being cared for by a sister is captioned as follows: “Sisters such as this Daughter of Charity—one of 300—ministered to soldiers on both sides.” This illustration is mistakenly identified. The sister who appears is a member

CNS PHOTO/COURTESY UNIVERSITY ARCHIVES, THE CATHOLIC UNIVERSITY OF AMERICA

Sister Simone Unfairly Judged

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F O L L O W E R S O F S T. F R A N C I S

Ministry of Art

A PHOTO BY THOM SMITH, OFM

art functions in the life of the Church is to rt has been a part of the life of the Catholic Church for centuries, reveal- remind us that we don’t have God figured out. We have to keep responding to God’s ing God’s work through media such grace, which is a slippery, as architecture, sculpture, confusing task, and yet we and music. For Jerry Bleem, can never tire of being alert OFM, a priest and artist to the surprising presence who teaches at The School of God in our lives. In of the Art Institute in other words, art can help Chicago, religion and art us to discover awe, espego hand in hand. “Religion cially in small, unspectacuand art are both symbol lar ways.” systems,” he says. “They Like St. Francis, “who assemble a meaning strucwas amazingly gifted in ture that points to somerethinking, reseeing, thing larger than one’s reimagining the status self.” quo,” Father Jerry also Having earned a master strives to perceive what is of fine arts from the School actually in front of him, of the Art Institute, Father “rather than seeing tradiJerry, who was ordained in tional interpretations”—an 1982, believes the power of idea that forms the core of art lies in its ability to communicate in ways different “Oil Flowers” made from plastic bags. his art practice. “I try to use materials that are comfrom the spoken or written mon, of little value, or discarded to raise the word. “What has been forgotten is the place issue of valuation . . . and to re-present that of imagination and creativity in nurturing which is easy to overlook,” he says. our lives of faith,” he says. “Perhaps one way

Father Jerry Bleem, OFM

STORIES FROM OUR READERS At Your Service

Learn more about St. Anthony and share your story of how he helped you at AmericanCatholic.org/ Features/Anthony.

I was with my brother-in-law and my sisters in Ireland, and we went to a restaurant for lunch. Afterward, we drove to the sea to take a walk. When my brother-in-law got out of the car, he discovered his glasses were missing. We searched the car, he and my sister went back to the restaurant, but we could not find the glasses. Of course, I prayed to St. Anthony. The next day, as we were again riding along, something hit me on the head and fell on the floor in the car. Before I even looked, I knew it was the glasses. There was no place they could have been caught—my brother-in-law was driving. We were amazed. Someone commented that I was the one who prayed and they fell at my feet! —Nuala Timoney, Pleasant Valley, New York

6 ❘ O ctober 2013

St A n t h o n y M e s s e n g e r . o rg

ST. FRANCIS

St. Francis of Assisi Recognizing ‘Perfect Joy’ One day Francis told Brother Leo that perfect joy would not be the news that all the friars had the gift of miracles, made many converts, or had done similar things. Rather, it would be enduring rejection by the friar-porter at St. Mary of the Angels, their headquarters outside Assisi, and not responding angrily. In Admonition XIX, Francis says, “What a person is before God, that he is and no more.” We can rightly add, “And no less.” The more truthfully we live, the more readily we will forgive others. –P.M.

CNS PHOTO/OCTAVIO DURAN

One of his current projects is an “Oil Products” series in which he uses postconsumer plastic bags to create pieces such as “Oil Flowers,” floral forms crocheted from the plastic bags. “I’m hoping that focusing on this very specific material for my work invites viewers to become aware of their [needless] use of plastic bags,” he says. Just as art plays an important role in Church life, Father Jerry believes it can also be pivotal in an individual’s spiritual life. “Many have developed a kind of ‘magical’ set of processes for their religious practice: I go to Confession every week; I say the rosary every day,” he says. “American spirituality is too much about what we do as if we have to earn God’s love. Franciscan spirituality reminds us that God loves us before we do anything. Art can help us broaden our understanding of what it means to be human in the face of the Almighty. It can shift the focus off the individual to beauty as an entrée to understanding the scale of God’s creation, our smallness, and the incomprehensibility of God.” —Rachel Zawila

To learn more about Franciscan saints, visit AmericanCatholic.org/Features/Saintofday.

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O c to b e r 2 0 1 3 ❘ 7

PHOTO BY FRANK JASPER, OFM

The National Shrine of St. Anthony is located in Cincinnati, Ohio. Consecrated in 1889, it includes a first-class relic of St. Anthony and serves as a center for daily prayer and contemplation. The Franciscan friars minister from the shrine. To help them in their work among the poor, you may send a monetary offering called St. Anthony Bread. Make checks or money orders payable to “Franciscans” and mail to the address below. Every Tuesday, a Mass is offered for benefactors and petitioners at the shrine. To seek St. Anthony’s intercession, mail your petition to the address below. Petitions are taken to the shrine each week. To post your petition online, please visit stanthony.org, where you can also request to have a candle lit or a Mass offered; or you may make a donation to the Franciscans or sign up to receive a novena booklet.

REEL TIME

W I T H S I S T E R R O S E PA C AT T E , F S P

Grace Unplugged

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Eighteen-year-old Grace Trey (AJ Michalka) sings with her father, Johnny (James Denton), a full-time music pastor at their church, but their relationship is suffering. Grace is talented and wants to express herself like one of her pop idols. But Johnny, who once had a hit single appropriately titled “Misunderstood,” insists that she be part of their worship group and not stand out. Grace refuses to go to college, lies about where she is spending her time, and disappoints her music pupil. Johnny’s old agent, Mossy (Kevin Pollak), offers Johnny a chance at an album. He refuses, but, later, Grace contacts Mossy and runs away to Hollywood. She lands an apartment, a FIAT, and a large advance and falls into the temptations her dad warned her about: superficiality, lying, and alcohol. Grace meets Quentin (Michael Welch), who recalls seeing her and Johnny in concert at their church and tells her the business could use some light. But Grace has started a long journey and has much to learn about an industry focused on image and one that has little mercy for someone with a conscience and a love for Jesus.

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Grace Unplugged is one of the best Christiangenre movies to appear in recent years. The music is very good, and the struggles of the father-daughter relationship are real and moving. The book that the movie promotes, Own It: Discover Your Faith in God by Michael and Hayley DiMarco, almost over-reinforces the Protestant ethos in the film. Along with its obvious product placement, Grace Unplugged makes the same mistake most Christian-genre movies do: they don’t trust the audience to get it. It's all about Sunday school rather than art. Still, I liked the story and soundtrack. Not yet rated, PG ■ Mature themes, some language, sexuality.

12 Years a Slave In 1841, Solomon Northup (Chiwetel Ejiofor) was a free black man, a musician, and a well-established family man in upstate New York. One day when his wife and two children are away, he is invited by two men claiming to be circus performers to go to Washington, DC, for two weeks to be part of a well-paid act. Once there, Solomon is St A n t h o n y M e s s e n g e r . o r g

Michael Fassbender (left) is a cruel slave owner to Chiwetel Ejiofor (right) in director Steve McQueen’s 12 Years a Slave.

Blue Jasmine Jasmine (Cate Blanchett) is a superficial 40something New York socialite who moves in with her divorced sister, Ginger (Sally Hawkins), and her two kids in urban Los Angeles. Jasmine is broke since her husband, Fr anciscanMedia.org

CNS PHOTO/SONY PICTURES CLASSIC

drugged and sold into slavery with others who have been kidnapped. He can tell no one he is educated because it will only lead to punishment. Solomon ends up in Louisiana, and submission to these “Christian” masters comes hard to him. One owner, William (Benedict Cumberbatch), gives him a new violin, but later passes him off to an even crueler plantation owner, Epps (Michael Fassbender), because a dismissed overseer, John (Paul Dano), is determined to kill Solomon for humiliating him. Solomon is brutally beaten and is even forced to whip fellow slaves, which costs him terribly. An encounter with Bass (Brad Pitt), a traveling builder with abolitionist leanings, offers Solomon the chance he needs. 12 Years a Slave is based on the book by Solomon Northup, whose story was later researched and confirmed by historians. It is an intense movie because of the reenactment of the kidnappings, the inhuman realism of the beatings, and the practice of slavery itself. In the 100th year since the Emancipation Proclamation, the film is a fitting memorial to the horrors of slavery. But, cinematically, I found it too much to take in. The film belongs to Chiwetel Ejiofor. His portrayal of Solomon is as heartbreaking as it is a triumph of the human spirit. Not yet rated, R ■ Torture, intense violence and cruelty.

Hal (Alec Baldwin), was convicted of financial fraud and they lost everything. Jasmine is unfocused, unskilled, and drinks too much. She gets a job, loses it, and tries to learn computers so she can get a fast online degree. She’s also presented as a narcissist—in a role director Woody Allen usually reserves for himself—whose incessant talking and drinking belie a secret that plagues her conscience. But she tells no one until someone forces the revelation from her control. Allen’s latest offering seems to be an updated version of what I think remains his greatest film, Crimes and Misdemeanors. Only this time the film has a female protagonist and other significant women characters. Whereas Crimes and Misdemeanors provided family background to explain a conflicted conscience, in Blue Jasmine the sisters were adopted and there is no significant family of origin to explain the values in contention. This is a film about regret and conscience. Blanchett is brilliant; her performance is Oscar worthy. L, PG-13 ■ Mature themes, some language, sexuality.

Cate Blanchett is on the short list of Oscar contenders for her acclaimed work in Woody Allen’s Blue Jasmine.

Catholic Cl assifications A-1 A-2 A-3 L O

General patronage Adults and adolescents Adults Limited adult audience Morally offensive

■

The Catholic News Service Media Review Office gives these ratings. See usccb.org/movies.

■

Find reviews by Sister Rose and others at CatholicMovieReviews.org.

October 2013 ❘ 9

CHANNEL SURFING

WITH CHRISTOPHER HEFFRON

UP CLOSE

Cooking Channel, check local listings I had the greatest meal of my life in Tuscany a few years ago: a lemon and garlic roasted chicken with grilled asparagus. Wine was flowing among friends, and a steady breeze from the valley filled the room. Looking back, it was the collective experience that made the meal, not just the bird. Food, friends, and a bottle of Tuscan Pinot: life doesn’t get sweeter. I think about that meal every time I watch Cooking Channel’s Extra Virgin. Tuscan-born chef Gabriele Corcos and his wife, actor Debi Mazar, bring the cameras into their kitchen as they work together to prepare a meal for a special event. What I like best about Extra Virgin is the contrast between husband and wife: he is a quiet and skilled chef; she is a funny and mildly profane celebrity. Their styles may contradict, but their mission is the same: to feed themselves, their two daughters, and their closest friends, body and soul. Channel surfers should take note of Gabriele as he works: it’s like witnessing a young Michelangelo create a masterpiece out of a hunk of marble. And Mazar, with her New York sensibilities and razor-sharp wit, is a riot. But there’s no gimmick to Extra Virgin. What audiences can expect is a show that celebrates the real ingredients to a happy life: one another.

The Talk Weekdays, 2 p.m., CBS With its revolving door of hosts—and its penchant for being too political—I can’t fault anybody who’s tired of ABC’s The View. If you’re looking for something more fun, look no further. Created by Sara Gilbert, best known for her Emmy-nominated role on Roseanne, The Talk follows a similar formula as its predecessor, but with a lighter touch. Hosted by Gilbert, Julie Chen, Sheryl Underwood, Aisha Tyler, and Sharon Osbourne, this daytime program tackles news headlines and celebrity interviews, but its focus skews more toward enriching the lives of moms and dads. Lively without being overwhelming, The Talk is just good conversation.

Drugs, Inc.

Sundays, 9 p.m., National Geographic Channel According to the United States Government’s Office of National Drug Control Policy, the estimated cost of drug use to our society is $6,120 per second. Drugs, Inc., National Geographic Channel’s fascinating documentary series, seeks to find out why. What sets this series apart is its multifaceted approach to the drug epidemic. It doesn’t focus solely on sellers or buyers, but also on harvesters, mules, and countless other lowlife players in an evil game. Each episode reinforces what we’ve long known to be true: drugs devastate societies. And for those who combat addiction, life isn’t just a struggle with a disease, but a war waged daily over the dominion of their very souls.

Gabriele Corcos and Debi Mazar are a married couple who host Cooking Channel’s Extra Virgin. 10 ❘ October 2013

St A n t h o n y M e s s e n g e r . o r g

Extra Virgin

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CHURCH IN THE NEWS

❘ BY SUSAN HINES-BRIGGER

Catholic Leaders Respond to Syria Attack for no military intervention. Such a move, he said, “would be a tragedy, a tragedy, a tragedy—for the whole country and the whole Middle East. “Enough with the intervention,” he said. “It is fueling hatred, fueling criminality, fueling inhumanity, fueling fundamentalism, terrorism—all these things are the fruit of intervention. Enough!”

CNS PHOTO/HADI ALMONAJED, REUTERS

Mystery Priest Revealed

A man makes homemade masks for protection against chemical attacks in the Damascus suburb of Zamalka August 23. Pope Francis denounced the atrocities in Syria, calling again for all sides to end the fighting.

1 2 ❘ October 2013

treating thousands of people suffering with symptoms consistent with a poison gas attack. Videos and photos posted to the Internet showed children gasping for breath. Doctors Without Borders put the death toll at 355. Archbishop Silvano Tomasi, the Vatican observer at UN agencies in Geneva, including the UN Human Rights Commission, said the only way forward is dialogue. “As the Holy Father already has underlined, violence will not bring a solution and, therefore, a dialogue must begin so that we can arrive at Geneva II (Middle East peace conference on Syria), where representatives of all parts of Syrian society can be present, explain their thinking and try to create some kind of transitional government,” he said. Syrian-born Melkite Catholic Patriarch Gregory III Laham issued a plea

CNS PHOTO/COURTESY DIOCESE OF JEFFERSON CITY

Following Syria’s alleged chemical weapons attack on civilians in late August, Pope Francis and other Catholic leaders issued a call for dialogue rather than retaliation to address the situation, reported Catholic News Service (CNS). Following his recitation of the Angelus on August 25, the pope said the “terrible images” of the dead, including children, “push me once again to raise a voice so that the roar of the weapons would stop. It is not clashes, but an ability to meet and to dialogue that offers prospects for a hope of resolving the problems.” Fighting in Syria has been going on since March 2011 as rebels try to oust Syrian President Bashar Assad. Not far from the capital, Damascus, this chemical weapons attack was on the town of Ghouta, a stronghold for opponents of the government of President Assad. Hospitals reported

On August 11, 19-year-old college student Katie Lentz was driving on Highway 19 in Missouri when she was hit head-on by another car that crossed the double yellow line. The accident left Katie trapped in her car and seriously injured. Emergency personnel worked diligently to remove Katie, but feared doing so might injure her further, reported Religion News Service. Suddenly, a priest appeared despite traffic being redirected from the scene. The medics were concerned

Father Patrick Dowling, who serves in the Diocese of Jefferson City, Missouri, has come forward as the “mystery priest.” St A n t h o n y M e s s e n g e r . o rg

N E W S B R I E F S N AT I O N A L A N D I N T E R N AT I O N A L

CNS/KAREN CALLAWAY, CATOLICO

The State of the Bible Report 2013 shows that 77 percent of Americans believe morals and values are declining in the United States, and 75 percent believe a valid reason to teach the Bible in public schools is that it would provide kids with the moral principles that are badly needed. The results were from a nationwide study commissioned by American Bible Society and conducted by Barna Research. Pope Benedict XVI’s personal assistant, Archbishop Georg Gaenswein, is denying reports that the pope emeritus resigned following a “mystical experience” in which God “told me” to step back from the papacy. Zenit News Agency reported that the alleged experience left Benedict with an “absolute desire” to dedicate his life exclusively to prayer. The August 19 Zenit story was

about Katie’s condition, which was deteriorating. After the priest anointed Katie and prayed that her leg would no longer hurt, the young woman’s vital signs stabilized enough for rescue workers to transport her—via helicopter—to a local hospital. When emergency responders Fr ancisca n Media .org

reportedly based on the account of one of the former pope’s few visitors. Archbishop Gaenswein says the report, however, was “made up from alpha to omega. There is nothing true in that story.” What does the Vatican do with all the items thrown to the pope when he’s riding in the popemobile? Well, according to Vatican officials, some end up catalogued and stored, including in the Vatican Museums, but the clothing and most of the edibles go to the diocesan Caritas—the Vatican shelter run by the Missionaries of Charity—or the Vatican’s maternal and pediatric clinic, which serves immigrants mainly and is run by the Daughters of Charity of St. Vincent de Paul. During World Youth Day this past August, Vatican officials say they filled a jeep four times with objects of every kind. Alberto Gasbarri, the chief organizer of papal trips, said his partial inventory included “T-shirts, hats, scarves, balls, flowers, bandanas, photographs, letters, drawings, rosaries—and even a bishop’s ring.” (That last one was presumably fake.)

CNS/UESLEI MARCELINO, REUTERS

Since mid-July, in the daily Mass he celebrates at the Vatican’s Santa Marta residence, Pope Francis has been using Communion wafers that were made by a prisoner in Argentina, reported Religion News Service. Gabriela Caballero is serving a seven-year jail term in the San Martin Penitentiary outside Buenos Aires. Caballero gave the hosts, along with a long letter to the pope, to Bishop Oscar Ojea of San Isidro. Bishop Ojea regularly visits the prison, and delivered the hosts to the pope on July 16 during a visit to the Vatican. Caballero began her Communion wafer operation in one of the prison’s bathrooms, using old machines given to her and some other convicts by some nuns. Pope Francis wrote to Caballero thanking her for the gift. “From tomorrow on, I will celebrate Mass with these hosts and I can tell you it’s very touching for me,” he wrote. After receiving the letter, Caballero said, “I am proud to know that one can reach the Vatican even from prison.”

In the aftermath of World Youth Day in Brazil, more than 50 people who attended the event are seeking asylum in the country, reports CNS. Aline Thuller, Caritas coordinator for refugees in the Archdiocese of Rio de Janeiro, said the archdiocese received approximately 40 asylum requests from pilgrims from Pakistan, Sierra Leone, and Congo. The Archdiocese of São Paulo reported that at least 12 pilgrims have sought its help to stay in the country. The pilgrims will have their cases analyzed by the National Committee for Refugees. For more news, visit AmericanCatholic.org.

sought to thank the priest, he was nowhere to be found, and he did not show up in nearly 70 photos of the accident scene. Many began to wonder if the man had actually been an angel. Carla Churchill Lentz, Katie’s mother, said, “I do believe he certainly could have been an angel

dressed in priest’s attire because the Bible tells us there are angels among us.” But the angel actually turned out to be Father Patrick Dowling, a priest from Kilkenny, Ireland. Father Dowling was returning from celebrating Mass in Ewing because the regular priest was sick. He says that, O c to b e r 2 0 1 3 ❘ 1 3

when he arrived on the scene, authorities were redirecting traffic. “I waited till it was possible to drive up closer,” Dowling said. “I parked behind a large vehicle about 150 yards from the scene. I asked the sheriff’s permission and approached the scene of the accident. I absolved and anointed Katie. Then I stepped aside to where some rescue personnel and the pilot were waiting, and prayed the rosary silently. I left when the helicopter was about to take off.” Father Dowling told reporters that the real heroes of the scene were the emergency personnel. “I think there may have been angels there, too. God has blessed [their] work. I hope the credit goes where it is due.”

Women Religious Gather in Orlando

CNS PHOTO/ROBERTO GONZALEZ

Amid an ongoing doctrinal assessment of the organization, the Leadership Conference of Women Religious (LCWR) gathered in Orlando, Florida, August 13-15, where its president reminded members that “it is imperative to view religious life within the context of our faith and in an evolving world,” reported CNS. In her opening address, LCWR President Sister Florence Deacon

reflected on the doctrinal assessment, saying, “Our situation reflects larger questions and concerns such as the ongoing implementation of the Second Vatican Council; the ecclesial roles of women religious and of the laity, especially women; understandings of authority, faithful dissent, and obedience; and the need for spaces where honest, probing questions about faith and belief can be raised and discussed.” LCWR is a Maryland-based umbrella group that claims about 1,500 leaders of United States women’s communities as members, representing about 80 percent of the country’s 57,000 women religious. The organization’s canonical status is granted by the Holy See. During the assembly, attendees focused on a number of issues, such as the doctrinal assessment of LCWR by the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith. The assembly adopted a resolution that says LCWR’s members “are compelled to work toward a world where reverence for all living beings finds expression in an approach to life free from violence.” Archbishop J. Peter Sartain of Seattle, who was appointed by the Vatican doctrinal congregation last year to oversee a reform of LCWR, also addressed the assembly.

Franciscan Sister Florence Deacon addresses the Leadership Conference of Women Religious August 16 during its annual assembly in Orlando, Florida. The outgoing president gave a reflection on what it means to be a faithful woman of the Church. 1 4 ❘ O ctober 2013

He said, “Over the past 18 months, we’ve had significant conversations—serious, humorous, with solidarity and understanding—one that has made this a time I’ve looked forward to. It is impossible for me to conceive of the task the Holy Father has given me to achieve for CDF without thinking of you and all I have worked together with you. “It is very personal. I am here as a representative for Pope Francis for this one task, but I am here as your brother and friend.” At the end of the assembly, Sister Carol Zinn was elected as the next president of the organization.

Thousands Mark ‘I Have a Dream’ Anniversary Joined by representatives of other faiths, Washington’s Cardinal Donald Wuerl called for people to join hands and walk together—not alone—for justice during an interfaith prayer service marking the 50th anniversary of the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr.’s “I Have a Dream” speech on August 28. According to CNS, Cardinal Wuerl noted that the schools in the Archdiocese of Washington, DC, were integrated “before the Supreme Court got around to it.” The faith leaders were joined by Bernice King, the Rev. Dr. King’s youngest child, and the CEO of the King Center for Nonviolent Social Change. She said her father was first and foremost a man of faith. “It was the spirit of God that infused that [nonviolent civil rights] movement,” she said. Earlier in the day, King addressed a crowd of thousands during a program at the Lincoln Memorial. She quoted her mother, Coretta Scott King, saying, “The struggle for freedom is a never-ending process. Freedom is never really won; you win it and earn it in every generation.” At the close of the ceremony, President Barack Obama said the day also belonged to the “ordinary people whose names never appeared in the history books, never got on TV.” A St A n t h o n y M e s s e n g e r . o rg

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16 ❘ October 2013

St A n t h o n y M e s s e n g e r . o r g

My Spiritual Companion What I thought was a brief walk with this beloved saint turned into a lifelong journey of love and admiration. B Y H E AT H E R K I N G

A PHOTO BY EUGENE PLAISTED, OSC

few years ago, Paraclete Press, a lovely, small press out of Cape Cod, Massachusetts, approached me with the idea of writing a book about “walking” with a saint for a year. Not a biography or a hagiography, but a sort of lived reflection on the saint’s works, thoughts, prayer, and path. So I thought for a bit and chose Thérèse of Lisieux (1873-1897) because, let’s face it, there is something irresistible about a beautiful, young French girl who wanted to be the bride of Christ so badly that, at the age of 14, she traveled to Rome, knelt at the feet of Pope Leo XIII, and begged for permission to enter the cold, cloistered convent at Carmel. This was the woman who spent the rest of her short life in obscurity, but on spiritual fire. She was the woman who, after coughing up blood at the beginning of Lent one year, was thrilled to know that more suffering—and heaven—lay ahead. She was the woman who, with gangrened intestines and no pain medication, once cried out: “I love Him!,” she, who first dashed off a spiritual biography in a cheap notebook that came to be known as The Story of a Soul, which has gone on to sell millions of copies.

Fr anciscanMedia.org

Thérèse was sickly as an infant and had to be farmed out to a wet nurse from whom she was later separated. Her mother died of breast cancer when Thérèse was 4. Her two beloved older sisters left fairly soon after for the cloistered convent at Carmel. Thérèse herself entered the same convent at the age of 15, lived a hidden, outwardly unremarkable life there, and died at the tender age of 24 from tuberculosis. Thérèse might have remained entirely unknown had she not left behind the notes for what became The Story of a Soul, which her sister Pauline edited and published. She was canonized as a saint a mere 28 years later. In 1997, she was named a Doctor of the Church (one of only three women upon whom the honor has been bestowed). Her “little way” continues to inspire, challenge, invite, and confound. And people, including me, continue to write books about her.

A New Surrender This book I was writing did not have to be long: 35,000 words. I was not getting a huge advance, which was fine with me. To receive a royalty check, just once before I died, would represent a major triumph. October 2013 ❘ 17

“A mystic, a comic, she is everything. She can make you weep with devotion and just as easily faint with laughing during recreation.” —Mother Marie de Gonzague

tal Digi as t Ex r

To learn more about Thérèse of Lisieux, click here.

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18 ❘ October 2013

So I got down to work and immersed myself in St. Thérèse. I read some of the zillions of other books that have been written about her (thinking that mine, of course, would be different). I lived another year of my life writing and revising, and went off to Taos, New Mexico, early in 2010 on a threemonth residency and finished the book. I waited months for the contract to be signed. I sent off the manuscript and waited months to get notes. And when the notes came back, it turned out there was too much of me in there and not enough of St. Thérèse. Naturally, I was mortified. What had I been thinking? Who on God’s green earth would want to read anything about me when the subject was St. Thérèse? So I cut all the parts about me—which was about half the book— and rewrote the first three chapters. I sent them off, at which point they said there was not enough about me and they wanted me to put some back in. The point being that, halfway through the book, I was given to see that this was not a mere job. The book was meant to be a way deeper “walk” with St. Thérèse than I’d envisioned. The book was meant to be a surrender on a whole new level. Because, while writing means everything to me, so does getting noticed. That we don’t get to say or see where or how our work bears fruit, in fact, has to be one of the most difficult parts of the spiritual path. So finding my voice with this St. Thérèse book was a challenge. I had to find a way to incorporate the right kind of “me.” I needed to be honest

enough to say that what I’d really been struggling with during my year with her was that, to be a single, aging woman without significant means does not exactly put you at the top of the human heap. That it is all very well to talk about “the scandal of the cross,” but to experience it is a very different thing. That’s exactly where Thérèse came in.

A Little Miracle As a toddler, Thérèse was sunny, winning, confident. But after her mother died, she turned fretful and even neurotic. She suffered from scruples. She tried to over-bond. She cried and then she apologized for crying. Then she made matters worse by apologizing for apologizing. But on Christmas Eve of 1886, when Therese was 13, she underwent what she called her second conversion. “God would have to work a little miracle to make me grow up,” she recognized, “and this miracle He performed on that unforgettable Christmas day.” Here’s how it happened: the custom at the time was for the children of the house to leave their empty shoes by the fire for the parents to fill with Christmas candy. Thérèse, the youngest, was the last to keep up the custom. Upon returning from Mass that night, her usually kind and pious father, uncharacteristically cranky, passed the shoes and remarked, “Well, thank heaven, this will be the last year. Thérèse is really getting too old for this.” Thérèse overheard him. Ordinarily St A n t h o n y M e s s e n g e r . o r g

PHOTO FROM EUGENE PLAISTED, OSC/THE CROSIERS

A Bible Everyone Can Read and Understand

THE MESSAGE Catholic / Ecumenical Edition

Story of My Soul

she would have burst into tears and made a scene, devastated at the thought of having displeased her father. Choking back sobs, she began running upstairs to her room. But at the moment, something changed. Thérèse gathered herself, allowed herself to experience—but not be overwhelmed by—the feelings of hurt, and marched downstairs like an adult to open her presents with gratitude, good cheer, and joy. The episode marked a turning point. In The Story of a Soul, Thérèse wrote: “On that night when He made Himself weak and suffering out of love for me, He made me strong and courageous. He put his armor on me, and since that blessed night I was never defeated in combat.” She also wrote: “On that night of light, the third period of my life began, the most beautiful of them all, the most filled with graces from heaven. I felt a great desire to work for the conversion of sinners, a desire that I had never felt so strongly . . . . In a word, I felt charity enter into my heart, the need to forget myself in order to please others, and ever afterward I was happy!” Thérèse turned a corner. She overcame her childhood fear of abandonment and rejection. After that, she never had to insist on her own way because, in a sense, she always got her own way, which was to love and to be loved by God in total freedom. Fr anciscanMedia.org

Not long before Shirt of Flame: A Year with St. Thérèse of Lisieux came out, I had an epiphany. I realized that I’d been led to St. Thérèse in order to experience a similar conversion: to be shown that the point wasn’t whether my book sold or how successful my work was. The point is that our suffering always bears fruit; that our wounds are often the richest and most useful things about us; that our ongoing conversion is a mystery and blessing. It is not ever going to be given to us on this side to understand. Maybe our true gift is just to figure out who we are and be that. Maybe my personally painful habit of wearing my heart on my sleeve, if I could channel it the right way, was a gift. Mother Marie de Gonzague, the superior at Carmel, ended up writing of Thérèse: “Tall and strong, with the air of a child, with a tone of voice and an expression that hide in her the wisdom, perfection and perspicacity of a 50-year-old . . . a little ‘untouchable saint,’ to whom you would give the Good God without confession, but whose cap is full of mischief to play on whomever she wants. “A mystic, a comic, she is everything. She can make you weep with devotion and just as easily faint with laughing during recreation.” May I take a page from that book as I continue to write my own. A Heather King is the author of four memoirs. She lives in Los Angeles and blogs at shirtofflame. blogspot.com.

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October 2013 ❘ 19

EDITORIAL

Women Leaders in the Church The Church needs to recognize women’s gifts in areas still closed to them. On October 3–4, eight cardinals chosen by Pope Francis will meet to advise him on reform of the Roman Curia and the governance of the worldwide Church. The first issue has gained more attention and interest, but the second one will prove the wisdom of decisions about curial reform. Seven of these cardinals are lifelong pastors from Australia, Chile, Congo, Germany, Honduras, India, and the United States. The eighth one heads the internal government of Vatican City State. All are men. The next time such a group meets, couldn’t that group include women as well? How many crises in the Church might have been avoided—or at least better responded to—if women had direct input about advice given to the pope?

Moving beyond Stereotypes Guests in Their Own House was the title of Carmel E. McEnroy’s 1996 book about Vatican II’s 15 women auditors. Many Catholic women still feel that way about a Church that praises them for nurturing children, caring for the sick, advocating for social justice, and carrying out every other Church task that flows from their Baptism. Many cultures expect men to assume primary responsibility for life outside the home, while welcoming women’s gifts only domestically. Today, however, women also pilot jet planes, perform surgeries, head major corporations, and work at most jobs once reserved to men. Why are women’s gifts appreciated everywhere except the Church? Pope Francis will continue to need assistance in carrying out the unique ministry of St. Peter’s successor. But must his closest collaborators be only men? The number of existing offices, their names, and their internal relationships may certainly change. Is there a valid reason why only men can head the current Congrega2 0 ❘ O ctober 2013

tion for Catholic Education or the Congregation for Institutes of Consecrated Life and Apostolic Life? Women do most of the work in these two areas. Furthermore, couldn’t a woman lead the present pontifical councils for laity, family, migrants and itinerant people, health-care workers, culture, or social communications? At times, the best person for a particular job is a man; other times, it’s a woman. The old stereotype of men as active and women as passive arises from a historical misunderstanding of what each gender contributes to reproduction. Can the Church afford thinking that no woman will ever be the best person for any Church job at this level?

Learning from Francis and Clare On October 4, Pope Francis will visit Assisi, home to Sts. Francis and Clare, who modeled a new way of recognizing each other’s God-given gifts. Between 1212 and 1215, Clare and her sisters often worked alongside the friars Jesus shocked people in caring for lepers. They by recognizing women became cloistered nuns as disciples. Is the after Lateran Council IV; those were the only official Catholic Church really women’s religious commufollowing his lead nities. The Church would wait several centuries before here? finally approving women religious as teachers, nurses, missionaries, and in other types of service. We already have women leaders in the Church: as heads of organizations such as Catholic Relief Services, Focolare, religious communities, secular institutes, and lay movements. As a priest, I sometimes pray at the altar: “And may your Church stand as a living witness to truth and freedom, to peace and justice, that all people may be raised up to a new hope” (Eucharistic Prayer for Various Needs IV). I look forward to the day when the Catholic Church is as open to the gifts of women disciples as Jesus was. —Pat McCloskey, OFM St A n t h o n y M e s s e n g e r . o rg

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Sister Wendy Beckett became a household name in the early â&#x20AC;&#x2122;90s when she started providing art history on public-television programs. In reality, though, sheâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s far from a TV star. She spends her days in solitude and contemplation in a small trailer on the wooded grounds of a Carmelite cloister.

St A n t h o n y M e s s e n g e r . o r g

A Portrait of

SISTER WENDY BECKETT © STARSTOCK/PHOTOSHOT; COMPOSITE OF PAINTING OF THE ANNUNCIATION BY CARAVAGGIO AND PICTURE FRAME © ALEKSEY BAKALEEV/FOTOLIA

Fr anciscanMedia.org

Sister Wendy Beckett This hermit has charmed TV audiences worldwide with her art commentary. Now, she shares her own story. B Y A L I C I A V O N S TA M W I T Z

ISTER WENDY BECKETT is an unlikely television star. She’s a bespectacled, 82-year-old hermit with a slight speech impediment, painful arthritis, and a weak heart. Were it not for her voluminous habit, no one would notice her in a crowd. But this woman is more, much more, than what first meets the eye. Like the religious icons she treasures, she will lead you on astonishing journeys if you let her. For the past two decades, the South Africanborn nun has taken millions of publictelevision viewers on memorable journeys through art history. Her inaugural program in 1992 for the BBC, Sister Wendy’s Odyssey, was an instant hit; more programs followed, including Sister Wendy’s Story of Painting, which first aired in the United States in 1997. Reviewers hailed the five-part series, noting Sister Wendy’s astonishing grasp of Western art. Audiences were enchanted by her enthusiasm, her wit, and her colorful commentaries. Although some were surprised by her success as a television host, those who knew Sister Wendy’s background were not. As a schoolgirl, she was a standout student with a knack for

theater. The School Sisters of Notre Dame, whom she joined at age 16, sent her to Oxford to study English literature. There, she was awarded a Congratulatory First in English Literature—the highest possible honor—and was offered a faculty position by the president of her finals board: J. R. R. Tolkien. After taking final vows, Sister Wendy returned to South Africa where she taught for 16 years: first English and Latin in a convent school in Cape Town, followed by a lectureship at the University of the Witwatersrand in Johannesburg. In 1970, after several bouts of ill health, her religious superiors permitted her to follow her heart’s desire: to live out her days in solitude and contemplation. She moved into a simple trailer on the wooded grounds of the Carmelite cloister at Quidenham in Norfolk, England. She is not technically a Carmelite nun—she is a “consecrated virgin” living under the protection of the community—but the Carmelites look after her by providing one meal a day and helping with correspondence and other practical matters. At first, Sister Wendy earned her keep by translating medieval Latin manuscripts. In the 1980s, she began studying art October 2013 ❘ 23

Author Alicia von Stamwitz traveled to Norfolk, England, to talk with Sister Wendy. Here the two of them are seen on the grounds of the Carmelite Cloister at Quidenham, where Sister Wendy lives.

PHOTO © ANA ARELLANO

and writing essays for British magazines. It was her writing, explains Sister Wendy, that prompted an observant young researcher to suggest her name to the BBC. The rest, as they say, is history. These days, Sister Wendy spends the majority of each day in prayer, beginning at 1 a.m., “when the world is silent and the owls pray with me.” Shortly before 8 a.m., she walks or rides her electric scooter to the community chapel for daily Eucharist. Despite her fame, few know Sister Wendy’s spiritual story. That’s the way she wanted it—until now. “I’ve come out of the closet,” she said recently. “I’m unashamedly Catholic. And that’s what I’m talking about now.” Our interview with Sister Wendy took place on a Friday morning immediately after the 8 a.m. Mass, in the parlor of the Quidenham Carmelite monastery. Q. Tell us about your decision to begin speaking about your faith more openly. A. When I started doing the television programs, I wanted to show people who knew nothing about God that if they responded to beauty, they were responding to God. But I didn’t want to use words that would make them feel that this was only for religious. I didn’t use Christian paintings, and I didn’t 24 ❘ October 2013

use religious language, so as not to alienate atheists who would’ve said, “Oh, this is not for me.” I thought that if people haven’t got the joy of knowing our blessed Lord, maybe they can get somewhere into his brightness by looking at art. Now I feel I no longer have to speak anonymously. I don’t have to hide in the closet and speak as though I am just a disembodied voice. I’m speaking now as a Catholic nun explicitly about the things that are my world, my real life. I’m talking only about religious art and religious topics, and I’m speaking primarily to Catholics and to Christians who accept the sacraments. Q. Were there any key moments in your spiritual journey? A. There weren’t any internal key moments, I think, except perhaps when I was a very small child. I must’ve been about 4 when I became aware of the constant presence of God and of what God wasn’t. He was all love and care, and I knew I had nothing ever to fear because God was there. So you could call that a key moment. I woke up to the fact that we’re not our own; we’re living in God’s world. Perhaps another key moment was when I was 7 and I made my first holy Communion. I had gotten it into my head—or perhaps SisSt A n t h o n y M e s s e n g e r . o r g

ter had told us—that Jesus would speak to us. I was all agog to hear Jesus speak. I can remember as though it were yesterday, coming back from the altar rail intent to hear Jesus speak. And after a little bit it dawned upon me when there was only silence, That’s how he speaks! He speaks in silence! And that’s also been something that has held me in God’s light all my life: the knowledge that we don’t need anything except just to open ourselves and to let him speak in silence. But apart from that I was then just waiting until I finished school so I could be a nun. Q. You entered the School Sisters of Notre Dame? A. Yes. It is a very fine order, and they taught me how to be a nun. I was a teaching nun for 23 years [16 in South Africa], and then I began to realize I needed more time for prayer than the teaching order provided. I needed hours of just being alone on my knees, hours that the sacrifice of the teaching order doesn’t provide. So I had to wait until the order said they saw what I meant and that they would sponsor me going to lead a contemplative life. I’ve been here 42 years now. I never dreamt anything could be as blissful. I’ve had all my longings fulfilled. Just to be a nun was enough, really. And if God had said, “I want you to go on struggling as a teacher,” then I would have accepted that, if that’s what he wanted; because, after all, that is happiness—to do what God wants. Q. Have you ever felt uncertain or wondered whether you really are doing what God wants? A. No. I’ve always had a doubt that I’m not doing what God wants very well, but I think God reveals his will through what happens in every stage of our lives. If I had known in advance that the demands of television would’ve meant there’d be weeks away, I would’ve been very reluctant to do it. But I didn’t realize it; I thought it was going to be a very simple day or two thing. I’ve no doubt that that has been God’s will, too, and it’s all been blessed. It is tedious and very much what I would not choose, but it became obvious that this is what I was meant to do because people were getting such help from it. I’ve just finished another program for the BBC called Novena. Q. Hadn’t you tried to retire 10 years ago? A. Yes! Well, I thought I wasn’t strong enough to go on, but it seems that if they look after me Fr anciscanMedia.org

and I can use a wheelchair, I can stagger through. If there’s an apostolic need, I can’t say I don’t want to help. It would be so selfish. I don’t think I would feel at peace in solitude if I said, “I don’t want to do these films or write these books.” I think the sacrifice is called for; it’s a necessity. Every life has to have sacrifice, and that’s mine. Q. I think one benefit is that people who otherwise would never cross paths with a nun feel at ease with you and listen to you. A. That is true. There’s nothing frightening about me. Even my teeth have been a blessing, you see. I mean, one of the sisters here, the former prioress, is just beautiful—she has those beautiful bones, and she’s slender. She looks holy, whereas I just look like an old frump. It’s fine! Q. Of course, your television fans don’t really know you. Do you pay attention to how you’re described in the press? A. I try not to pay attention to what the press says, really, as it is often very humiliating. I don’t watch my programs, you know. Don’t want to watch them. And I’m very bad at talking about myself. I remember when I was a novice, the novice mistress said, “Now, I want you to think about what is your best quality and what is your worst quality.” I was absolutely stymied. When I try to look at myself, I just see our blessed Lord. I can’t get past that to isolate me. As for an outsider view, Blessed Pope John Paul II apparently said that he liked very much what I did because it showed people how happy one is as a Catholic. That in itself is good, you see, if a relatively plain, dull, elderly woman can be filled with such happiness. I think I’d like people to say, “She tries her best to show the beauty of the Lord.” It never occurred to me that people would notice me. I remember my shock after I’d made my first series and somebody said to me, “You’re so delightful. And the art is good, too.” And I thought, Gracious heavens!—you know? Am I getting in the way? But there’s no other way to do it. To be true to the art, I can’t think of myself or be very self-conscious. I just have got to forget about myself and think about what I’m trying to say.

I’m speaking now as a Catholic nun explicitly about the things that are my world, my real life. I’m talking only about religious art and religious topics, and I’m speaking primarily to Catholics and to Christians who accept the sacraments.

Q. Your commentary on art has been called learned, funny, and occasionally “shockingly” earthy. A. I know. I got a shock when I realized that October 2013 ❘ 25

tal Digi as Extr

people were shocked! As Catholics, we revere the body because God made it. We’ve none of this prudishness that I’ve discovered is rampant in the world; that certain topics are a “no-no” just because they have to do with the human body. That’s not our blessed Lord. He speaks very frankly in the Scriptures. Click here to learn more The real shock is that so about Sister Wendy Beckett. many people regard God as cold and judgmental, and they don’t see that God is father in the purest sense. This lack of awareness is not their fault, you know. St. Paul says, “How will they know unless somebody tells them?”

CUP © MICHAEL HARE/FOTOLIA; BACKGROUND © IRINA TISCHENKO/PHOTOXPRESS

Q. Could you tell us about your own awareness of God and practice of prayer? A. Well, I am on record as saying I spend seven hours a day in prayer, but in actual fact, I consider my whole time as prayer, because I think prayer is a direction. We don’t stop praying when we get out of our prayer position. So I can’t think of anything I wouldn’t consider a prayer activity. But strictly speaking—I don’t like making these categories, I don’t think they apply, really—when I pray I am sitting silently, look-

I consider my whole time as prayer, because I think prayer is a direction. When I get up to make a cup of coffee, I don’t consider that my prayer has stopped for making coffee. No, it is another form of prayer.

ing at nothing, but aware of the icons who are praying with me. I don’t go through anything specifically, I don’t have any specific image, but, as I say, when I get up to make a cup of coffee, I don’t consider that my prayer has stopped for making coffee. No, it is another form of prayer. First it was an intense silence, and now it’s a freer silence, but it’s equally a way of opening myself to God. 26 ❘ October 2013

Q. You mention praying with icons. Is any saint particularly close when you pray? A. I feel when you pray the whole Church prays with you, which, of course, includes the whole Church in heaven. But the saint who’s been most encouraging to me is Saint Thérèse of Lisieux, who, I think, is the absolute paradigm of what sanctity means. A simple life just given to God with nothing special about it. I’ve always read and loved Thérèse. Q. What other spiritual reading or writers do you recommend? A. Well, I’ve always been against spiritual reading. Not all spiritual reading—I’m a great believer in commentaries on the Scripture and inspiring lives of the saints—but I think books on prayer are very dangerous, because people can read them and think that’s praying whereas prayer needs nothing. So, I say, don’t read books on prayer. Don’t try to protect yourself against God by thinking you need to know how to do it or being afraid that you don’t know how to do it. Anyone can do it. God does it. Simply be there and let God do it. Prayer is God’s business, not our business. All he wants is to give himself to us. We just have to be there to receive him. Q. What would be your hope for anyone reading this interview—the feeling he or she would come away with? A. That God’s there for you; that there’s nothing to prevent you: just let God love you. You don’t need any special virtues; he will draw you into those virtues. You’ve got to have your direction absolutely set on God, and it takes a long time for God to be your sole direction. But you can begin by having 10 minutes in which you just stay still and let God shine on you. Then it will lengthen, and then it will grow, so perhaps after 50 years you will be able to spend your whole day letting God shine on you. And you shouldn’t want to do too much all at once, you see, because we’re weak. But God will give you what you want. If you want him, he will give himself to you. A Alicia von Stamwitz is a freelance writer based in St. Louis, Missouri. She studied journalism at Washington University.

Sister Wendy’s new books—Sister Wendy on the Art of Christmas, Sister Wendy on the Art of Mary, and Sister Wendy on the Art of Saints—all are available at FranciscanMedia.org.

St A n t h o n y M e s s e n g e r . o r g

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POETRY

Reverie

The House on Wilson Street

I dreamt of tawny maples celebrating autumn from dawn till twilight with a rhapsody on a rainy night, with its melody and under moonlight with a symphony. Awakened by daylight I celebrate autumn with poetry.

At the old abandoned house on Wilson Street, a tire swing is no longer the family pendulum. Shutters, with their plies of paint, hang there, crooked pictures. Shingles sag like melted wax. The sidewalk is overlaid by rampant weeds, once at bay. Spatter of dirty, broken windows too dark to see through and when the wind with rain is driving like Jehu, whistling enters the house through them, tries to awaken whoever may be sleeping, but only memories are the tenants now.

—Jean Gier

—Herman Bush

Prelude: Early Morning after the Rain Wild stalk of life the heron stands motionless in standing water contemplating the quiet dawn

Harmonica Player

his wings unfold magnificent petals to the sun gathering the empty air in delicate embrace

He blows on a Silverbird, walking around silk walls, thinking in circles, not in lines like most of us. I hear him play in the long, southern night

release the clinging earth he rises—a burst of emptiness; water rushing back—a hush wild, stiff weeds bed rippling, gone

And wonder if he is a young and dreaming boy, or an old, tired man shaking the house inside himself the only way he can . . . in his harmonica.

—Herman Sutter

—Marion Schoeberlein

Divine Violins

Changing Sky

God’s grace plucks soul strings. Sweet melodies deep within: Divine Violins.

Leaves of gold and amber fall in unison from trees once proud and lush. I try to catch these little treasures, but the autumn winds refuse me, carrying them off and up to a patient, wintering sky.

—Jeanette Martino Land

—Ryan Cory

2 8 ❘ O ctober 2013

St A n t h o n y M e s s e n g e r . o rg

The Spirit of

St. Francis

e was a man ahead of his time. In an era that had seen only rich and poor, a new group, the

merchant class, was arising. Wealth came with trade, and more people were getting in on it. One was Peter di Bernadone, who, from Assisi, Italy, was establishing a lucrative business in selling cloth from faraway places. His son, John, nicknamed Francis (“Frenchman”) by his father, grew up as his father’s business expanded. He was one of the new wealthy. Yet Francis saw that the rise of the merchant class was still leaving people behind—lots of them. Young Francis left it all to devote himself to God’s truth, that each and every one of these people—even the fields, forests, and animals all around—was valuable. It was a shocking statement that we grapple with even today, when poverty and wealth seem inextricably tied, one to the other, and environmental destruction marches forward. We often offer a new article on St. Francis each October (Francis’ feast day is October 4). This year, though, Francis is in the news in a big way, with the election of Pope Francis. We ILLUSTRATION BY CHRIS KOEHLER

decided to offer this special section, written by four friars who are at the heart of Franciscan Media: Jack Wintz, Pat McCloskey, Murray Bodo, and Dan Kroger. We hope you enjoy it. —John Feister, Editor in Chief October 2013 ❘ 29

30 ❘ October 2013

St A n t h o n y M e s s e n g e r . o r g

The Spirit of

St. Francis

7 Key Moments

in the Life of St. Francis These events in Francis’ life brought him closer to Christ. BY JACK WINTZ, OFM

efore looking at the first key moment in the life of St. Francis of Assisi, let’s set the stage by focusing on his early life. Francis was born in 1182 in Assisi. He was the son of a prosperous cloth merchant, Peter Bernadone. His companions saw him as a carefree youth, calling him the “King of Revels.” Francis enjoyed partying with his friends and had dreams of becoming a knight and gaining glory on the battlefield. But shortly after riding off to fight against Perugia, a nearby town, he ended up in their prison, a broken and disillusioned young man. It was after his return from prison, and during the recovery that followed, that Francis’ life was changed.

Francis Meets a Leper

Like most of his contemporaries, Francis felt a disdain for lepers and avoided them at all costs. One day, before his conversion, Francis was riding his horse alone in the countryside. As he moved along the road, he caught sight of a leper walking toward him. Francis’ instinct was to turn back or move off to the side to avoid contact with the poor wretch. But FranFr anciscanMedia.org

St. Francis’ encounter with a leper changed both of their lives. This bronze sculpture is at Rivorto, home of the earliest followers of Francis, in the plains below Assisi, near the place of the encounter.

cis instead rode directly toward this man with parts of his face and hands eaten away by this dreaded disease. Francis dismounted his horse, and warmly embraced and kissed the leper tenderly on his lips. In his Testament, Francis writes, “When I was in sin, the sight of lepers nauseated me beyond measure; but then God himself led

October 2013 ❘ 31

me into their company, and I had pity on them. When I had once become acquainted with them, what had previously nauseated me became a source of physical consolation for me. After that I did not wait long before leaving the world.” Francis eventually came to realize that he had actually embraced none other than his Lord, Jesus Christ. Francis soon found himself living with lepers and caring for them. His meeting and embracing the leper was the best preparation Francis could have had for the founding of a new order in the Church, whose highest ideal was to serve the poorest of the poor. Some time later, Francis was praying alone in front of a crucifix in the abandoned chapel of San Damiano, located down the hill from Assisi. Suddenly, Francis heard these words of Christ coming from the cross: “Francis, repair my house, which is falling into ruin.” Francis realized later that it was a much bigger house— the Christian Church itself—that Christ was asking him to rebuild.

2 Francis, who received the stigmata at La Verna, was a Herald of the Great King, proclaiming God’s goodness in deed, and when necessary, in word.

Not long after this, Francis, dressed in rough clothing, took precious merchandise from his father’s store and sold it to his customers, in order to pay for the rebuilding of the fallendown chapel. He also sold his father’s horse. Francis’ father, Peter, would have preferred to see Francis go back to wearing fancy attire and throwing parties for his old chums. He was aghast and embarrassed, moreover, to learn that Francis was often caring for the lepers, who were living in the valley below Assisi. In response, his father, boiling with rage, dragged Francis before the bishop of Assisi and demanded the return of his property and goods. Francis readily agreed to this. In the hearing of all present, Francis said, “From now on I will no longer say, My Father Peter Bernadone, but Our Father who art in heaven.” Francis gave back to his father not only his property and goods, but the money and all his clothes as well. Francis carefully placed his clothing on the ground. The bishop, admiring Francis’ fervor, drew him into his arms and covered him with his mantle. The bishop understood that Francis’ actions were inspired by God—and were part of God’s way of leading Francis into an amazingly new form of life. Francis’ heart was overflowing with joy. His heavenly Father had set him free of all attachment to earthly things.

Francis, the Herald of the Great King

Francis, who used to wear fine garments, now went about clad in the poorest of clothing. As he went through a nearby woods, singing praises to the Lord in French, robbers suddenly rushed out upon him. When they asked him gruffly who he was, Francis replied confidently in a loud voice, “I am the herald of the great King!” Then they struck him again and again, and threw him into a ditch filled with deep snow, saying, “Just lie there in the snow, ‘Herald of the great King!’” But Francis simply brushed off the snow. And when they had gone away, he jumped out of the ditch, and with great joy began to call out the praises of God in a loud voice. Francis then walked along until he came to the steps of a monastery, where he hoped the monks

32 ❘ October 2013

Francis Breaks with His Father

Francis was now ready to serve the Lord simply and without fear. For all who follow St. Francis of Assisi today, this kind of poverty and detachment can lead to the freedom to, in St. Matthew’s words, become “children of your heavenly Father, for he makes his sun rise on the bad and the good, and causes rain to fall on the just and the unjust. . . . So be perfect, just as your heavenly Father is perfect” (5:45,48).

St A n t h o n y M e s s e n g e r . o r g

might clothe him in exchange for work. They did so, but Francis only stayed with them for a short while. This whole episode seemed only to reinforce Francis’ sense of freedom and his trust in the providence of God. He would need to cultivate this spirit more and more because he would still face harsher challenges in the days ahead. True followers of St. Francis today remain conscious of their great mission: to be “Heralds of the great King.” In St. Paul’s Letter to the Philippians, we find echoes of this lofty ideal: Christ Jesus “emptied himself, taking the form of a slave, coming in human likeness . . . he humbled himself, becoming obedient to death, even death on a cross. Because of this, God greatly exalted him. . .” (2:7-9). Guided by the Holy Spirit, St. Francis’ followers still strive to seek this ideal today!

honor, all blessing; to you we must refer all good always. Amen.”

Clare Enters the Franciscan Family

The daughter of a noble Assisian family, Clare was known for her love of God and of the poor. She was attracted to the Gospel way of life preached by St. Francis. Secretly in the dark of night, to the dismay of her wealthy family, Clare met with Francis and his small band of brothers to commit her life totally to God. There in the Portiuncula chapel, she exchanged her golden hair for a simple habit.

St. Clare had a passion for prayer, a life of poverty and humility, and a generous concern for the needy. She was a force to be reckoned with.

Francis Spends a Night in Prayer

Fr anciscanMedia.org

Bernard of Quintavalle was the first brother to follow Francis and his simple way of life. A wealthy Assisian, Bernard sold all his possessions and gave the money to the poor. He was ready to throw in his lot with Francis, but first he wanted to test Francis’ holiness. One evening, Bernard invited Francis to join him for supper at his home. After a pleasant meal, Bernard invited him to stay overnight. Bernard had a bed prepared for Francis in his own room. Shortly after Francis entered the room, he threw himself down and pretended to fall asleep. A short time later, Bernard went to bed and also pretended to sleep—with snores and all. His plan was to watch Francis carefully during the night. With Bernard secretly observing him, Francis got onto his knees and raised his hands in prayer. Then Bernard was amazed to hear Francis earnestly repeating throughout the night “My God and my all!” The Little Flowers of St. Francis informs us that St. Francis repeated the words while marveling at and contemplating the goodness of Almighty God (Omnibus of Sources, p. 1303). Time and again, God’s goodness and love amazed Francis. In a prayer from his Praises Before the Office, St. Francis suddenly begins repeating the word good, almost as if intoxicated by it: “All powerful, all holy, most high and supreme God, sovereign good, all good, every good, you who alone are good, it is to you we must give all praise, all glory, all thanks, all

She would soon begin a quickly growing community of contemplative women devoted to living the Gospel. Clare remained a close friend and associate of St. Francis, even though she was committed to staying in her monastery alongside the other Poor Clare nuns, named after their foundress. St. Clare died in 1253, outliving her great friend Francis by almost 27 years. Until her death, Clare kept her ideals: a passion for prayer, a life of poverty and humility, and a generous concern for the needy. The close bond between the Poor Clares and the Franciscan friars remains strong and joyful in our day. The Clares serve as vibrant October 2013 ❘ 33

models of intense union with God, which all Franciscans—and indeed all human beings— are meant to foster, as the Holy Spirit prompts.

Francis Receives the Stigmata

Today the Chapel of the Stigmata sits on the same sheer precipice where St. Francis stood two years before his death. There he was swept up into the mystery of God’s overwhelming love for him and for humanity. St. Bonaventure, an early Franciscan leader and theologian, in his Life of St. Francis, describes Francis as being more inflamed than usual with the love of God as he began a special time of solitary prayer on Mount La Verna in September 1224. “Francis’ unquenchable fire of love for the good Jesus,” Bonaventure writes, “was fanned into such a blaze of flames that many waters could not quench so powerful a love” (see Song of Songs 8:6-7). St. Bonaventure goes on: “While Francis was praying on the mountainside, he saw a Seraph, with six fiery and shining wings, descend from the height of heaven. And when in swift flight the Seraph had reached a spot in the air near the man of God, there appeared between the wings the figure of a man crucified, with his hands and feet extended in the form of a cross and fastened to a cross. Two of the wings were lifted above his head, two were extended for flight and two covered his whole body. “When Francis saw this, he was overwhelmed and his heart was flooded with a mixture of joy and sorrow. He rejoiced because of the gracious way Christ looked upon him under the appearance of a seraph, but the fact

that he was fastened to a cross pierced his soul with a sword of compassionate sorrow (Luke 2:35).” When the vision disappeared, writes Bonaventure, “imprinted on his body were markings that were no less marvelous.” These markings were the stigmata—the five wounds of Christ. What did St. Francis experience? The simple servant of God had suddenly understood in a flash the unimaginable love of God, a love that holds nothing back from us—not even God’s only son. Many religious thinkers see this as the secret of St. Francis’ spirituality, namely, Francis’ profound appreciation for the overflowing love of God!

The Death of St. Francis

When Francis of Assisi’s days on earth were growing short, according Thomas of Celano, his first biographer, the saint instructed his brothers, “When I am dying, lay me naked on the ground . . . and let me lie there after I am dead for the length of time it takes to walk one mile unhurriedly” (Second Life of St. Francis of Assisi, Vol. 1, CLXIII, Omnibus of Sources). Francis’ brothers honored his request. They reverently placed his body on the ground and let it lie there for some 30 minutes. Not long before he took his last breath, Francis invited all creatures to praise God, as the saint had so often done in his Canticle of Brother Son (also known as the Canticle of the Creatures). Yes, Francis wanted to exhort all his “brother” and “sister” creatures to praise and love God. The gesture of Francis lying naked on Mother Earth strikingly reveals how comfort-

At the hour of the holy man’s passing . . . They came in a great flock over the roof of the house and, whirling around for a long time with unusual joy, gave clear and evident testimony

of the glory of the saint.

34 ❘ October 2013

—St. Bonaventure

St A n t h o n y M e s s e n g e r . o r g

able Francis had become with the whole world of creation, including his human body. Like Adam before the fall, Francis was not ashamed of his nakedness. Francis had become keenly aware that Jesus, in his incarnation, had entered our world and transformed the earth (and the human form) through his saving presence among us. St. Francis had come to believe that both the earth and his bodyâ&#x20AC;&#x201D;through the incarnation of Christâ&#x20AC;&#x201D;had become profoundly good. St. Francis often said to his followers,â&#x20AC;&#x153;What a man is before God, that he is and no more.â&#x20AC;? With great humility, Francis had often applied these words to himself. As many of us know, when Francis lay there on the earth, he was bearing on his body the stigmataâ&#x20AC;&#x201D;the brand marks of Christ. These sacred marks remind us how closely Francis had become identified with Christ. He was also filled with awe because of Christâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s overflowing love: As we read in John 15:13, â&#x20AC;&#x153;No one has greater love than this, to lay down oneâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s life for oneâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s friends.â&#x20AC;? Our reflections on St. Francisâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; death end with a few short passages from St. Bonaventureâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Life of St. Francis: â&#x20AC;&#x153;At last, when all of Godâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s mysteries were fulfilled in him,â&#x20AC;? writes Bonaventure, â&#x20AC;&#x153;the blessed man fell asleep in the Lord. One of his brothers and disciples saw his soul under the appearance of a radiant star being carried aloft in a shining cloud over many waters on a direct path into heaven.â&#x20AC;? Finally Bonaventure describes a gathering of larks which appeared â&#x20AC;&#x153;at the hour of the holy manâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s passing. . . . They came in a great flock over the roof of the house and, whirling around for a long time with unusual joy, gave clear and evident testimony of the glory of the saint, who so often invited them to praise God.â&#x20AC;? The image of those larks is an invitation to us all. A Jack Wintz, OFM, is editor emeritus of this publication. He is author of many books, including Will I See My Pet in Heaven? (available from Franciscan Media). His free e-newsletter is Friar Jackâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s E-spirations (FriarJack.org). Fr anciscanMedia.org

ANSWERS TO PETE AND REPEAT 1. Pete now has only four apples. 2. The man in the background now has a mustache. 3. The leaves have changed to orange. 4. A pumpkin has disappeared. 5. Pete is no longer wearing a turtleneck. 6. There is one fewer branch in the tree. 7. The manâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s jacket now has a belt. 8. The bushes are lower.

St. Francis

believed that every one of us could touch a life and transform the world. Follow in the footsteps of St. Francis by supporting the Franciscansâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; work among the poor and forgotten.

Visit us at www.franciscan.org to learn more about the life of St. Francis and the work of the Friars of St. John the Baptist Province.

The Franciscan Friars, Province of St. John the Baptist 6INE 3T 3TE s #INCINNATI /( s FRIARWORKS FRANCISCAN ORG s WWW FRANCISCAN ORG WWW FACEBOOK COM &RANCISCANFRIARS

October 2013 â?&#x2DC; 35

The Spirit of

St. Francis

The

Ultimate Disciple In poverty, he found the greatest of riches. B Y M U R R AY B O D O , O F M

DETAIL OF SAINT FRANCIS RECEIVING THE STIGMATA BY GIOTTO DI BONDONE/THE BRIDGEMAN ART LIBRARY

he ultimate disciple. The poor, itinerant, preaching brother of penance. He who suffered in the wilderness with Christ, he who was misunderstood, betrayed by some of his own brothers, and who loved Christ so much that he became the Lovescape of Christ. This is St. Francis of Assisi. The great poet Gerard Manley Hopkins invented the word “Lovescape” to encapsulate how he saw St. Francis’ relationship with Jesus Christ. Francis was Christ’s “Lovescape crucified and seal of his seraph-arrival.” Hopkins is speaking of Francis on the mountain of La Verna, where he received the sacred stigmata of Christ that sealed him as a visible image of the crucified Christ, Christ’s “Lovescape.” On La Verna, St. Francis’ transformation into Christ was made visible in his body through the visitation of a seraph-angel whose six wings surrounded the body of the risen crucified Christ. Francis had become the very personification of Christ’s words, “You will know that I am in my Father, and you in me, and I in you” (Jn 14:20). When you look at St. Francis, you see the crucified Christ whose presence within Francis was so real and so intense that the very wounds of Christ crucified broke forth in his Fr anciscanMedia.org

body, revealing to the whole world that here, indeed, was the ultimate disciple of Christ, who not only bore in his body the wounds of Christ, but whose heart was filled with the love that moved Christ to suffer for love of us. As St. Francis himself articulates so beautifully in one of the prayers attributed to him, “May the fiery and honey-sweet power of your love, O Lord, wean me from all things under heaven, so that I may die for love of your love, who deigned to die for love of my love.” Where, then, did this transformation begin and how did it come about? It all began with two transforming events in the young Francis Bernardone’s life: the embrace of a leper and his attendance at Mass on what was then the Feast of St. Matthias, February 24, 1208. Both events represent the radical poverty of St. Francis and how Gospel poverty defined who he was. This radical poverty, in the words of the medieval Franciscan poet Jacopone da Todi, is this: Poverty is to have nothing And to desire nothing And to possess everything In a spirit of freedom. It seems from these lines that to have nothing and desire nothing is what Franciscan

The stigmata, which St. Francis received on the mountain of La Verna, confirmed Francis as a visible image of the crucified Christ or, as author Murray Bodo says, “the ultimate disciple.”

October 2013 ❘ 37

poverty is all about, but it is the last line, “in a spirit of freedom,” that is the essence. It was not letting go of things that made St. Francis Christ’s Lovescape, but letting go of his ego.

Francis’ Epiphany

A Poor, Itinerant Preacher In overcoming himself and embracing the leper, Francis found true Gospel poverty; he found a poverty that was a new kind of riches. Now he had only to rid himself of whatever

This statue outside the Basilica of St. Francis in Assisi, Italy, depicts St. Francis returning to the town, a humbled and broken man, following an epiphany on the road to Spoleto.

His had been a grand ambition: He wanted, a merchant’s son though he was, to become a knight, to ascend through military prowess to the ranks of the nobility. He desired to be somebody, to be influential, to matter. But in his first foray into war, he was captured in a decisive battle between Assisi and the neighboring hill town of Perugia and spent a year in a Perugian prison. It is said that he tried to cheer his fellow soldiers, but his health began to decline; and when he returned to Assisi a year later, he was a broken man who had to spend another year recuperating. When he finally was able to venture outdoors again, nothing seemed the same; the glow of nature no longer shone for him. Was he in a state of post-traumatic shock? Was he simply depressed? Whatever the case, the things that before had stimulated and excited

Francis realized that he had it all wrong, and he returned to Assisi, not knowing what he was supposed to do, or even what he was searching for. He began to visit abandoned churches and caves where he prayed incessantly for enlightenment. Then one day when he was riding his horse on the road below Assisi, he saw a leper on the road and was moved to get down off his high horse, as it were—a huge gesture for the ambitious young man—and not only place coins in the leper’s outstretched hand, but on an extraordinary impulse, he actually embraced the leper, realizing as he did so, that he was embracing the Lord, Jesus Christ, who is also the Servant. In embracing this servant, he was paradoxically embracing the Lord. He had relinquished the dominance of his ego. He was no longer paralyzed. He was free.

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him—the revels, the beauties of nature, singing, and dancing—no longer lifted his spirit, until one day when he heard about another call to arms, this time to join the papal forces in Apulia, south of Rome, under the command of the celebrated Walter of Brienne. Francis was now awakened from his torpor and once again set forth with other Assisi cavFor more information on St. aliers to join the papal armies. Francis of Assisi, click here. But after only one day on the road, he had a dream in the nearby city of Spoleto in which a voice asked him, “Francis, who is it better to serve, the Lord or the servant?” “Why, the Lord, of course.” “Then why are you serving the servant?” Then, in a moment of insight, of epiphany,

38 ❘ October 2013

else was keeping him from this hidden treasure he had found. He discovered what that was in the small chapel of St. Mary of the Angels, hidden among the woods and marshes of the plain where the lepers lived. It was February 24, 1208, and Francis was attending Mass; at the reading of the Gospel, he heard the Gospel passage that changed his life. It not only completed his vision of poverty, but it also gave him the lifestyle he was to embrace. And this is how it was, as his first biographer, Thomas of Celano, narrates it: “But when on a certain day the Gospel was read in that church, how the Lord sent his disciples out to preach, the holy man of God, assisting there, understood somewhat the words of the Gospel; and after Mass he humbly asked the priest to explain the Gospel to him more fully. When the priest had set forth in St A n t h o n y M e s s e n g e r . o r g

PHOTO © JIM MCINTOSH

order all these things, the holy Francis, hearing that Christ’s disciples should not possess gold or silver or money; nor carry along the way scrip, or wallet, or bread, or a staff; that they should not have shoes, or two tunics; but that they should preach the kingdom of God and penance, he immediately cried out exultingly: `This is what I wish, this is what I seek, this is what I long to do with all my heart.’” And that is what Francis did; he became what Jesus asked his disciples to become: a poor, itinerant, preaching brother of penance. He took to the road, he had no fixed abode, and he was brother to everyone he met along the way and to all of creation. And he became a brother in another way he never anticipated. Other men joined him, and they became a brotherhood who embraced lepers and lived out the Gospel passage, the form of life given to them in the Gospel for the Mass of St. Matthias. St. Francis relates the coming of the brothers in these words: “And after the Lord gave me some brothers, no one showed me what do; but the Most High revealed to me that I was to live after the manner of the Holy Gospel. And I had it written down in brief, simple words and the Lord Pope confirmed it for me. And those who came to receive this life gave everything to the poor, and they were happy with one tunic patched inside and out, and with a cord and breeches. And we had no desire for anything else.”

The Penance of Conversion And Francis himself began to fall deeper and deeper in love with the Christ he met in the leper and in all those other servants who were really Christ: the poor, the marginal, those rejected by society, the weak, the infirm, the powerless. For, in loving Christ, Francis realized that the servant is the Lord, and the Lord is the servant. More importantly, he realized that the penance he was to preach, and his brothers were to preach, is the penance of conversion, of letting go of one’s ego and surrendering to a love which to others seems madness, but to the true lover is sanity. True, even to a deeply committed disciple like St. Francis, the embrace of Christ can feel at times like annihilation, like death itself, because, in fact, one is dying to something. One is dying to a false self that tries to be God, that tries to always be in control. But that dying is really life, the new life Jesus promised to those who relinquish their own willfulness Fr anciscanMedia.org

as he did when he said in the Garden of Gethsemane, “My Father, if it is possible, may this cup be taken from me. Yet not as I will but as you will.” That surrendering of his own will to the Father’s will was the beginning of Christ’s resurrection and our resurrection, for by accepting the cup the Father offers us, we accept death, but a death that is life-giving. A

St. Francis’ embrace of the leper, as seen in this mosaic located in Vatican City, was a key point in Francis’ conversion.

This text is excerpted from the new book Francis and Jesus by Murray F. Bodo (Franciscan Media). Murray Bodo, OFM, is a Franciscan priest and the author of numerous award-winning books, such as Francis: The Journey and the Dream. He writes and lectures on Franciscan spirituality, and travels yearly to Rome and Assisi, where he leads Franciscan pilgrimages. October 2013 ❘ 39

The Spirit of

St. Francis

Pope Francis

Why the Name Fits This first Jesuit pope chose the name Francis. His actions are telling us why. B Y P A T M C C L O S K E Y, O F M

hen Jesuit Cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio chose to be called Pope Francis after St. Francis of Assisi, many people around the world were surprised but approved instantly. Although Francis of Assisi was canonized two years after he died in 1226, no pope had ever selected that name. Cardinal Bergoglio’s choice was innovative (patron of ecology), yet traditional (Francis and Catherine of Siena are co-patrons of Italy). Pope Francis will certainly have more to say about his namesake when he visits Assisi on October 4, the feast of St. Francis of Assisi. A new papal style and new priorities have clearly emerged. Indeed, in one of the general congregations before the conclave, Cardinal Bergoglio stated that the Church needs to be less “self-referential” and more focused on calling attention to Jesus than to itself. Francis of Assisi could not have agreed more strongly. Perhaps Popes Nicholas IV, Sixtus IV, Sixtus V, and Clement XIV (all Franciscans) didn’t 40 ❘ October 2013

choose the name Francis because they wanted to avoid setting the bar too high for themselves. Or maybe they passed over the name for the same reason other popes have not taken the name Peter—out of respect. Pope Francis has certainly set the bar high for himself—and, by extension, for the Catholic Church. Other Christians quickly resonated with his name choice because St. Francis of Assisi can teach everyone a great deal.

Explaining His Choice On March 16, Pope Francis told over 5,000 journalists in the Paul VI Audience Hall that when he was elected, Cardinal Claudio Hummes, OFM, hugged him and said, “Don’t forget the poor.” Pope Francis described his new patron as “the man of poverty, the man of peace, the man who loves and protects creation . . . with which we don’t have such a good relationship.” After saying, “How I would like a Church that is poor and that is for the poor,” the pope noted that the Church “does not have a political nature, but a spiritual one.” St A n t h o n y M e s s e n g e r . o r g

Pope Francis waves as he meets with patients, family, and staff at St. Francis of Assisi Hospital in Rio de Janeiro July 24. The pope addressed a group of recovering drug addicts, offering them a message of compassion and hope as well as a call to self-determination.

CNS PHOTO/PAUL HARING

October 2013 â?&#x2DC; 41

CNS PHOTO/L’OSSERVATORE ROMANO

Pope Francis sits with Vatican workers after celebrating Mass March 22 inside the chapel of the Domus Sanctae Marthae, the Vatican residence where the new pontiff resides. The pope took a seat in the back row as people lingered for private prayer.

That is reinforced through the pope’s choices. For example, he lives in a small suite at the Vatican’s Domus Sanctae Marthae (a modest hotel) instead of the apostolic palace, and usually celebrates daily Mass and gives a homily at his new residence. For years, Cardinal Bergoglio had lived in a modest apartment, done his own cooking, and taken public transportation. He caught the world’s attention by naming a commission of eight cardinals to advise him on governing the Church and reforming the Roman Curia. They are meeting on October 3 and 4. “The Church,” Pope Francis told the journalists, “is the people of God, the holy people of

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God, because it is journeying toward an encounter with Jesus Christ. Christ is the pastor of the Church, but his presence passes through the freedom of human beings. Among them, one is chosen to serve as his vicar on earth. But Christ is the center, the focal point.” The pope then urged the journalists to continue trying “to discover the true nature of For more resources on Pope the Church and its journey Francis, click here. through the world, with its virtues, as well as its sins.” The pope’s July 8 visit to the Italian island of Lampedusa (to show solidarity with immigrants) and, later, to Rio de Janeiro (to participate in World Youth Day) reflected the concerns and style of his service as bishop of Rome and pope.

Pope Francis in Brazil His July 22-29 visit to Rio de Janeiro and to the Marian shrine at Aparecida confirmed a new papal style. 42 ❘ October 2013

At Aparecida, the heads of bishops’ conferences of Latin America spent a month in 2007, drawing up a plan for evangelizing that continent anew. Cardinal Bergoglio chaired that work. Catholic News Service reported that on July 24 he told pilgrims there, “The Aparecida document was born of this interplay between the labors of the bishops and the simple faith of the pilgrims.” He later said, “Always know in your hearts that God is by your side; he never abandons you.” Later that day he described the Hospital of St. Francis of Assisi in a working-class neighborhood as “a shrine of human suffering” whose patients are “the flesh of Christ.” The pope went on to recall Francis’ embrace of a leper outside Assisi. During this visit, Pope Francis dedicated a new wing for treatment of users of crack cocaine. He described the entire hospital as a place where “the parable of the good Samaritan is made tangible. Here there is no indifference, but concern. There is no apathy, but love.” On July 25, he told the residents of Rio’s Varginha shantytown: “Only when we are able to share do we become truly rich; everything that is shared is multiplied! The measure of the greatness of a society is found in the way it treats those most in need, those who have nothing apart from their poverty!” That day’s welcoming ceremony at Copacabana Beach drew an estimated 1 million pilgrims. Rhoe Price (20, from Narre Warren, Australia) described the humility and simplicity of the pope as “inspiring,” reported Catholic News Service. Two days later, Pope Francis urged Brazilian bishops to lead without being authoritarian, to live simply and austerely, and to avoid episcopal careerism. He also pointed out that clericalism has kept the Church from fulfilling its mission of sharing Jesus’ good news. At the final Mass, Pope Francis urged those present to go, to not be afraid, and to serve. “The life of Jesus is a life for others. It is a life of service,” he reminded them.

Everything Belongs to God St. Francis of Assisi considered “appropriation” as the root sin because it claims for a person what belongs to God alone. In calling us to live more truthfully, Pope Francis is inviting us to avoid claiming for ourselves what belongs to God alone. St A n t h o n y M e s s e n g e r . o r g

Pope Francis blesses a boy in the Varginha shantytown in Rio de Janeiro July 25, during his weeklong visit to Brazil for World Youth Day. CNS PHOTO/PAUL HARING CNS PHOTO/L’OSSERVATORE ROMANO

CNS PHOTO/L’OSSEVATORE ROMANO

To put it another way, Pope Francis, who was a servant leader as archbishop of Buenos Aires for 15 years, is encouraging Catholics and others to avoid appropriation, but, instead, to be humbly attentive to the truth, goodness, and beauty that come from God alone. At the July 25 welcoming ceremony at Copacabana Beach, Pope Francis cited St. Paul’s advice, “Put on Christ” (Rom 13:14). The pope continued: “Place your trust in him and you will never be disappointed! You see how faith accomplishes a revolution in us, one which we can call Copernican, because it removes us from the center and restores it to God; faith immerses us in his love and gives us security, strength, and hope.” Francis of Assisi would heartily agree. A

(Above) Pope Francis accepts the offertory gifts during Mass on the island of Lampedusa July 8. The pope called for repentance over treatment of migrants during his visit to the Italian island where massive numbers of Africans have landed in attempts to reach Europe. (Left) Pope Francis holds a dove before his weekly audience in St. Peter’s Square May 15.

Father Pat McCloskey, OFM, is Franciscan editor of this publication. He edited Franciscan Media’s updated and revised Saint of the Day volume published last month. Fr anciscanMedia.org

October 2013 ❘ 43

YEAR OF FAITH

❘ BY DAN KROGER, OFM

Our Gaze Fixed on Jesus “During this time we will need to keep our gaze fixed upon Jesus Christ, the ‘pioneer and perfecter of our faith’ (Heb 12:2); in him, all the anguish and all the longing of the human heart finds fulfillment.” Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI, Door of Faith, 13

4 4 ❘ O ctober 2013

Francis of Assisi was a poor little man who astounded and inspired the Church by taking the Gospel literally— not in a narrow fundamentalist sense, but by actually following all that Jesus said and did, joyfully, without limit and without a sense of self-importance. From the crucifix in the neglected field-chapel of San Damiano, Christ told him, “Francis, go out and build up my house, for it is nearly falling down.” Francis became the poor and humble workman.The rest, as they say, is history. He is the most imitated saint in Christendom whether it be by Franciscan priests, brothers, sisters, or secular Franciscans, or just by someone who is inspired to simplicity. His feast is October 4.

sense out of life. For me, Alfie is a 1960s version of the quest for God and the search for the meaning of life. Pope Francis’ recent encyclical Lumen Fidei (#20) highlights the fact that life takes on new meaning for all who search for love: “Faith’s new way of seeing things is centered on Christ. Faith in Christ brings salvation because in him our lives become radically open to a love that precedes us, a love that transforms us from within, acting in us and through us.” Only keeping our gaze fixed on Christ keeps you and me growing toward fulfillment of the deepest longing of our human hearts. It is good for us to follow the example of St. Francis and keep our focus on Christ. A

Prayer before the Crucifix Most High, glorious God, enlighten the darkness of my heart and give me true faith, certain hope and perfect charity, sense and knowledge, Lord, that I may carry out Your holy and true command. – St. Francis of Assisi

Father Dan Kroger, OFM, is the publisher/CEO of Franciscan Media. He has taught at high schools and colleges both in the United States and in the Philippines, and has a doctorate in theology from the University of Notre Dame. St A n t h o n y M e s s e n g e r . o rg

ILLUSTRATION BY JULIE LONNEMAN

hen I read these words of Pope Emeritus Benedict, I can only think of the saint who inspires his successor. It was St. Francis who kept his gaze fixed on Christ, in his personal prayer before the crucifix in the little San Damiano chapel. It was in prayer that Francis began to make sense of his own life after the disappointment and failure he experienced in chasing a dream of fame and glory as a knight. There’s a mid-’60s film called Alfie which made an impression on me before I knew much about St. Francis. Alfie portrayed the tragic story of a young man who led a promiscuous life. Eventually, after he experienced a series of bad breaks, Alfie decided to reform his life. He found someone whom he wanted to marry, only to discover that she had other lovers. The film ends with the disheartened Alfie searching for the meaning of his life. Finally, the credits roll past on the screen to the tune: “What’s it all about, Alfie?” For me, the film was an existential lesson at a critical time in my life. Alfie stiffened my resolve to live a meaningful life and move closer to God. Today, whenever I hear that Alfie tune, I feel pulled to continue living my life as a Franciscan. I find happiness in living a life in Christ, for I believe I am making a solid contribution toward building a better world. I testify that faith is the door by which we humans will make

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LIVING SIMPLY

❘ BY SUSAN HINES-BRIGGER

Fall Cleanup

ith the holidays fast approaching, many of us will be looking for ways to spruce up our homes without breaking the bank. Here are some quick and easy ways to get a change around the house.

4 6 ❘ O ctober 2013

Add color.

Move things around.

Clean up.

I mean clean everything.

Most of the year our homes have basically the same color palette. Pick up a pillow, candles, or some other small item in a different color from the rest of your room. That little pop of color can make a big difference. You might even want to go outside and gather some colorful leaves and flowers, or pinecones, and put them in a bowl on a table. Make sure you haven’t brought in any little creatures with your treasures, though!

At least once a year, my husband, Mark, and I rearrange the furniture in at least one of our rooms. You’d be surprised how just changing the room’s setup will make a difference. Plus, as we always say, it’s much cheaper than moving.

Everyone talks a lot about spring cleaning, but how about doing a good deep cleaning of your home in the fall? Clean the windows. Pull down the curtains and throw them in the washing machine. If you can, dry them outside for that fresh smell.

While cleaning your house is one good idea, why not clean up some other areas of your life, also? Go through your address book and update it. (Christmas card time will be coming soon.) Remove names you no longer need. Slog through your e-mail and

St A n t h o n y M e s s e n g e r . o rg

Grandma’s BBQ

Fall is also a perfect time to start making those comfort foods. One of my favorite fall go-to recipes is my grandma’s BBQ. 2 lbs. ground chuck 1 small onion, chopped 1 green or red pepper, cut into small pieces (optional) 2 Tbs. sugar 1 Tbs. vinegar 1 15-ounce can tomato puree 10 Tbs. barbecue sauce Dash of dry mustard

pare it down. Clothes, books, movies, CDs: cut down your collection of each of these.

Brown meat, onion, and green pepper in a pot. Add all other ingredients. Mix well. Let simmer for about 1 hour, stirring occasionally to prevent burning on bottom.

Get cooking. In the next two months, you’re probably going to be doing a lot of cooking, from meals to side dishes to desserts and cookies. Try out some of the recipes that you’ve been stashing away—either literally or on your computer/Pinterest page. If they’re a success, put them in rotation. If not, send them to the trash.

Fr ancisca n Media .org

O c to b e r 2 0 1 3 ❘ 4 7

LIGHTEN UP

“Gotta run. I’m being peeped.”

“If water is so good for you, how come Moses parted the Red Sea?”

4 8 ❘ O ctober 2013

St A n t h o n y M e s s e n g e r . o rg

Sisterhood of Saints Daily Guidance and Inspiration

The Holy Land An Armchair Pilgrimage

Melanie Rigney

Fr. Mitch Pacwa, SJ

Give daily guidance and inspiration from the saints to a special woman in your life. Each day’s entry features a reflection on the life of the saint, with brief biographical information and her relevance for today; an inspirational quote from the saint herself or from Scripture or her canonization proceedings; and a daily challenge based on a charism of the saint.

With stunning images and thoughtful commentary, The Holy Land: An Armchair Pilgrimage is more than your typical travel guide. Travel with Fr. Mitch to the sites of all twenty mysteries of the rosary, as well as other significant spots in the history of Israel and in the life of Jesus. Whether you’ve been to the Holy Land, plan to travel there one day, or prefer to stay in your armchair, this classic book will be a beautiful addition to your library.

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Thirsting for God Daily Meditations Mother Teresa Edited by Angelo D. Scolozzi, M.C.III.O. Mother Teresa is known for her radiant smile and the joy of Christ that she brought to all she met, even in the most challenging circumstances. These daily stories and meditations in her own words point to the secret of living in that joy: simplicity, humble surrender to Jesus, thankfulness, and, above all, a heart filled with God’s love. These keys will unlock the gift of joy in every thirsting heart.

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Amy Welborn Illustrated by Ann Engelhart

Yes, And... Daily Meditations Richard Rohr This perennial book features 366 meditations, each written by Rohr and adapted or excerpted from his many written and recorded works. The meditations are arranged around seven themes: Methodology, Foundation, Frame, Ecumenical, Transformation, Process, and Goal. Yes, And... is an excellent daily prayer resource for fans of Richard Rohr’s work, and those who are looking for an alternate way to live out their faith—a way centered in the openminded search for spiritual relevance of a transforming nature.

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Bambinelli Sunday A Christmas Blessing

This book for children ages 7-10 tells a wonderful story about sharing, comfort, generosity, and forgiveness through the lens of a long-standing Italian tradition. The beautiful illustrations and timeless story make this a treasured Advent and Christmas resource for generations to come.

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Order online at Catalog.FranciscanMedia.org

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Rescue Work Family can heal a broken heart. F I C T I O N B Y K AT H L E E N O ’ C O N N O R Y SON HAS TREMENDOUS EMPATHY for animals. It’s humans for whom he lacks sympathy. Tonight is a perfect example. Moments after we leave the hospital, Jeff stomps on the car brakes. My tense upper body jerks forward. “Do you see that?” he asks. I see nothing. He continues pointing at the grassy median. In the beam of our headlights, I make out a small, white animal. “Your father is having open-heart surgery in the morning. This might not be the best time to rescue a dog.” My voice sounds unfamiliar and panicked. It doesn’t matter since Jeff hasn’t heard me anyway. He is outside the car, feeding the dog string cheese and coaxing it into his open arms. He is good at this. In a matter of minutes, Jeff plops the filthy creature onto my lap. I like dogs. It’s just that I haven’t slept in two days and I’m not emotionally prepared for tomorrow. In less than eight hours, a team of surgeons will harvest veins from my husband’s left leg, break into his chest cavity, and reroute the circulation system that keeps his heart beating. If all doesn’t go perfectly, I will be forced to take a leave from my work as a flight attendant. It is my job that keeps the family covered by health insurance. The small dog licks each of the fingers of my right hand. “We have to keep the house sterile for when your dad comes home. He’ll have open wounds.” “I’ll give her a bath. It’ll be fine. Everything will be fine.” Jeff is 19. I am almost 50. His optimism is due to a lack of life experience, but I wish I could grasp onto it anyway. He switches on the radio to the country station. I turn it off. “I need quiet.” The dog tenses and Jeff reaches over to pet her. I have never felt so alone in all my life.

A ILLUSTRATION BY JACOB SANDERS

s I prepare for bed that night, I hear the whirl of the blow dryer and suspect Jeff has given the dog a bath. He probably knows how. He’s been a volunteer at our local dog shelter since our beloved sheltie passed away last year. I expect a sleepless night. Instead, I fall into an exhausted, dreamless slumber. I wake only when my alarm buzzes at 4 a.m. Putting on a soft, blue tracksuit, I head to the kitchen where coffee is already brewing. Jeff is toasting himself an English muffin. I salute him with my coffee mug. “Thanks. I didn’t expect you up so early.” “I’m coming with you to the hospital, and I want to take our princess here for a long walk before we leave.” He gestures to the floor. I see a totally transformed creature wagging a O c to b e r 2 0 13 ❘ 5 1

white tail. Her dark eyes hold mine as her tail continues to thump against the tile floor. “She looks great.” “No fleas, skin diseases, or anything,” Jeff says. “Her hair wasn’t even very matted. I’ll go to animal rescue later and see if she has a microchip or if anyone is looking for her.” “Yes, later,” I say. So much has to happen first—namely Joe’s surgery. My husband is upbeat when we arrive in his hospital room. I had feared breaking down, but our mood is almost festive. Jeff tells him about the dog. “She loos like a PomeranianMaltese mix.” “Very cute,” I add. “Do we want to keep her?” Joe asks. Jeff gives a noncommittal shrug. “We’ll see.” He never allows himself a dog because he continually plans to leave Florida. Sometimes he talks about backpacking in New Zealand. Other times he mentions volunteer work in California. College doesn’t appeal to him, and in the year since he graduated high school, there’s been no paying job that has held his interest. He spends most of his time doing volunteer work at the animal rescue. I pull out my cell phone and call my mother-in-law in Iowa. She is anxious to tell her son that she will be attending Mass while he’s in surgery. I hand the phone to Joe and hear him say, “Thanks, Mom. I’ll talk to you soon. Carole and Jeff will keep you posted.”

oe is tanned, trim, and just beginning to go gray at the temples. He looks too young for blocked arteries. But I know we are lucky because he has a chance to get the problem corrected. The two uncles he lost to sudden cardiac death weren’t so fortunate. The surgical team arrives and instructs us where to wait. A nurse promises to call me halfway through the surgery and let me know how it’s going. I give Joe a quick kiss and go with Jeff to the waiting room, where a couple other anxious families are seated. I sink down onto a chair and try to take deep breaths. Jeff pulls a cross5 2 ❘ O ctober 2013

word puzzle book out of his pocket. “Want this?” “Thanks. Maybe later,” I reply. I pat his hand. It is thoughtful of him to bring my favorite distraction. Right now there is too much static in my brain to focus on anything. Joe, who seemed in perfect health until a few days ago, is now being kept alive by a heart-and-lung machine. Jeff used to be our biggest concern. He seemed unfocused and directionless. Now I am just glad he is here with me. He walks with me when I am summoned to the phone. “It’s all going well,” the nurse reports. “A textbook case.” Jeff and I are encouraged enough to approach the coffee urn and pour ourselves some strong, institutional coffee. We sit down and he starts a crossword. “What’s a three-letter word for anger?” he asks. “Ire.” He hands over the puzzle and, collectively, we finish it. I do most of it, but he supplies the names of celebrities I’m not familiar with. Jeff gets us some croissants and I try to eat mine, though my throat is dry and my hands are shaking. I’ve always tried not to burden him with my worries. Today it’s not possible. Jeff watches as I flip through magazine after magazine. “Do you think Dad got this heart trouble from stress?” I shake my head. We’ve had a few tough years since Joe lost his corporate job, but I don’t think that caused his heart problems. “It’s mostly genetics. Cardiovascular disease runs in his family.” “And mine.” “You’re right. Time to give up some of that fast food.” Jeff’s favorite food is something that can be eaten while driving. He gestures to the complimentary cardiac cookbooks on the table in front of us. “Guess I’ll take one home.” An hour later, the door to the Cardiac Intensive Care opens and the surgeon summons us. A small man clad in green scrubs greets us warmly and takes us to a glass room where Joe is sleeping. We get to peek in from the doorway. As we were warned, there are lots of tubes.

“He won’t wake for some hours. It’s best if you go home, get some rest, and come back tomorrow. There is still a small risk of stroke or infection, but all is going very well.” Jeff and I nod and repeat almost in unison. “Thank you, doctor.” We walk silently toward the parking garage. As we emerge from the hospital doors, a wave of heat envelops us. I rip off my jacket. “It was so cold in there.” Jeff isn’t listening. He is keying the numbers in his cell phone for a call to his grandmother. “It’s over,” he tells her. “Dad’s doing great. Mom’s a wreck.” I couldn’t be that upbeat so I am glad he is being the family spokesperson. “Thanks, Jeff. I couldn’t have survived today without you.”

hen we get home, the living room floor is covered with shredded newspapers. “The dog freaked. Sorry, Mom.” As Jeff leashes up the puppy, he waits for me to erupt in anger. In the past, I’ve lost my cool over smaller problems. Today is different. I grab a wastebasket and broom. “It’s OK. I need something methodical to do. Besides it’s not her fault. She was left alone too long.” After walking the dog, Jeff announces, “I’m taking her to the rescue to have them scan her and see if she has a microchip.” “OK.” I fix myself some canned soup and note the sodium content. Our way of eating will have to change drastically. I try to keep myself busy with laundry and cleaning, but my concentration is poor and, finally, I turn the TV on and just stare ahead. In the middle of Dancing with the Stars, Jeff returns. He is alone. “What’s happening with the dog?” “She had an identification chip. Some old couple from Palmetto came to get her. They were having their kitchen remodeled. The contractor left the door open and she got scared and ran out.” “I bet they were thrilled.” “Yup.” St A n t h o n y M e s s e n g e r . o rg

I want to tell him how much good he has accomplished, but he has gone to his room and turned on his music— loud. I stay put. Jeff isn’t up the next morning when I leave for the hospital. I leave him a note and go back to the waiting room outside the Cardiac Intensive Care. The room is still freezing. I give my name to the nurse and, after a threehour wait, I’m rewarded with a brief visit with my husband. Joe is sitting up in a chair and smiling. His hands and feet are swollen, but he looks like himself as he says to me, “It’s tomorrow.” “Yes, it is. You slept a long time.” That brief exchange exhausts Joe, so I leave and let the staff do their job. I trudge up to the gift shop and buy myself a novel. It’s one of those books that have multiple narrators and a complicated plot. At page 40, I abandon it and just sit there watching other families. Most look worn and anxious. I wish Jeff were here with me, but I suppose he has returned to his own life. At dinner, Joe and I are allowed another brief visit. “Go on home. You look tired,” he says. “I’ll have my own room tomorrow.” It’s Joe who looks tired. “OK.” I give him a quick kiss. As I reach the door, he says, “Remind Jeff that he and I are watching the Hawkeyes tomorrow.” I nod, but I doubt Jeff remembers this. His focus has shifted back to the animals and his loud music. I don’t see how I can return to work next week and leave Joe with an erratic teenager as his sole caregiver.

n the drive home, I comfort myself with thoughts of a fourcheese pizza. There’s one in the freezer that I intend to heat up, accompanied by a steaming cup of coffee. If Jeff isn’t home I may eat the whole thing myself. For the first time in three days, I’m hungry. Jeff is home and in the kitchen. He is chopping a zucchini into huge, crude chunks. “I thought we might have pizza,” I tell him before yanking open the door

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and staring into my empty freezer. “I donated all that stuff to the church’s food bank. We can’t eat that much sodium anymore.” He gestures to the cookbook he picked up at the hospital. “I thought I’d make some minestrone soup.” I want to cry and scream simultaneously. I know my emotions are out of proportion to my small disappointment. I can hear my husband’s calm voice saying, “Just because he doesn’t think like you doesn’t mean he’s wrong.” I grab a near-empty tin of cream cheese that has escaped his purge and spread it on low-sodium crackers. After I’ve taken the edge off my hunger and said a quick prayer for both patience and grace, I offer to help him with the soup. “I could use some guidance,” Jeff says. I demonstrate how to cut the vegetables up into small pieces and we get a soothing rhythm going. I feel comfortable enough to ask, “Were you disappointed that dog had owners?”

“No,” Jeff says. “That was kind of a sissy dog. If we get a dog, we should let Dad pick it out. That could be a good way to get him walking. Dogs can help with depression too. So this needs to be his dog.” “You’re right.” While I’ve been stuck in the panicked present, Jeff is planning for the future. “Dad and I are going to watch football tomorrow and give you an afternoon off.” So he did remember. My eyes start to water, and I pretend it’s from the steaming broth. Jeff dumps the chopped vegetables into the pot, gives it a stir, and says, “Dad and I will be OK here when you go back to work.” And in that moment, I know they will be. A Kathleen O’Connor lives in Sun City Center, Florida, and is the author of four novels: The Way It Happens in Novels, No Doubt, A Private Matter, and Men of Paradise. Her short stories and articles have appeared in Good Housekeeping, Liguorian, Redbook, Seventeen, and Woman’s World, as well as this publication.

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O c to b e r 2 0 13 ❘ 5 3

ASK A FRANCISCAN

❘ BY FATHER PAT McCLOSKEY, OFM

Monks, Friars, Brothers What difference is there between a monk, a friar, and a brother? Also, members of religious communities place initials after their family name to indicate the community to which they belong. Where can I find a list of those initials? For almost 800 years, officially recognized religious communities in the Catholic Church had as members either monks (men), nuns (cloistered women), or hermits (either gender). In the earliest days, few monks were ordained as priests; most were laypeople who took religious vows. In more recent times, most monks have been ordained after they made their final monastic vows. Mendicant (begging) friars began with the Trinitarians in 1198 and were soon followed by the Franciscans (1209), Dominicans (1216),

Carmelites (1245), and Augustinians (1256). Minims and Mercedarians were later classified as mendicants. Some of the members of these communities are priests or are studying to be priests; other members are brothers. I am not aware of any friar group that has a difference in its religious garb to identify priests or brothers. The generic English term “friar” comes from the Latin frater, “brother.” Regarding initials after someone’s family name: these usually derive from the formal title of that group— in many cases in Latin. Dominicans use “OP” for Order of Preachers. Franciscans use “OFM” for Order of Friars Minor. Conventual Franciscans and Capuchin Franciscans add “Conv” and “Cap,” respectively. Later apostolic groups adopted this custom. Jesuits are neither monks

nor friars. They use “SJ” to stand for Society of Jesus. Some religious families have both men’s and women’s branches. Both Benedictine men and women, for example, use “OSB” to indicate “Order of St. Benedict.” Similarly, “OP” is used by both Dominican women and men. A list of initials used by religious congregations in the United States can be found in the Official Catholic Directory. The Annuario Pontificio has similar lists for religious congregations around the world. Both books are published annually. Other lists can be found through Internet searches. Strictly speaking, only cloistered women religious are nuns; members of other types of women’s communities are more properly called sisters.

May Everyone Receive Holy Communion?

CNS FILE PHOTO FROM CROSIERS

Last year I attended a funeral Mass for a friend. A visiting priest announced that the deceased person wanted everyone present to receive holy Communion. There were Christians, non-Christians, and probably some atheists. Is that allowed? Also, can a priest give general absolution at any Mass? The answer to both questions is no. The preference of a deceased person does not overrule the Catholic Church’s directives about holy Communion. The “Guidelines for the reception of Communion” have appeared in every Catholic worship aid

5 4 ❘ O ctober 2013

published in the United States for over 20 years. These are usually found on the inside front or inside back cover of these publications. General absolution is governed by the Rite of Penance approved by the Holy See in 1973. Use of the “Rite of Reconciliation of Several Penitents with General Confession and Absolution” (Form III in the Rite) has been restricted in more recent years. It is normally reserved for emergency situations (a plane about to crash or a ship about to sink). Some Catholic military chaplains have given general absolution to troops about to go into battle.

St A n t h o n y M e s s e n g e r . o rg

Why No Saints on Some Days? After reading through Franciscan Media’s Saint of the Day book, the following question occurs to me: With many thousands of canonized people, why are there approximately 80 days of the year when no saint is assigned? Our Saint of the Day book follows the Roman (worldwide) calendar, with a few additional entries for US, Canadian, Mexican, or Franciscan saints/blesseds. You are correct that there are thousands of officially recognized saints (6,500 in the 2001 edition of the Martyrologium Romanum and many more since then). In an earlier “Ask a Franciscan” column, I answered a similar question, explaining the various types of liturgical calendars: worldwide, national, diocesan, or special for some religious congregation. The feast of Sts. Simon and Jude must be celebrated worldwide on October 28. The feast of St. Marguerite d’Youville is celebrated on October 16 in Canada, but may be celebrated elsewhere as well. The situation is different for those recognized as blessed. At the moment, for example, the October 22 feast of Blessed John Paul II (soon to be canonized) may be officially celebrated in Poland, Italy, the United States, and some other countries. The feast of Blessed John Henry Newman may be officially celebrated on October 9 in Great Britain and perhaps elsewhere. You can access my more thorough November 2006 response via the Archive section at StAnthony Messenger.org. The worldwide calendar was completely overhauled in 1970, and several feasts have been officially added since then. A new overhaul was announced several years ago, but it has not yet happened. The revised 1970 calendar moved some feasts out of Advent and Lent but left others in those seasons. Fr ancisca n Media .org

The eighth edition of Saint of the Day was published last month. At AmericanCatholic.org’s “Saint of the Day” Internet feature, you will find two calendars. One of them has all the saints on the worldwide calendar and a few more. The other calendar identifies many days with two or more saints or blesseds.

Lourdes and Fatima What’s the difference between these shrines? Was Theresa Neumann involved in either one of them? The first difference is geographic: Lourdes is in south central France, close to the border with Spain. Fatima is in northern Portugal. The second difference is chronological: the Blessed Virgin Mary appeared to St. Bernadette Soubirous (1844-1879) several times in Lourdes in 1858. She was canonized in 1933. In 1917, the Blessed Virgin appeared several times to three young shepherds in Fatima. Francisco and

Jacinta Marto were beatified in 2000. Their cousin, Lucia dos Santos, died in 2005. Theresa Neumann (1898-1962) lived her entire life in Konnersreuth, Bavaria. It is said that, in 1926, she received the stigmata of Christ’s wounds. The Catholic Church has made no official pronouncement on this. She had no direct connection to Lourdes or to Fatima. A Correction: Fox News is headquartered at 1211 Avenue of the Americas, New York, NY 10036. An incorrect address appeared in the February 2013 column.

Father Pat welcomes your questions! Send them to: Ask a Franciscan, 28 W. Liberty Street, Cincinnati, OH 45202-6498, or Ask@FranciscanMedia.org. All questions sent by mail need to include a selfaddressed stamped envelope. This column’s answers can be searched back to April 1996 at StAnthonyMessenger.org.

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O c to b e r 2 0 13 ❘ 5 5

BOOK CORNER

TOP 5 CATHOLIC

Best Sellers 1. The Vatican Diaries: A Behind-theScenes Look at the Power, Personalities and Politics at the Heart of the Catholic Church John Thavis 2. Best Catholic Spirituality Writing 2012: 30 Inspiring Essays from the National Catholic Reporter (Kindle Edition) 3. The Jesuit Guide to (Almost) Everything: A Spirituality for Real Life James Martin,SJ 4. The Light of Faith (Kindle Edition) Pope Francis 5. Praying in Rome: Reflections on the Conclave and Electing Pope Francis (Kindle Edition) Cardinal Timothy M. Dolan

—Recent Amazon best sellers in Catholicism 5 6 ❘ O ctober 2013

❘ BY CAROL ANN MORROW

Discernment Reading the Signs of Daily Life By Henri J. M. Nouwen with Michael J. Christensen and Rebecca J. Laird HarperOne 219 pages • $25.99 Hardcover/paperback/e-book Reviewed by ELIZABETH PILGRIM, a Catholic book-reviewer with a longtime interest in signs. THE FINAL VOLUME in Nouwen’s posthumous trilogy, this book builds on the previous two as it moves the reader from questions to movements to signs. The premise of this book is that God is always speaking to us, and that discernment is the spiritual practice that accesses and seeks to understand what God is trying to say. This third volume was also developed from original materials found in the Henri J. M. Nouwen Archives in the Kelly Library, Saint Michael’s College, University of Toronto, with the support and cooperation of the Henri J. M. Nouwen Estate and Nouwen Legacy Trust. Nouwen’s literary executrix, Sue Mosteller, took an active role in the previous volumes and worked especially hard on this final volume, which all involved agreed was the most difficult to compile and develop from the Nouwen journals and available resources. The book includes a preface by Christensen and Laird, a foreword by Nouwen’s former Harvard student and close friend Robert A. Jonas, an introduction, epilogue, and appendix written by Nouwen himself, and appendices.

While numerous, these additions do not seem superfluous to the primary text, and indeed shed light on Nouwen. This third volume concludes the spiritual trilogy, which presents his distinctive approach to contemplation, community, and compassion in the world through spiritual direction, formation, and discernment. Part One explores the nature of discernment, including the spiritual gifts and scriptural practice of distinguishing spirits of truth from falsehood. Nouwen defines the gift and practice of discernment as rooted in the core disciplines of the Christian life: prayer, community, worship, and ministry. Part Two focuses on the process of seeking God’s guidance in books, nature, people, and events. Nouwen shares what he learned from his mentor, Thomas Merton, and describes his own experience. Part Three concludes with new insights described in the preface about “our core identity as God’s beloved children, experiencing the divine presence in the human heart (memoria Dei) and knowing when to act, when to wait, and when to be led or acted upon, according to God’s time (kairos) . . . .” Each chapter ends with “Exercises for Deeper Discernment.” While the book can be read in a day or two, it is best read devotionally over a few weeks and accompanied by regular spiritual practice. These Exercises are an added value in this volume because, if the reader undertakes them, he or she will enter the path of a Christian discernment process that is not the same as decision-making. Nouwen claims that discernment is about listening and responding to that place within us where our deepest desires align with God’s desire. We sort through our impulses, motives, and options to discover which ones lead us closer to divine love and compassion for ourselves and other people and which lead us further away. In sharing his own struggles and ongoing discernment process, Nouwen lives on for us as a spiritual friend. He takes us by the hand down that road where we’ll meet with the timeless dimension of Jesus Christ, the life that the crucified and risen Jesus shares with us now. St . A n t h o n y M e s s e n g e r

BOOK BRIEFS

Revitalize Your Faith Becoming Catholic Again Connecting the Faith We Were Taught with the Faith We Live By Catherine Wiecher Brunell Loyola Press 244 pages • $13.95 Paperback

Common Sense Faith By Patrick J. Brennan Orbis Books 230 pages • $20.00 Paperback/e-book Reviewed by MARK WILKINS, a religion teacher at St. Xavier High School, Cincinnati,Ohio. THIS ENGAGING AND THOUGHTFUL series of reflections is a challenge to read or review. To give a complete sense of this book’s value would mean reviewing each of the 67 essays individually! Each reflection is three to four pages long with some combination of Father Brennan’s reflection on his own life, the Scripture of the day, and issues in the news. Each one is succinct, but not simplified. The author has grouped the chapters by central themes, but the distinctions are not exclusive: Jesus, Conversion, Church, Sacraments and Prayer, and Mercy and Justice. Nor are the sections balanced, since 27 of the essays focus in some way on conversion. These were the chapters that hit closest to home. Some of them were speaking directly to me. Others might speak to my students about the journey of faith. In the preface, the Chicago priest says that people want a livable spirituality in the preaching, welcoming communities, ministries that center on real-life needs, and worship that offers an opportunity for genuine religious experience. While I am not sure how many years of preaching and writing these essays represent, one can trace the development of ideas and Brennan’s own spirituality by the last of the series. One could guess that these essays are expansions of talks he has given in Chicagoland and beyond (he’s a regular presenter, for example, at the Los Angeles Religious Education Congress). Fr ancisca n Media .org

This book describes the discovery of an adult faith that is congruent with both the author’s lived experience and Church Tradition. To find grace, she says, we should focus on the lives we lead and meet the needs we see in the world.

Take the Plunge Living Baptism and Confirmation By Timothy Radcliffe Bloomsbury Publishing 312 pages • $16.95 Paperback Christianity will thrive today, overcoming the challenges of secularism and religious fundamentalism, only if we rediscover the beauty of Baptism. It touches the deepest dramas of human life: birth, growing up, falling in love, daring to give oneself to others, searching for meaning, coping with suffering and failure, and, eventually, death.

Louder than Words The Art of Living as a Catholic By Matthew Leonard Our Sunday Visitor Publishing 160 pages • $14.95 Paperback “You don’t have to be a mystic or possess extraordinary gifts to become a neon sign that points to Christ,” says Matthew Leonard. His book is full of wry wit and engaging stories, suggesting ways Catholics can demonstrate an authentic, powerful, and contagious faith, attractive to even the most cynical. Books featured in this column can be ordered from

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O c to b e r 2 0 1 3 ❘ 5 7

A CATHOLIC MOM SPEAKS

❘ BY SUSAN HINES-BRIGGER

How I Pray

’ll pray for you.” How many times have I said those words to someone in response to something they have told me or posted on Facebook? I’ve been part of prayer lists, prayer chains. I’ve taken part in novenas. I’ve been asked to be what might be called a “prayer warrior.” But a lot of times, amidst the bustle of life, despite my very best intentions, those promises to pray quickly fall off my radar. While most people would understand the occasional fumble of intentions for which I have promised to pray, it bothers me. And it’s happened all too many

“

5 8 ❘ O ctober 2013

times. It bothers me because the fact remains that this person, those people, the ones whom I have made a promise, need my prayers. So I decided I needed to find some way to honor my promise to pray for that person and his or her need.

A Needed Inspiration Shortly after, a friend gave me a copy of the book called The God Box, by Mary Lou Quinlan. I was intrigued by the book’s premise. The author recalls how her mother would write down all the intentions for which she had promised to pray and collect them in a special box. That

way none of them would be forgotten or overlooked. As I read, I wondered if this wasn’t perhaps an answer to my prayer problem. I sat down and started writing all the things for which I wanted to or had promised to pray—a friend’s daughter who is struggling with her diabetes, my dad as he moves forward in life without my mom, for my daughter beginning high school, in thanksgiving for my sister-in-law beating breast cancer— the list went on and on. I went back and checked my Facebook page to see if I had missed any promises. Lo and behold, I had. I added them to St A n t h o n y M e s s e n g e r . o rg

WHAT DOES YOUR PRAYER BOX LOOK LIKE?

the list. How could I possibly remember all of these? I wondered. I didn’t want “I’ll pray for you” to become a rote answer that I gave to people in a time of need just because I didn’t know what else to say. I wondered, though, what to do with this list. Do I recite it every time I pray? Looking at the long list of intentions, I suspected that this practice wouldn’t be sustainable. Instead, I decided to select one intention each day and dedicate my prayers to that particular intention for the day. Of course, the others wouldn’t be forgotten, but rather remembered in a general prayer for all the intentions for which I had promised to pray.

The Next Step Telling someone I will remember him or her in my prayers is one thing. But I decided that I wanted to

take it a step further and find ways to show that person I’m praying for him or her. As I said before, each day I choose one special intention for which to pray. On that day, I decided to devote my prayers to that person’s intention, but I would also try to find some tangible testament of my prayer. For instance, I could drop a note or e-mail to the person for whom I’m praying, just to let him or her know that he or she is in my thoughts. I could pick up the phone and call whoever is connected to the day’s special intention. Or pick up some flowers—or make a bouquet from my own yard—and bring them to the person. I might even make some tasty treat as a visual reminder of my promise to pray. If my intention for the day was

ILLUSTRATIONS BY MARY KURNICK MAASS

As I mentioned earlier, instead of a box to store my prayers, I prefer a notebook. In that notebook I sometimes put photos of the person I’m praying for, or I’ll copy down particular prayers I find that seem to speak to me. But you might find another vehicle to serve as your prayer box. Perhaps it is truly a box. You can find one that you find beautiful just the way it is. Or you can get a plain box at the craft store and decorate it any way you like. Whatever you choose for your prayer box, make sure it speaks to you because, hopefully, the two of you will be spending a lot of time together.

not a person, but rather an issue, I decided to find whatever way to address it. That could be writing letters to my representatives, making a donation—just something. Since I started my “God notebook,” I have found that I’m much more deliberate in my prayers. I find it easier to connect with each of the intentions, and the people or issues with which they connect. I hope your God box can bring you the same satisfaction and a more enriched prayer life. A

Do you have comments or suggestions for topics you’d like to see addressed in this column? Send them to me at “A Catholic Mom Speaks,” 28 W. Liberty St., Cincinnati, OH 45202-6498, or e-mail them to CatholicMom@FranciscanMedia.org.

PETE AND REPEAT These scenes may seem alike to you, But there are changes in the two. So look and see if you can name ILLUSTRATION BY TOM GREENE

Eight ways in which they’re not the same. (Answers on page 35)

Fr ancisca n Media .org

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BACKSTORY

e have a few conversations going with our readers. Letters to the editor (“From Our Readers”) is the oldest one, and it’s still strong. We also have a steady stream of questions to Father

Pat’s “Ask a Franciscan,” which he personally answers. Some people send donations to the Franciscans, which Father Dan handles, now with help from Franciscan Sister Rose Lima. Once in a while, subscribers call and want to talk to the editor.

PHOTO BY CHRISTOPHER HEFFRON

As you might imagine, these are generally not satisfied people. Something in the magazine bothered them, and I’m glad to talk for a few minutes with them, listening to their point of view and trying to explain why we published the so-called offensive story or column. The editor who hired me years ago, Father Norman, had a classic egg timer on his crowded desk. When someone started to rant, he would turn over the egg timer and the sand would flow. When the timer was done, so was he! So, three minutes later, sand drained, he would argue the point a bit and, inevitably, the caller would slam down the phone (precell phone). “They just called to hang up on the editor,” he explained to this cub editor, as he settled back into his anonymous “Ask the Wise Man” column. Of course, these days we hear from a lot of folks via AmericanCatholic.org, including prayer intentions (which display behind the last pew at St. Anthony Shrine). We have a lively Facebook page that Christopher Heffron moderates (Facebook.com/StAnthonyMessenger), where he leads a real conversation among readers and many others who are interested in St. Anthony Messenger and the Franciscans. Then there are the reader surveys, which are what got me thinking about all of this. We’re re-starting the survey that we send out with renewals. We did this for decades, then decided to take a break, as we started our online survey (this month’s, for subscribers only, is at StAnthonyMessenger.org/survey). Now, we see, it would be best to have both surveys: online and the more labor-intensive print. As one respondent said on last month’s new print survey, “I don’t have a computer.” I know that’s the exception, but she reminds us there are different ways readers like to talk with us. We welcome them all.

Editor in Chief

60 ❘ Octo be r 201 3

St An t h o n yM e s s e n g e r . o rg

REFLECTION

I loved autumn,

the one season of the year that God seemed to have put there just for the beauty of it. —Lee Maynard

ST. ANTHONY M 28 W. Liberty Street Cincinnati, OH 45202-6498

essenger

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