St. Martin as a bishop: modern icon in the chapel of the Eastern Orthodox Monastery of the Theotokos and St Martin, Cantauque, Provence.

The feast of St. Martin of Tours, sometimes known as Martinmas, falls on November 11. In the United States, we celebrate November 11 as Veterans Day - a day we honor those who have served in the military of the country. It is a national holiday, though many businesses are open and retailers offer sales in the hope of luring people who are enjoing a day off!

As a child, I remember hearing people from my grandparents’ generation speak of the day as Armistice Day. This was the day, in 1918, on which World War I stopped. The Armistice was declared and hostilities were set to end at the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month - and so they did. That was a war called “The War to End All Wars,” but unfortunately, it didn’t. So, when World War II followed all too soon afterwards, the name of the day was changed to Veterans Day, in honor of all veterans.

It seems appropriate that the feast of St. Martin of Tours coincides with this day of honoring those who have served their countries militarily, as he too served in the army. His life and contributions to the Christian community are discussed in greater detail in an earlier post, and they were impressive. Nevertheless, he is most commonly known for the legend told about him, in which he is approached by a begger and asked for help. Martin is said to have cut his military cape in half and given half of it to the beggar. Later, in a dream, he saw Christ in the form of the beggar, wearing the cape.

Martin was not a Christian at the time he served in the Roman cavalry, but had entered the Catechumenate before entering the military. Before he left the army, he had been baptized. As his faith grew and deepened, he became convinced that as a Christian, he could not kill, even as a member of the military. He accepted arrest and imprisonment rather than fight. He volunteered to go to the front of the troops, unarmed, but a peaceful solution was reached before the battle, so he did not have to prove his courage and commitment to non-violence in that way.

It seems to me that Martin’s insight that killing is not the calling of Christians is one that has been shared by many men and women who have served or refused to serve in military forces through the centuries. Certainly, there have been times when Christians have turned their backs on this belief, even claiming that killing was done on behalf of God. For those times we must beg God’s forgiveness and that of those harmed. However, the veterans I have known generally will say that war is never the best answer to human disputes. Terrible things happen in war. It does not really resolve the problem between nations. Sometimes it seems to be the only way to stop a terrible evil, but it’s never the best option. (Stopping the Holocaust is often given as an example of a good reason to go to war, but it must be acknowledged that even World War II was fought not to stop the Holocaust - of which there was very little awareness outside of Europe - but rather to stop the military aggression of certain nations.) Martin of Tours would agree that war is never to be the first response of nations or their people to conflicts with others.

But what, you ask, is Martinmas? Martinmas is the name of the celebration of Martin’s feast in Europe. I first experienced the celebration of Martinmas when my sons were little and attending Waldorf school. (Waldorf schools celebrate many European Christian holidays.) It is a harvest festival. It is a festival that marks the end of Autumn weather and the beginning of Winter weather in many nations. The thing that was most fun about the feast was the custom of making lanterns and going out after dark to walk with the lanterns.

For a week or more before the feast, the children would make lanterns of paper. Some were simply construction paper colored by the children and rolled into a cylindar with a bottom and a wire handle. Others were more elaborate. Sometimes a balloon was inflated as a base and tissue paper layers glued over the ballon to form the lantern. Once a wooden frame was built in the form of a star. Then layers of tissue paper were applied to form the walls. Leaves and glitter were included on that lantern. That one hangs in our living room to this day, a beautiful reminder of a school festival and a saint’s feast day.

(In some schools, glass jars are decorated for lanterns. They are also beautiful, but tripping in the dark can result in dangerously broken glass. Plastic peanut butter jars might be a reasonable solution to that problem!)

Once completed, the lanterns are hung by wire from a stick, a candle placed in the bottom, and children and parents sally forth in a procession around the school or neighborhood. In some countries, children visit neighbors and receive candy or other treats - much like Halloween in the US.

Martinmas Lantern Walk - From Today in Faerie School

If you decide to celebrate Martinmas with a lantern walk, be very careful with lighted candles. There are now battery-operated “candles” that you might consider using, especially for very young children. We never had any serious accidents, but I’m sure Martin wouldn’t mind opting for safety on his feast.

After you go out for a little lantern walk, follow up with a warm dinner and/or dessert, lots of laughter and fellowship and a happy night’s sleep.

Happy Martinmas! Happy Veterans Day! And may the Lord help us all to find better ways to resolve our differences.

Immaculate Heart of Mary - Artist unknown - U. Dayton

In the days and weeks leading up to the 2008 election in the United States, we’ve seen tons of ink, forests of paper and kilobytes of words on the internet used to address issues of life and freedom that we face as a nation. We at Theologika.net and sister site, 21stcenturycatholic.net offer our prayer for America at this time of the election and as we move into the challenges of the days, weeks and years to come. It is a prayer to Our Lady because she is the patroness of our country.

Most Blessed Virgin, Mary,

Our country is at its most critical crossroads in its history. We entrust it to your loving care.

Most Holy Mother, we beg you and your Son to be with us as we face this crossroads.

Overwhelmed by our problems and sins, we cry from the depths of our pain for your motherly protection and guidance.

Look with mercy on us and touch the hearts of your imperfect people.

Open our minds to the broader responsibilities of caring for your human family, which comes from our divine gift of freedom.

Guide and inform us so we can best deal with the issues of life and death, which have so grievously divided us.

Pray for us that we may receive the wisdom, clarity and openness of thinking we need to make the best choices we can on behalf of our human family, for our common good.

Oh Merciful Mother, intercede for us with your Son, who through the power of the Holy Spirit has entrusted to us the care of your people and creation and is the true source of our cherished rights of life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.

We ask for this grace in the Name of Your  Son, our Lord Jesus Christ, who lives and reigns with the Father in the Unity of the Holy Spirit forever and ever. Amen.

May the Lord bless and guide each of us as we vote in accordance with our own individual consciences.

Jim Wallis

This article is quoted in full from Jim Wallis’ blog, God’s Politics. Wallis is editor-in-chief of Sojourners Magazine and a Theologika.net trusted authority. I received it October 23, 2008 in my email. I present it for your consideration.

My Personal ‘Faith Priorities’ for this Election 

In 2004, several conservative Catholic bishops and a few megachurch pastors like Rick Warren issued their list of “non-negotiables,” which were intended to be a voter guide for their followers. All of them were relatively the same list of issues: abortion, gay marriage, stem cell research, etc. None of them even included the word “poverty,” only one example of the missing issues which are found quite clearly in the Bible. All of them were also relatively the same as official Republican Party Web sites of “non-negotiables.” The political connections and commitments of the religious non-negotiable writers were quite clear.

I want to suggest a different approach this year and share my personal list of “faith priorities” that will guide me in making the imperfect choices that always confront us in any election year — and suggest that each of you come up with your own list of “faith” or “moral” priorities for this election year and take them into the voting booth with you.

After the last election, I wrote a book titled God’s Politics. I was criticized by some for presuming to speak for God, but that wasn’t the point. I was trying to explore what issues might be closest to the heart of God and how they may be quite different from what many strident religious voices were then saying. I was also saying that “God’s Politics” will often turn our partisan politics upside down, transcend our ideological categories of Left and Right, and challenge the core values and priorities of our political culture. I was also trying to say that there is certainly no easy jump from God’s politics to either the Republicans or Democrats. God is neither. In any election we face imperfect choices, but our choices should reflect the things we believe God cares about if we are people of faith, and our own moral sensibilities if we are not people of faith. Therefore, people of faith, and all of us, should be “values voters” but vote all our values, not just a few that can be easily manipulated for the benefit of one party or another.

In 2008, the kingdom of God is not on the ballot in any of the 50 states as far as I can see. So we can’t vote for that this year. But there are important choices in this year’s election — very important choices — which will dramatically impact what many in the religious community and outside of it call “the common good,” and the outcome could be very important, perhaps even more so than in many recent electoral contests.

I am in no position to tell anyone what is “non-negotiable,” and neither is any bishop or megachurch pastor, but let me tell you the “faith priorities” and values I will be voting on this year:

1.  With more than 2,000 verses in the Bible about how we treat the poor and oppressed, I will examine the record, plans, policies, and promises made by the candidates on what they will do to overcome the scandal of extreme global poverty and the shame of such unnecessary domestic poverty in the richest nation in the world. Such a central theme of the Bible simply cannot be ignored at election time, as too many Christians have done for years. And any solution to the economic crisis that simply bails out the rich, and even the middle class, but ignores those at the bottom should simply be unacceptable to people of faith.

2.  From the biblical prophets to Jesus, there is, at least, a biblical presumption against war and the hope of beating our swords into instruments of peace. So I will choose the candidates who will be least likely to lead us into more disastrous wars and find better ways to resolve the inevitable conflicts in the world and make us all safer. I will choose the candidates who seem to best understand that our security depends upon other people’s security (everyone having “their own vine and fig tree, so no one can make them afraid,” as the prophets say) more than upon how high we can build walls or a stockpile of weapons. Christians should never expect a pacifist president, but we can insist on one who views military force only as a very last resort, when all other diplomatic and economic measures have failed, and never as a preferred or habitual response to conflict.

3.  “Choosing life” is a constant biblical theme, so I will choose candidates who have the most consistent ethic of life, addressing all the threats to human life and dignity that we face — not just one. Thirty-thousand children dying globally each day of preventable hunger and disease is a life issue. The genocide in Darfur is a life issue. Health care is a life issue. War is a life issue. The death penalty is a life issue. And on abortion, I will choose candidates who have the best chance to pursue the practical and proven policies which could dramatically reduce the number of abortions in America and therefore save precious unborn lives, rather than those who simply repeat the polarized legal debates and “pro-choice” and “pro-life” mantras from either side.

4.  God’s fragile creation is clearly under assault, and I will choose the candidates who will likely be most faithful in our care of the environment. In particular, I will choose the candidates who will most clearly take on the growing threat of climate change, and who have the strongest commitment to the conversion of our economy and way of life to a cleaner, safer, and more renewable energy future. And that choice could accomplish other key moral priorities like the redemption of a dangerous foreign policy built on Middle East oil dependence, and the great prospects of job creation and economic renewal from a new “green” economy built on more spiritual values of conservation, stewardship, sustainability, respect, responsibility, co-dependence, modesty, and even humility.

5.  Every human being is made in the image of God, so I will choose the candidates who are most likely to protect human rights and human dignity. Sexual and economic slavery is on the rise around the world, and an end to human trafficking must become a top priority. As many religious leaders have now said, torture is completely morally unacceptable, under any circumstances, and I will choose the candidates who are most committed to reversing American policy on the treatment of prisoners. And I will choose the candidates who understand that the immigration system is totally broken and needs comprehensive reform, but must be changed in ways that are compassionate, fair, just, and consistent with the biblical command to “welcome the stranger.”

6.  Healthy families are the foundation of our community life, and nothing is more important than how we are raising up the next generation. As the father of two young boys, I am deeply concerned about the values our leaders model in the midst of the cultural degeneracy assaulting our children. Which candidates will best exemplify and articulate strong family values, using the White House and other offices as bully pulpits to speak of sexual restraint and integrity, marital fidelity, strong parenting, and putting family values over economic values? And I will choose the candidates who promise to really deal with the enormous economic and cultural pressures that have made parenting such a “countercultural activity” in America today, rather than those who merely scapegoat gay people for the serious problems of heterosexual family breakdown.

That is my list of personal “faith priorities” for the election year of 2008, but they are not “non-negotiables” for anyone else. It’s time for each of us to make up our own list in these next 12 days. Make your list and send this on to your friends and family members, inviting them to do the same thing.

For another article presenting Wallis’ views on issues facing American voters, see http://www.sojo.net/index.cfm?action=magazine.article&issue=soj0811&article=what-s-at-stake.

Theologian/Storyteller, Megan McKenna

Today - one week before voting day for President of the United States - I’d like to offer a note I received in June from theologian, storyteller Megan McKenna. A friend had asked what her “rules” for choosing a candidate for political office would be. This was her response.

Dear folks,

Here is something I wrote in response to a question. It’s a place to start. Enjoy and feel free to comment and send me any of your thoughts. I’m sure I’ll be using it more and more as time goes on. Blessings, Shalom, Megan

Here are my rules (so to speak) for voting … rough form. They are more developed when I speak them.

I. Vote for the person you think will do the least amount of harm (war, nuclear weapons, new weapons, death penalty, economics, housing, health insurance, etc.).

2. Vote for the person you think will allow you and others with you to do the most amount of good (correcting and undoing the gutting of the Constitution, rights, freedoms in the US, etc. from the last 8 years), as well as work for legistation against the death penalty, for housing, decent wages, immigration (welcoming the stranger since we were all in that group once unless we are native Americans), universal health care, dialogue with other nations (trying to pull our international reputation out of where it is today because of Iraq/Afghanistan/torture, aggression, pre-emptive strikes, alliance with Israel, refusal to dialog with Iran/Sudan/Cuba/Palestine, etc.).

3. Remember - none of them [candidates and political parties] is interested in the kingdom of justice for all and peace (the peace of Christ - nonviolent resistance to evil) and life ever more abundantly for all.

4. Do not vote one issue … no matter what it is. There are 6.8 billion people in the world, nearly 2/3 of them living at subsistence level, in need of clean water, basic food, shelter, medicine, education, dignity, freedom from violence, the freedom to migrate and a hope for their children. There is also the destruction of the earth and the greed of the few/major nations like us and the G8 over-using natural resources and thinking only in terms of profit, nationalism/and a war that in the last 8 years has, on an average wasted over $800 billion a year on wanton destruction of Iraq (a country the size of New Jersey) and Afghanistan (already in the 11 century when we started bombing). Yet we do nothing in regards to Burma (Myanmar) the Sudan, Zimbabawe or any other country that is beset by dictators/military regimes, etc.

5. VOTE… If you don’t, then you are even more responsible for what happens. Not to choose is to choose - we are all accountable for what happens in this country.

6. Vote for the person who will think long term - Supreme Court justices, economics, and especially in regards to other countries, internationally. We have little or no respect around the world - because of torture, lies, Guantanamo, immigration practices, arrogance towards others, rendition of citizens, the ignoring of our own Constitution and laws and our inordinate living (consumption of oil, resources, food, etc.). At home - the housing, mortgage crisis - people need their homes back, they need universal medical insurance and education that is not tiered according to race/economics.

7. Pray, read the scriptures. Who would Jesus, in the power of the Spirit who calls God Our Father (all of us the beloved children of God, blessed and loved, no exceptions), vote for? And get involved with others. Make your choice. Look at and know what needs to be confronted and dealt with - the Middle East question of Jerusalem/Israel/Palestine, 2 states, the wall; the ongoing wars and how to get troops out and how to dialog so that war is not considered an option ever - no matter what. And look for integrity, honesty, truthfulness.

That’s it … in a nutshell. Each “rule” or thing to remember could be elaborated on with the principles of justice, social teaching and the gospel.

Blessings,

Megan

Jesse Manibusan

Jesse Manibusan is a singer, songwriter, comedian, and guerilla evangelist who works primarily with youth and young adults, but is also loved by many of us “older” folks as well. We first met when my oldest son was 5 years old. (He’s 29 now - you can do the math!)

Jesse includes a wide variety of styles of music in his work, from the sweetly lyric poetry and tone of Have you seen my God? or Until I Return to the rapper style MC God and I’m Coming Home’s cha-cha rhythm. I’ll never forget the day he sang for the first commencement ceremony of The National Hispanic University. He didn’t speak Spanish, but he had listened to tapes of traditional songs and played them for about 15 minutes before the ceremony started, to the delight of the assembled families and friends of the graduates. When he led us in The Star Spangled Banner to begin the ceremony, his voice filled the auditorium. He later took this great talent for music and language and wrote his Misa del Mundo, liturgical music with phrases and refrains from languages and cultures all over the world - uniting all into the one prayer we all share, our liturgy.

Early in his career, Jesse wrote a song that I’ve always thought was a good reminder of what’s important - God is Bigger. In these days leading up to the election in the US, when financial markets are on a roller coaster, jobs are in flux, the housing market continues to fall and everything is uncertain, it’s important that we remember that truly, God is Bigger than all that stuff. As Jesse says, “God is good … all the time and All the time … God is good.”

Jesse is probably best known for another of his early songs, Open My Eyes. The words of the song include, “Open my eyes, Lord, help me to see your face …. Open my ears, Lord, help me to hear your voice … Open my heart, Lord, help me to love like you…” A wonderful prayer for beginning each day.

Jesse has a website, http://jessemanibusan.com. Go there and check it out. His blog tells of his travels, adventures and reflections. His CDs and Videos are available for purchase, along with songbooks for those who’d like to have the music to play themselves. And you can find out where his next performance will be, so you can be there! You won’t regret it.

I’ll close with wishes for Jesse of a very Happy Birthday, many more years of joy with your wonderful family, and continued faithfulness to your calling which has enriched all of us and brought such delight to so many.

St. Teresa of Avila - by Peter Paul Rubens

St. Teresa of Avila, also known as St. Teresa of Jesus, was a Carmelite nun, reformer of her order, mystic, and writer.  She is one of only three women who have been named “Doctor of the Church.” She had a lively intellect and loved people and parties. She wasn’t afraid to argue with the Lord or to oppose those of her time who believed her reforms unnecessary and even dangerous. She experienced many years of illness, including three of paralysis. She found prayer difficult for many years and even refused to try. It wasn’t until she was middle-aged that she began her great work of prayer, reform and teaching.

Many books and articles have been written about St. Teresa of Avila. I refer you to them and to her own writings for details about her life and contributions.

I also invited Mother Marija of Holy Annunciation Monastery in Sugarloaf, Pennsylvania to share a thought with us about St. Teresa. Her response:

The invitation: “What is one thing you would like people to know about St. Teresa of Avila?”  To be true to Teresa one must be faithful to Teresa’s own thought, at least as well as another can understand and convey it. Our Holy Mother St. Teresa, is a Doctor of the Church, so she needs no other “recommendation” in her teaching capacity. Her own mystical life is self-described in her writings: Life, The Way of Perfection (written for her daughters the Carmelite nuns), and the Interior Castle,  which book describes – even maps out - the journey of a soul through seven stages of the inner life to union with God. Again, Teresa had the Carmelite nuns in mind when writing this book, as the epilog expressly tells us. So what would I like people to know about Teresa? Simply that she is a true guide for a life of prayer – a “life”, meaning that prayer for Teresa is the WAY to God. Our Lord is, of course, the WAY and Teresa’s way of prayer is friendship with Jesus. The Way of Perfection, a life of Prayer and finding Jesus as the Way for each of us seems for Teresa  to be identical. After all, she is Teresa of Jesus.

Thank you, Mother, for your contribution. May God bless you and all who seek to serve Him through a life of prayer and friendship with Jesus.

The books of St. Teresa of Avila are still in print today. You can find them listed in our discovery engine at http://www.theologika.net/search. Just enter her name and you’ll get links to her works.

Photo by Chuck Welch of Lakeland, FL

Over the past 12-18 months I’ve received a number of emails forwarded from friends and family that were related to the current Presidential election in the US. The majority of the emails purported to be sincere efforts to raise questions about the ability of a candidate to serve as leader of this country. However, in general, they were filled with statements that were phrased to sound alarm bells in the minds of “Middle America” about the candidacy of Senator Barak Obama.  Many make a big deal of Senator Obama’s name. Others raise questions about the validity of his decision to become a Christian as an adult. One, featuring a cute picture of a bear seated at a picnic table, raised again the old Republican campaign claim that the Democratic party would give money to people who didn’t really need it or were too lazy to work for it - a “socialist state” type of idea, with all the negative baggage such terms carry in this country.

I haven’t received emails of this nature from the other side. I did hear of a You-Tube video featuring a formal Navy officer who was also a POW during the Vietnam War. In that one the speaker explained his concerns about Senator McCain. But that’s the only one I’ve seen. There may be others, but my “liberal” friends tend not to send that kind of stuff to me.

I write about this because as we come into the final weeks of the campaign, the tenor of the rallies and the statements being made are becoming more worrisome. Some of the rhetoric is deliberately arousing negative reactions from the crowds. Use of Senator Obama’s middle name in speaking of him is leading crowds to “boo” and shout out threats against him. While the presidential candidates themselves do not endorse this kind of activity, at least one of their running mates has not stopped it at campaign rallies when it occurred. This is dangerous and un-American. It is also un-Christian. So I believe it is something that must be addressed in Theologika’s forum.

Accordingly, I offer reflections I sent to a friend who had forwarded one of those “hate” emails to me. It should be noted that my friend was sincerely asking for my input on the content of the email. (He sent my reply back to his correspondent with his statement that he agreed with what I had said.)

The piece in question asked specifically if Muslims could be good Americans and would go to fight for America if the need arose. The implication of the article was that they could not and by extension that Senator Obama, because of his name and family of origin, would not be a safe choice for President. My response was as follows:

How to begin!?!
 
I guess the place I begin is remembering when Kennedy ran for President when I was a child. The big question on many people’s minds was whether electing him meant accepting the Pope as leader of the US. Catholics were not trusted in the US for the most part up until that time. I remember having someone spit on me as I walked home from school for lunch, wearing my Catholic school uniform. I was about 7-8 years old. I’d hate to think that now that it’s become understood that we are not ruled by the Pope, we’d become bigots ourselves about those of another of the great faiths ‘of the Book.’
 
A second thought is of my Muslim ’sons,’ two now middle aged men who lived with us as our children in 1978 and early 1979. They and their family are honest people, whose religious beliefs guide them to be caring, respectful, thoughtful members of the communities in which they live. One of them told me one day, that the Christian teaching to forgive one’s enemies was something that Islam also taught, as a quality of the holiest of people. I would not hesitate to see them in public service in this country. They are very grateful for the US and for the refuge, welcome, education and opportunities they received as teenagers from an ‘enemy country’ (Iran) when they were young.
 
A third thought - Obama is Christian. This nonsense of saying that his Muslim name means he’s Muslim is just that - nonsense.  It’s like saying that any woman named Mary or man named Joseph is Jewish because those were names of Jews in the Bible! He’s named after his father. So’s my son. So what! Names are not destiny and do not equal religious faith, unless chosen as a religious name by someone entering religious community life.
 
Fourth - As Catholic Christians, we are members of a universal community, with first allegiance to the Kingdom of Heaven. The Pope and bishops continually remind us that we are not first and foremost Americans. Our decisions must be made in the light of broader, more universal concerns. What will this policy do to the least among us? The ‘preferential option for the poor’ that is rarely mentioned in American political discourse is the fundamental principle for us. Does that make us unfit for American office or citizenship? Some would argue that it would. I argue that as Christians, our call is to work for change within our society, not legislating it or criminalizing actions that are contrary to my beliefs, but to create support systems and encourage development of values on a broader scale that align American society and values with Kingdom values. We must keep this as a secular society, refusing to allow people of any faith to impose their own religious rules. A theocracy (society governed by religious law and leaders) is dangerous for all of us. As Christians, we’ve accomplished the most in bettering life for ‘the least among us’ when we began working as individuals and small groups to take care of the poor, the women and children, the disabled, etc. Those beginnings grew into larger movements and institutions, like the proverbial yeast of the Gospels. (Think St. Vincent de Paul, Mother Teresa, St. Camillus de Lellis, and many, many more. See http://blog.theologika.net for more examples.)

Fifth - I was raised in a family that more often than not votes Republican. I was always proud of the Republican belief that individuals can solve problems much more effectively in their own local communities than some ‘politician’ in the “East” could solve it for them. (We were from a western state.) But I’ve learned through the years that there are some things that can’t be handled or resolved effectively on a local level. And people who don’t have even flip flops can’t pull themselves up by their bootstraps. We’re in this together, as the melt-down on Wall Street has made abundantly clear recently. If a party can’t present its ideas and win the hearts of voters by presenting the issues and their best ideas about how to solve the problems of our nation without resorting to lies, fear-mongering and innuendo, then I’m not at all sure that party is worth supporting. I’m ashamed to see people of good will passing this garbage around and giving it credibility in the process.
 
As you can see, I’m a bit passionate about all of this. We’ve come so far. We can go so much farther. But we keep diving back down into bigotry and hatred. The saints and angels, as well as the one God and Father of us all, must be in tears.

I offer these thoughts to you, my readers, as well. In choosing our leaders, we must move beyond the politics of fear and of creating barriers where they don’t really exist. We must look at the issues before us, evaluate them based on our values and understanding of our faith, and then make our decisions responsibly and prayerfully, remembering that God has given us the gift of our minds so that we can use them to make this a more compassionate, just, and secure world for all who share it.

For more on the idea of secular societies vs theocracies, see http://blog.theologika.net/2008/09/11/theocracy-or-secular-society-reflections/.

For information on Islam, a classic from the field of anthropology is Islam Observed, by Clifford Geertz. There are also good pieces in Wikipedia on Islam and the many forms it takes.

The following are works I cited in another blog post, but in case you missed them, they’re well worth reading, so here they are again!

God’s Crucible: Islam and the Making of Europe, 570-1215, by David Levering Lewis 

The Voice, The Word, The Books: The Sacred Scripture of the Jews, Christians, and Muslims, by F.E. Peters

A Peace to End All Peace: The Fall of the Ottoman Empire and the Creation of the Modern Middle East, by David Fromkin

Secularity and the Gospel: Being Missionaries to our Children, by Ronald Rolheiser, OMI

Three Cups of Tea: One Man’s Mission to Promote Peace … One School at a Time, by Greg Mortensen

Eulalie Durocher was born on October 6, 1811, in San Antoine sur Richelieu near Montreal. Her life can be summarized very briefly. She was the tenth of eleven children and one of her older brothers was a priest.  When she was 18, her mother passed away and Eulalie and her father went to live with her brother, Theophile, at his parish in Boleil. The young Eulalie took charge of the priest’s home as housekeeper, hostess, and parish assistant. Although she was reputed to be lively and something of a tomboy, her health was never really robust.

At the request of Bishop Ignace Bourget, Eulalie, at 32, in 1842 became the reluctant co-founder, with the bishop, of the Sisters of the Holy Names of Jesus and Mary. (Bishop Bourget also founded 3 other religious orders to help meet the needs of his diocese, which was the vastness of Canada.) At her profession of vows, she took the name Sr. Marie-Rose. Two of her friends joined her in this new work, focusing on the religious education of children, especially girls.  Blessed Marie Rose led her group for 6 difficult years until she died on her birthday October 6, 1849.

We know that her spiritual formation under Fr. Telmon was strict and that she set a very high standard for the members of her community. However, her service to the poor and her efforts to deal with the social ills of her time set the order on a trajectory of education, nursing, social work, and spiritual direction.

The Sisters of the Holy Names have been leaders in the education of women and pastoral care and service of the most disadvantaged. Kathy and I are both indebted to the Sisters of the Holy Names. Kathy was educated by Holy Names Sisters for 10 years, first in her parish grammar school and later at Holy Names Academy in Spokane, WA. My first full time teaching position was in the Education Department of Holy Names University in Oakland, CA some 30 years ago. We send our greetings, thanks and prayers to the Sisters of the Holy Names on this the feast of their foundress.

St. Francis of Assisi window - St. Joseph’s Monastery in Aptos, CA - Artist: Susan Wagner

October 4 is the feast of St. Francis of Assisi. Francis was born in Assisi, Italy in about 1182 and died at the Porziuncola, a chapel outside Assisi’s walls, in 1226. He is one of the best known saints, founder of the Order of Friars Minor or Franciscans, the Poor Ladies or Order of St. Clare  (Poor Clares - founded with St. Clare of Assisi) and the Third Order Franciscans, including lay men and women who also wanted to live in accordance with the Gospels in a Franciscan manner. There are many sub-groups of Franciscans.

Brother Bill Short, OFM  of the Franciscan School of Theology, Berkeley, CA has developed an excellent series of lectures on the life and times of St. Francis. I listened to it recently and was fascinated with the richness of detail he included about the culture and history of the times, as well as the people who each played a part in the story of St. Francis.

I asked Brother Bill and a few others for reflections on St. Francis for his feast - one thing they would like people to know about him. I received these responses.

From Brother Bill:

Something (one thing) I would like people to know about St. Francis – hmmmm, there’s an embarrassment of riches.  Let me try this:
 
Francis was rather alarmed by the notion that people might think he was some kind of saint.  In a fairly reliable account from companions who travelled with him, recounted some fifteen years after his death, they remember that on travelling through a town in Tuscany, a man pleaded with Francis to pray that his wife would be freed from an evil spirit that was making her cry out, disturbing the neighbors.  Francis seemed pretty skeptical, but finally agreed to go to the house, along with three companions.  He stationed them in three corners of the room where the woman was ranting, while he took one corner for himself.  They all prayed, and the woman stopped shrieking, apparently healed.  The husband thanked Francis profusely, but Francis seemed in a hurry to move along.  Some time later he passed through the same town with Brother Elias (his vicar) and the woman came rushing out to thank him.  He still seemed reluctant to accept her story, but finally agreed that she had been freed from her problem – but he was very clear that four brothers had prayed for her (including him) and who knew which prayer God had answered?  That’s good, practical humility, I think.
 
I like the story because it shows Francis as someone with a pretty shrewd sense of “phonies,” and a cautious approach to anyone (including himself!) being considered a saint during their own lifetime.

From Sr. Krista Aitkin of St. Joseph’s Monastery in Aptos, CA

St. Francis of Assisi is a spirit and a way of life.  His spirit and his way of living are reality lived,  not an idea or ideal, or even a formula.  Everything about St. Francis is an invitation to practice.  He is not locked into “a system.”  He lives reality through devotion toward others,  respect for the poor and for all of God’s creation.  In short,  St. Francis lives in and through the Word of God.  His charism is not linked to a particular apostolate,  but is focused on “becoming” rather than “producing,”  on one spirituality - putting on Christ,  who called himself the way,  the truth,  and our life.

Thank you to Brother Bill and Sr. Krista for your responses to my question and for sharing your love of St. Francis with me. May the Lord continue to bless you richly.

St. Therese - Original icon by Sr. Marie-Celeste Fadden, Carmel of Reno - Used with permission

St. Therese of Lisieux is known as “The Little Flower” because before she died she promised that after her death she would send down a shower of roses on the earth. She is known for her “little way” to God - a way that everyone can follow, doing the smallest everyday things in love as a way to God.

I asked the sisters at several Carmelite monasteries to share their reflections on St. Therese for her feast day and received these gracious responses.

Mother Marija, 0cd of Holy Annunciation Monastery , a Byzantine Carmelite monastery, in Sugarloaf, PA, sent this note:

The invitation: “What is one thing you would like people to know about St. Therese?”  This in turn, led me to ask: “what did Therese want us to know about her life and spirituality?  What did she say?” Before she died Therese spoke  of her desire  to make known to all “little souls” (everyone)  her way of confidence and love.  Therese wanted us to know how much, how very much, we are loved by God and have nothing to fear from Him.  This being true, we might also say that God gave Therese to the Church and world as a “new” expression of the Gospel message: God is Love.
 
When praying the Novena of Grace in 1897, the very year of her death, Therese asked God to grant her unique request: That her mission to save souls would last until the end of time” So as we honor Therese,  we should  recognize that God wants our love and has sent Therese to us, raised her up in the Church, as a new “invitation” to know Him as Love.

The Sisters at Carmel of Reno were unable to offer a reflection on St. Therese or Carmelite spirituality at this time, but they graciously gave permission to use the icon of St. Therese doing the laundry created by the late Sr. Marie-Celeste, as illustration for this post. They also offered their best wishes and this comment.

We deeply appreciate your interest in Carmelite spirituality and  sharing the riches of theology and religious experience with the broad community on line.

St. Therese is one of my personal favorite saints, as I’ve mentioned in earlier posts. For more about her life and influence, here are some options:

Maurice and Therese: The Story of a Love by Patrick Ahern

Saint Therese and the Roses by Helen Walker Homan

St. Therese of Lisieux - Saint of the Day 

The Triumph of the Lowly - St. Therese of Lisieux and the Little Way