Proclaiming God's Greatness

The Feast of the Visitation of the Blessed Virgin Mary to her cousin, Elizabeth, as described in St. Luke's Gospel, (1: 39-57) not only gives us two beautiful prayers, but also another stone in the solid and rich foundation of Marist Spirituality.  Elizabeth's greeting,  "Blessed are you among women and blessed is the fruit of your womb",  (Lk 1: 44) now incorporated into the Hail Mary, prompts Mary's beautiful and humble response, now known as the Magnificat. She turn the attention from herself to God:  "My being proclaims the greatness of the Lord;/ my spirit rejoices in God my Savior,/ for he has looked with favor on his lowly servant./ From this day all generations will call me blessed."  (Lk 1: 47-48).  She goes on to praise the works of the Lord who favors the poor and the hungry, filling them with food and sending the rich away empty, knocking the proud and arrogant from their pedestles and raising up the lowly. Mary had come immediately (with haste) to be with her aged cousin to help her before she delivered her son, John the Baptist, and stayed long afterwards, forgetting her own needs.She also came to share the treasure of her own child, with others; the unborn John recognized him and leapt for joy.
As Marists, we follow Mary in her haste to bring Jesus to others, to serve the lowly and help them see their place on the pedestle of God's kingdom, all the while focusing on God's greatness and gifts, not our own. The Visitation Sisters, the Congregation of Notre Dame Sisters, and many others celebrate this as their patronal feast, but it is very much ours as well.  How can we better respond to the needs of others? How can we bring Jesus to them?  How can we proclaim God's mightiness and keep ourselves humble?  May this be a happy and fruitful day spent with Mary and Elizabeth.
Bro. Rene

Who Is Like Our God?

The author of Psalm 25 provides an appropriate prayer for all of us who seek to find meaning, connection, purpose in our busy lives. Let us put ourselves into it as if it were our own prayer, slowly, prayerfully reading and reflecting; we will find peace and direction.
The Lord is good and upright.
He shows the path to those who stray,
he guides the humble in the right path;
he teaches his ways to the poor.

His ways are faithfulness and love
for those who keep his covenant and law.
Lord for the sake of your name
forgive my guilt, for it is great.

If anyone fears the Lord
he will show him the path he should choose
His soul shall live in happiness
and his children shall possess the land.
The Lord's friendship is for those who revere him;
to them he reveals his covenant.

My eyes are always on the Lord;
for he rescues my feet from the snare.
Turn to me and have mercy
for I am lonely and poor.

Relieve the anguish of my heart
and set me free from my distress.
See my affliction and my toil
and take all my sins away.
Redeem Israel, O God, from all its distress.

Bro. Rene

The Spirit of Love

The Church often prays for the Spirit of Love to unite believers in mind and heart with Jesus and with one another.  In responding to the call to the priesthood, St. Marcellin opened his heart to another call, the founding of the Little Brothers of Mary, whose purpose would be to unite their students in love with each other and with Jesus.  With humility, simplicity, faith and determination, he did not waver nor swerve from this path and in his short life, set the direction of future brothers, and now an increasing number of lay people.  His efforts were crowned by the Church which beatified him on this day in 1955, and canonized him on April 18,1999, honors, which this humble man did not seek. Today, despite a declining number of brothers a new vitality is surging in different parts of the Congregation as the pooling of resources and personnel leads to new works...Talk of a new community in Harlem of brothers from Canada, Mexico and the United States, along with lay members, might soon come into being, showing that the Spirit of Love is still at the heart of the work begun by St. Marcellin.
Bro. Rene 

God's Plans For Us

Everyone's life is a testing ground a growing ground, sometimes causing us pain as year after year we seem to bounce from one place physically, mentally, or spiritually.  We look for permanence, stability, so that we can sink roots, grow and blossom into the person we think we would like to be, and thus find satisfaction and happiness.  Unfortunately, it does not always work out that way.  A soldier goes off to war, is wounded, and comes home blind or maimed; grateful to be alive, but oh, what a painful road physically, mentally and spiritually to move to acceptance of this new state, even to come to embrace it.  The nagging question, "Why me? lingers for years, especially if one has been good and "followed all the rules."  It seems like an unfair lot, even a punishment, for a crime not committed. 
It could be even less dramatic...simply being cut year after year from job after job, because of budget cuts.  Where does one go for help, for solace when the bottom has literally been torn from the boat?  It's in these moments of loneliness and darkness that God eventually will reveal his plan, reminding us of the consoling line from Jeremiah the Prophet: "I know the plans I have for you," says the Lord, plans of fullness, not of harm, to give you a future, and a hope."  (Jer 29: 11). Sometimes tears flow, when this hits one right between the eyes...There is a plan, there is resurrection...but not in our time line, but in God's.  There's the rub, there's the call to FAITH.  Praying over this verse will eventually bear fruit, and when the plan actually begins to unfold, there is great rejoicing, as in the calm afer the storm.
Bro. Rene

Decoration Day

Decorating the graves of fallen soldiers with flags and flowers began in the 1860's...in Warrenton, Virginia as early as 1861.  By 1868, it had become a national custom later, came to be known as Memorial Day and includes all deceased, with still an emphasis on military men and women who gave their lives in service of our country.  As we pray for these deceased today, and take part in the parades and speeches that were once so much a staple of this day, we might also pray for those veterans who have returned from war maimed, physically or emotionally and pray for those who are helping to rehabilitate them.  Iron Stone farm has recently begun "horse therapy" for veterans who have "lost themselves" but have found themselves and meaning in their lives by contact with horses.  Let us also pray for those who at this moment are serving in those troublesome spots of the world:  Afghanistan, the Middle East and Korea.  The Lord is their shield and protector and we place them in his hands.
Bro. Rene

How Great Thou Art

As we reflect on the Holy Trinity today, it might be good to begin, as the hymn goes, to consider all the works God's hands have made. "I see the stars, I hear the rolling thunder/ Thy power throughout the universe displayed." "Awesome", though such a popular word with teenagers, falls short when we attempt to describe the wonder, magnitude and mystery the heavens alone contain.  Then we come to us:  What is may that you should be mindful of him....You have made him a little less than the angels,/ and crowned him with glory and honor,/ You have given him rule over the works of your hands/ putting all things under his feet." (Ps 8: 4-6). The beauty of humans, so breathtaking, so diverse, even palls when we consider all that makes us tick, from brain, to nerves, to organs, fingers, all..
Our faith tells us that all of this comes from God in whose image and likeness we are made...We stand stunned, as it were, before our creator as we contemplate his works...And more than a Creator, we come to see him even more clearly as Jesus has revealed him:  as a loving, compassionate Father, who counts the hairs on our head, so intimately does he know and love us.  Jesus gives us a fuller picture of this Father, whose Spirit is the love he has for his Son, and who is breathed into us to give us the "strength, the drive, the life-giving energy that will make us followers of Jesus, his witnesses and partners at the service of the grand project of the Holy Trinity" as Jose Pagola so beautifully puts it. (Following in the Footsteps of Jesus, Year C, p, 84).  This is the God we honor, celebrate and to whom we  lovingly sing: "How great thou art!"
Bro. Rene







llovingly

Like a Trusting Child

 Simplicity is one of the hallmarks of our Marist Spirituality.  Along the way we run into examples of it, such as in "little way" of St. Therese of Lisieux, but Jesus gives us the best formula for it:  "I say to you, whoever does not accept the kingdom of God like a child will not enter it." (Mark 10: 15).  If I can allow myself to become like a little child in the arms of Jesus, trusting, asking questions without hesitation, and simply being loved by him, I will find the key to serenity, the energy I seek to follow him more closely and discover that I can do the impossible as Doug Larson,noted columnist, discovered in child like simplicity:  "Some of the world's greatest feats were accomplished by people not smart enough to know they were impossible."-  Child like simplicity lets us go to places where others have feared to tread.  Lord, help me to become like a little child.. 

Bro. Rene

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Last Will and Testament

This time of year finds a number of anniversaries in the life of St. Marcellin on the calendar.   His birthday was May 20, 1789, his baptism, the next day.  On May 18, 1840, Br. Francois read his "Spiritual Testament" to the brothers gathered in the community room at the Hermitage.  On May 29, 1955, he was beatified; on June 4, 1840, he received the Eucharist for the last time, and died on June 6th.  We continue to find inspiration in his life and this particular passage from the Spiritual Testament:  I beg of you, my brothers, with all the affection of my soul, and all the love you have for me, do all you can to ensure that charity is always maintained among you.  Love one another as Jesus Christ has loved you.  Be of one heart and on mind.  May it be said of the Little Brothers of Mary, as of the first Christians:  "See how they love one another."  this is the most ardent desire of my heart at this, the last moment of my life.  Yes, my very dear brothers, listen to the words of your Father, they are the words of our loving savior:  "Love on another."
Bro. Rene

Prayer Purifies

Like any team on a winning streak, there are times in our spiritual lives, when all is going well, according to us: prayer comes easy, we feel good as we pray and afterwards:  a clear sky, no clouds at all.  Then comes the implosion:  a team seems to fall apart, nothing works, mistake follows mistake.  A brick wall? Prayer too can take such an unexpected nose dive; it becomes flat and doesn't go anywhere, again, according to us.  But according to a long line of spiritual directors, these flat times are the ones that purify us, our motivations, our commitment to prayer and its overflow action of loving service.  We learn patience, perserverence, and humility. We need to accept this lull, this quiet, winter, desert time.  It will bear fruit as the patient mother bird sitting on her nest eventuall feels her young break through their shells. It's about PRESENCE, a familiar Marist theme,  as I observed this morning on our porch:  the daddy bird perched on the railing below the family nest, in quiet waiting, ready to step in to protect, to bring food, if needed, serving no other purpose, it seemed, other than to BE THERE.  Our commitment to prayer will be tested periodically to purifiy us, to draw us back to the simple stance of BEING  THERE.   Very hard, but necessary, for those who are DOERS. For without this deeper connection with God, these DOINGS will dissolve like sugar in hot tea. 
 This is how we live out St. Paul's admonition:  "Rejoice always, pray continually, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus."  (1Thess 5:16)
Bro. Rene

St. Rita of Cascia

Perhaps more popular in Italy than in the United States, the 15th century wife, mother, widow, nun, St. Rita of Cascia, nevertheless is a saint for our times and our needs.  Her life was filled with challenges one would deem impossible from an early age when at 12 she was forced by her parents to marry a man with a bad temper who abused her, was unfaithful to her and taught their sons his evil ways. He was eventually killed by one of his enemies, leaving Rita a widow after 20 years of marriage.  Her one consolation was that he repented at the end of his life. Rita was finally able to fulfill her life-long dream, and entered the convent of the Augustinian Nuns at Cascia, but even there, felt isolated and lonely because the nuns feared her husbands enemies might take reprisal on the convent which housed his widow.  The behavior of her sons was a cross, but yet she asked Jesus for a closer tie with him in his passion.  Her request was granted, and she received the stigmata in the form of a wound in her forehead similar to those Jesus bore from the crown of thorns.  Hers was a single wound which she endured with great pain for the rest of her life.  She died in 1457 and was canonized in 1900 by Pope Leo XIII.  It is no wonder that she is the patroness of impossible causes, victims of abuse, sickness, loneliness, parents and widows.  She experienced all of these.  With these situations currently so rampant, it would seem that she should be invoked day and night by everyone.  Her story needs to be re-told.  Google presents many sites for those who wish to know more about her.  St. Rita, help us not to despair when we think we cannot take one more step forward or the burdens we carry are too heavy.  Your prayers, penances, good works and perseverance throughout a life of trial and hardship are a model for us. 
Thank you for being there with and for us. Amen.
Bro. Rene

Lightning Strikes Twice

As we reel from the news of the second tornado in near Oklahoma City, news of another fire in the school in Byimana, Rwanda where a dormitory was destroyed last month.  This time the refectory (dining room), which had become a dorm, the kitchen and chapel were ruined in the blaze last night.  The students were moved to classrooms for the rest of the night and sent home today.  This would make continuing the academic year in that location impossible.
On top of that, one of my former Rwandan students, who lives in More, Oklahoma, lost everything in the tornado.  He was at work, so he himself is safe.
Making its way around the world on You Tube is a song called Clouds by Zach Sobiech, who died just yesterday from cancer.  He wrote the song in December for his parents and friends.  It is filled with hope for a better life.   Sirach reminds us:  "You who fear the Lord, hope for good things,/ for lasting joy and mercy./ You who fear the Lord, love him,/ and your hearts will be enlightened./ Study the generations long past and understand;/ has anyone hoped in the Lord and been disappointed?/ Has anyone persevered in his commandments and been forsaken? has anyone called upon him and been rebuffed?/...he saves in time of trouble/ and he is a protector to all who seek him in truth." (Sirach 3: 9-1)
Br. Rene

Voices

Our three-month renewal program concluded yesterday with Pentecost, and today we enter the longest season of the liturgical year, Ordinary Time.  This period is now an application of the things we learned, the behaviors we attempted to modify, and the gifts of the spirit.  The Church has opened the Book of Wisdom as our first readings for the next few days.  Wisdom...the voices of the past, the voices of our parents, grandparents, and the Church itself.  If we can, let us find a few moments to reflect, ponder with Mary, those voices of wisdom; to repeat interiorly what we have heard and measure how well our behavior reflects them.
Bro. Rene

The Day of the Spirit

The Holy Spirit seems to take a "back place" in our prayers, spirituality and thinking.  Always last in the Trinitarian list:  Father, Son and Holy Spirit.  But not today, for TODAY is the Day of the Spirit,  when the banners and trumpets are out in force, or should be.   Tongues of fire, symbols of the interior "firing up" of the Disciples and Mary in the upper room,  the sound of a great wind, doors flung open, a crowd of 3,000 hearing Peter speak in their own tongues, and the first "big" conversion to Christ set the tone for the day.  The Sequence of the Mass of Pentecost presents beautiful images of the Spirit:  "Light divine, comforter, refreshment, rest, coolness, solace, dew, cleansing water, strength, warmth", the works, it seems.  And rightly so...for the Spirit springs forth from the eternal and all-encompassing love of the Father for the Son.  How blessed are we individuals and a Church to have such a presence in our hearts, in our midst.  Images of Pope Francis at the Vigil of Pentecost sum it up:  a white clothed figure in the midst of a huge crowd of 200,000, reaching out to them, kissing them, urging them to live the way Jesus taught.  He thrusts himself into the hearts of people, literally, inviting them to follow Jesus.  That's what Peter did on Pentecost, that's what we are called to do, must do, wherever we are!  Happy Pentecost. 
Bro. Rene

Endings

For many of us, endings are hard.  I personally hate them:  the end of a movie, a book, a season, an academic year, etc...I guess it's because I'm so totally immersed  in the present situation that I narrow my vision to it, and am so comfortable in it, that I don't think there can be anything better beyond it.  Of course, I've found over and over again that that's not true; the next chapter, or the next whatever, has always been better than the last.  Still, the coming of change causes hesitation and a degree of sadness.
Today we approach the end of the Easter Season, for tomorrow, Pentecost, we celebrate the "birthday" of the Church and the beginning of another phase of the liturgical cycle.  We concluded the Gospel of John and the Acts of the Apostles in preparation for the story of Pentecost and the reception of the Holy Spirit.;  We have meditated on the resurrection and prayed for the coming of the Spirit.  We should be ready.   Perhaps while shopping, or attending graduations, (endings and commencements, beginnings, for the graduates), we might renew our hope in the presence of the Spirit to "make all things new" and ask that we know our own place in making that renewal happen, so that hope and joy may fill us and overflow to others.
Bro. Rene

The Power of "YES"

Let us imagine for a moment that we are gathered with the Apostles and Mary in the Upper Room, awaiting the Spirit.  We look at Mary, serene in her prayer, pondering, no doubt, the many instances when she encountered the power of the Spirit in her life, foremost of which must have been the moment of the Annunciation when her "yes" changed the course of history. Not only was the Spirit present in her all-pure soul, but the power of the overshadowing Presence brought forth the conception of the Son of God in her womb. Her "yes" was the gate of Salvation.  Her example must have helped Jesus in his Gethsemane agony to say a powerful "yes" to his Father's offering of the bitter cup of suffering, death and resurrection.
Then there's Peter, who denied Jesus three times, doubted at least once, but yet affirmed his faith and confidence in Jesus three times with his "yes" at the post-resurrection sea shore  breakfast cooked by Jesus.  "Do you love me, Simon Peter?"  "Yes, Lord; you know that I love you." (Jn 21: 15).  He reversed his denial and accepted his role as Rock, Shepherd and Feeder of Jesus' followers.   How often must Peter have reverted to those "yes" moments? How they must have readied him for the great task that awaited him on Pentecost morn and beyond.
So too for us...how a good look back at our "yes-es" and the difference they have made in our lives and the lives of others.  Food for thought, prayer, and spiritual growth as we await Pentecost.
Bro. Rene

Awaiting the Spirit

At Baptism we received the Holy Spirit, and at Confirmation we made a willing choice to welcome that Spirit to "take over" our lives and live as fully and sincerely we can, as a disciple of Jesus.  With Mary, we are ready "to do whatever he tells us", and to keep alive his mission of forgiveness, healing, compassion and self-sacrifice to the point of accepting that "our lives are not our own."   St Paul wrote, "I live now, not I, but Christ lives within me." (Gal 2: 20).  And when we think that we can't go another step further, he tells us:  "I can do all things in Christ who strengthens me." (Eph 4:13)
At this mid-point in the month of a busy May, we might be feeling overwhelmed,  "stressed out" and needing a break.  How much more can we carry when sleep, meals, leisure time, give way to events and obligations  that continually encroach on "our day", "our weekend."  Can we imagine what it was like in the Upper Room as the disciples awaited the Holy Spirit? Loneliness, doubt, and perhaps fear, bound them to the floor of that hiding place?  Yet, when the tongues of fire came upon each one of them, all changed for the good.  Come, Holy Spirit, help me to hang on, help me to be ready to be enkindled and burn with energy and zeal once again."
Bro. Rene

God's Choice

The Memorial of St. Matthias and the story of how he was chosen by lot to replace Judas bring to mind again we are who we are because of God's choice.  "Even before he made the world, God loved us and chose us in Christ to be holy and without fault in his eyes."  (Eph. 1:4) It is not predestination, for our free will and choices (for better or worse) are always in play, but God's love is so strong and over-powering that it puts our response to shame.  "This is love, not that we loved God, but that he has first loved us." (1 Jn 4:10). By sending Jesus to show us his love, he has given us a Lover who is constantly attempting to show us how MUCH God loves us.  We forget that, taken up so much as we are in trying to show or prove our love for him. As our Best Friend, he anticipates our needs and desires, he bends over backwards to put "little things" (and big) in place for us to see.  In this season of flowering dogwoods, for example, do we just drive by without noticing, or do we see them as a treat put there by our God to help us relax in the view of beauty..
Bro. Rene

The Fatima Phenomenon

Ninety-six years ago today, three Portuguese children tending sheep at the Cove da Iria, a piece of land owned by the father of two of the children, had a vision of a beautiful woman who urged them to pray the rosary daily.  She also asked if they were willing to offer themselves to God and bear all the sufferings that he would send them.  Each month on the 13th, the woman appeared (except in August when the children were detained by the Administrator of the village).  She appeared to them on the 19th. In September she told them of a miracle that would occur in October, which would help people believe.  The "Miracle of the Sun" took place on October 13th. We now look back with names for the "main characters," Our Lady of Fatima (peace), Lucia, Francisco and Jacinta.  A huge basilica stands in the Cove and has attracted  millions of pilgrims in these 96 years where many miracles have occurred.   Blessed John Paul II attributes the saving of his life during the assassination attempts on this date in 1981.  Mary called the children and the world to take the Gospel seriously, to pray and do penance..."for the conversion of Russia, for the conversion of sinners." Let us offer our Rosary today for these intentions and remain faithful to the admonition to live the Gospel.
Bro. Rene

Right Under Our Noses

In taking time to celebrate Mothers' Day, we might also discover  that the "perfect gift" for her, has been right under our noses.  Spring gardens are emerging and revealing plants, now blooming, that seemed to have disappeared through the winter.   Iris that I had forgotten about caught my attention this morning in full bloom since yesterday, when there were no blooms at all.  Overnight they opened up and there  they were, right under my nose.  And there's "mom", always there, but "hidden", it seems under the "winter"of countless daily tasks; taken so much for granted, her loving efforts to make sure every aspect of family life runs smoothly, if not unnoticed, unacknowledged, to say the least. What a gift, better than flowers, a meal, or a card, would be a prayer/blessing/thank you that recognizes her God-like unconditional love and fidelity that make God present in the family in a very real, visible way, but, only because of our blind, self-preoccupation, we fail to see.  Let's open our eyes and mouths today and tell our mothers how we do see and appreciate her God-like qualities, and tell her that we will love and pray for her, not only today, but for the rest of her life.
Bro. Rene

Come, Holy Spirit

With the return of Jesus to the right hand of the Father, our need for him becomes more evident as we realize, as did the Apostles, that we cannot do much, if anything at all without him.  Like the apostles, we might seek refuge in some "upper room" of distraction, work or pleasure, but hiding does not solve our inadequacies.  We need to admit them, accept them, and especially ask for the Presence of the Holy Spirit.  So, until Pentecost, we use these days to pray, formally or informally, for the coming of the Holy Spirit, the Advocate, who supplies our needs and lacks. We need to "be still", to empty ourselves, and let our desire for the Spirit and his accompanying gifts to fill us.  Come, Holy Spirit, fill my heart with understanding, peace, wisdom, knowledge, strength, patience and love that I may not fear to carry out the commission of Jesus to preach the Gospel by word and deed.
Bro.Rene
Tomorrow, there will be no slice of Daily Bread...as I will be at St. Joseph's College in Maine for Commencement Exercises. Use Saturday to "rest in the Spirit."

Why Gaze to Heaven?

The angels chided the apostles as they stood puzzled and perhaps nostalgic as they looked longingly toward heaven.  Their lot was not to be "pie in the sky", but to bear witness, hard witness, to Jesus and all that he had taught them.  Their work was to be here, among other human beings, human institutions, families, communities, nations.  We can easily get caught in the trap of looking to the sky for answers, for escape, for affirmation as the challenges of this ever-increasingly secular world stirr up doubt and cynicism. It's disconcerting when a 14 year old teen says he or she is an atheist, or just simply doesn't go to church on Sundays.  No time.  Too busy.  Yet, it is exciting an reassuring when a teen of the same age says that since he or she discovered Jesus, life has been come to mean much more.  A boy came up to me last night with these very words, "I love the Bible.  I've read the four gospels. I'd love to come and talk with you about the them.  This is my favorite verse:  John 3:16."  Jesus is still very much alive, still as attractive as he was when he walked this earth.  He still works in hearts.  No, no need to be gazing toward heaven...we can find Jesus here among our own.  Let us bear ourselves with joy and confidence.  He is with us, as he promised, to the end of time.
Bro. Rene

Resting In God

Thinking of tomorrow's Solemnity of the Ascension, we can picture the Eleven, still not sure about all that had taken place, and perhaps worried about what would happen when Jesus would be taken away from them.  They must have felt a helplessness and perhaps even a discouragement, as a way of life they had lived for nearly three years was coming to an end.  What next?  Endings are always difficult for me, yet life is full of them.  Seniors, for example,  are preparing to graduate...some from high school, some from college.  What's ahead for them?
Sometimes, in our own lives, we reach a point when all seems to be tumbling down on us, confusion dominates, and energy abandons us. We ask, "What's ahead for me?" "How much further can I go?"  Nothing seems to help, except a good rest.  If we can stop long enough, we might hear God say to us, "In returning to me and in rest, you shall be saved and in quietness and in confidence you will find strength"  If we haven't learned it yet, we will find that God works best in and through us when we are at rest.  We don't have to wait till the "Big Crash", but going slowly between tasks and duties, taking time to rest and pray in between, we can save ourselves from debiletating discouragement and continue working and being effective over a longer period. God can renew us, keep us joyful and enable us to continue being his witness and ambassador.  With these little God-rest "time outs" we will find the truth in what St. Paul said:  "I can do all things in Christ who strengthens me," adding, "in Christ who rests in me!"
Bro. Rene

Mary's Way

The life of Mary, our Good Mother and the First Disciple of Jesus, presents a simple but challenging blueprint for our own lives.  At the Annunciation, she welcomed the Word of God, became blessed among all women, and was able to rejoice in God with her whole being. Stopping here to ponder for a moment:  how many times a day are we invited to accept Jesus into our hearts?  The Eucharist is there daily, a fellow-worker or family member needs a word of encouragement, a child needs an explanation, advice, or just a pat on the back. Jesus comes to us in all colors, shapes, and sizes.  When we allow him to enter again into our hearts, the joy we feel cannot be matched; it reaches to the bottom of our souls.
Mary remained faithful to Jesus, not fully understanding his mission, but sticking with him as he left home, was baptized by John, went to the desert, roamed about the country side healing and preaching, and ended up with him at the foot of his cross on Calvary.  Not an easy path, but one requiring courageous fidelity.  We cannot expect an easy path either, and we see that with Mary, we can walk it. 
Mary moved Jesus to act at Cana, and can still intercede for us with him.  And finally, she was present with the Eleven when the Holy Spirit came upon them...she was his bride already, but was further filled with his gifts. How blessed we will be if we strive each day to follow Mary's Way!
Bro. Rene

One Bulb at a Time

Sometimes we are so overwhelmed with schedules and "things to do" that we don't see the beauty all around us not do we ever imagine that we have something to contribute that will bring a previously non-existent beauty to our common, ordinary day and and world. 
One woman began planting daffodil bulbs in 1958,  50,000 bulbs later
this beautiful sea of gold brings delight to and lifts the spirits ofall who pass by.
When we do one good act of kindness each day, we help bring about the Kingdom of God, even though we
don't see the results immediately.
As we prepare for Ascension Thursday and Pentecost, let us call on the Holy Spirit to help us find
the bulbs that will help create the Kingdom of Love and Beauty which
Jesus came to set up.

Bro. Rene

Being Pulled Into God

Ascension Thursday is this week.  Forty days since Easter. Jesus prepared his disciples for his departure by promising the Holy Spirit, a promise they did not fully understand until Pentecost, and which still somewhat eludes us today.  Jesus anticipated their sadness and even anxiety at his impending return to the Father, so he assured them that there was nothing to fear, he would always be with them (us) through the Holy Spirit, who, as St. Augustine put it, is the Love between the Lover (God the Father ) and the Beloved, (God the Son...Jesus).
Michael Himes, noted Catholic writer and speaker, uses the term "Self-Gift" to define love.  Since God IS love, God is SELF-GIFT  The Holy Spirit enables that Self-Gift to live in us and like a magnet draws us into it, to become part of it.  God pulls us into himself.  His love begets love in us, his gift of self triggers the gift of ourselves to God.  This would not be happening unless Jesus returned to the Father so that he could  send the Spirit into us.  Today, and until Pentecost, let us take time in our prayer to reflect on what it means to live in the Spirit, to give ourselves to God, to be pulled into God.
Bro. Rene

Guided by Mary

The First Saturday of the month is a day when the Church honors Mary, not under any particular title, but simply because she is the Mother of God, the First Disciple, and certainly a model for us to imitate.  From her willingness to accept her role as mother of the savior to the pain she experienced at the foot of the cross, she exemplifies the faith, hope, and love we all need.  We feel the pressure of decisions, of disappointments, of frustrations, of fatigue, when it seems we can't go another step without collapsing.  Yet, Mary was "there" , did not falter, and can help us through the hoops in which we find (or put) ourselves.  Each time we pray the Hail Mary, we ask her to pray for us, NOW, as well as at the hour of our death, when we might feel the weakest.  We say the Hail Mary so often, that we don't even think of what we are saying, but in truth we are asking her to guide us in the way that brought her to Jesus:  a willingness to do God's will before hers.  This readiness is ours for the asking.
Bro. Rene

Saving Lives

Little is said in the media of the day-to-day events in Afghanistan and Syria, except for the more dramatic bombings or possibilities of nerve gas usage, but from what I hear from my Godson, Ryan, who is a medevac copter pilot, raids are constant, and the wounded numerous.  One night he flew two rescue missions back to back and another early the next day, leaving little time for sleep.  All ended up safely..this time. 
Brother George Sabe writes of continually deteriorating conditions in Aleppo, where neighborhoods have been invaded and people forced to  leave their homes with only the clothes on their backs.  The "Blue Brothers" (lay Marists and Br. George) have squeezed these refugees into their already crowded facilities, and somehow have found blankets, towels, underwear and food to care for them.
How many more instances around the world are there of the unsung who are saving lives?  The Boston Marathon Bombings brought some of them into the public eye, but many will never make the headlines.  No matter, that's not what these life-savers are looking for.  With conscious or unconscious imitation of Mary, they do good quietly, and do their best to help "the least favored", in many cases, those in danger of losing their lives.  We can be of support with yur prayers.
Bro. Rene

The Power of Love

St. Marcellin's basic premise for successful teaching is "To love all the students and love them equally." St. Paul wrote eloquently of the power of love:  Love is patient, love is kind....love can do all things." (cf. 1 Cor 13: 1-13). These men knew the power of love. Love never wears out and never fails to satisfy.   Michael Ball's rendition of Love Changes Everything so moved a young businessman that he left all to take the risk of becoming a priest.  His friends were astounded at his decision, but he told them that indeed "Love will turn your world around/ and that world/ will last forever."  (You can hear Michael Ball sing this on You Tube).
When bitterness, cynicism and frustration pile up, they can have such a negative effect, that the only remedy, relief, is love.  It "breaks the rules, makes us see the world in a different light, and never lets us be the same."
Take a moment, find this song and let it bring healing, let it speak to you, let it make your day, your life better.
Bro. Rene

St. Joseph the Worker

 We begin the month of May, Mary's month, by honoring her husband.  At one point in our liturgical history, this memorial was looked upon as the Church's counterpoint to the Soviet celebrations of May Day, but today we want to look at the deeper reason why this memorial is necessary.
It seems that a majority of people over-work, are obsessed with work to the point of becoming "workaholics".  Others seem to do all they can to do a minimal amount of work, yet still collect a big fat paycheck.  And, or course, there are the millions who would like to work, but can't find it, or, because of disability, can't do it
As mundane as work might seem at times, there is a spiritual element to it. The Catechism of the Catholic Church 2427 tells us:
"Work honors the Creator's gifts and the talents received from him. It can also be redemptive. By enduring the hardship of work in union with Jesus, the carpenter of Nazareth and the one crucified on Calvary, man collaborates in a certain fashion with the Son of God in his redemptive work. He shows himself to be a disciple of Christ by carrying the cross, daily, in the work he is called to accomplish.  Work can be a means of sanctification and a way of animating earthly realities with the Spirit of Christ."  We might at times find our job either just routine or even drudgery, but done for the sake of others, our families, our co-workers, it becomes a labor of love, and a means of becoming holy.
  Just imagine Joseph, and later with Jesus, circulating through the villages around Nazareth, seeking jobs among that poor population.  It can be very hot and dusty in July, and very wet in April.  There must have been times when staying home might have been very tempting. Yet, it's hard to imagine them "giving in".
When the first parents were expelled from the Garden of Eden, the law of work by the sweat of the brow was established and still remains on the books.  In the collect for Mass today we read:
O God, Creator of all things,
who laid down for the human race the law of work,
graciously grant that by the example of Saint Joseph and under his patronage
we may complete the works you set us to do
and attain the rewards you promise.
Through Christ, our Lord, Amen.
May our reflection on St. Joseph help us appreciate the gift and purpose of work in general and ours in particular.
Bro. Rene