Pentecost Sunday – And so the Easter Season ends as it began, with Jesus saying to the Disciples, “Peace be with you.” But it is not an ending, rather it is a sending, a commissioning, a graduation of sorts. It is our reminder, our celebration that we have been redeemed, given the gift of New Life, and filled with the Holy Spirit.  Like the Disciples, we are sent into our world to be light in the darkness, to reach out and say, “Peace be with you.” 
 
To celebrate this day, many of us would wear red to mass, symbolizing the fire of the Spirit that came to the Apostles and all of us at our Baptism.  Some will fly kites, others bake red-cakes or hang wind-chimes.  Congregations gathered for prayer are encouraged to say some of the prayers, like the Our Father or the Creed, in their own language, for the birth of the church is for all nations.  No exceptions.
 
This is a Feast Day for ourselves, the community of faith at Church of the Holy Spirit.  It has been for 47 years.  To the Elect, those of you who have not yet been fully received into the Church through Baptism, those of you who have not yet received your First Holy Communion and those who would be confirmed shortly, Peace be with you – we are all together in Spirit rather than in person.  We are almost as anxious as you are to be able to gather with you for these Sacraments of New Life. 
 
A great part of our Feast Day, our celebration of Pentecost, the beginning of the Church is learning that we will have a new pastor here at Church of the Holy Spirit. Fr. Jeremy Thomas, will come to us on July 1, and he is excited about it.  You will find more about him on our website and our social media.  So the long wait is over; we have a shepherd who will walk with us on our journey, as we gather for prayer and then go to live the Gospel in our world.
  
There’s a saying in the 12 Step Programs;  “Without God, I can’t.  Without me, God won’t.”
 
Do I lift my head and open my heart to the redeeming grace of God, the unconditional love of Christ?  If God loves me beyond measure, how can I hate my brother or sister. 
 
In Corinthians, Paul says, “The body is one and has many members, but all the members, many though they are, are one body; and so it is with Christ.  It was in one Spirit that all of us, whether Jew or Greek, slave or free, were baptized into one body.  All of us have been given to drink of the one spirit.” 
 
We must open ourselves to this Spirit because our world is filled with evil and God depends on us to face it, not alone, but with the Spirit. 

There is the murder of George Floyd, Ahmaud Arbery, the killing of Breonna Taylor, a medical worker.

Racism and injustice abounds. 
​
12 Y/O  Young Black man-   sings:
I’m a young black man, doing all that I can to stand.
Oh, but when I look around and see what’s being done
To my kind every day, I’m being hunted as prey. 
My people don’t want no trouble.  We’ve had enough struggle.
I just want to live.  God protect me.  I just want to live.  I just want to live. 
 
One of you wrote:  “Being “not racists” isn’t enough anymore. People’s indifference is deafening.  If you are not actively fighting against racial injustice, you are not fulfilling your duty as a human being in this country. …..It is our job as citizens of the world to make sure all people of color are not only heard but understood.  Fight to hold people in charge accountable for their wrongdoings.  This does not end until black people in this country stop being punished for being born.”
 
Thanks to the young black man, to Michelle, and many others like them, I can be shaken out of my fear and do something.  I know I can’t do everything, but I can do something. 
 
A woman named Maud said, “There are times when you must speak, not because you are going to change the other person but because if you don’t speak, they have changed you.” 
 
Pope Francis on Pentecost last year:  With the Spirit, the Church is the holy people of God, its mission is not proselytism but the spread of joy, as others become our brothers and sisters, all loved by the same Father.  Without the Spirit, though, the church becomes an organization, her mission becomes propaganda, her communion an exertion. 
 
How many of you, faced with challenges, great sadness or paralyzing fear pray, “Come, Holy Spirit!”  or “Help me Lord.”  Or “I can’t do this on my own- God help me.”   Bless you for reaching out, or rather, reaching deep within, and finding strength, courage and peace, the abiding presence of God, the Holy Spirit.
I confess that I do not always remember to pray while in the midst of the “battle” but I do pray regularly for courage and strength, for patience and trust, because I know, I have proven that I cannot do this without God, without the Spirit, manifest in faith-filled people.  We need the Spirit.  We need one another.  Otherwise we can’t, we won’t do the right thing.
 
In the Sequence Tom chanted before the Gospel today, we hear our prayers to the Spirit,  “Come, Father of the poor, Come source of all our store. 
Where you are not, we have naught. Nothing good in deed or thought. 
Heal our wounds, our strength renew.  Bend the stubborn heart and will, Melt the frozen, warm the chill.
On the faithful who adore and confess you ever more, give them joys that never end. 
 
Do not be daunted by the enormity of the World’s grief.  Do justly now!  Love mercy now!  Walk humbly now!  You are not obligated to complete the work, but neither are you free to abandon it. “
 
Acts: as they were gathered in fear behind locked doors, the Spirit came into them and enabled them to proclaim in many languages -  The living Word is for all; it is ours to proclaim. 
 
God, help us to proclaim, “Peace be with you!”

Children, sunsets, flowers, sorrows, love
Grand moments can shape us, but perhaps not as much as the little moments that drip into streams that make up the raging rivers of life.
 
Write something inspirational, Maria says. Inspiration, like prayer can be public and personal. Historical and in the present. Equal parts joy and sorrow in the same thought. It can engulf our sight, arrive in irony or laughter or music that brings a smile or sob. Even a passing scent can cause us to pause and relive something of long ago. What seems trite one day can move me to tears another day. Lately, hugs are never long enough, a voice on a phone call or flickering images on a video chat is always too brief, and the taste of a loving meal too short. During the many days when I only have thimble full of patience, I fill my bucket with a rich stock of personal history.
 
What was, is and will be
     My grandparents lived through the Great War (WWI) as children, a horrible flu pandemic, grew into the Great Depression in young adulthood, courted, got married and brought their first children into a world that began to crumble into WWII, after everyone hoped one world war was enough.
     My Mom had life-long nightmares from WWII, yet was so full of hope. My Dad had a few toys he could build or buy, working as a youth on another nearby farm pulling weeds for a dime an hour after he finished his own chores. As children, my parents skirted polio until a vaccine was found. They worked and studied hard as children and youth, certainly more than they played. They knew horrible sorrows, saw and experienced abuse. Learned. Grew. Prayed. Worried. Prayed some more. Endured. And I listened to stories, keeping them ready to fill my bucket with patience, when a thimbleful was all I thought I had.
 
Thinking, saying, doing
     Now with four children, two grandchildren and another grandchild on the way, I try to impart a little wisdom when asked, and sometimes, even when not asked. Just for a laugh, I’ll share some juxtaposition or absurd trivial detail with my wife, Denise, or her Mom, my Dad, aunt, sibling, or others. Sometimes I rehearse what I will say and do not say it, or start speaking without knowing where the thought will end. In general, listening is more difficult than talking, but often more appreciated. I fall short of wisdom. So many things are inexplicable, beyond my influence, though I remind the elected of what’s right and what’s wrong, when I can.
     Uncertainty and change cause fear. Kindness and love bring comfort. Rage over injustice blinds us to what’s good. While a pandemic and the response is more horrible than inconvenient, I hope we can grow and learn and do for each other. I expect people I know will die before it’s over, even as I’m doing all the isolating, hand-washing, wipe-downs, and mask-wearing as I can stand, and little more.
 
Seeing the little things in life
    One of my grandparents told me to enjoy a little bit of life every day, because you never know what tomorrow will bring. For me, that can happen by:

• Playing peek-a-boo with a two-year-old grandson in the video camera of a smart phone because he’s two states away, and it’s been two seasons since we’ve been together.
• Walking dogs with a five-year-old granddaughter, playing laughable learning games as we go (how to create colors, flower quizzes, opposites, which is farther, I spy, rhymes, and others). My heart leaps when I hear, “Another one, Grandpa!”
• Having a camera in my pocket when seeing an intriguing photo (family, flowers, sunset, supper, a bird, bug, or anything with an odd angle, shape, color, or combination) ... then being able to share it with friends.
• Running with dogs, with some squirrel sprints, and biking, the nearest thing to flying without leaving the ground.
• Completing anything, and planning the next thing.
• Picking up a conversation with one of my adult children, family or old friends right where we left off as if it were yesterday.
• Listening to Church of the Holy Spirit mass live stream on Sunday and tearing up knowing that others are participating in the Word, song, and ritual at the same time, one in Spirit, even if we haven’t been in the same place for so many weeks.

 
Sorry to be a drip, but may each of you find joy amid sorrows, expose injustice, and see bits of beauty in the torrents of life along the way. Peace be with you. Stay safe.
 
-Mark T. Hoske, part of the Church of the Holy Spirit since 1998

Growing up, one of my mom’s favorite phrases was “if you think (whatever the thought was), you better think again”. I do not believe by mom’s meme was meant to instill hesitancy, fear or despair in me or my three brothers, as much as it was an invitation to see the bigger picture in whatever situation we found ourselves. I cannot tell you how often that phrase has rung true in my life. Here are some instances:
 
At 18 years of age, I was struck in my Volkswagen by an 18-wheeler on a major expressway, as I was going to a college interview for a full tuition scholarship. Thinking my chances for this scholarship had ended, I was awarded the scholarship two months later.
 
At age 23, working as a juvenile detention worker, I experienced the travesty of what ignorance, violence, poverty, and racial prejudice did to young people. Previous to that, I did not have a clue.
 
At age 33, thinking that I had my own bachelor career path figured out, I met the love of my life and married her, moving from Dallas to Chicago. So much for best laid plans.
 
Two weeks prior to our wedding, my parents were struck in their vehicle by a drunk driver incapacitating them for months. Life can change in an instant.
 
At age 43 having emotionally and spiritually surrendered to the reality that we would not have children, we became pregnant, and pregnant then again seven months after our first child. The power of true surrender.
 
At ages 47, 51 and 55, I was unemployed for three months at a time due to unexpected and unprecedented changes in the workplace. I became less dependent on my work for my identity.
 
At age 64, I am challenged as a therapist to encourage and to empower hope in others who have become anxious, desperate, and inconsolable. Sometimes, I think I learn from my clients more than they learn from me.
 
Today we are all challenged in the crisis of COVID 19, to integrate a new way of thinking about the health safety and needs of ourselves and of one another. We are challenged to think again.
 
In coping with crisis, most of us have come to appreciate what we took for granted. Amidst the pandemic that we are currently facing I have come to recognize the simple things that I took for granted such as enjoying the physical presence of friends and neighbors, the ability to interact with my clients face-to-face, and the ready availability of goods and services that help me enjoy life. Church, work, school, graduations, weddings, birthday celebrations, sports have all been altered.  I have also come to a deeper understanding of how our world is so interconnected and interdependent of its many parts. I believe and hope that we all have become more conscious of our presumptions and more conscious of our actions. Amidst the present crisis, I hope that we all have become more present to people and experiences that we were so easily able to ignore or discard once before.
 
This Sunday’s Readings present us with fundamental invitations/choices:
In the Acts of the Apostles 6:1-7, we are called to include those we have not previously included in our vision of community and world.
In I Peter 2:4-9, we are asked to not reject the stone that will become the cornerstone of our faith and understanding.
And in John’s Gospel 14:1-12 we are to pay witness to the closeness and care of the Divine in the everyday activity of life.
 
There are so many things that can separate us from one another at this time: national boundaries, political ideologies, the need to return to work, the desire for health and safety at places of business, the expectations for socialization and expressions of leisure, the drive to reduce the spread of COVID-19, the care for all to have what they need, the caution to be prepared for the worst, the comfort of things to return back to normal, the compulsion to move forward, the search for a vaccine, the immediacy for a cure, the propensity to despair, the promise of hope. But make no mistake about it, our world has dramatically changed, and we have the choice and will have the invitation to make it better.
 
When all things are said and done in our current crisis, I personally hope for four things that our faith today invites:
I hope that we will all appreciate what we have without taking the small things for granted.
I hope that we will all become a people more radically inclusive than exclusive of one another and each other’s needs.
I hope that we will all be more ready to take care of one another than rely on political  and governmental systems to take care of us.
And I hope that when we think we all have learned all the lessons that our current crisis has taught us, that we will all take the invitation to do like mom said and “think again”.
 
Happy Mother’s Day!

​~Dave Lyke

“If I then, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also ought to wash one another’s feet. For I have given you an example, that you also should do as I have done for you.” John 13:14-15
 
What a crazy time we are living in right now. People are feeling isolated, disconnected from their usual routine and companions. It can make us sad, depressed, and lonely. However, it can also cause us to become more introspective. Looking within often allows for personal growth, and a positive result of this growth may be that we become more God-focused and therefore, “other people”-focused.

I am a nurse and have been in my career for almost 30 years. At the present time, I work in the Ambulatory Care, or Outpatient Department of a local hospital. The negative aspects of my job during this time include fear of exposure to the virus, both for me and for my immune-compromised patients, as well as the constant bombardment of news updates. I am not one of the front-liners per se, but I hear first-hand of their frustrations, stress, and exhaustion, and I pray for them daily. The positive aspects of my job, besides getting to be in a career that I love, is being able to focus on the care of another, to try and care for them physically as well as emotionally, mentally and sometimes even spiritually. This takes the “me” out of the equation. It helps me to step outside of myself and my own needs, worries, and frustrations, and focus on someone else for a change. Though my work easily allows me to put others over myself, I still struggle to continue that practice in my everyday life. 

It is so easy to become very “me”-centric in this society and in our world. Especially now, we all have so many concerns, some small and some big. Our issues range anywhere from how to fight the boredom, to how to shop and get what we need safely, to unemployment. Though it can be difficult, particularly now, if we still try to focus more of our attention on others, we become more Christ-like. If we turn our attention to serving others, rather than putting ourselves first or worrying about what’s in it for me or what I need, then we are imitating Jesus when he washed His disciple’s feet at the Last Supper. He was the Master, but he became the servant, and He instructed His disciples and therefore us, to do the same.

We can see this type of serving being done in many ways. At our own CHS, there are the Food Pantry workers that continue to minister to those in need. Volunteers that have been reaching out to parishioners with calls. The Prayer Shawl ministry continues to create beautiful wraps of love and comfort. At CHS, the list could go on.

There are people learning how to make and then donate homemade masks to people who need them. Businesses donating supplies and treats to those helping the sick. Teachers expanding their knowledge of teaching to the virtual realm and parents, family members and friends helping the students cope with this new form of learning.

There are friends and family who “check in” by texting, calling, Zooming, etc to see how others are doing. Family members who are there for each other every day doing the ordinary tasks of life with extraordinary care and love for one another.

Each of us can think of at least one person who would benefit from us reaching out to them in some way. We all need to work on putting aside our own needs for a time, and to “wash the feet” of another in service, just as Jesus taught us by his example.

Until we are together worshiping at our CHS home again, please stay hopeful, safe and healthy. In closing, I would like to leave you with a verse from Matt Maher’s song “Alive and Breathing”-

“Joy still comes in the morning, Hope still walks with the hurting. If you’re still alive and breathing, Praise the Lord. Don’t stop dancing and dreaming, There’s still Good News worth repeating. So lift your head and keep singing, Praise the Lord!”

~Jean Lemp

There is a phrase that has become a sort of mantra for me. It goes like this: “God writes straight with crooked lines.” I do not recall where I first heard it, or who might have shared it with me, or where I might have read it. None the less, the phrase has stuck in my head as though it has been there forever. And when I look back on my over 70 years, I can easily identify God writing straight with crooked lines numerous times in my lifetime.
One of the most vivid instances was having been laid off from a job I loved. I traveled with my job and my prized possession was my frequent flier card that gave me benefits such as free flights! Then, about a month after 9/11 it all ended. I was a training and certification manager for a small association that depended upon donations. Donations dried up because, rightfully, money was going to agencies like Red Cross or United Way. So, in the middle of a Wednesday afternoon, I found myself, along with all but one member of my department, packing my desk and saying goodbye. To say I was devastated was an understatement! There was the emotional loss, the financial loss, and a great deal of fear. Soon the God’s straight with crooked lines began to appear.

The next morning, to get myself out of bed and start to organize a job search, I attended 9am Mass in the Day Chapel where I cried through most of Mass. Fr. Bill and others whom I had never met, including Marie, comforted me. Marie became a dear friend. I met another friend, Peggy, who was also unemployed. We journeyed together, and when a friend of mine told me about an opening at a parish in Lake County, I shared it with Peggy, and told her the job sounded like a perfect fit for her. She said “no, it sounds like a perfect fit for you!” Parish work could not have been further from my mind! Along the crooked lines over the next several months, there were many “messages” from our God who loves us unconditionally. For the most part, I did not recognize them, or flat out said “NO WAY!” I pursued leads, scheduled networking meetings, attended a job workshop offered by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, revised my resume and cover letter multiple times….and kept going to daily Mass. The interviews that I was lucky enough to land did not pan out, and frankly did not feel like a good fit despite each job being in the field from which I had come.
Finally, as I was preparing my resume for the opening at the parish in Lake County, the head of the interview committee suddenly died! Which was just more proof to me that I was not called to pastoral ministry work. Besides, churches do not pay what the private sector pays! I mailed the application anyway, and much to my surprise, I was invited to interview. Talk about an intense interview! I saw one of my “competitors” for the position dressed for the part with a fairly prominent cross on a chain across her chest. Another was a chaplain. And me. Not me Lord! Following the interview, I called my husband from the parking lot to tell him how poorly the interview went. A block later, I pulled to the side of the street and called him back, trembling, to say that honestly, the interview had gone so well that I was overwhelmed and frightened. I could potentially be called for another interview, which is exactly what happened hours later, along with it being revealed that a job offer was probably coming as well.  

When the second interview went exceedingly well and the offer came, my fear intensified….and the tears flowed, and flowed and flowed. How could I, an ordinary practicing Catholic with no background in parish ministry possibly be up to the task? No background in pastoral studies though, yes, active in my parishes over the years. Not to mention the huge pay cut! How could God expect me to take that leap of faith? And what’s more, how great a sin would it be to say “no!” To essentially turn my back on God! Fr. Bill counseled me to “trust the Holy Spirit.” My heart and soul were not ready to hear that message yet. I retorted “easy for you to say. You are a priest!” Perhaps he still laughs about that conversation. A bolt of lightening while I was driving one day and praying for a sign finally moved me. Yes, literally! A bolt of lightening, and I said yes to the job offer.

God’s crooked lines became perfectly straight. For instance, the computer that came to reside in my office had belonged to the head of the interview committee who had died. In it I came across an interview question that would have blown me out of the water. Then, soon I learned that Fr. Bill’s parents were members of the parish and I was blessed to minister to them! A parishioner approached me about starting a ministry for job searchers. Two amazing things unfolded: Latter Day Saints, with no strings attached, gave us all the materials for presenting their job workshop at the parish. Imagine a collaboration between Mormons and Catholics? Is that not God writing straight with crooked lines! What’s more, it turns out that the parishioner who approached me about beginning a job ministry and I have relatives in common in Minnesota! So now we call ourselves “step cousins once or twice removed.” And that pay cut? God provided of course. Why did I ever doubt?

I give God praise and thanks for calling me to be a member of a parish staff coordinating pastoral ministries such as Ministry of Care, Bereavement Ministry, Grief Support Groups, Job Ministry and half dozen or more others as well of course! I thank the pastor who took the leap of faith to hire a virtual unknown. May he rest in peace and be rewarded for his goodness! I never looked back once after accepting the position, and assumed it was the role from which I would one day retire, which is how it unfolded. I still miss the people and maintain many wonderful friendships. The blessings along that straight path have been tremendous.

Today, as we face tremendous uncertainties and might feel anxious about what the future holds, I find doubts and fears creeping into my thoughts and soul still again. That is human. And my God has my back and all of ours. I rely on friends who encourage me, and through them, I once again see God writing straight with crooked lines.

Linda Engle

A statement from our Food Pantry Director, LaVerne Horgan.

Last week the food pantry was used 199 times serving 897 individuals.  So far in April we have assisted 423 families with 1,821 individuals.  This is a lot more than we usually do in an entire month.
On Wednesday 202 prepacks were made which was great.  We plan to do the same amount next Wednesday.  I took pictures of the various groups doing the prepacks that were spread around the food pantry with their faces covered with masks.  My very favorite line of the day was when I told everyone to smile. 

Greater Chicago Food Depository - I cannot say enough good things about them.  They have been supporting us for many years and we could not do what we do for our neighbors in need without them.  Since the start of the pandemic they have really stepped up to the challenge.  Yesterday we received a total of 26,441# of food because of them.  It did not cost us anything!!!

21,751 in our bi-monthly delivery which includes USDA
881 in CEDA produce
3,480 in our weekly food rescue
330 in our Aldi's pickup 

Our bi-monthly delivery is usually 10,000-12,000# of free items.  However we need to get more due to the current situation and our current increase in numbers.  I know this sounds like a lot but it has to cover the next 2 weeks before we get another large delivery.

Theo, our food rescue driver, gave me a note yesterday.  Due to the increase of delivery amounts (see our example above), until further notice the Food Depository will no longer be picking up bread/bakery items.  They don't have the manpower or storage space for them.

Last Wednesday, April 8th, people kept dropping off donations of food because they wanted to help.  They were our parishioners plus families from St. Hubert's who help us with their own food drives.

Each week the Food Depository has been holding a conference call for all the food pantries and soup kitchens that are member agencies.  I dialed in on my laptop.  They have been asking us to send in pictures of how we are handling the increase in usage.  I sent some pictures of us loading up the cars.  One of the first items on the agenda was to show some of the pictures.  Of course, we were the first one on the list.  Most of the other food pantries were in the city where people typically walk or take public transportation.  They sent in pictures of tables outside their food pantries lined up with bags and bags of food.  It is very humbling but gratifying to see how everyone is stepping up to the increased need.  
 
Other items that were discussed or shared:

Operations - it has been difficult to get the food that is needed.  Things are getting better as far as being able to order items but there are still delays in arriving.

Food Safety - Please do not use chemicals to sanitize your food.  It is almost equivalent to using poison.  If you feel a need, use soap and water but be sure to rinse produce that you will not peel completely.  Cooking temperatures of food remains the same.

They are trying to procure more masks and gloves for their staff plus trying to make some available to distribute to the food pantries.

Many food pantries were barely getting by both financially and with volunteers.  About 30% of them have closed because of this.  The Food Depository has started a grant program for pantries that are in poverty areas, less than 2 food pantries in a designated area, have a vulnerable population and have the highest rate of food insecurity.  We are so blessed that we do not fall into any of those categories.

Thank you to all of you who have continued to make the food pantry possible.  Also thank you to those of you who have been unable to come to the food pantry physically as we all know you are keeping us in your thoughts and prayers.

I wish everyone a blessed and happy Easter. 
​
Thank you for all that you do! ❤

We can all agree that, as Shakespeare put it, “the world is too much with us…”. At this time of people having to stay home, many of us seem to be quite weary in body, mind and spirit. I’m sure you’ve seen it and perhaps experienced it yourselves. I know that I have. The weary spirit is suffering from acedia, a Greek word meaning listlessness or soul sickness. Take to heart the following: You are loved unconditionally by the Lord and the Lord wants to be in union with you. You were created by a loving God. You are worthy. You are unique in all of creation. The “you-ness” of you exists nowhere else.

Ask yourself if you believe that. God knows you. Do you know the “you-ness” of you? Have you spent time learning and caring about the spirit, the soul which dwells deep within you? Let’s explore some ways you might encounter the “you-ness” of you. Ways you might get in deeper touch with your soul. Ways you might consider to heal the weariness which can pervade it.

What does your soul look like? Ever thought about that? My soul is round and dusky colored, in my mind’s eye. It moves a bit like an amoeba under a microscope. It dwells near my heart, I’ve decided. The first time I learned about my soul was in grammar school. I was told it needed to be kept clean and pure. Okay, so do I bathe it or something? How does it get dirty. Can it break? Is it just mine? These were the questions of a child. Obvious and honest. Today as an adult I could ask myself the same questions about my soul and not be far off. The fact is that our souls need tending as much as our bodies.

When I was in graduate school I had a professor who gave assignments for lengthy readings. When she would be giving us instructions, she would say “In your reading, “attend” to the section on thus and such.” “Attend to the manner in which the author makes her point.” “Attend to the tone of this theologian.” It took me a bit to figure out what she was meaning with this “attend to” business. “Attend” means to take heed, listen, observe and take to heart. I offer that we must “attend” to our souls in a special manner. That there is untapped connection with the Lord for us if we take loving care with our souls. I am not just talking about the “things” we do as Catholics, the outward pieties, attendance at Mass and reception of the other sacraments, etc. I am talking about actively cultivating the deep soul-ness of our beings. The soul-ness which emanates from us every day.

The soul is a place for profound conversation with the Lord. It is the place for meeting the Lord, one on one, to reflect on life. The soul is the place you evaluate your work as a disciple of the Lord. The soul is where you take the scriptures into your being. If you are not attending to the health of the soul it will not stand you in good stead for any of the things I just mentioned. If all of your life in the Lord takes place on the outside, in the form of a list of things to be accomplished in order to be saved we miss the boat. We miss a most beautiful opportunity to be in union with our God. Please understand I am not asking all of us to take to a life of total contemplation in a monastery. I am asking us to consider a life of balancing the action with interiorization of the “why” and the “how” and ‘aha’ moments we all experience. So that we become more whole with the Lord.  We become who the Lord intends us to be. There is an ancient story: “A holy one said to a merchant, “As a fish perishes on dry land, so you perish when you get entangled in the world. The fish must return to the water and you must return to the spiritual.” The merchant was aghast. “Are you saying that I must give up my business and enter a monastery?” And the holy one said, “Oh no, never. I am saying hold on to your business and go into your heart.”

Sr. Joan Chittister in her book, Welcome to the World of Wisdom, presents some attributes for a healthy soul. The first is equilibrium. That is, Sr. Joan observes, “the ability to know when to quit”. Because “Something is drying up inside and will surely come back to haunt you.” So as the holy one said in the story of the merchant, “go into your heart”, look to your soul. St. Anselm leaves us this instruction: ‘Escape from your everyday business for a short while…make a little time for God and rest a little while in Him. Enter into your minds inner chamber. Your soul. Shut out everything but God…Speak now to God and say with your whole heart: I seek your face; your face, Lord, I desire.’  Once we can do this…take a break…we can find God in the quiet of our souls. Once we do that… we can integrate that understanding into the rest of our discipleship. And we become renewed in the spirit.

Another on Sr. Joan’s list is self-awareness. Self-awareness is the monitor of the heart and soul that tells us when fatigue is setting in. It is vital to be “soul-fully”self aware so that we do not get the idea that we have to be all things to all people all the time. It’s good to remind ourselves that the sun will rise and set without our help. To keep our souls tended we have to remember to invite the Lord in for our rest and respite.
The final attribute on Sr. Joan’s list: appreciation of the value of imperfection. This is the gift, she says, that saves us from destroying ourselves in the name of some concept or idea of excellence that exists only in our own minds.”

Somehow, somewhere along the spiritual journey we all began in baptism we got the impression that we had to be perfect to be loved by God. And even more than that…we got the impression that we had to be perfect in all things to be worthy of anyone’s love at all. We somehow came to believe that God would accept nothing less. We somehow connected perfection with holiness. Of course we all want to be holy. To be holy is to be on the journey towards…towards wholeness, towards the Lord, towards that which is of God. Holiness is a virtue we take on the journey. Here’s the “breaking news” for today. Holiness is not perfection. Holiness is our best attempt to do the Lord’s work. It’s not perfection. Once you jump the hurdle that those two ideas are connected you can begin to feed and attend to your soul with much less guilt. Your soul will thank you for removing the burden of perfection and you can get on with the business at hand, that is, building a strong, “soul-ful” relationship with the Lord.

As my professor used to say: “Attend” to this. Heed this. Pay notice. Observe. Your soul awaits an airing out. A breathing in of the Christ who waits to be invited for a chat. Psalm 62 tells us: In God alone there is rest for my soul, from God alone comes my safety; with God alone for my rock, my safety, my fortress, I can never fail.

Make sure you are, as best you can, “attending” to the matters of the soul. Make sure you are where God is. You got this and God has you.
 
In the name of the Father and of the Son….
Be safe. Be Well

​Kathy Drennan

On February 26th we came to the church to have Ashes put on our foreheads as we began our Lenten journey in the desert, expecting to make some sacrifices, and arrive at Easter on April 12th.    We certainly didn’t anticipate that our time ‘in the desert’ would be indefinitely prolonged.  Yet on the 5th day of the “stay at home” order we find ourselves in exile, alone and afraid.  These are scary times and we want things to return to normal as soon as possible.  But, as we witness the suffering around the world and in our own country, we have an uneasy feeling that the world will never be the same.  This is a great wake-up call for humanity.  The little red ball of the coronavirus is bringing us together as a global community in ways that we couldn’t have imagined.  In our self-centered, take-care-of-yourself society, we are being called to pay attention to one another new ways.  We are called to lay down our own preferences and interests and seek to do what is best for the common good.  We hear newscasters and government officials using the phrase:  “We’re in this together.”  Literally.  David Brooks recently wrote on the Op-Ed page of the New York Times, “The great paradox, of course, is that we had to be set apart in order to feel together.”  This is an opportunity for us to grow spiritually, to deepen our faith.  Yet, we are challenged because all of our usual ways of coming together to pray are not available to us.  What can we do?  Thanks to technology, there are many opportunities to pray the Mass, the Stations of the Cross, the Rosary, daily reflections from our Pastor, meditations.  But we also need times when we disconnect from all our devices and are present to each other.  We need to set aside private times for silence and prayer as a family, joining with others in putting our trust in God, choosing faith over fear.  Jesus is in the boat with us, but He wants to hear our call for help.  God of Hope, we place our trust in you.   Jesus, grant us strength to carry this cross.  Come, Holy Spirit, give us courage for this hour.

Sister Marianne Supan, O.P.