My home is situated on roads lined with the most colorful trees in Whitehouse, Ohio. Looking out my window or walking or driving down the road provides a panorama of spectacular colors. But not this year. My throat doesn’t catch in an intake of surprise. Rather I feel disappointed at the drab, dry red leaves. The trees don’t jump out at me with amazement and delight. I miss the trees’ “Boo!” Are they tired of the game?
We are in the midst of a Synod on Synodality. Perhaps its outcome will have far-reaching impact for Catholics around the globe. But the full effects of the synod may take years, and historians decades from now may be better equipped to report the synod’s results. The same was and is true of Vatican II. Sixty-two years ago the opening session of the Second Vatican Council occurred on October 11, 1962. Just as there were joy, upheaval, and many other emotions at the promulgations, so there may be when the Synod is accomplished. But neither Vatican II nor the Synod will be fully accomplished. Pronouncements may be revolutionary but they are lived out in an evolutionary way. We are still evolving toward “full, active” participation in liturgy, the best ways to initiate candidates in OCIA (Order of Christian Initiation of Adults), ecumenical outreach, more time and resources given to social justice, methods to be “a leaven in the world,” and the list goes on. The Synod’s effects will be as wide as the world and as wide as our hearts.
Autumn has arrived and with it my annual thoughts about breakfast cereal. (You’re saying “What?”) Well, I can’t help it. When I see straw bales, I immediately think of the Shredded Wheat that I ate as a kid. Anyone remember that cereal? The soft crunch of leaves underfoot reminds me of the crunch of Rice Krispies eaten quickly before sogginess set in. Outdoor life of animals and foliage is changing, and the thought of Life brings me to my favorite cereal—Life. The browning of the cornfield behind our house brings to mind Corn Flakes. Did you know that Corn Flakes was the first cold cereal to be produced in our country in 1894? When’s the last time you bought Corn Flakes? A question akin to When’s the last time you played with a hula hoop? And then there were the days when Mom made oatmeal. Did your mother always say “It’s good for you” too? What would autumn be without apples: apple pie, apple butter, apple crisp, and Apple Jacks cereal. Are you getting hungry reading this? Do you feel S’mores Krave? (Yes, that’s really a cereal.) I’m getting my Kix writing this. I wonder if I could reconstruct this blog by using Alpha Bits. Turn on your Lucky Charms, and I might mercifully end this blog. Ok! Good bye! I mean Cheerio(s)!
In 1850 two teachers at St. Lambert School in Coesfeld, Germany, professed vows of poverty, chastity, and obedience. They exchanged their baptismal names Hilligonde Wolbring and Elizabeth Kühling to their religious names Sister Maria Aloysia and Sister Maria Ignatia, respectively. And the congregation of the Sisters of Notre Dame of Coesfeld, Germany was born. You are reading this 174 years later. Next year will be the 175th anniversary of our founding, so stay tuned to see how we celebrate then. Every year we honor our foundresses and express our gratitude to God and one another in several ways. Because our founding sisters shared their lunches with poor students, we do some form of sharing food. In our schools we share ice cream sandwiches, and in our convent homes we have a special meal. The liturgy of the hours in our congregational Notre Dame Prays office book includes antiphons from our foundresses’ letters and novice instructions. The prayers praise and thank our “good and provident God.” Join us in our gratitude. If you see a Sister of Notre Dame on October 1, wish her a “Happy Foundation Day!”
We rarely, if ever, picture Jesus as ranting and raving. But that’s the picture today’s Gospel presents. Jesus is outraged that anyone who has experienced God’s abundant blessings would dare to limit what God could do with those blessings. His language is graphic, and the message is clear: Whoever does even tiny deeds for others will be rewarded with salvation. What tiny deeds will you do this week to care for the weak and vulnerable, including our vulnerable planet?
Prayer: O Holy Spirit, awaken us to counter the culture of waste with simple living and reflective buying. Inspire us with ways to answer the cries of the earth: “Save Me. Save Me.”
Last week we heard this paradox: Lose your life to save it. This week we have another paradox: to be first, be last. Jesus gives the example of bending down to a child. Bending down is one way to care for creation. We bend down to weed, to plant seeds, to capture caterpillars, to pick beans and strawberries, to uproot onions and carrots. Bending is sometimes a posture of humility. Often our bodies might feel the pain. Perhaps the old saying “Close to the sod, close to God” came from previous generations who spent the time farming and gardening to pray—if not explicitly at least from a grateful heart that receives the bounty and sees the beauty.
Prayer: Inspire your people, O God, to practice simple living, and strengthen our resolve to respect creation and preserve the earth’s resources. Give us generosity to share the fruit of the earth
Today’s readings are quite insistent and very direct. We must give necessities like food, clothes, and shelter to those in need. In addition, we must deny ourselves and take up our cross; that is, we must lose our life if we want to be faithful disciples. Another way to say this is: Get behind our Leader Jesus, and follow Him.
Prayer: Guide all people to value the dignity of every human life and all aspects of creation.
Jesus had unusual healing methods; namely, fingers in ears and saliva on tongues. Such methods show how very involved Jesus gets with us in his and our humanity. We may not cure those who cannot hear or speak, but we have a responsibility to improve people’s lives. How? First, we must be open to the Spirit breaching the walls around our hearts and minds. Such openings will let God break in our hearts with the knowledge and hope to change what needs to be changed in our sphere of influence. How ready are we to care for the earth? (Based on GIA Quarterly, Vol. 35 No. 3, p. 38)
Prayer: Protect those whose lives or property are endangered by wildfire, storms, or environmental disasters; and increase our care for the earth to prevent these problems in the future.
Today’s gospel focuses on the Pharisees who kept every detail of their traditions, such as washing cups and jugs. Meanwhile, Jesus’ disciples aren’t even washing their hands before eating. What’s the point? While the first group does good things, they disregard God’s commandments in more important things. The Pharisees choose their own interpretation of the Law over God’s intent such as care for the poor.
On this day when we open the Season of Care for Creation, are we keeping God’s Law that requires us to care for the earth, which God made “very good”? Pope Francis initiated the World Day of Prayer for the Care of Creation (September 1) in 2015. What can we do to care for creation? Let us pray to discern between what fulfills God’s desire for all humankind and what satisfies only our own personal convenience. This isn’t easy, but it is necessary.
Prayer: Open our eyes to the beauty of the natural world, and increase efforts to care for Planet Earth, even when it’s inconvenient to reuse or recycle.
The foundresses and their early companions had been trained in Munster by the immediate successors of Bernard Overberg, “master of the schoolmasters.” In contrast to public school teaching in America, the sisters’ teaching was oriented to the development of the human person founded in the Gospel. Children learned that God was a loving Father, and each child had great dignity. Pedagogical methods aimed to unfold all the capability of the young person. This type of teaching promoted the best possible advancement of the child, thus contributing to a society in which people are brothers and sisters with an eternal destiny. From earliest days until the present, character formation held pride of place in all educational programs of the congregation.
From 1877 until 1892, Sister Mary Bernarda Preger was the prefect for all the schools of the Sisters of Notre Dame in the United States. Young sister-teachers submitted their lesson plans for approval, and they had helping teachers, a method practiced into this millennium. The sisters continued their own education through many summers of further study. Every sister-teacher was imbued with the knowledge that their teaching ministry required a “sacrificial love and a deep knowledge of the human heart” allowing them to welcome every student and give “special attention to the weaker ones.”
A summary of the activities in the year 1888 shows a continuation of the apostolic ministry begun by the foundresses, Sister Maria Aloysia Wolbring and Sister Maria Ignatia Kühling. Of the 51 sisters 42 were teaching in elementary schools, along with two secondary schools, three orphanages, courses in music, one boarding school, and one home for the aged.
The blogs throughout this summer have focused on the Sisters of Notre Dame coming to America 175 years ago, along with their ministries during the first two decades in the United States. Before the various commemorative events close, there will still be a concluding celebration in November. You’ll read about it soon, but it’s time now for me to return to my blogs that perhaps will have more interest to our readers less familiar with the Sisters of Notre Dame.