Feast of St. Andrew

Scotland - Saint Andrew
Saint Andrew is the Patron Saint of Scotland. He was born in Capernaum and was a fisherman on the Lake of Galilee. Together with his older brother Peter he became one of Jesus' first disciples.
After Jesus' resurrection Saint Andrew made many journeys by land and sea, teaching and preaching. He died for his faith, although just where and when is not certain, but he was crucified on a diagonal cross because it is said that he did not feel himself worthy enough to suffer on a cross the same shape as his Lord.
Many years later his bones were brought to Scotland for safe keeping and were buried in a shrine where the town of St. Andrews now stands. I took this information from the Internet. I know he was one of the first two who followed Jesus and he was the one who recruited Peter. He was one of the twelve apostles and so has had his own feast. It is sometimes just before Advent and it was the wedding anniversary of my parents.
We can ask Andrew to help us prepare for the Lord's coming this Advent. He was a disciple of John the Baptist who came to prepare the way of the Lord!

First Sunday of Advent

Advent is a time of preparation. It is a time to slow down and get in touch with what really matters in our life. Unfortunately, we have made the preparation for Christmas so material that we are rushing around and are preoccupied with gifts and cards and the shopping malls are crowded and then the decorations rushed and we forget the essential. Let us slow down and realize that this is a season of waiting, of longing, a season to find silence and peace as we unclutter our hearts. We are preparing the way of the Lord. We are making room in our hearts and calling, "Come, Lord Jesus, come!" I think it is Mother Stuart who says that we only say "Come" when we are prepared. Let us spend this Advent preparing for the coming of the Lord into our hearts and into our world.
I will not have finished my Christmas cards before Advent this year, but will try to write them in great peace and with love and joy as my gift to others.
Come, Lord Jesus, and do not delay!

Prayer of the Potawatomi

This is the last time I will be speaking of St. Philippine Duchesne (at least for a time) but one of my course just wrote a beautiful piece about her and quoted this prayer composed by Sharon Karam -

Prayer of the Potawatomi on Hearing of the Death of Philippine.
By Sharon Karam, RSCJ


She comes, Great Spirit.
She comes soon.
Comfort her spirit and care for her passage.
Let the grasses of the fields whisper her homecoming.
Let the lapping of the Mississippi’s water
Chant her back to you.
Put out your colors this morning in all four season’s flowers.
Let them bloom all at once in her honor.
Let the mockingbird, known for cleverness,
Imitate all manner of songs, one for each mood of our hearts.
For we are sad; she was our sister.
We are glad, too; she is your child.
We are sorry; too many miles prevent our putting out his blanket
Once more, over her shoulders.
(She learned weaving from our hands;
We learned to pray from her face).
Let the sun blaze forth her compassion,
And the full moon tonight remind us
Of her hours praising you in this tent.

Our village will keep vigil tonight.
Chief declares a fast in her name until tomorrow.
We will pray in what was her tent
For both our peoples and for all those places
On the flat map which she left for us.
Creator, hear our prayer for her, for our children,
For those prairies, trees, and rivers.
For the faraway mountains and this brook which holds our tears.
Hear our sighs for these, our children,
That they remember what she taught them
And recall her name, for many moons, as your great woman.

Now let us ask Philippine to help us prepare for Advent which begins tomorrow!!!

Day After Thanksgiving

We had a beautiful day! I went to a Liturgy that is always so moving with a sing along at the end with all the patriotic songs. They always have someone from the armed forces carry in the American Flag at the end and this year it was a very young and handsome Marine; tears came into my eyes as I realized that this young man was soon to go to war and might be killed as the many other young people have that we have been sending into battle.

We had a gorgeous dinner and were all quite exhausted afterwards; we have delicious leftovers to enjoy tomorrow. The papers call tomorrow "Black Friday" and people get up early to go stand in line for the doors to open at the stores as all have these huge sales to get shoppers out to buy. It is the biggest shopping day of the year! I am not going anywhere tomorrow but will write Christmas cards and maybe clean out my books. I always do my Christmas cards during Thanksgiving vacation so they go out early and I can begin Advent with my Christmas preparations more or less done so I can concentrate on the spiritual preparation. I do still need to send a few gifts, but no shopping for me on "Black Friday"!

Happy Thanksgiving to All!

Today I am copying a Thanksgiving Prayer that "Dear Abby" that was penned by her mother, Pauline Phillips.

O Heavenly Father,
We thank thee for food and remember the hungry,
We thank thee for health and remember the sick,
We thank thee for freedom and remember the enslaved.
May these remembrances stir us to service,
That thy gifts to us may be used for others. Amen.

Women - have they a flaw?

This is longer than usual, but someone sent it to me and I thought it would be of interest to all women.

One Flaw In Women

By the time the Lord made woman,
He was into his sixth day of working overtime.
An angel appeared and said,
"Why are you spending so much time on this one?"
And the Lord answered, "Have you seen my spec sheet on her?
She has to be completely washable, but not plastic,
have over 200 movable parts, all replaceable
and able to run on diet coke and leftovers,
have a lap that can hold four children at one time,
have a kiss that can cure anything from a scraped knee to a broken heart
-and she will do everything with only two hands."

The angel was astounded at the requirements.
"Only two hands!? No way!
And that's just on the standard model?
That's too much work for one day.
Wait until tomorrow to finish."

"But I won't," the Lord protested.
"I am so close to finishing this creation that is so close to my own heart.
She already heals herself when she is sick
AND can work 18 hour days."

The angel moved closer and touched the woman.
"But you have made her so soft, Lord."
"She is soft," the Lord agreed,
"but I have also made her tough.
You have no idea what she can endure or accomplish."

"Will she be able to think?", asked the angel.
The Lord replied,
"Not only will she be able to think,
she will be able to reason and negotiate."

The angel then noticed something,
and reaching out, touched the woman's cheek.
"Oops, it looks like you have a leak in this model.
I told you that you were trying to put too much into this one."
"That's not a leak,"
the Lord corrected,
"that's a tear!"
"What's the tear for?" the angel asked.

The Lord said, "The tear is her way of expressing her joy,
her sorrow, her pain, her disappointment, her love,
her loneliness, her grief and her pride."
The angel was impressed.
"You are a genius, Lord.
You thought of everything!
Woman is truly amazing."

And she is!
Women have strengths that amaze men.
They bear hardships and they carry burdens,
but they hold happiness, love and joy.
They smile when they want to scream.
They sing when they want to cry.
They cry when they are happy
and laugh when they are nervous.
They fight for what they believe in.
They stand up to injustice.
They don't take "no" for an answer
when they believe there is a better solution.
They go without so their family can have.
They go to the doctor with a frightened friend.
They love unconditionally.
They cry when their children excel
and cheer when their friends get awards.
They are happy when they hear about a birth or a wedding.
Their hearts break when a friend dies.
They grieve at the loss of a family member,
yet they are strong when they think there is no strength left.
They know that a hug and a kiss can heal a broken heart.
Women come in all shapes, sizes and colors.
They'll drive, fly, walk, run or e-mail you
to show how much they care about you.
The heart of a woman is what makes the world keep turning.
They bring joy, hope and love.
They have compassion and ideals.
They give moral support to their family and friends.
Women have vital things to say and everything to give.

HOWEVER, IF THERE IS ONE FLAW IN WOMEN,


IT IS THAT THEY FORGET THEIR WORTH.*

Memories

Maybe the Thanksgiving holidays always bring back memories, but I am thinking of how often I took the natural beauty of Chile for granted and need to thank for that now. It is one of the most beautiful countries in the entire world and I had the joy of living there for twenty years! I must admit that my memories of the first year are not all good as I went without knowing a word of Spanish and was given charge of the Middle School with 157 children; that was bedlam the first morning but I survived! We did not leave the very limited grounds but could see a park behind us full of lovely trees. Then, with the changes and working in formation and on a mission team, I did travel up and down Chile as a spiritual director who visited all 19 communities. By then, after having been head of a school of over 600, and having ten years in the school, I was more into formation and retreat work and found that I loved helping others. I look back with gratitude on those years, especially the last years as superior in the poorest region of Chile. We had a wooden house built by the priests next to the church on a bluff in Coquimbo. We could walk to the other side of the church and see the ocean. Then, a short walk in the other direction brought us into the desert. It is good to let these memories flow freely through me as they increase my gratitude for all that I have been given.

Thirsty for God

I have been feeling a thirst for God. This is good, but it has made other things less attractive to me and they are the things of daily duty done with a smile and with love. I am wanting to pray when I need to be cleaning out my office. This is temptation so I must learn to pray and clean and make the clearing out a prayer. I am finding joy in being able to give things to people.
I think that God gives us a thirst for Him so we keep seeking Him. The longing for union with Him is the reason we keep striving to live each day well or at least a little better than the day before. I always see how much is still to be done to make my soul transparent, joyful, and grateful. Advent will be a time of thirsting for God.

Jesus, King of the universe

Almighty and merciful God,
you break the power of evil and make all things new
in your Son Jesus Christ, the King of the universe.
May all in heaven and earth
acclaim your glory
and never cease to praise you.

Let us widen the circle that prays this prayer together on Sunday beyond Catholics and Anglicans. (this is taken from an Anglican page where I found this picture)


Let us pray that the reign of Christ may live in our hearts and come to our world]

Almighty and eternal God,
you have made of one blood all the nations of the earth
and will that they live together
in peace and harmony;
so order the course of this world
that all peoples may be brought together
under Christ’s most gentle rule;
through Jesus Christ our Lord
who is alive with with you and the Holy Spirit,
one God now and for ever.
Amen.

A friend in Scotland has just sent me this link where you will find the wonderful book of The Life and Letters of Janet Erskine Stuart online:
http://www.archive.org/details/lifelettersofjan00monarich