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Holy Name Monastery
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Pentecost Sunday

May 30, 2023 by Holy Name Monastery Leave a Comment

A few minutes ago, we concluded this year’s Novena to the Holy Spirit, the Church’s first novena.  For Mary and the eleven Apostles it was nine days of waiting (they did not know how long).  For us, it is nine days of anticipation leading to the feast of Pentecost.  At various times Jesus has greeted his disciples with the gift of peace and commissioned them to continue the work that he has begun: “As the Father has sent me, so I send you.”  Heads up! Listen intently because the “you” Jesus speaks of includes each one of us.  Where does Jesus send us?  And to do what?  Where is anywhere we can be an agent of peace and harmony.  And what is to be a reconciling presence in the world amidst situations of conflict in our own homes or our workplaces.

If we believe Jesus’ words when He said “where two or three are gathered in my name, there am I” then we know that people have only to come to us, to our community, to find the power and peace of the Spirit.   What a truly breathtaking gift that is!  We can make God present!   Wherever, whenever we pray, whenever “two or three gather” Jesus is there.   What an awesome responsibility rests with us!  And consider this: what form of the gift of the Spirit has God imparted to you?  Look back through the years.  What have family, coworkers, community members, friends reflected back to you?  Has it been your gift of discernment, your kindness, your optimistic, joyful outlook?  Or was it maybe your serenity, calmness and peace, your simplicity, or your awareness of God’s presence everywhere?

If we are to be true to our commission, we need to nourish our ability to call upon this Spirit and to stay close to Jesus because others are depending on us.  We need to proclaim the Good News to them with our words and our lives. We may be the only image of God they’ve come to know. Peace must be for us more than just a wish; more than a handshake or a hug. It is a GIFT – a deep confidence that can withstand even the most tragic experiences.

When we live in a positive and loving way, we are fulfilling the mission of Jesus in our world. We may seem to be warming and redeeming only the small, chilly space that we happen to occupy in life. Our kindness radiates, in fact, in wonderful ways like the ripples in a pond ruffling the surface of the water far beyond where we stand. What may begin with a simple, unpretentious act in our dining room, chapel or community room vibrates the air full-circle and comes back to us in a new, life-giving form. Like the game of GOSSIP you whisper a message that gets repeated and distorted many times over.  By the time it comes back to you, there is little left of the sentence that you spoke.

There are seven gifts of the Holy Spirit from which spring twelve fruits of the Spirit.  The fullness of the Spirit can comfort and challenge us doing lectio with the titles of the Spirit found in our Novena: Comforter, Peacemaker, Root of Virtues, Bestower of Gifts, Bond of Unity, Fountain of Faith, Cause of Holiness, Soul of Ministry, Source of Love.  We can BE these gifts to each other only through the Power of the One who commissions us to affirm the mysteries of the universe, to see the lasting value of justice and mercy, to fill our lives with wonder and awe in God’s creative omnipotent presence.

Light years ago, in the first catechism class I taught as a postulant in Dade City, there was a child who, in those days, was labeled “retarded.”  The pastor, Father Benedict, Sister Rosaria and I deliberated and prayed for insight to determine whether the child was able to understand the mystery to be received.  At the First Communion Mass all doubts were erased.  At the elevation of the sacred host, his childish, high-pitched pronouncement could be heard throughout the church: “Here He comes!”

Jesus prayed: “I wish that where I am they also may be with me.”  And, so we pray: “Come, Holy Spirit, fill our hearts with your presence.  May our lives be rooted in your love and wisdom.”  The words of that excited child are worth inwardly proclaiming whenever any person or situation approaches us: “Here He comes!”

~S. Roberta Bailey, OSB

 

 

First Reading: Acts 2:1-1              Second Reading: 1 Corinthians 12:3b-7, 12-13
Gospel Reading:  John 20:19-23
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Filed Under: Blog, Front Page, Homily Tagged With: apostles, gifts, Holy Spirit, Jesus, lectio, Novena of the Holy Spirit, Pentecost, Pentecost Sunday

Ascension

May 22, 2023 by Holy Name Monastery Leave a Comment

So when is the last time you “grabbed the devil by the tail?”  Or sought a big rock to dash your unruly thoughts against?  Uttered something in a language you never studied?  Or, as it happened to St. Benedict, had a goblet crack from rim to stem and spill out its poisoned contents?  After all, we live at HOLY NAME Monastery and the evangelist Mark quotes Jesus telling us these will be our signs if we are baptized and believe in the holy name!  And, on top of that, we have the command to: “Go into the whole world and proclaim the gospel to every creature.”

A little overwhelming, isn’t?  But we had best take this message to heart all the while assured by the words that follow in the Gospel: Jesus took his seat at the right hand of God, but they (meaning we) went forth and preached EVERYWHERE, while the Lord worked with them.”

Praise God the full brunt of the message does not fall on us alone.  But we must take seriously our commitment to shoulder our share of the burden to spread the Good News to all with whom we come into contact.  We express this in a variety of ways in multiple community documents:  in our PHILOSOPY statement, our MISSION statement, our VISION statement, our CORPORATE COMMITMENT and our CORE VALUES.  We recognize and acknowledge our responsibility to harken to Jesus’ call personally and to contribute to its fulfillment in the context of our Benedictine vocation.

There is an ancient and beautiful story about the ascension of Jesus into heaven. When the grand welcome ceremony was over, the angel Gabriel quietly approached Jesus and shared some doubts.  “I know that only very few in Palestine are aware of the great work of human salvation you have accomplished through your suffering, death and resurrection. But the whole world should know and appreciate it and become your disciples, acknowledging you as their Lord and Savior. What is your plan of action?”  Jesus answered, “I have told all my apostles to tell other people about me and preach my message through their lives. That’s all.” “Suppose they don’t do that,” Gabriel responded. “What’s your Plan B?” Jesus replied, “I have no other plan; I am counting on them.” That fanciful story reminds us that Jesus is counting on each one of us to make him known, loved and accepted by others around us.

Perhaps what this means can best be illustrated within another story.

A man was stumbling along in a desert, thirsty and with little hope of survival.  All he had was one small disposable bottle of water.  When it was gone, he knew that certain death lay in store for him.  But, wonder of wonders, as he topped the next dune, he saw what he took to be an old decrepit shed.  He dragged himself on his elbows over to it, hoping he might find some source of water.

Ah, thank God, there was a pump outside the shack.  Frantically, the man pumped the handle.  Nothing happened.  Then his eyes fell on a crude hand-lettered sign that read: “This pump must be primed to work.”  His dreams of survival seemed dashed.

He held up what was left of the bottle of water, rolled it across his cheek, cuddled it, kissed it and prayed for faith.  Then he acted.  He primed the pump with all the water he had.  He closed his eyes and pumped the handle.  Wonder of wonders out came streams of fresh, cool water!  He was saved because he gave of all he had.  (Based on a story in Unity Magazine November 1986).

Pope Benedict XV expressed well the attitude and necessity of self-giving:  “My deep personal sharing in the needs and sufferings of others becomes a sharing of my very self with them….  I must give to others not only something that is my own, but my very self, I must be personally present in my gift.”

Like the man who sacrificed his last drop of water on the rusty, frozen pump we step out in faith with no plan B in mind.  In the words of a hymn made popular several years ago by the Medical Mission Sisters: “Give it all you’ve got!”

God loves a cheerful giver, give it all you’ve got.

He loves to hear you laughing when you’re in an awkward spot.

When the odds add up against you,

It’s time to stop and sing:  Praise God to praise Him is a joyous thing!

 

~Sister Roberta Bailey, OSB

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Filed Under: Blog, Front Page, Homily Tagged With: Ascension, Gabriel, God, Jesus, Pope Benedict XV, pump, Water

Friendship

May 17, 2023 by Holy Name Monastery Leave a Comment

Throughout the Easter season abiding love has been the dominant and obvious theme in our Gospel readings.  We’ve been told: “I will not leave you orphans.”  Why?  “So that my joy might be in you and your joy may be complete.” The intimate, reassuring message is, “I call you friends.”  This is quite a concept to grapple with.  “Friends” describes a relationship between two equals.

On the night He was betrayed Jesus made a big deal about calling the disciples “friends.”  That’s perhaps something we don’t often think a great deal about: Jesus making friends.  We think of Jesus as kind, compassionate, and tender.  We think of Him holding and hugging children, touching the person with leprosy and blind eyes, teaching and preaching.  But do we consider that this truly human being also had friendships?  We might have a hard time visualizing Jesus walking, talking, and laughing, sharing a joke, recalling with his friends a funny incident they’d shared.  Can we see Jesus and His disciples sitting up late into the night around a dying fire, chatting quietly in the darkness counting the stars, then one-by-one falling asleep as the fire turns to embers?

What makes a friend a “friend”?  Think about your friends.  Friends have common interests and goals.  Friends work together, socialize together.  Friends share time, space and stories.  Friends listen, often share personal and private information about themselves.  Friends are there to celebrate with you.  They are there to cry with you.  Friends think about you when others don’t. Friends take care of you.  Friends don’t laugh at your dreams and they tell you theirs.  Friends bail you out of awkward situations, cover for your mistakes when for example you intone the wrong antiphon or psalm.  When you play the wrong hymn, they recognize the mistake and quickly change gears to match your melody.   They set the buffet table for you when you forget that you are the server.  Friends sit at the table for a few extra minutes and are quietly thankful that Divine Providence has chosen these people, at this time and place to befriend you.  Friends are alert to anticipate your needs and they aren’t disappointed when you overlook theirs.  It comes down to this: you like the person you are when you are with your friends.

Jesus calls each of us “friend.”  But do we treat Jesus as a friend?  When have I abused or betrayed this special friendship?  When have I ignored our friendship?  In what ways do I demand that my friend Jesus do more for me than I would do for Him?  Jesus’ humbly served others.  Is that my attitude or do I try to get others to do things for me?  Do I play tit-for-tat and make bargains with God?  I promise if You do this, I’ll do that.

Jesus looks for ways to get together with me in my daily life.  He offers me opportunities in Word and Sacrament.  Do I take advantage of these opportunities?  Or do I figure out ways to avoid time with Jesus?  I know Jesus hears my prayers.  How often do I talk to Him in prayer?  Jesus goes in search of people to talk to.  Would I rather not leave my comfort zone?  Jesus tells me the secrets of salvation.  Do I trust Him with my secrets, even my secret sins?

Jesus gifts us with His constant companionship.  Consider this: If I am faithful solely to community prayer times, that’s approximately 14 hours a week.  How much of the remaining 154 hours a week do I spend with my divine companion?  Jesus truly is at our beck and call.  Let us pray to remain in this friendship and strive daily to be a true friend to our God.

 

~Reflection by Sister Roberta Bailey, OSB

 

 

First Reading:  Acts 8:5-8, 14-17         Second Reading:  1 Peter 3:15-19
Gospel:   John 14:15-21
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Filed Under: Blog, Front Page, Homily Tagged With: Community, Easter, Faith, friends, Friendship, God, Jesus

Birds Sing After a Storm, Why Shouldn’t We?

May 8, 2023 by Holy Name Monastery Leave a Comment

This gospel reading is preparing us for what is coming:  celebrations of Ascension and Pentecost.   This is why we might call this “Goodbye Sunday.”  Jesus talks of leaving this world so that even greater works can be accomplished. But to the disciples this does not come across as a cheerful message.  Jesus will be leaving so how can things be better?! The answer Jesus gives is that he will send the Holy Spirit, and in the power of that Spirit his work will pervade the entire world.

Affection is evident in the exchange between Jesus with Thomas and Philip.  There is no rebuke or even disappointment in his tone as Jesus encourages Philip one more time to recognize him as the manifestation of the Father’s love.  He asks Philip, “Have I been with you all this time and you still do not know me?”  He is asking us the same question. If we really believe that Jesus is the way and the Truth and the Life, then we will find fresh and creative ways to keep alive his memory.  We will work to create safe, secure, happy, peaceful places for one another so we can undertake the really important work of keeping our priorities straight. Now it is our duty to lead the people whose lives we touch.  That’s what the sub-heading on our stationery promises: “Touching lives through prayer and service”.  This is the great challenge of transformation that enables us to respond to the needs of others with the compassion of Christ.  Note: we do not pledge with compassion like Jesus would show; but with the very compassion of Christ.

Jesus asks us the same question he posed to Philip: “You still do not know me?” Jesus continues by repeating what he has said before: “The Father and I are one.” Like Philip, we all tend to repeatedly ask the same similar question hoping for a clearer explanation.  The simple (and awesome) message we get in the Gospel exchange is that if we want to know what God is like, we must look at Jesus.  We must look at his life, ministry, words, death, resurrection and ascension.  If only we open our eyes, our spiritual eyes and heart, the Holy Spirit will enable us to have the kind of vision we need.

Nothing can take the sadness out of the encounter spoken of in the Gospel. Jesus is about to leave the company of friends with whom he has been through so much. But there is consolation even in the sadness. We all know the pain of departure from loved ones – family, community members, friends – through death or the separation by distance caused by job or living circumstances. Jesus’ consoling words support us in our pain, give us reason for hope and spur us forward with renewed faith.  We live assured that a time is coming when there will be no more pain of separation, only the joy of reunion in eternity.

By the time Rose Kennedy was age 93, she had been hit by tragedies again and again.  Four of her nine children had died violently and her husband’s rather unscrupulous life had been told and retold in the press. A reporter had asked her about all this.  Rose answered, slowly: “I have always believed that God never gives us a cross to bear larger than we can carry. And I have always believed that, no matter what, God wants us to be happy. He doesn’t want us to be sad.  Birds sing after a storm,” she said, “Why shouldn’t we?”

~Reflection by Sister Roberta Bailey, OSB

 

First Reading:  Acts 6:1-7        Second Reading:  1 Peter 2:4-9
Gospel:   John 14:1-12
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Filed Under: Blog, Front Page, Homily Tagged With: Birds sing, Christ, God, Jesus, Philip, quote, Rose Kennedy, Thomas

He Knows Us Each By Name

May 1, 2023 by Holy Name Monastery Leave a Comment

Pastor and author Tony Campolo loved to tell the story of a particular census taker who went to the home of a rather poor family in the mountains of West Virginia to collect information.  When he asked the mother how many dependents she had, she began, “Well, there is Rosie, and the twins Billy and Betsy, there’s Susie, Harry, and Jeffrey.  There’s Johnny, and Harvey, and our dog, Willie.”  “No, ma’am, that’s not necessary. I only need the humans.”  “Ah,” she said.  “Well, there is Rosie, and the twins Billy and Betsy, and Susie”…At this the exasperated man said, “No, ma’am, you don’t seem to understand.  I don’t need their names; I just need the numbers.”  To which the confused woman threw up her arms and spoke slowly and plainly: “Sir, YOU don’t understand.  I don’t know their numbers.  I only know them by name.”

The two brief parables we have in this Gospel reveal Jesus as our unique means to salvation.  Jesus is our Good Shepherd.  He is the “sheep gate,” the gateway to eternal life; the selfless, caring “shepherd” who provides protection and life itself.  And, He knows us each by name!  Although there may be several flocks sharing the same sheepfold, when a shepherd walks up to the gate and calls out names, each one of the sheep will instantly recognize the voice of their own shepherd.  When Jesus calls His sheep will instinctively follow.  They will ignore the voice of every other  shepherd other than their own.  We will hear many voices competing for attention, but there is a special note to the voice of Jesus that demands our immediate and full attention.

Hopefully we are like that because daily we make time and space in our lives to stay in touch with our Good Shepherd.  Experience has taught us how to spot what is in harmony with the teachings of our Shepherd and what contradicts it.  We won’t be led astray by the voice of riffraff, half-truths, or so-called sugarcoated false miracle-solutions to problems that can only be addressed with honest assessment of root causes, genuine compassion, and “across the aisle” collaboration.

In his latest book (Coenobium) the Cistercian monk, Michael Casey, writes this: “Each of us is called to hear what the Spirit has to say to the churches, and to us.  We who live in community have the advantage of not only having personal designated times for prayer and lectio – anyone can set a self-made schedule.  We’ve also made a free commitment to each other to gather as a community and to do personal lectio to enrich and enhance our personal and our communal prayer.”  Participation in the Liturgy of the Hours begins (in Casey’s words) “when one sets aside whatever he or she is doing, puts the computer (tablet or TV) to sleep” and stands up ready to move, thus, creating a receptive space for whatever the coming liturgy will offer.  Casey continues, “arriving late or out of breath can be a sign of willful disorganization, passive aggression, or spiritual upheaval.”  [But, remember also what Benedict says in RB 43: “Better late than never!”]  Lectio divina and Liturgy of the Hours are not intended simply as an exercise to give monastics something to do to keep them out of mischief.  The primary purpose is to reconnect the pipeline to the spiritual world to sustain the person to live a life according to God.  Our Shepherd assures us that He knows every single sheep by name!  He’ll never come to the threshold and call out: “Hey you!”  And, we will each recognize His voice.  He has promised: “I know my sheep and my sheep know me!”

A man in Australia was arrested and charged with stealing a sheep.  But he claimed emphatically that it was one of his own that had been missing for many days.  When the case went to court, the judge was puzzled, not knowing how to decide the matter.  At last, he asked that the sheep be brought into the courtroom.  Then he ordered the plaintiff to step outside and call the animal.  The sheep made no response except to raise its head and look frightened.  The judge then instructed the defendant to go to the courtyard and call the sheep.  When the accused man began to make his distinctive call, the sheep bounded toward the door.  It was obvious that he recognized the familiar voice of his master.  “His sheep knows him,” said the judge.  “Case dismissed!”

~Reflection by Sister Roberta Bailey, OSB

 

 

First Reading:  Acts 2:14, 36-41         Second Reading:  1 Peter 2:20-25
Gospel:   John 10:1-10
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Filed Under: Blog, Front Page, Homily Tagged With: Benedict, Gospel, He knows my name, He knows us each by name, Jesus, Liturgy of the Hours

Third Sunday of Easter

April 24, 2023 by Holy Name Monastery Leave a Comment

To believe or not to believe?  That’s our dilemma.  How much do we believe?  Do we believe without questioning?  Do we believe the good news or the bad?  The choice is ours.   Do we believe only what we ourselves experience?  And what about second-hand stories told by reliable friends? What about stories that begin “someone told me.”?  Do we, as best we can, check the sources?  Can we open our hearts to accept what we cannot see?  Do we trust another’s experience?

This gospel today, and all the stories of the appearances of the resurrected Jesus, show us not only how Jesus convinced his disciples of His resurrection.  This same Jesus prepares us to come together to listen to God’s words.

Consider the story once told by the philosopher Soren Kierkegaard about a circus tent that caught fire. The flames spread to the fields surrounding the circus grounds and began to burn toward the village below. The circus master, convinced that the village would be destroyed and the people killed unless they were warned, asked if there was anyone who could go to the village and warn the people. The clown, dressed in full costume, jumped on a bicycle and sped down the hill to the village below. He shouted as he rode up and down the streets: “Run for your lives! Run for your lives! A fire is coming and the village is going to burn!”   The curious villagers came out of their houses and shops and stood along the sidewalks. They shouted back to the clown, laughing and applauding his performance. The more desperately the clown shouted, the more the villagers cheered. The village burned to the ground and the loss of life was great because no one took the clown seriously. After all, he was just a clown.

When Jesus comes in our door, do we recognize Him? Maybe he’s not dressed as a clown or shouting and waving.   How will we recognize Him?  Have we met Him often enough in our everyday lives that we immediately recognize Him?  Have we met Him in the people with whom we rub shoulders on a daily basis?  Maybe there are times when it is easier to see Jesus in the face of the stranger or the guest than it is to see him in the face of the person across from us at the dinner table or the chapel aisle or walking the hallways.  Jesus says: “Look at my hands, my feet, my face.  See that it is I, your Lord.”  Do we believe?

~Reflection by Sister Roberta Bailey, OSB

 

 

First Reading:  Acts 3:13-15,17-19         Second Reading:  1 John 2:1-5a
Gospel:   Luke 24:35-48
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Filed Under: Blog, Front Page, Homily Tagged With: believe, Do we believe, do you believe, Him, Jesus, Third Sunday, third Sunday of Easter

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