Benedict

Trinity Sunday

May 31, 2021 by Holy Name Monastery Leave a Comment

Pray over this Memorial Day weekend for prudence and safety for all those celebrating the holiday in the company of large crowds.

Remember and pray for the our deceased military service personnel and military families coping with their loss and often with lingering mental health and other conditions that plague retirees and their loved ones.

God bless you each with good health, much happiness and abundant peace.

Start Where You Are

I ask you the same question Moses asked the people in Sunday’s first reading: “I ask now, did anything so great ever happen before? Was it ever heard of? Did a people ever hear the voice of God speaking as you did?” “This” Moses says: “is why you must now know, and fix in your heart, that the Lord is God in the heavens above and on earth below, and that there is no other. I enjoin this upon you today that you and your children after you may prosper, and you may have long life on the land which the Lord, your God, is giving you forever.”

Is there any greater reason, and motivation, found in Scripture than these words to prompt us to take stock of what we have and where we are going? If you need another nudge, just read the Gospel passage for this weekend. “The disciples gathered with Jesus and worshiped him, BUT they doubted!” Jesus stepped closer to them and reminded them: “All power in heaven and on earth has been given to me.” Then, in so many words, Jesus told them to put their own hands on the plow and get on with the job. “Go, therefore, make disciples of all nations… teaching them to observe all that I have commanded YOU.” Then, he reassures them and he guarantees us …“Behold, I am with you always, until the end of the ages.”

That’s a tall directive! But Jesus is serious! “Therefore, GO!” Or as Father Henry said earlier today: “Jesus is saying: No excuses!” So, where do we begin? This much I know: we have to start where we are. Awaken our hearts to recognize and embrace the truth of who we were and who’ve we become; who we are. In the message of a song performed by EMBRACE, an English band: “I’ve been running for oh so long; there’s a light that guides us, I don’t see. Catch the light, reflect it down on me; show me where I went wrong. The lies are bad; the truth is worse. One day there’ll come a time when our questions have all dried up and chance can come back into your life. Til then you’ll know that it’s all a waste. Invite the chance back into your life; it’s time to invite all the chance back into your life.”

You’ve probably heard the principle that if a person doesn’t treat inanimate objects with respect, we can predict she/he will have no respect for living things. Benedict knew this, didn’t he? In RB 31 he cautions the members, not solely the person given charge of the inventory, “To take care of everything; to regard all utensils and goods of the monastery (that includes the persons) as sacred vessels of the altar, aware that nothing is to be neglected.” It could not be clearer that as Benedictines we are charged to care of ALL creation. To practice good stewardship, sound environmental practices, reverence for all persons. To operate machinery and tech tools; close a door, set a table and push in chairs with the same gentleness we cradle a chalice. This attitude of devotion and sensitivity starts with our own person and extends to all persons. It is reflected in our demeanor and decorum; our respect for an atmosphere of monastic quiet. We move with a touch of gentleness for the environment in which we find ourselves. It shows in our manner of walking, speaking, acting and interacting.

You’ve heard of the “butterfly effect” – EVERY thing we do or say sends seemingly unending ripples into the environment – affecting and effecting and infecting a circle of influence beyond our imagination. When we acknowledge this our response must be one prayer for forgiveness any negativity we’ve spewed into the world. May I suggest we offer a prayer inspired by Servite Sister Joyce Rupp and adapted for this community:

A PRAYER FOR THOSE WHO HAVE TOO MUCH

To our brothers and sisters in developing areas of our country and around the world:

While I was deciding which of seven cereals to eat this morning, you were searching in dumpsters for leftover scraps.
While I was working out in the exercise room or walking the paved track, you were working in the wealthy landowner’s fields under a scorching sun or in teeming rain.
When I choose between soda or juice, your parched lips are yearning for the touch of water. When I choose between brands of bottled water, you search in the landfill for something you could exchange for pennies to buy food for your children.
While I complain about the poor service in the local restaurant or turn up my nose at the food on our buffet table, I think of you who gratefully accept a bag or box of government commodities from Daystar.
When a sudden noise startles me, a shout for a winning team or the ice machine motor interrupts conversation, I think of you who live in fearful threat of unpredictable noise and violence and the frequent eruption of gunfire day and night.
When I complain about a lack of connecting speed on my shining laptop, I remember 1000s of children who are losing a year of education because they have no WiFi connection, no Internet service or probably not a computer to use.
While I poured my “all-in-one” detergent into the washing machine, you stand in the river with your small bundle of clothes.
While I watch the evening news on our wide-screen TV, you are among those I witnessed being terrorized by the dictatorship government.
While I scanned the ads for a bargain price on a new shirt, you woke up and put on the same shirt and pants that you have worn for many months, thankful for others’ cast-offs.
While I grumbled over the need for more storage space, your family of l0 found shelter in a one-room packing-box hut you call home.
When I went to chapel and felt slightly bothered at the length of the prayer service or the silence or a boring homily, you looked out upon the earth and those around you and felt gratitude to God just for being alive for one more day.

++++++++++++

(So, we pray) My brothers and sisters, forgive me for my arrogance and my indifference. Forgive me for my greed of always wanting newer, bigger and better things. Forgive me for not doing my part to change the unjust systems that keep you suffering and impoverished. I offer you my promise to become more aware of your situation and to change my lifestyles as I work for transformation of our world.

~Reflection by Sister Roberta Bailey, OSB

Deuteronomy 4:32-34; 39-40 Romans 8:14-17 Matthew 28:16-20

Lent – God’s Call

February 22, 2021 by Holy Name Monastery Leave a Comment

In the liturgical cycle of readings, this Gospel from Mark was originally only two verses – later the church added two more – but it is still one of the shortest Sunday readings. It tells us only that, immediately after His baptism, Jesus was led into the desert by the Spirit to be tempted by the devil, for 40 days. You’ll notice that Mark, unlike Luke and Matthew, does not outline for us the three temptations of Jesus. He simply lets us know that the conflict between Jesus and Satan only begins in the desert. The ultimate test will be in Jesus’ final hours on the cross.

We are now four days into our Lenten journey of 40 days. We are reminded of Elijah who journeyed in a desert 40 days and nights, making his way to Mount Horeb as well as the Israelites who wandered in a desert for 40 years. Benedict knew that deserts are an unavoidable part of life. We have to pass through them – not get stuck in them. In the desert, we soon find out we are too weak to go it alone. According to St. John Chrysostom: “The Spirit drags Jesus into the desert, since he wanted to draw the devil there – and Jesus gave occasion to him not only on account of his hunger but also on account of the place: for then most especially does the devil attack when he sees people isolated and by themselves.” No wonder Benedict urges us not to be isolated in our Lenten journey: “the entire community during these days of Lent (together strives) to keep the manner of life most pure.”

We’ve heard the expression “practice makes perfect” so often that the meaning may have lost its impact on us. Each year at the beginning of Lent we may feel like that skater or a musician who’s been laid up for a year without practice. As Benedict says in Chapter 49 of the Rule, during Lent we are called to be the kind of person we should be every day. Lent gives us a jump-start of courage to pick up the practices that will support the values we profess and hold dear. The biggest temptation most of us have to face it to “give up” because we stumble. What would you think if you dialed a wrong number and got this recording: I’m not available right now, but I do thank you for caring enough to call me.” (How sweet!) But, it continues: “I am making some changes in my life. Please leave a message after the beep. If I do not return your call, you are one of the changes.”

Thomas à Kempis, in the IMITATION OF CHRIST, says, “Often we do not know what we can stand, but temptation shows us what we are. Above all, we must be especially alert against the beginnings of temptation, for the enemy is more easily conquered if refused admittance to the mind and is met beyond the threshold when it knocks…. A person, indeed, is not worthy of the sublime contemplation of God who has not been tried by some tribulation for the sake of God. For temptation is usually the sign preceding the consolation that is to follow.”

Lent is God’s call to us to make God and Godly values the center of our life. It is a time for honesty and stability. A time for us to be close to God. The desert of life, of Lent – like any desert – can be a vast expanse of sand and rock, punctuated by ragged hills, blistered by a relentless sun, a barren land in which little grows. But, depending on our outlook, the space can be filled with mysterious unexpected experiences. It can be a place not only of testing but of beauty where faith can grow. Mirages give us false hope. A welcome pool of water or a dripping cactus can reveal to us, in the blink of an eye, a reflection of what we really look like. During Lent we are simply being asked to dare to be convinced that this is a wonderful opportunity to rediscover our true self-worth and the wonder of being the child of a loving God. We are challenged not to focus on the storm clouds of COVID restrictions, chronic health conditions, what we DON’T have. We do well to focus on all that we DO have: our faithful supporters, the friends who DO make contact, the companions who DO treat us gently, our God who, even with all the concerns and pleas that are raised for attention, remembers ME and loves ME with unfailing love.

Personal deserts are unavoidable, they’re part of life. We need Christ and we need the ministry of others. If for nothing else than to teach lessons of dependence. We’ll never be as strong or wise as we’d like. We need the grace of God in Christ. We need the ministry of each other and all of God’s people to strengthen us by their prayerful support and good example that we, too, might take up our crosses and follow Jesus. We pray that like that voice message said (I mentioned earlier), we do take the opportunity of Lent to make changes on our lives. But unlike that voice message, may we never hear God’s voice and choose not to return the call.

Next Sunday we will be commemorating the 132^nd anniversary of the founding of Holy Name Convent from Pittsburgh, PA. You can look for a snippet of our history as the reflection. God bless our founding Sisters! Their first home was “on loan” space in a family home in San Antonio which is the township adjacent to Saint Leo, home of the current monastery. The weather bureau archives reveal that it was 80 degrees in San Antonio, FL on the day of their arrive, February 28, 1889. Stay tuned for the “rest of the story” next week.

~Sister Roberta Bailey, OSB

Genesis 9:8-15 1 Peter 3:18-22 Mark 1:12-15

Holy Family Sunday 2020

December 28, 2020 by Holy Name Monastery Leave a Comment

This coming year Pope Francis has designated the “Year of St. Joseph” marking the 150^th anniversary of Pius IX’s declaration of St. Joseph as Patron of the Universal Church. Francis describes Joseph as “a beloved father, tender and loving, obedient and accepting; a father who is creatively courageous, a working father, a father in the shadows.”

This weekend the Church turns our focus to Jesus’ earthly family with the feast of the Holy Family. It’s natural when we celebrate the birth of the child Jesus that we would reflect on His family. Do you realize that for every one year of his public life, Jesus spent ten years in family life? That helps us understand the importance and priority He gave to family life.

What might that mean to (and for) us as monastics who we live in an intentional family we call community. As Benedictines our lives are guided by the simple, yet profound, guidelines designed over 1500 years ago by the man Benedict. His Rule gives us a picture of a man of great wisdom, compassion and much common sense. (I believe, we can agree, his guidelines were influenced to a great degree by his twin sister Scholastica.)

It is the spirit of the Rule that has survived. Benedict had a knack for tempering discipline with compassion that makes the Rule come alive for so many. His prudence shines through when, in so many words, he says: this is what works for us now – if the arrangement of the psalmody, the daily schedule and other daily living details don’t fit your need, change it.

If we only know the first word of the Rule “LISTEN” what an impact it could make on our own happiness and harmony between peoples. To truly listen requires an attentive spirit … not a scramble to respond with advice, a witty remark or a “I’ve got a better one” or “I know exactly how you feel.” When we truly listen to another we can identify their feeling, let it resonant within and know that very often all the person wants is a signal that we care.

Benedict’s Rule is not intended to be a great and lofty treatise on prayer or spirituality. It’s just plain “down to earth” advice. He says let this rule be read 3 times, cover to cover, to the potential member so she understands exactly what she is getting herself into. The Rule is filled with practical guidance for ordinary people to live together peacefully. Benedict expected his followers to work hard, study hard and pray hard. He recognized much of the study and work is an interior process – a true “self-study” steeped in a quiet atmosphere that is broken only by the sounds of nature, farm machinery, a printing press or sewing machine or the scratch of a calligraphy pen. This kind of soul work begins in private prayer enriched in communal prayer.

I think Benedict must have valued the idea of cross-training. Given the rotation of duties and positions in community, all members do well to take to heart the advice and warnings given to the various community officials: the prioress, the guest mistress and the porter; the cellarer, the artisans and the sub-prioress. We all need to be aware of the final judgment – be strong, and at the same time, never be ashamed to have a tender heart.

From that first word in his Rule: LISTEN… to his advice to begin every good work with prayer … to keeping a lamp burning at night … and don’t loiter outside chapel if you are late … it is evident that Benedict saw God at work within the ordinary events of everyday life with all its joys and sorrows, struggles and high points, funerals and jubilees, comings and goings. In Psalm 27, and often as an antiphon, we pray: “One thing I seek: to dwell in your presence, O God, all the days of my life.” And, that presence does not refer only to our final day on earth or future eternal life in heaven. It is not found only in the Eucharistic presence in the chapel – it is EVERYWHERE – in the Voice of the Spirit working in our personal lives and in the voices of each other and the sounds of daily living.

So, LISTEN – to the Voice of your God within – and listen with your heart to your comrades’ hungers and longings. Just LISTEN – with your ears certainly but also with your eyes and heart and feelings. The quality of our life in community, is shaped by each of us.

~ Reflection by Sister Roberta Bailey, OSB

First Reading Genesis 15:1-6; 21:1-3 Second Reading Colossians 3:12-21)
Gospel Luke 2:22-40

Even When You Say You Did Not Believe

September 28, 2020 by Holy Name Monastery Leave a Comment

I’ll repeat the last line of that Gospel reading: “Yet even when you saw, you did not later change your mind and believe.”

Speaking in St. Petersburg (FL) on Friday (September 25) Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis lifted all restrictions statewide that were imposed to control the spread of the virus that causes COVID-19. In his words: “Every business has the right to operate.” The executive order will stop cities and counties from fining people for not wearing mandated face coverings. The governor says there are no signs of a possible “second wave of infections.” I am a bit skeptical of what signs of the times this man and many others are reading? And, who or what advice are they listening to?

In our country – in the U.S. – there have been more than 7 million confirmed COVID cases – and God only knows how many more unreported. There have been more than 200,000 deaths. In Florida there have close to 700,000 reported, confirmed cases (not counting those that go unreported) and 14,000 COVID-reported deaths. That is approximately 4500 more than the combined populations of (nearby) St. Leo, San Antonio and Dade City.

The daily reading from the Holy Rule, this Gospel, and other words we’ve prayed this past week, warn us about paying mere lip service to directives and about the danger of letting our diligence slip.

We heard Jeremiah say: The Lord searches the heart and examines the mind, to reward each one according to what their deeds deserve.” And the psalmist who reminded us: “God searches the hearts and minds … The Holy One knows our thoughts.” In the words of Benedict: “The disciple’s obedience must be given gladly, for ‘God loves a cheerful giver.’” If the disciple obeys grudgingly and grumbles, not only aloud but also in her heart, then, even though the order is carried out, their actions will not be accepted with favor by God, who sees that she is grumbling in her heart. She will have no reward for service of this kind.”

The evidence is all around us – the virus is still present in our world. We can’t dispute the fact that there is confusion, fear and challenges that cause us to reflect on how we interact with each other and the greater community. There is much soul-searching and a heightened awareness of the “hungers of the people of God.” (BSoFL Corporate Commitment) We need look no further than across the highway to witness the challenges of having university students on campus.

Yet, we still hear comments like: “it’s all a hoax – it’s only another form of the flu – I’m strong, I can fight it – She is my friend, they wouldn’t be here if she thought she was sick – the virus can’t be passed if we’re outdoors – it’s not in our part of the county – I’ll take an ibuprofen tonight, just in case – I don’t follow rules I don’t agree with or don’t like.” What is not said is: “I’m scared – I can’t think about it – I have too many other health issues – there is so much confusion, I gave up – it’s like climate change; the scientists will figure it out – I followed the CDC and our house restrictions for a while, but not anymore; if it comes, it comes – if God wants to take me, that’s OK – if I get sick it’ll be someone else’s problem – they’ll take care of me.”

That’s the sticking point. In truth, in time of illness, death or distress, we do care for each other. The question before each of us each day is: am I taking care of, not just myself, but am I taking the most solicitous care I can of the 14 others I live with? Do I keep in mind Jesus’ admonition: “Don’t do to others, what you would not want done to you. Love others as you love yourself.”

These are times when the yoke of obedience and submission can really pinch – more for some personalities than others. Listening to the “abbot” is one thing – listening to an external source, quite another: the bishops, local governments, the CDC, health departments, medical professionals … where do they rank in our promise of obedience??? Our “conversion of life”?

Hospitality to each other is another whole package. But, we know we are (like it or lump it) in these times -TOGETHER – either we will survive it without scarring OR the enemy: lack of diligence, carelessness, or disregard for others (the REAL fatal virus), will break through cracks in our walls. Even hands held tightly can weaken – so hold tight…. Try not to be the one who loses grip. Let us hold each other tightly in prayer and patience in the trials of “Safe at Home.” We’ve a “mile to go before we can sleep” – i.e. let up on our vigilance. Know and believe that God has a plan. Be patient with the divine timing in day-by-day revealing that plan. Remind yourself “the best IS yet to come.” Our ancestors in community got through the 1918 pandemic – so will we!

Peace – and good health and many blessings.

We’ll be praying in particular all this week for all health care workers and on Monday joining in spirit the Bishops for International Day of Prayer for Migrants, Refugees, Immigrants and Sojourners.

God bless you each!

~Reflection by Sister Roberta Bailey, OSB, Prioress

First reading: Ezekiel 18:25-28 Second Reading: Philippians 2:1-11

Gospel: Matthew 21:28-32

To Listen is to Understand

July 13, 2020 by Holy Name Monastery Leave a Comment

I offer you two brief stories. The first – a familiar story (one of many versions that can be found on the Internet) –

There once was a man that prayed, “God, speak to me.” And a meadowlark sang. But the man did not hear.

So the man spoke aloud: “God, speak to me!” And thunder rolled across the sky. But the man did not listen.

The man looked around and said, “God, let me see you.” And a star shone brightly. But he noticed it not.

The man then shouted, “God, show me a miracle.” And a babe was born. But the man was unaware.

So, the man cried out in despair, “Touch me, God, and let me know that you are here!” Whereupon God reached down and touched the man. But the man brushed the butterfly away and walked away.

The situation in the second story may also have a familiar ring –

A woman was having difficulty communicating with her husband … (or I could say two Benedictines Sisters were having difficulty with that same problem). Each had concluded that the other must be hard of hearing. So, (in the original scenario) the wife decided to conduct a test without her husband knowing about it.

One evening she sat in a chair on the far side of the room. Her husband’s back was turned to her so he could not see her. The room was very quiet; no TV was playing. She whispered, “Can you hear me?” There was no response.

Scooting a little closer, she asked again, “Can you hear me now?” Still no reply. Quietly she edged closer and whispered the same words, but still no answer.

Finally, she moved right in behind his chair and said, “Can you hear me now?” To her surprise and chagrin, he responded with irritation in his voice, “For the fourth time, yes!”

And Jesus said: Whoever has ears ought to hear.

So, pondering both of these stories, we might ask:

When God speaks, do we make sure we don’t miss some part of the message because the blessing is not packaged the way we expected?
Is the problem that God is not speaking? Or, that we are not listening?
Or, is the third step where we fail – Are we listening and hearing but, then, failing to act on what we hear?

We are all well aware of Benedict’s opening word to us in his Rule – it’s the same that Jesus speaks in this Gospel: Listen. According to a footnote in my Bible, the phrase “Let they who have ears, let them hear” (or a similar expression) appears approximately 14 times in Scripture. I find this interesting because the number 14 is considered to be a symbol of salvation and deliverance. The 14th day of the first Hebrew month is Passover – the celebration of the deliverance from death of the firstborn of the Children of Israel. The angel passed by all the homes where the doorposts had been painted with blood. The word “Hear” (h e a r) in Greek means to understand, to perceive the sense of what is.

Benedict’s first word (in the Rule) – LISTEN is the key to what he says in the last two chapters of the Rule. If only that one instruction were heeded, what an impact it could make on our own happiness and it would foster concord between peoples. Isn’t attentive listening the master key that opens our hearts for good zeal? Deep, sensitive listening is the undergirding to mutual obedience, anticipating one another’s needs, picking up on feelings, being aware when we’ve pushed another’s “buttons” and recognizing we need to change the course of this interaction. To truly listen requires an attentive spirit. Recall some of the points in Celeste Headlee’s TED talk that we viewed the other evening [Celeste Headlee 10 ways to have a better conversation] Simple things but ones that take attention and self-discipline to put into practice. Celeste reminded us: if your mouth is open, you’re not listening; if you want to pontificate, write a blog; listen to people and be prepared to be amazed; everyone is an expert at something!”

Jesus and Benedict each offer us a challenging but attainable ideal. When the monastic breaches the ideal, we are expected to humbly ask forgiveness both from God and from our Sisters-in-Christ to whom we freely pledge to “form bonds of mutual love and respect and to call forth the best in one another.” (community Philosophy statement 2018)

~Reflection by Sister Roberta Bailey, OSB, Prioress

First Reading Isaiah 55: 10-11 Second Reading Romans 8:18-23

Gospel Matthew 13: 1-9

PEACE

May 28, 2019 by Holy Name Monastery Leave a Comment

Reflection By Sister Roberta Bailey, OSB, Prioress

Memorial Day is an American holiday honoring the men and women who died while serving in the U.S. military. It was originally called Decoration Day – a day to honor deceased soldiers by decorating their graves with flowers, flags and wreaths. Although Memorial Day became its official title in the 1880s, the holiday wouldn’t legally be called Memorial Day until 1967 and its designation as a federal holiday came in 1971.

Enough history trivia! The holiday prompts us to take some time to ponder the toll that war and violence have taken, and continues to take, on our society. And lest that image overwhelm us we are moved to “raise our eyes to heaven; bow our heads in prayer” – hard to do at the same time.

In the Gospel we heard Jesus’ promise: “Peace I leave you, my peace I give you. … Do not let your hearts be troubled or afraid …You heard me tell you…”. I suspect that one of Benedict’s favorite words must have been PAX, PEACE – The kind of peace Jesus gives, not as the world gives. But, Benedict doesn’t promote an attitude of “peace at any cost.” This is simply a false peace – smooth the surface of the waters and there’s churning beneath. Agreeing with another simply to avoid conflict too often comes back to haunt us in the form of inner turmoil, headaches and stomach ailments and a long history of unrestful emotions.

The guidelines Benedict offers to his followers may involve great personal cost. He seems to have an attitude of “nip it in the bud.” Confronting isn’t easy for most folks. Being the first to apologize can go against the grain. And, gracefully accepting another’s expression of regret is a humbling exchange. Benedict encourages us at the outset of our Benedictine journey: “Let peace be your quest and aim.” [RB Prologue 17] It’s difficult, some days more so than others. We are a flawed people. We have weaknesses, limitations, distractions that burden us and can cause us to be defensive, resentful and irritable. (Remind you of the older brother in the parable of the Prodigal?”)

We know Benedict is right when he says that seeking peace is the way to heaven – heaven in the after-life and a little bit of heaven here on earth. “If you wish to have true and eternal life, keep your tongue from evil and your lips from speaking deceit; turn from evil and do good; seek PEACE and pursue it.” Another translation says, “Seek peace and go after it.” And yet another says: “Chase peace and pursue it.” Doesn’t that conjure up quite an image… one that I imagine is depicted here in this drawing from What Do you Do With a Problem? Can’t you see us – peace leading the way … dashing out of the chapel, into the dining room, down the halls, out the door, into the neighborhoods, climbing God’s holy mountain pursuing PEACE – never abandoning charity nor giving a false peace, peacefully performing whatever duties are entrusted to us and ensuring we have made peace before sundown.

Today, let us renew our commitment to make, to pursue PEACE so it is more than a concept that only we talk about. Make a daily pledge to be people of peace, to be a peaceful people. Make each day an echo of what Paul tells us in the Letter to the Corinthians “the old things have passed away; behold new things have come…. We have been reconciled through Christ and more than that, WE HAVE BEEN GIVEN A MINISTRY OF RECONCILATION.” Peace is up to you and me. Do you mean it when you sing: “Let there be peace on earth; and, let it begin with me?”

Another way to think about peace is expressed in this Chinese proverb. It shows us the progression of light within to peace in the world…

If there is light in the soul,

There will be beauty in the person.

If there is beauty in the person,

There will be harmony in the house.

If there is harmony in the house,

There will be order in the nation.

If there is order in the nation,

There will be peace in the world.

(Chinese proverb)

Trinity Sunday