Benedictine Sisters of FL

Holy Name Monastery
Founded 1889

Spirit

Wishful Waiting

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This Gospel offers us the reassurance that Jesus understands how difficult it is to wait.  Jesus is in a state of wishful waiting.  He waits for the Spirit. He’d waited for his cousin John who would baptize him.  He’d waited for the day the Father would give the go ahead to His working miracles.  He’d waited for the “three days” and His resurrection.

And we, our Sisters have lived through waiting too.   Tomorrow we will mark the 11th anniversary of the day we took up residence in our one-story home (here) on Wichers Road.  Our sisters have waited, responded, moved from Pennsylvania, to Dallas House to San Antonio Plaza to a hotel turned Convent.  Then came the move of that building to the shores of Lake Jovita where we resided until our home for deemed a fire risk.  The Academy girls and the Sisters had “sleep overs” in the parish school auditorium and the homes of local families.   We waited and waited for the Bishop’s okay to build a new home, Benedictine Hall.  Then came the call of the Spirit to down-size, build and relocate to the residence we now call home.  August 18, 2014, our friends from St. Mark’s parish gathered us and our “things” and we set foot in this our “new home.”

From the beginning of His coming on earth Jesus taught us lessons in waiting.  Mary and Elizabeth waited nine months for the birth of their babies.  The Holy Family waited three years in Egypt until it was safe to return to Nazareth. Jesus waited 30 years to begin his public ministry.  He waited three days to respond to Lazarus’ sisters’ news that his friend had died.  He waited 3 years for His Father to prompt him NOW is the right time for His last supper with friends, time for betrayal and crucifixion, time to rest in a borrowed tomb until he would be raised from the dead.  He waited for the right time to reveal himself to Mary Magdalene in the garden and later to appear to the disciples and his mother Mary huddled in the upper room drawing strength and comfort from each other. in the upper room.  He’d waited 40 days for the time to ascend and take His place at the right hand of his father.

And we? Oftentimes what do we do with our waiting time?  We look for the shortest check-out lane knowing full well that the shortest line can be the longest wait if the clerk calls for a price check.  We grit our teeth (we hope unseen) if the buffet line slows as someone goes back to read the menu; or we repeatedly hit we “print” command on the keyboard in hopes we can hurry it up.   What are the words in the hymn by St. louis Jesuits, TRUST IN THE LORD?  “Wait for the Lord, you shall not tire; wait for the Lord, you shall not weaken.  For the Lord’s own strength will uphold you, you shall renew your life and live.”

The message in the Gospel also reminds us that choosing to do good requires on-going decision-making. We all know full well that life isn’t conflict-free no matter how holy, easy-going or patient a person we may be.  We well know, living in a monastery isn’t surefire protection. We’re all still human, with human limitations.  But we are also followers of Jesus who said, “What makes you think I have come to establish peace?  I tell you I have come to sow division.”  He is alerting us to be prepared for difficult decisions.

Jesus is letting us know beforehand that He is right in the middle of the fray. Recall He said: “I have come to set the earth afire.”  He is telling us that when we make the decision to follow him, we may face opposition from some quarters, perhaps even from our peers, our family or friends.  He cheers us on when conflicts arise, and He can foresee the peace of reconciliation coming down the pike.

Consider your choices: add fuel to the fire or bite your tongue, cool your jets and exercise patience.   Figuratively, if we engage the faucet and turn on the nozzle, we can control the hose that can put out the fire between us.  The landscape may look charred. The ashes will remain.  But out of the ashes will come new life: green plants and colorful flowers – some never seen before.  And yes – peace will come!

~Reflection by Sister Roberta Bailey, OSB

 

 

 

 

First Reading:  Jeremiah 38:4-6,8-10         Second Reading:  Hebrews 12:1-4
Gospel:   Luke 12:49-53
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Let All The Earth Cry Out To God With Joy

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(At the outset let it be understood that what follows may appear to be fiction but it is not. St. Luke shared this with me.)

One day, when the man of God Benedict was doing Lectio and pondering how to incorporate his set of values into his manuscript directed to his followers, St. Luke entered his reverie.  What an inspiration!  Luke and Benedict chatted with each other for a spell.  Look Ben, (said Luke) you’ve consulted the writings of the one you call the Master.  May I suggest you look at my record of the sayings of THE Master.  Compare it with the 10th chapter of my Gospel. Sure enough!  Very many of our special Benedictine values are put forth by THE Master Jesus.  For instance:

+ A SPIRIT of POVERTY: take nothing with you (is how Jesus puts it) No money bags, no suitcase, no canvas bag or pretty tote and no sandals.  Or as you say it in your Rule: “No one may presume to give, receive or retain anything as her own, nothing at all, in short not a single item … no one shall presume ownership of anything. “

+ A SENSE of STABILITY: Jesus advises his followers: Into whatever house you enter, stay in the same house; don’t be moving from one house to another.   Benedict, you describe the first kind of monastics called cenobites.  From what you say, I sense this may be your preferred type of members.  “Those who belong to a particular monastery, where they serve under the rule of a superior.”

+ Further, Benedict, you expect these cenobites to follow Jesus’ way of life, personally and communally, practicing a SPIRIT of SIMPLICITY and ACCEPTANCE of WHATEVER IS AVAILABLE:  In your words:  Eating and drinking whatever is offered to you; whatever is set before you.

Benedict, my friend, you have an obvious understanding of human nature. Could we attribute that to your twin sister’s influence?  She took her turn as cook for her group of women whom she loved as ardently as you looked after the rough and tough gang of men that lived with you. It’s evident in your words: Taking turns serving one another, using an unvoiced system of gestures when anything is required.  And (yes, PLEASE God) it will save you a heap of trouble if you designate a weekly reader to proclaim the Holy Word throughout the meal.

In studying your Rule, Benedict, it seems to go without saying that there will likely be no harmony in the group unless the members all strive to AVOID EVIL and CLING to PEACE.   I (that is Luke) remind my readers: Remember what Jesus said (It’s right there in verse 9). “If peace is not present in the house where you find yourself, go out into the streets and shake the dust from your feet and leave that town.”  When you feel evil rising in you, get in touch with the cause – shame the devil – leave the occasion of sin.

In this weekend’s second reading St. Paul reminds us that we bear the marks of Jesus in our body.  Jesus conquered evil so that we, too, might be part of the new creation. We rejoice with the disciples, reveling as they did in first fervor.  We rejoice because “our names are written in heaven.”  Sing with Isaiah in the First Reading: We rely on the gentle care God has for us: we shall be carried in God’s arms, comforted as a mother comforts her child and fondles the child in her lap and delights in nursing the babe.  That’s the joy that can erupt in the words of tomorrow’s responsorial psalm: LET ALL THE EARTH CRY OUT TO GOD WITH JOY.

~Reflection by Sister Roberta Bailey, OSB

 

Let us remember each other in prayer on Friday, July 11th, the Summer feast of St. Benedict.

 

 

First Reading: Isaiah  66:10-14                     Second Reading: Galatians 6:14-18
Gospel: Luke 10:1-12, 17-20
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Trinity Sunday

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What does this doctrine of the Trinity tell us about the kind of God we worship and the kind of people we should be?

The Gospel just proclaimed comes near the end of Jesus’ discourse at the Last Supper and is an example of the implicit teaching on the Trinity.   Jesus tells his disciples that the Spirit will declare what the Spirit hears from Jesus.  Elsewhere Jesus says, “The Father and I are one.”  If Jesus and the Father are one and the Spirit speaks what Jesus says, it follows that the three must be one.  Further evidence found in Scripture regarding the doctrine of the Trinity is found in the other readings for the feast but if one expects today’s readings to give a clear presentation of the doctrine of the Trinity – they will be disappointed.

The important question for us is: What does this doctrine of the Trinity tell us about the kind of God we worship and what does this say about the kind of people we should be?   With our three-fold vows, we are reminded of our commitment to a balance of prayer, labor and leisure.   We pray many times a day, in various ways, the familiar words of one of the first prayers many of us learned: the “Glory Be” in honor of, and thanksgiving for, the revelation of the Trinity:  Father, Son and Spirit.

This inner relationship of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit is such that each of them is fully and equally God, yet there are not three Gods but one God.  This is incomprehensible to the human mind. It is a mystery.  Together the three Persons in the Trinity, Father, Son and Spirit represent the fullness of love. The Father loves the Son, the Son loves the Father. The Spirit is their love for each other. But love is only a word until someone gives it meaning.  We are made in the image of a triune God – God the Father, who created us, his Son who saved us, and the Holy Spirit who continues to guide us.  To be true to our calling we must be the ones who give meaning to Love in our world.  As Paul says in the second reading to the Romans: We did not receive the spirit of slavery, but of adoption …  we are heirs of God with Christ and destined to be glorified with him.”

On this Solemnity of the Holy Trinity, we are privileged, not merely in commemorating a doctrine, but in celebrating and entering into a communion of Persons who have loved us into being, redeemed us from ourselves, and continue to call us each day to a fuller experience, a deeper lived knowledge, of God. As long as we have our feet planted “this side of the grass” it makes sense that we might not be able to completely understand how something can be “one” and “three” at the same time.  One last comparison: Consider the egg you might have had for breakfast: yolk, white and shell – three parts, one egg.  Your personal interpretation will ultimately be your best guide, and the only answer you need.

~Reflection by Sister Roberta Bailey, OSB

 

 

 

First Reading: Proverbs 8:22-31             Second Reading: Romans 5:1-5
Gospel:  John 16:12-15
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Do You Think You’re Really What They Say You Are?

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At the outset let it be understood that what follows may appear to be fiction, it is not.  More than one of the evangelists spent an afternoon sharing between themselves as I listened in.

This is some of what I gleaned.  One day, when the man of God Benedict was doing Lectio and pondering how to incorporate his set of values into his manuscript directed to his followers, the evangelists Luke and Matthew entered the reverie.  What an inspiration!  The exchange continued for quite a for a spell.  Look Ben, (one of the speakers said) “you’ve consulted the writings of the one you call the Master.  May I suggest you look at what’s recorded in our sayings of THE Master.   Sure enough!  Very many of our special Benedictine values are put forth by THE Master, Jesus.

+ A SPIRIT of POVERTY: take nothing with you (is how Jesus puts it) No money bags, no suitcase, no canvas bag or pretty tote and no sandals.  Or as you say it in your Rule: “No one may presume to give, receive or retrain anything as her own, nothing at all, in short not a single item … no one shall presume ownership of anything.“

+ A SENSE of STABILITY: Jesus advises his followers: Into whatever house you enter, stay in the same house; don’t be moving from one house to another.   Benedict, you describe the first kind of monastics called cenobites.  From what you say, I sense this may be your preferred type of members.  “Those who belong to a particular monastery, where they serve under the rule of a superior.”

+ Further, Benedict, you expect these cenobites to follow Jesus’ way of life, personally and communally, practicing a SPIRIT of SIMPLICITY and ACCEPTANCE of WHATEVER IS AVAILABLES:  In your words:  Eating and drinking whatever is offered to you; whatever is set before you.

You have an obvious understanding of human nature, Benedict. Could we attribute that to your twin sister’s influence?  She took her turn as cook for her group of women whom she loved as ardently as you looked after the rough and tough gang of men that lived with you. It’s evident in your words: Taking turns serving one another, using an unvoiced system of gestures when anything is required.  And (yes, PLEASE God) it will save you a heap of trouble if you, designate a weekly reader to proclaim the Holy Word throughout the meal.

In studying your Rule, Benedict, it seems to go without saying that there will likely be no harmony in the group unless the members each and all strive to AVOID EVIL and CLING to PEACE.   The evangelists remind readers: Remember what Jesus said: “If peace is not present in the house where you find yourself, go out into the streets and shake the dust from your feet and leave that town.”  When you feel evil arising in you, get in touch with the cause – shame the devil – leave the occasion of sin.

Mark interjected a stray thought.  Consider, he suggested, what ultimately did not happen in Nazareth: no healings, no mighty deeds.  Is it much of a surprise?  After all a miracle is not just an event, but it is an interpreted event. If Jesus is not reputed to be capable of healing, any healing that does take place won’t be attributed to him. So, the crowd’s attitude is “there’s nothing here to see. Let’s just move along, move along… and find some other excitement.”

Such is true with us, with our community.  Our guests won’t experience peace and harmony, generosity of spirit and light-heartedness, beauty in nature and in liturgy if they can’t witness those qualities in each of us.  They come expecting a miracle.  The miracles happen in our interactions, first with each other, then between us and our guests.

Remember Jesus’ question to this disciples, “Who do people say I am?  And, you: “Who do you say I am?”  Who do you say these Benedictine Sisters of FL are?

Do you recall the rock opera popular in the 1970’s: “Jesus Christ, Superstar”?   This line challenges us: “Do you think / you’re what / they say you are?”  Benedictine Sisters of Florida, do you think  / you’re what they say you are?  Are you really who you say you are?

~Reflection by Sister Roberta Bailey, OSB

 

Thursday, July 11, is the summer feast of St. Benedict.  The feast most folks know of is celebrated on March 21.  But that day usually falls during Lent when Alleluia is suppressed and music low key …  we, Benedictines “pull out all the stops” for the summer feast.  Whisper a pray for us at Holy Name as we continue to walk into an ever-evolving future.  God bless each of you!

 

 

 

Gospel:   Mark 6:1-6

 

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Third Sunday of Advent

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This Third Sunday of Advent is familiarly known as Gaudete Sunday – a Latin word that means “rejoice” – the first word (in Latin) of the Entrance Antiphon at Mass: “Rejoice in the Lord always; again, I say, rejoice.  Indeed, the Lord is near.”  We mark Gaudete Sunday by lighting a rose-colored candle (in the Advent wreath) and the celebrant at Mass may wear rose colored vestments.  The church rejoices because we are halfway to Christmas.  I refer you to the First Reading from Isaiah: “The parched land will exult, will rejoice and bloom with abundant flowers, and rejoice with joyful song.”  We are called to be a joyful people.  The Promised One is approaching and is nearer at hand.

I get the impression, though, in today’s early post-pandemic world that “joy” is on the decline.  The theme of joy is a rare commodity.  When someone asks: “How was your day?”  We might hear ho-hum tones: “It was OK” or “Could have been better” or “I’m just so tired of doing the same thing every day.”  Or “I’m exhausted.”  Or “Don’t ask me.”  To have joy is to have a deep sense of delight.  The Greek origins of the word “joy” literally means “for the heart, in its deepest place of passion and feelings, to be well.”  That’s what it’s like to have joy.

So why is joy so rare?  To experience joy in one’s life, four qualities must co-exist.  First, joy takes time.  Joy comes of living a “savored” life.  Take the time, make the time to smell the roses, to observe the pace of a sandhill crane crossing the street or to glory in a sunset or moonrise.  There is an old monastic saying that describes joy.  “When you are sipping tea or watering a plant, or gazing at an icon, do just that.”  Be present in the moment.  Such moments are pregnant with God’s real presence, promise and providential care.

Second, to know joy requires acceptance – a “yes” to life – YES to the hand we’ve been dealt.  You may have discovered at some point that the script we’ve been handed in the play of life is not the part we thought we were trying out for.  Joy requires a deep willingness to accept that we are God’s creatures and that God is at work according to God’s good pleasure.  Joyful persons do not live in a state of resentment for what might have been or what “used to be.”  In God’s plan, there is a reason why today is not tomorrow.  We need each of our todays to prepare us to receive the promise of tomorrow.  Remember the phrase from our COVID prayer: “We live in full union with the God who loves us and wants only our good.”

Third, for a joyful spirit desire is required.  We have to want joy.  Joy is a gift, a gift of the Spirit.  If you want the gift of joy, ask God for the gift with your heart open and ready to accept the gift in whatever way God hands to the gift to you.

And, fourth, to be joyful we need stability, patience and endurance.  Maybe that’s why Jesus says: “Truly I tell you… you will have sorrow… but your sorrow will turn into joy.”

Life for most people is not picture perfect.  But there is much joy to be found if we simply LOOK for JOY.  Be on the lookout to SEE and REFLECT the JOY that is right before your eyes waiting to be seen.  The more we dwell on our everyday blessings, the more joyful moments seem to multiply in our lives.  And by experiencing more joy in my own life, I have more JOY to give away.  To quote Henri Nouwen: “Joy does not simply happen to us.  We have to choose joy and keep choosing it every day.”  JOY is a beautiful gift to embrace, celebrate and give away at Christmastime.  

~by Sister Roberta Bailey, OSB

 

 

First Reading  Isaiah 35:1-6, 10                       
Second Reading 1 Thessalonians 5:16-24  
Gospel Reading  Matthew 11:2-11

 

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History Tells the Rest of the Story: WE’RE STILL HERE.

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This incident found in John’s Gospel reminds us that not everyone took to Jesus positively, even those who seemed to be quite close to him.  Some of the people, not unlike today, were murmurers and grumblers – folks not too keen on what they were hearing.  Following Jesus was going to be no picnic (despite the way he’d fed the five thousand people).  The idea of total commitment was a disturbing concept.

We hear it in that sad and haunting verse: “From that time many of his disciples went back, and walked no more with him.”  Obviously hurt by this defection, Jesus turns to Peter and the others who are closest to him and asks them if they’ll be taking off too – “Will you too go away?”  Peter, as was his style so often, seems to speak on behalf of all Jesus’ loyal followers – “Master, to whom would we go?  You alone have the words of eternal life.”  For Peter, at this time, it’s unquestionable – “If Jesus said it, it must be true.”  If you’ve looked ahead to the First Reading, you’re aware the Church reminds us that Jesus’ experience of rejection was not unique.  1500 years earlier, Joshua, disciple of Moses, gives voice to a similar tribulation.  He addresses all the people – “If it does not please you to serve the Lord, decide today whom you will serve.”  The people answer in the same vein as Peter – “Far be it from us to forsake the Lord.”

One of my brother, Bill’s favorite books was This Tremendous Lover by the Irish Trappist monk-priest Eugene Boylan and first published in 1946.  In 2002, I sent him a replacement copy for the one he’d given away.  On his death four years later, it was returned to me.  I had inscribed on the fly page – “Bill, I hope this is as inspirational as you remember.  The bookstore that special ordered for me said it was the last one in the United States.  Imagine that!”  Boylan writes in his book: “Our Lord was not looking for an enthusiastic public reception… his miracles were not a ploy to grasp temporal power.  The wonder of his public life is not the marvelous works He actually did, but the many and more wonderful works which He could have done and did not.  All He did and said and allowed to happen to him was part of the plan.”

What Jesus has to say is so important that he does not consider changing his message to please the people.  In fact, we can accurately say that a “Jesus” who doesn’t offend isn’t the real Jesus.

Our hearts go out to Jesus, and those who stuck with him.  If you have ever had anyone walk out on you, you can empathize with Jesus.  I recall the mixed feelings I had when in the late 60s and early 70s, we had five deaths in one year.  It was not customary for those of us who were away for studies to come home for funerals, so there was a void for farewell until we got to visit the cemetery.  Then what some writers refer as the “Exodus” began to happen when several of our peers felt the calling to leave community.  Some gave us a chance to say good-bye; others quite literally disappeared in the night.  These were good people – some were rising leaders in community.  What did they know that I did not?  My feelings were not of betrayal like Jesus suffered – but confusion and loneliness, yes.  Were the shrinking numbers the handwriting on the wall and I was too blind to read it?  History tells the rest of the story: WE’RE STILL HERE.

What does Jesus do when his ranks shrink?  Does he cajole the people, “Oh, I’m sorry that what I said was so hard to take.  Maybe we can compromise.”  Not at all!  Jesus does not let human opinion sway his proclamation of divine truth.  “The words I have spoken to you are spirit and they are life.”

When God asked Aaron why he built the golden calf, his only defense was, “The people made me do it.”  What was Peter’s knee-jerk response a couple years later.  Remember when Jesus was on trial?  The inquisitive young girl asked him if he was one of Jesus’ followers?  Peter’s leadership in the upper room was easy, he was with friends.  But outside the rank and file of unfamiliar faces he fell apart.  Which life-style will you lead – people’s opinion driven, or God-focused?

If our ears are open to the voice of the Spirit, we hear daily Jesus’ quizzing us, “Who do people say I am?”  He asks us, like he does all his friends about our personal conviction – “Who do you say I am?”  The question also comes to us as a community.  Are we swayed by “public conviction” forming the community we think the public wants us to be?  Or are we formed by “personal and communally discerned convictions” – helping to lead the world where it needs to go?

~Reflection by Sister Roberta Bailey, OSB

 

First Reading:   Joshua 24:1-2a, 15-17, 18b          Second Reading:   Ephesians 5:21-32
Gospel:   John 6:60-69
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