Archive for the ‘Celebrations’ Category

 

EXILE

The moon sheds silver shadows on the sky,

blue shadows on the snow;

the house-beams crack all night,

startling us with the news

that it is colder than we thought.

“Winter is closing in,” we say,

but winter moves us outward in imagination

to learn how cold it is to be exiled from the sun,

how lonely the darkness,

how welcome the light of any approaching star.

 

HERE IN THE NORTH

1.

The radiators wakened me

(four a.m., after a night of blizzard)

alarmed me with their frantic gushing,

a niagara roaring through the system,

gurgling, swirling, growling

through every pipe, making the circuit

of the house with urgency.

Anxiety washed over me — not just

concern about the state of the furnace,

but dread of where we might be carried

beyond sleep, through the storm:

to what cold shore?

2.

Day emerges with a rare shining:

not remnants of moonlight

or the early edge of dawn,

but the sheen of new snow

binding every branch.

Somehow the snowfall invaded

without waking us,

took over without resistance,

left us helpless at the window,

captives of beauty and cold.

3.

When you live in the north

where winter, white ogre,

grips the calendar for months,

then a bird’ s song in mid-March

tastes like Spanish wine,

and your heart can easily miss a beat

at the sight

of a puddle.

Sr. Kate

Clare leads us into the depths of Advent.

Following along with Papa Francisco she calls us to be “poor with the poor.”

For Advent reading: THE GREAT REFORMER by A, Ivereigh is the best of the best.

Austen tells the story of Jorge Mario Bergoglio, born into a lower middle class immigrant family, joined the Jesuits, himself called to the people of the slums, connecting and worshipping with our brothers and sisters of other communities, his pectoral cross, Christ the Good Shepherd.

Blessings on your journey!

ADVENT

These are the days when the whole pattern

is spread before us: the long intricate past,

the wars and wanderings, prophets and kings;

and the future as well, the vineyards and orchards

of the age to come, the safe and happy children

playing in the streets, the high road to peace

And our eyes are drawn to the center,

to the jewel at heart of the plotted web,

to a girl in a village and her ordinary life,

her willing response to mystery

when it came seeking her,

to the answer she gave

and the light it poured

over the whole story.

Sr. Kate

 

 

 

 

Francis goes to God with all of Creation, and with the Sisters and the Brothers whom he loves.

Transitus at the Clares, October 3, 7:30 pm.

Eucharist at the Clares, October 4, 10:00 am.

Listening Sessions with Archbishop Hebda to Help Inform Pope Francis’ Choice for our New Archbishop

Monday, October 5:

1 – 3 p.m., Rauenhorst Ballroom, Coeur de Catherine, St. Catherine University, St. Paul

7 – 9 p.m., St. Stephen, Anoka

Tuesday, October 6:

1 – 3 p.m., For women and men in consecrated life, Carondelet Center, St. Paul

7 – 9 p.m., Pax Christi, Eden Prairie

Monday, November 2, 7 – 9 p.m., Saint Peter, Forest Lake

Tuesday, November 3, 7 – 9 p.m., Divine Mercy, Faribault

Wednesday, November 4, 7 – 9 p.m., Woulfe Alumni Hall, Anderson Student Center, University of St. Thomas, St. Paul

Additional listening sessions are being scheduled for Latino Ministry parishes (in Spanish) and priests.

Pope Francis has emphasized the importance of dialogue in the life of the Church. And in the spirit of speaking and listening in charity, the Archdiocese of Saint Paul and Minneapolis is hosting a series of listening sessions. Archbishop Hebda will lead the sessions to hear your input on our strengths, our challenges, and what characteristics are important in a new archbishop. Feedback gathered during these sessions will be shared with those responsible for advising Pope Francis as he makes this important choice and with the new Archbishop whenever he is named. Summaries will be published in The Catholic Spirit.

Our retreat with Fr. Mike and Pope Francis.  Yes, it was that week, time out of time, the most memorable retreat of a lifetime.  Everyone was watching the Pope so no need to write how wonderful the message, so wise and merciful, Pope Francis moving seamlessly from deep prayer to joyful communion with God’s people.  

front row: Sr. Caroline, Fr. Mike Crosby Sr. Anne

second row: Sr. Gabriel, Sr. Lucie, Sr. Kate, Sr. Francis, Sr. Helen

 

 

A special feast day greeting to Friar Bob Frazzella.  We know him as a frequent visitor to our Blog.  We all appreciate friendly visits.  Right?  Thank you, Bob.

Religious Sisters and Brothers from our Archdiocese joined our new Administrator,  Archbishop Bernard Hebda, at the Basilica Block Party.   How many Sisters and Brothers do you recognize?

Do you remember the lovely Ella Fitzgerald?  Her song was “Summertime and the livin’ is easy.” 

It looks that way in Sister Caroline’s photo of a corner of our garden.

And it is not just easy, it is fun for the grey, red and white squirrels who play together in the lush foliage of the little pine forest behind the monastery.

I think this photo deserves a poem.

EDGE

I understand an edge: a border, isn’t it, a first wedge into

something else, something new? – somewhere you can only

get past by falling, falling, and giving yourself into the hands

of gravity, flying to the nest you, the one that only appears

beyond the limits of what came before. There are sharp edges

that cut your fingers when you cling to them, and there are

long concavities that curl upwards and lift you till you are

flung into space, a free place wide enough for fear, euphoria

and second thoughts, a space where something is born that

turns you wide-eyed toward the welcoming curve of newness,

and you find yourself at the beginning, the threshold,

the other side.

Kate Martin 8/ 09

 

The Confirmation Class from Assumption Parish and some of the dads spent their Saturday removing Garlic Mustard from our woods.  

Garlic Mustard is an invasive species and is on the “noxious weed” list of the Department of Natural Resources. 

It is the day after Pentecost Sunday, and this year known throughout the United States as Memorial Day.

How could we not remember back to the feast of the Resurrection of the Lord, LIFE in the Lord with the promise of life everlasting.

Our Pascal Candle was painted by our dear friend and often lector Doug Westendorp.

Our Cross, designed by John Buscemi, invites us to walk with the Lord through the cross to fullness of life.