island life- in a monastery

During the last weeks of Lent I finished: Pilgrimage & Exile:Mother Marianne of Moloka’i . It is a massive work of almost 500 pages, with at time, minute details that may seem to bog down the story, but in the end it is a well worth journey. I did a blog on St. Marianne 10/21/2012 at the time of her canonization. In the meantime I had my trip back to Hawaiilast November, plus the "fates" found other connections for me.

My friend Judy drew St. Damian of Moloka'ias her patron for the year and decided to dig into his history. One of the treasures she found and sent to me was a pictorial history of Kalaupapa. While reading the book on St. Marianne I was able to follow with the photos. It was almost as though I was there. I had visited Kalaupapa, flying in with the mailman, fifty years ago- an experience I never forgot, so the book was very special.

For months I have been trying to rack my brains for the name of the professor at Univ. of HawaiiI interviewed for a class I took on Literature of the Pacific. We were to do a book review and in the library I found a book on Moloki’a written by this local. I decided to interview him for the paper.

I vividly remember him but not his name. When one reads on Kindle, access to authors is not in the forefront of one’s reading as is the case when one holds a book. While I knew the author of this work on St. Marianne was a nun from her order, I did not realize there was a second author. When I finished the story I was surprised to find a name that rang a bell, so I looked him up and behold it was my lost professor!

Prof. Bushnell- as I remember him

O.A. (Oswald Andrew – Ozzy) BUSHNELL descended from contract laborers from Portugaland Norway and a mechanic from Italy. He was born in the working-class neighborhood of Kakaʻako. His friends and classmates in the area were Chinese, Japanese, Portuguese, Hawaiian, and "hapa-haole" (part-white), so he grew up "local," mastering Hawaiian "pidgin" as well as English as his novels attest. As a youngster he developed a love for the cultures of Hawai`ias well as literature and classical music. He graduated in 1934 from the University of Hawaii, where he served as student body president.

By 1937 he had earned both his MS and PhD degrees in bacteriology from the Universityof Wisconsin and later worked and taught at GeorgeWashingtonUniversityMedicalSchoolin WashingtonD.C. He returned to Hawai`iin 1940 working for the Department of Health on Kaua`i and Maui before joining the U.S Army after the attack on Pearl Harbor. Following the war he taught at the University of Hawaii, retiring in 1970 as emeritus professor of medical microbiology and medical history.

Dr. Bushnell's first novel, The Return of Lono, won the “Atlantic Monthly’s fictionaward" in 1956, at a time when most books about Hawaiʻi were written by outsiders. His later novels dealt with other aspects of Hawaiʻi's history and he encouraged and inspired many other local writers to tell their own stories. Molokaʻi (1960) tells the story of leprosy patients quarantined at Kalaupapa; Kaʻaʻawa (1972) describes life on Oʻahu in the 1850s, during the great smallpox epidemic when many native Hawaiians were dying of newly introduced diseases. In 1974, the Hawaiʻi Literary Arts Council presented him an Award for Literature, saying he "brought life to fact and reality to fiction."

His historical works include Hawaii: A Pictorial History (1969) with Joseph Feher and Edward Joesting, and A Walk Through Old Honolulu (1975.

His last work, Gifts of Civilization: Germs and Genocide in Hawaii (1993), combined his interests in microbiology, Hawaiian history and literature. It remains the definitive study of how Native Hawaiians, having lived in isolation for centuries, were very nearly wiped out by exposure to newly introduced diseases such as TB, smallpox and leprosy.

Dr. Bushnell was a member of the Historical Commission for the Cause of Mother Marianne. Pilgrimage and Exile, the fruit of his careful research, is the inspiring story of a great and holy woman, who lived a life of extraordinary dedication, sacrifice, and faith.

Today, she continues to remain an example of faith, courage, and spiritual connectedness to all. While Dr. Bushnell did not live to see her canonization, I am sure he was in a place to rejoice with her! And I am glad to have found him again!

In retirement- still with the twinkle in his eyes

On MERCY SUNDAY I present a little known saint, who is a great example of Our Holy Father's insistence on care of the poor, the wretched, the handicapped, etc. One wonders what would have happened to him if he had not been placed in the care of the monks who saw his brilliance and cultivated his gifts.

An interesting BENEDICTINE saint, not much spoken about in our modern world, but one who is an inspiration to all who suffer disabilities, is BLESSED HERMAN the CRIPPLE. He was crippled by a paralytic disease from early childhood. Born July 18, 1013 with a cleft palate, cerebral palsy and possibly spina bifida, was a son of the earl of Altshausen. Based on the evidence, however, more recent scholarship indicates Bl.Hermann possibly had either amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (Lou Gehrig's disease) or spinal muscular atrophy. As a result, he had great difficulty moving and could hardly speak.

At the age of seven, he was placed in the Benedictine Abbey of Reichenau (an island on Lake Constance, Germany) in the care of Abbot Berno by his parents who could no longer look after him. He grew up in the monastery, learning from the monks and developing a keen interest in both theology and the world around him.

Abbot Berno himself was famous as orator, poet, philosopher, and musician and most probably had a great influence on Bl. Herman and recognizing the child's intelligence, cultivated those gifts. Educated in the school of St. Gall, Berno visited Rome with the Emperor Henry II, and upon his return introduced many reforms in the liturgical music of his native land.

Bl. Hermann contributed to all four arts of the quadrivium (mathmatics, geometry, music, and astronomy). He wrote a treatise on the science of music, several works on geometry and arithmetic and astronomical treatises. He wrote instructions for the construction of an astrolabe, and ancient astronomical computer for solving problems related to time and the position of the sun and stars (at the time a very novel device in Western Europe). He built musical instruments as well.

As a historian, he wrote a detailed chronicle from the birth of Christ to his own present day, ordering them after the reckoning of the Christian era. One of his disciples Berthold of Reichenau continued it.

At twenty, Bl. Hermann was professed as a Benedictine monk, spending the rest of his life in the monastery. He was literate in several languages, including Arabic, Greek and Latin and was also a famed religious poet. When he went blind in later life, he began writing hymns, the best known are the Salve Regina (Hail Holy Queen) and Alma Redemptoris Mater.

In his day, the heroic cripple who achieved learning and holiness was called ‘The Wonder of His Age’.Bl. Herman died in the monastery on September 24, 1054, aged 40. He was beatified in 1863.

In our day, he is an example of why those born with disabilities should be nurtured, cultivating whatever gifts they may possess.

"The hero of this story enters . . . well . . . rather slowly. It doesn't don a cape or sport a lightening bolt on its chest, but its effects are monumental. The actions of this tiny mollusk become all-consuming . . . Everything about this slip of a book is unassuming, yet its petite size, prose, and characters rise like quiet giants from its pages." --BookBrowse.com

In the Pacific Northwest, at least on our small island, we have few snails but many slugs which Mother Felicitas has an aversion to, since they devour her herb garden. She has tried everything, including pans of beer set out at night. When I came across this small book I thought it would make a fun Christmas gift. Little did I know! And as spring is in full bloom here the tiny creatures are coming out.

The author, Elisabeth Bailey, shares an inspiring and intimate story of her encounter with a common woodland snail. Elisabeth was in her mid-thirties when she was struck with a mysterious illness that soon led to her complete incapacitation. Without knowing the cause, much less the cure or the course that it might take, the disease was frightening. One day, a friend stops by with a rather odd gift- a snail she has found in the yard. First placed in a flower pot with a small violet, the snail becomes Elisabeth's constant companion. Because of her lack of mobility and energy, much of her time is spent observing the creature.

She discovers the solace and sense of wonder that this creature brings and comes to a greater under standing of her own confinement. Life with her snail covered only a year of her nearly twenty-year struggle with illness, but it was an important one. In a big way, the tiny snail gave her reason to go on. She wrote her doctor: "If life mattered to the snail, and the snail mattered to me, it meant something in my life mattered, so I kept on..."

Intrigued by the snail's behavior, Elisabeth becomes an astute and amused observer, providing a candid and engaging look into the curious life of this tiny creature. The first surprise is that snails have a daily routine. They have certain times to eat and sleep and travel. They often return to the same place to sleep, and they sleep on their side. As she watches the daily activities of the snail, she manages to study research on snails in general and in detail.

Elisabeth could actually hear the snail eating in the silence of her room. "The sound was of someone very small munching celery continuously...the tiny intimate sound of the snail's eating gave me a distinct feeling of companionship and shared space."

This small book is a great meditation and one Mother Felicitas will pass on to an invalid friend. I recommend this book to everyone who has the time to ponder its message. Told with wit and grace, The Sound of a Wild Snail Eating is a remarkable journey of survival and resilience, showing us how a small part of the natural world illuminates our own human existence and provides an appreciation of what it means to be fully alive.

Approaching cyclone

A few weeks ago when some workmen were visiting, they asked me about an area in our woods with new growth trees. I explained that 15 years ago we had aCYCLONE that tore through 15 acres of that area- so we replanted. They exclaimed they had never heard of cyclones in the PNW, so of course that led me to the ever- faithful Google search.

HURRICANE? CYCLONE? TYPHOON? They're all the same- officially tropical cyclones. But they just use distinctive terms for a storm in different parts of the world. Hurricane is used in the Atlantic, Caribbean Sea, central and northeast Pacific. They are typhoons (well none of us have ever heard of a typhoon here) in the northwest Pacific. In the Bay of Bengal and the Arabia Sea, they are called cyclones. Tropical cyclone is used in the southwest India Ocean; in the southwestern Pacific and southeastern India Ocean they are severe tropical cyclones.

A storm gets a name and is considered a tropical storm at 39 mph . It becomes a hurricane, typhoon, tropical cyclone, or cyclone at 74 mph . There are five strength categories, depending on wind speed. The highest category is 5 and that's above 155 mph .

Our water is too cold for hurricanes but we do get damaging, destructive windstorms, known as cyclones. These storms cause millions of dollars of damage and leave thousands without power. Some of the destructive, powerful windstorms that have struck the Pacific Northwest over the years:

The Big Blow of Columbus Day October 12th, 1962 was the most destructive windstorm in West Coast History and it remains the mother of all windstorms. This storm was originally a strong cold front; it merged with dying Pacific Typhoon Freda to become an intense mid-latitude cyclone, which slammed the California Region first and then slammed Washington and Oregon. Along the Washington, Oregon, California and British Columbia Coasts south winds reached 119 mph, with gusts to 130 mph.

Millions were left without power as trees blew onto power lines and plunged millions of residents in each region into darkness along the West Coast. The storm blew down more than 100 board feet of timber in what remains to this day to be the most destructive windstorm in West Coast history. Damage cost was over 10 million and 46 deaths were reported.

At the time my parents were staying in Longview (WA) and I was home from a college break. After a few minutes of winds throwing trees around like matchsticks and the roof of a nearby house flying into our front window, we sought shelter for hours in a nearby basement, having grabbed flashlights, blankets and a radio. Never had we Californians experienced anything like this so while it was frightening it was also exciting!

The next morning, being a Sunday, we headed for Mass but had to walk the few miles due to so man fallen trees blocking the roads.

Another giant storm we experienced here was TheInauguration Day Storm of 1993. This one brought ice and cold and we had to have (volunteer) firefighters from the mainland come to Shaw to cut us out. Winds were 120 mph, with gusts to 150 mph. The Evergreen Point floating bridge in Seattle had $500,000 in damage. 750,000 people were left without power in Oregon and Washington and power restoration took ten days in some areas.

Destructive Cyclone of December 12th, 1995 was another "Cyclogenic Bomb". Along the Washington and Oregon coasts south winds reached 100 mph, with gusts over 140 mph. It was my birthday and we had no electricity, so very cold.

The Major Windstorm of March 3rd, 1999 with gusts up to 120 mph. The 520 Bridge in Seattle was destroyed during the storm.

The Major Cyclone of February 4th, 2006 on Superbowl Sunday along the Oregon and Washington Coasts with south winds of 100 mph and gusts to 129 mph.

Obviously we are having more wild storms than in the past , but every time the high winds start up, and the tall Douglas firs start creeking and bending, we pray to our angels for protection!

Varez

SERVANT of GOD JOSEPH DUTTONcould be another new England saint one day.

He was born Ira Barnes Dutton in Stowe, Vermont, son of Ezra Dutton and Abigail Barnes.

He carried out his studies at OldAcademyand Milton Academy, Wisconsin and in 1861 enlisted in 13th Wisconsin Infantry under Colonel Maurice Malooney. He served in the 13th Wisconsin Volunteer Infantry Regiment during the American Civil War.

He had been raised Protestant and was for a time married. The marriage did not last as his wife (whom he never mentioned by name) was unfaithful and Ira developed problems with alcohol. He quit drinking in 1876, experiencing a spiritual reformation.

He converted to Roman Catholicism in 1883 taking the name of Joseph, his favorite saint. He later spent 20 months at the Abbey of Our Lady of Gethsemani.

Meeting Fr. Damien- A. Girard- Stowe

He concluded that his life should be one of penitent action rather than contemplation. He remained lifelong friends with the monks, even remembering them in his will.

In 1886 Joseph went to Moloka'i to aid the dying Father Damien. “ The work attracted me wonderfully… the labor, penitential life, and seclusion.”

At Moloka’i he served as administrator, carpenter, repairman, baseball coach, as well as care of the lepers, bandaging their sores and encouraging them on.

On Moloka’I he found peace and joy, never leaving again till his final illness, when he was sent to Honolulufor treatment. Before his death Father Damien said of him: I can die now. Brother Joseph will take care of my orphans.

After Father Damien's death he founded the Baldwin Home for men and boys with financial assistance from Henry Perrine Baldwin.

Joseph was a member of the Secular Franciscan Order. He spent 45 years on Moloka’i, dying in Honolulu in 1931 and later buried at St. Philomena Catholic Church Cemetery, Kalaupapa. Like St. Damien and St, Marianne Cope, he was much loved by his people.

David Popiashvili (Dem. Republic of Georgia)

Sunday is one of my favorite Sundays of the year. I am always reminded what it is to be shepherdess to the sheep entrusted to me.

As I get older, I still love my sheep, but must entrust their care to the interns who come to help with daily chores. Fortunately, the past two years the "neo- shepherds" have been wonderful. This year's lambs follow them around like dogs. And while I educate the interns and other helpers in the fine art of shepherding, I no longer am able to daily go down to the field and handle the lambs and ewes. The more the lambs are handled the easier is their care when they get older, so this daily contact is important.

In days not too long ago, even in our own country, a shepherd would lead his sheep to the best pastures that he could find, while he kept close watch over them to protect them.

The good shepherds loved their flocks so much that they would put their lives in danger for their sheep, especially when one went astray.

Jesus Christ, our Good Shepherd, gave His life for us and watches over us especially in these modern times so filled with danger. He laid down His life for us and now He leads us to spiritual nourishment which we daily receive in the Eucharist.

Lost Sheep -Nikola Saric- Serbia

Now Christ, our Paschal Lamb, is slain

the Lamb of God that knows no stain,

the true Oblation offered here,

our own unleavened Bread sincere….

We pray Thee, King with glory decked,

in this our Paschal joy, protect

from all that death would fain effect

Thy ransomed flock, Thine own elect.

Hymn of Easter Vespers

Let us rejoice in our GOOD SHEPHERD!.

I always like to present people who are generous to us and this woman is no exception. A few weeks ago we had a knitting retreat here for the morning from San JuanIsland. They came to see the lambs, do a bit of work and buy wool. A week later I heard from EVELYN CLARK who asked if she could donate some of her work to us for sale. Being clueless in the fiber arts (I only raise the sheep), I had no idea who she was and when I mentioned it to Cat who led the retreat (more on her in next Blog) she told me to look up Evelyn’s site. You can do the same. If you are a knitter I would advise you to see her patterns. Her work is absolutely lovely and we will save some of the pieces for our own use.

Swallowtail

Evelyn is a Pacific Northwestnative who learned to knit and crochet from her grandmothers. After leaving a corporate career in marketing for a simpler life, she was inspired to pick up her needles again by Elizabeth Zimmermann's empowering approach to knitting. Along the way, she discovered a passion for lace knitting and enjoys sharing this addiction with others.

Spinning is her new obsession, inspired by a Cheryl Oberle Knitaway in Taos and Spinning the Old Way by Priscilla Gibson-Roberts. Now handspun yarns are influencing her designs.

Evelyn was the winner of the first Wild Fibers Magazine and Buffalo Goldcontest. Her designs have been published by Fiber Trends and Leisure Arts, as well as knitting magazines and yarn companies. Knitting Lace Triangles, her first book, was published by Fiber Trends in July 2007. Her limited teaching schedule is on the Home page.

Thanks Evelyn for your generosity and new friendship and for staying in a long tradition!

15 C. Master Bertram of Minden

For Good Shepherd Sunday I posted an image by an artist whose work I think merits recognition because of its uniqueness, spirituality and timelessness. I emailed him and asked him if I could do a Blog on him and his art, to which he graciously replied, yes. It was hard to choose a few images from his vast array of work, but I present a few of my favorites.

Theotokos (Mother of God)

NIKOLA SARIC, born 1985, comes from Bajina Bašta, Serbia. In 2000, he moved to Belgrade to study at the TehnoArtSchool. In 2005, he began studying at the Academy of Applied Arts in art restoration and conservation. One year later, in 2006, he moved to study at the Academy of Serbian Orthodox Church for Arts and Conservation in the art fresco painting, where he graduated in 2014.

Nurtured in the practice of church art, his artistic expression is deriving from sacred Greco-Roman art and generally speaking the art of the classical antiquity and the medieval period.

St. M Magdalene

"In his works, through the immediacy and simplicity of visual elements. he is trying to convey the intuition of a “transfigured world” and its everlasting glow, harmony and beauty. Using different techniques and materials, Nikola is trying to describe this unimaginable world. His interpretations reflect the personal spiritual experience as well as the tradition that breathes and evolves within the concepts of contemporaries." (from his web-site)

He breaks some of the traditional “rules” to create images which feel both ancient and contemporary. “Art plays a significant role, not just in religious practice, but represents a time document about persons, events and ideas that had and will continue to have impact on people.”

I love how many of his saints have their heads bent to the side as if listening only to the Word, which is Jesus Christ.

Besides working as an independent artist, he holds mosaic courses in adult education. He also does sculpture, calligraphy, and design. Since 2011 Nikola lives in Hannover, Germany.

One of his most powerful pieces is his Holy Martyrs of Libya. In this work 21 Christians are lined up on their knees before hooded ISIS terrorists with drawn knives. In the middle stands Christ welcoming them into His kingdom. The men are depicted with their eyes looking to Christ, except for one who looks at us. The Coptic Orthodox church acknowledged them as new martyrs.

This icon is displayed in the exhibition at Brenkhausen Monastery in Höxter, Germany. This Medieval monastery was obtained in 1994 by the Coptic Church, and is now the monastery of the Virgin St. Mary, and is the Coptic bishop seat.

On this beautiful icon, the New Liturgical Movement wrote: Notice
how the waves of the sea stained with the martyrs’ blood are shown around the edge of the image; Matthew Arayiga, from Ghana, who was not himself a Copt, but on witnessing the martyrs’ courage in choosing death over denial of their Christian faith, joined them in confessing Christ, and professing their faith as his own, saying “Their God is my God”, is distinct among the group on the top right. The men were killed wearing orange prisoners’ jumpsuits.

It all started with seeing media reports about (the martyrs) which struck me immediately. Out of that grief, something creative came up. I was thinking about them, empathy and love towards them grew, and that became a corner stone of the project”, Nikloa has said..

...I think that in any tragedy there is no sense in it, but I also think that we can overcome a tragedy and see beyond the harsh reality, with another perspective or with spiritual eyes, as I would like to say. That is what I try to do in my work and in my life.”

When Nikloa looked at those men on the beach facing execution because they chose to hold to their faith, he saw the unseen. “In their minds they were with God. They prayed. Faith changed their captivity into freedom, death into life.”

Nikola saw Christ as reaching down to comfort the martyrs, even as ISIS soldiers grab each man by the hair. Every prisoner but one looks to heaven. The last prisoner looks us squarely in the eyes. Is he testing our own sorrow for such brutality? Or is he telling us not to worry as today he is with Christ?

St. Anthony of the Desert

St. Ignatius of Antioch

We never know who the Lord will let us cross paths with, but I am sure that this woman was meant to be in my life. Some people when you meet, you feel as if you have known them most of your life. And that meeting is just a picking up where you left off. And while I have no interests in fiber arts (I just raise the fiber) we found we had many passions in common, starting with Our Lady of Guadalupe. I almost feel guilty trying to do a Blog on her as she is so multi-talented.

While we had not met, I knew of her work, as we both appeared in Wild Fibers Magazine in 2008. There was a very lengthy article about Our Lady of the Rock and after that article was a sock (yep,socks) pattern done by a local (San JuanIsland) woman. Yours truly even modeled the socks! It would take another eight years for us to meet.

CAT (yes, this is her real name) BORDHI is funny, gentle, and very dedicated to her profession, which includes generously helping others. Her website is very informative so I will use a lot of her own words:

I never know how to answer the question, “What do you do?”

Once on an airplane I replied, “I’m an archaelogical forensic topologist.”

The two men sitting beside me suddenly sat up straighter. “So you’re a medical examiner?” one asked. "No, I’m a knitter,” I replied.

"And I wasn’t fibbing or even exaggerating. Knitting is indeed topology (the study of knots and pathways) and I am filled with immense curiosity about how it’s been done and how else it might be done, which is forensics. As for archaeology, my passion for Perú and its textile traditions have been leading me in that direction as well... But most of all I am a person who loves the innocent, unfettered intelligence and sense of wonder that rises in knitters as we explore this sensuous world of pulling loops through loops and rearranging them to create beauty."

Moebius cowl

“I absolutely love to teach, and it is natural to me to perceive each student as their best self. This, and my passion for teaching, make each workshop whole and fresh.”

One of her workshop participants wrote:

“Cat Bordhi is that quirky, fun and inventive teacher that you loved in high school. The one that made you want to come to class and do your best. And you always listened to everything spoken in class, lest you miss even a bit of wonderful information. Cat is full of tips and tricks, and the skills she teaches in this class take you far beyond moebius knitting. But of course, knitting a moebius is so fun that it may be a while before you apply her great tips to other knitting. Cat is a natural born teacher. She loves to share what she has discovered with others. Her enthusiasm and humor shine through and the camera loves her. She’s completely relaxed and you feel like she’s sitting next to you, sharing her latest discovery that came to her in the middle of the night.”

Cat has a “partner in crime” who often travels with her. Unfortunately, when they came with a knitting group on retreat to visit our lambs and farm, I did not get to spend much time with him. But I can tell by the twinkle in his eye he is as much fun as Cat (and merits a Blog on his own). Jim “Pecos” Petkiewicz of Community Links International (a nonprofit that responds directly to the complex realities of marginalized humans, communities and environments in many parts of the Americas) co-leads groups to Peru and other fab places (Ireland and the Aran Islands, Iceland, and in the future, Cuba) with Cat.

Cat & Pecos

“Pecos and I have a brother-sister relationship and our work together is fluid and inspired. Pecos and his wife Mags lived and worked in Bolivia, Peru, and Mexicofor many years, and raised their two children, now grown, in Oaxaca, Mexico. Pecos’ knowledge and love of Spanish and Latin America is a rich resource that allows all of us to experience the beauty of this land and people directly and spontaneously.”

Cat and Jim “Pecos” have a passion for bringing out the best in others. People call them “travel whisperers” who help them have their own spontaneous, magical experiences.

"We recognize that service without the attempt at developing profound relationship produces debilitating charity, while service with deep relationship can lead to lasting and productive solidarity. We invite you to join us in these deep relationships."

Cat is the author of one novel and the artisan publisher of eight knitting books, as well as a number of single patterns. Go to her website for lots more information. And if you knit, she is the gal for you!

I often tell lay people that we are all called to sanctity. So many people feel that they have to have a vocation to the religious life in order to be a saint. But the Church- the world- needs holy lay people as examples to us all. One lay woman will soon be beatified. And she was a Benedictine Oblate.

ITALA MELA (1904-57) was an Italian Roman Catholic who was a lapsed Christian until a sudden conversion of faith in the 1920s and as a Benedictine oblate assumed the name of "Maria della Trinità".

Mela became one of the well-known mystics of the Church during her life and following her death. She also penned a range of theological writings that focused on the Trinity, which she deemed was integral to the Christian faith.

She was proclaimed to be Venerable on 12 June 2014 after Pope Francis approved her life of heroic virtue. The Holy Father also approved a miracle attributed to her which allows for her beatification this year- date is to be announced.

Both of Itala's parents were atheist teachers. She spent her childhood in the care of her maternal grandparents from 1905 to 1915 as her parents worked and her grandparents prepared Mela for her First Communion and Confirmation (thank God for grandparents!).

The death of her brother Enrico at the age of nine in 1920 challenged Mela's faith. She wrote of her feelings to the loss: "After his death, nothing". As a result she eschewed her Christian faith and slipped into atheism. However, on the Feast of the Immaculate Conception (8 Dec. 1922), she had a sudden reawakening of her faith. She then took the motto: "Lord, I shall follow You unto the darkness, unto death".

Mela became a member of the Italian Catholic Federation of University Students in 1923 where she met future pope Paul VI (Giovanni Battista Montini) and Blessed Alfredo Ildefonso Schuster, OSB (1880-1954), a Benedictine monk who later became Cardinal and Archbishop of Milan during World War II. At such meetings were Monsignor Montini and the politician Aldo Moro (a leader of Christian Democracy, he was considered an intellectual and a patient mediator, especially in the internal life of his party. He was kidnapped on March 16, 1978, by the Red Brigades, a Marxist–Leninist urban guerilla organization, and killed after 55 days of captivity). These men and others served as major influences in her life.

She passed her studies in 1922 with recognition of being a brilliant student and was enrolled at the University of Genoa on the following November where she later received a degree in letters and classical studies in 1928.

Itala experienced her first vision of God on 3 August 1928 as a beam of light in the tabernacle in a church of a seminary at Pontremoli, beginning a long stream of visions in her life. She departed for Milan at this time, and chose as her confessor Adriano Bernareggi. She felt a call to religious life but suffered with health problems so in 1933 she became a Benedictine Oblate of the Abbey of Saint Paul outside the Walls in Rome.

As a sign of her new life, Itala took the name of "Maria della Trinità". She not only promised the three Benedictine vows of Conversatio, Obedience and Stability, she also made a fourth vow of consecration to the Holy Trinity which she considered as the center of her life and mission in the Church.

She returned to her hometown in 1933 and from 1936 she received ecstasies and visions.

Itala presented an idea for a memorial to Pope Pius XII in 1941, and the pope accepted the Memorial of Mary of the Trinity. In 1946 she composed a series of spiritual exercises for the benefit of the faithful which were well-received.

Itala died on 29 April 1957; her remains were transferred to the La Spezia Cathedral in 1983. While not all holy people are deemed mystics, or have visions, all Christians are called to be followers of Christ true to their calling.

P. Maurus, OSB

The month of May is dedicated to Our Blessed Lady, QUEEN of the MAY. It is the time specially given to her in tribute of faith and love. During this month we offer up to Mary fervent and loving homage of prayer and veneration. In this month, too, the benefits of God's Mercy come down to us from her throne in greater abundance" (Paul VI: Encyclical on the Month of May).

This custom of dedicating the month of May to the Blessed Virgin arose at the end of the 13th century. In this way, the Church was able to Christianize the secular feasts which took place at that time.

The practice became especially popular among the members of the Jesuit Order and by 1700 it took hold among their students at the RomanCollegeand a bit later it was publicly practiced in the GesuChurch in Rome. From there it spread to the whole Church.

Paul VI wrote a short encyclical in 1965 using the Month of Marydevotion as a means of obtaining prayers for peace. He urged the faithful to make use of this practice which is "gladdening and consoling" and by which the Blessed Virgin Mary is honored and the Christian people are enriched with spiritual gifts".

Mary is the Mother of God, the Mother of the Church and our Mother. Let us this month pray for hope in our world, for peace in the hearts of all, and a deeper love of her Son.

Ascension- Peju Alatise- Nigeria

Down in the realm of darkness
He lay a captive bound,
but at the hour appointed
He rose a victor crowned,
and now to heaven ascended,
He sits upon the throne
in glorious dominion,
His Father’s and His own.

St. Columba’s sixth-century hymn

Even He that died for us upon the cross, in the last hour, in the unutterable agony of death, was mindful of His mother, as if to teach us that this holy love should be our last worldly thought - the last point of earth from which the soul should take its flight for heaven.

His Mother - Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

Mother Catarina (Rt) with Mother Ruth

Sometimes when we live so close in Community, and things get hectic, we are not aware of what is happening outside, even when it involves one of our own.

As we approach the feast of Pentecost, I advise you all to go to YOUTUBE and type in Mother Catarina Boyer OSB in interview with Bill O’Donnell, which took place when Mother was giving a retreat to the Oblates at the Monastery in Pecos, NM.

She is funny, down to earth and gives some basic facts of our life as Catholics that are worth hearing- again and again. The most important being our relationship to Christ in the Eucharist.

R.M. Prioress & Father Vincent with Maronites

Last week we were graced with threeMARONITE monks celebrating their most wonderful liturgy with us. They are in the process of establishing a monastery within the archdiocese of Seattle. Prayer will be the main focus of their life.

There are six major traditions of the Catholic Church: Alexandrian, Antiochene, Armenian, Chaldean, Constantinopolitan (Byzantine), and Latin (Roman). The MaroniteChurch follows the Antiochene Tradition.

A Roman rite Catholic may attend any Eastern Catholic Liturgy and fulfill their obligations at an Eastern Catholic Parish. A Roman rite Catholic may join any Eastern Catholic Parish and receive any sacrament from an Eastern Catholic priest, since all belong to the one, holy Catholic Church.

The Maronites of Lebanon traditionally trace their origin back to the late 4th century when a group of disciples gathered around the charismatic figure of the monk St. Maron. They later founded a monastery located midway between Aleppo and Antiochand evangelized the surrounding population.

The Maronites came into contact with the Latin Church in the 12th century, when the Latin crusader principality of Antioch was founded. In 1182 the entire Maronite nation formally confirmed its union with Rome. There is a strong tradition among the Maronites that their church never lacked communion with the Holy See.

Although reduced in numbers today, Maronites remain one of the principal ethno-religious groups in Lebanon, with smaller minorities of Maronites also found in Syria, Cyprus, Israel and Jordanand the USA. Maronite immigrants have brought their faith to distant lands, while many still regard

Lebanon

as their spiritual home.

Sts. Rafqa, Charbel & Hardini

The steady emigration of Maronites from Lebanon in recent years has produced flourishing communities abroad. In the United States, there are two dioceses (Brooklyn, NY and Los Angeles) with a total of 60 parishes and 99 priests serving about 75,000 faithful.

Three of their saints have been canonized in the past few years: Sts. Charbel, Rafqa and Hardini.

A wonderful movie, done in Lebanese with subtitles and found on YOUTUBE is: St. Charbel

Egino Weinert, Cologne

For as the Apostles' story testifies: "while the days of PENTECOST were fulfilled and all the disciples were together in the same place, there occurred suddenly from heaven a sound as of a violent wind coming, and filled the whole house where they were sitting. And there appeared to them divided tongues as of fire and it sat upon each of them. And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit, and began to speak with other tongues, as the Holy Spirit gave them utterance." Oh! how swift are the words of wisdom. and where God is the Master, how quickly is what is taught, learnt.

No interpretation is required for understanding, no practice for using, no time for studying, but the Spirit of Truth blowing where He wills, the languages peculiar to each nation become common property in the mouth of the Church. And therefore from that day the trumpet of the Gospel-preaching has sounded loud: from that day the showers of gracious gifts, the rivers of blessings, have watered every desert and all the dry land, since to renew the face of the earth the Spirit of God "moved over the waters," and to drive away the old darkness flashes of new light shone forth, when by the blaze of those busy tongues was kindled the Lord's bright Word and fervent eloquence, in which to arouse the understanding, and to consume sin there lay both a capacity of enlightenment and a power of burning. Homily from Pope St. Leo

One never knows what one will find in the news, especially when the story is as far away as England, but started in the small town of Bethlehem, CT where our Mother Abbey is.

As a young novice I can remember going to the lovely home of CAROLYN FERRIDAY on the Bethlehem Green for tea (do not remember the occasions).

Caroline ( b.1902-90) was the last owner of what is now known as the Bellamy-Ferriday House & Garden, the Bethlehem property she bequeathed to Connecticut Landmarks. Her parents had purchased the property as a summer home in 1912 when she was 10 years old. Caroline lived in New York City during the winters and spent summers in Bethlehem, where she was particularly devoted to her garden and pursued her many philanthropic interests.

Carolyn was a lifelong Francophile. Her father, Henry McKeen Ferriday, having himself lived in Paris for several years as a child, evidently contributed to his daughter’s interest in all things French, which certainly laid the foundation for the story to follow.

It was one of the big secrets of the murderous Nazi regime: a camp of 72 female prisoners used as experiments to test torture techniques. The girls, all high school-age Catholics from Poland, were dubbed the 'rabbits' since they were treated like laboratory animals, and their injuries meant many had to hop instead of walk.

When they war ended, they were rescued by the Red Cross along with the hundreds of other prisoners in Ravensbruck concentration camp - but all accounts of their 'treatments' had been destroyed. It meant their ordeal paled into oblivion as the world grappled to deal with the aftershocks of the Holocaust, particularly the horrific obliteration of the Jews.

But the women were finally brought out of the shadows in 1958 by an unlikely fairy godmother in the guise of our friend and neighbor. She made it her mission to bring them to the States for medical treatment, a road trip across America, Christmas at her holiday home, and a dinner with senators in Washington, D.C.

The rabbits were not meant to survive; Heinrich Himmler planned to have them all murdered before word got out. They were brought in to Ravensbruck, 50 miles north of Berlin, in August 1942 to test different kinds of surgical procedures. In total, each underwent six operations, having bones broken, muscle tissue removed, limbs amputated, and more - all without painkillers. The wounds were then deliberately infected so the surgeons could test whether sulfonamide - a kind of penicillin - would cure it.

At first they operated on male prisoners. Accounts differ on why they switched to women. Some historians say women were typically healthier prisoners. Others say Dr. Gebhardt assumed females would be more docile and submissive. Word of the rabbits leaked outside the walls of Ravensbruck thanks to notes passed from prisoners to sympathetic guards to their families, and so on.

But for a number of reasons their cause did not receive widespread attention for more than a decade. Ravensbruck was one of the last concentration camps to close, its leaders had more time than most to deal with their incriminating paperwork, which informed and dictated the schedule of the war trials, and the world was reeling at the sheer scale of attacks on Jews. Women and Catholics were not immediately the primary focus.

Carolyn (Rt.) with four of the Women

In the 1950s Carolyn joined the Association of Deportees and Internees of the Resistance, a group started by four French women, including General Charles de Gaulle's teenage niece, who were all political prisoners in Ravensbruck. The women, like many of Europe's underground resistance workers, were passionate about the rabbits' cause - something Carolyn had never heard of.

Once she became aware of the story she flew to Poland to meet with a prosecutor who represented Jewish victims of the Holocaust, and persuaded him to represent the rabbits too. She then returned a number of times to meet the women and gain their trust.

Finally, she came back with an American doctor, who surveyed each of the victims and gave a prognosis for what could be done to treat them.

During that time, Carolyn publicized the cause, raising money for the treatments.

In December 1958, 35 of the women who wished to go flew to America. They stayed for a year. They were spread about various cities across the US based on which hospitals were best for their medical needs.Four of the women spent Christmas in Connecticut with Carolyn.

And all of them united in San Francisco at the end of the year to go on a road trip across America, stopping in Washington, D.C., to be hosted by senators for a dinner.

Bellamy-Ferriday House

Genevieve de Gaulle (niece of Charles) wrote a memorial tribute describing Carolyn as “a sister to everyone. She helped us to gain recognition first, and then to compensate the victims of pseudo-medical experiments. She brought about this action with all her intelligence, all her generosity. . . .” A woman of uncommon MERCY.

This week we have seminarians here on retreat before their ordination to the deaconate. Father V. is basing the retreat on a wonderful book MAURICE & THERESE by New York Auxiliary Bishop Patrick Ahern.

It is one of the best books about St Therese of Lisieux, probably because it is some of her last writing. Here we see a more mature, developed saint. It is the collected correspondence between her and a humble young seminarian, Maurice Belliere. “I ask that a nun devote herself particularly to the salvation of my soul, and obtain for me the grace to be faithful to the vocation God has given me, that of a priest and a missionary...If I respond to my vocation I shall save other souls and that good nun to whom I entrust my own soul will have saved other souls as well.”

Though they never met in person, they exchanged twenty-one letters (11 from Maurice, 10 from Thérèse) that opened a window on the heart of St Therese that would have remained forever closed had Maurice not written to Mother Agnes of Jesus at the convent asking for a nun to pray for him. Mother Agnes knew exactly who the nun would be - her own beloved sister, who longed to be a missionary but whose poor health prevented such a physical possibility. “I shall always be happy to call myself your unworthy little sister,” Thérèse wrote in her first letter to Maurice. “I am asking Him that you may be not only a good missionary but a saint all on fire with the love of God and souls.”

In these letters the Saint reveals herself in ways that we do not find in her autobiography. She shows us her insight into her missionary consciousness, her love for the priesthood, her acute compassion for humanity, her extraordinary availability to souls, and her theology. In his accompanying text, Bishop Patrick Ahern leads us into the worlds of Maurice and Therese and revealing the full beauty of this saint's spirituality.

We find a very human woman who through the love of Jesus helps another human being find the love God. It is very intense and emotional. Her message throughout this lovely work is God is Love! A message as relevant today as yesterday- esp. in our sad modern world.

The exchange ended as the newly ordained priest left for Algiers with the Missionaries of Africa on Sept. 29, 1897, the eve of her death. Eventually, Father Maurice was sent as a missionary to Nyasa in Africa (now Malawi).

“I did not realize she had died, but since I have been here I have experienced a certain calm, a joy I did not know before, which has kept me from even a moment’s worry or regret. I was wondering to what I owed this happiness. Now I wonder no longer. The saint was near me with her comforting tenderness and strength.”

Father Maurice would die 10 years later in 1907, his missionary life marked by personal suffering. Bishop Ahern wrote: “Maurice deserves our attention not because he was great but because he was not… Thérèse makes the quest for holiness easy, in the sense that she makes clear that God asks. of us no more than we can give. . . She draws us, asking only that we trust in the God who is nothing but Mercy and Love.’ This is all she ever desired for Maurice.”

St. John Paul II with the Magi

We are closely connected to a Knights of Columbus Council north of us. They are responsible for the group of youth that come every year to help with haying, building etc. We receive the Knight’s magazine “Columbia” which this month has the cover story on the SAINT JOHN PAUL II National Shrine in WashingtonD.C.It is a place of prayer for Catholics and welcomes people of all faiths. It houses a permanent exhibit called "A Gift of Love: the Life of Saint John Paul II" and hosts temporary exhibits relating to the history of the Catholic Church in North America. It has a Chapel with daily services.

The 130,000-square-foot building is built on 12 acres adjacent to The Catholic University of America and the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception.

Jesus is Recognized in the Breaking of the Bread

The main focus of the magazine is the stunning mosaics done by the renowned artist Father Marko Ivan Rupnik. The first mosaics executed were done at the request of Pope John Paul himself in the Redemptoris Mater Chapel in the Vaticanin 1999 commemorating the 50^th Anniversary of Pope John Paul II’s priestly ordination.

Father Rupnik was born in Slovenia in 1954 and in 1973 joined the Jesuits. He studied both theology and art and was ordained in 1981. Today his art is found all over the world, including Fatima, Lourdes and the shrine of St. Pio in San Giovanni Rotondo. He is director of Centro Aletti, a community of artists run by Jesuits and consecrated women. He has a doctorate and presently lives in Rome.

Wedding Feast at Cana

Father Rupnik says his work as an artist and theologian has always been complemented with work that is more specifically pastoral, teaching and retreats.

He says St. John Paul II shaped his work. In his 1999 letter to artists the Saint wrote that "the role of sacred art opens us to the mystery of Revelation and the wonder of creation."

I found a video on line where you can get a better view of these works of art. Photographs do not do the colors justice, especially the sparkling gold. His stunning art makes visible the glory of God and the drama of salvation history.

http://www.ovguide.com/saint-john-paul-ii-national-shrine-

Father Rupnik and the Centro Aletti artists can be seen in over 130 churches around the world. Here are more works from other sites.

Sts, Cyril & Methodius- Slovenia

One of the things that strikes me when I look for new saints to write about, is that so many lived during my lifetime. I ask myself, how old was I and where was I during this saint's lifetime?

Another great Benedictine saint is BLESSED ALFREDO ILDEFONSO SCHUSTER . He was born in Rome of Bavarian parents in 1880. His father was a tailor and widower, and Maria Anna Tutzer.

He entered the Benedictine monastery of St Paul-Outside-the-Walls when he was 11, taking the name of Ildefonso, and was ordained a priest in 1904. He served his own community in various offices until he was elected abbot in 1918. He taught at several pontifical institutes, served as consultor to the Sacred Congregation of Rites, and held other high offices. Pope Pius XI appointed him Archbishop of Milan in 1929, consecrated him and created him a Cardinal.

Bl. Afredo gave priority to catechesis and promoted the role of the laity in the parish and in Catholic Action. He denounced Fascism and its racist ideology. He refused to participate in ceremonies involving Mussolini, and condemned racist legislation. The cardinal was primarily concerned with the spiritual well-being of his flock, the physical needs of the poor, assistance to newly married couples in order to create strong marriages, and with the administration of the Archdiocese. Having a great love of the Liturgy, he founded the Institute of Ambrosian Chant and Sacred Music.

A few days before he died (1954) he withdrew to Venegono Seminary.
His last, moving words were to the seminarians:

“You want something to remember me by. All I can leave you is an invitation to holiness...”.

When the process of beatification came to a certain point, church officials opened Cardinal Schuster’s tomb and found his body to be incorruptible. One sign of holiness. He was announced as a Venerable Servant of God in 1994 and beatified by St. John Paul II on May 12, 1996. His feast day is 30 August.

FINDING LOST FRIENDS AT EASTER

BENEDICTINE WONDER- AN EXAMPLE OF MERCY

SNAILS in PARADISE

PNW CYCLONES - CONFUSING TERMS

ANOTHER SAINT FOR KALAUPAPA?

THE GOOD SHEPHERD IS ALWAYS WITH US

EVEN THE VIRGIN MARY KNITTED

LISTENING TO THE WORD

FRIENDS of OUR LADY

HOLY LAY BENEDICTINE

MARY IN MAY

STAY WITH US LORD!

MOTHER'S DAY BLESSINGS

MOTHER'S INTERVIEW IN THE SPIRIT

ONE IN THE HOLY SPIRIT

COME HOLY SPIRIT

WOMAN OF UNCOMMON MERCY

A MESSAGE OF LOVE

REDEMPTION AND LIGHT

ANOTHER NEW BENEDICTINE SAINT