Sfingi and Zeppole Pastries

On the eve of the feast of St. Joseph's Day, I think of my father, Joseph, who always gave me a tremendous amount of encouragement, a love of books and so much more. He is greatly missed. My middle initial stands for Jo, which is my middle name. If I were born a boy, I would have been named Joseph but since I was a girl, I was given the middle name Jo.

Tomorrow I will go to the bakery and buy sfingi and zeppole. I can hardly wait. I was looking up references to St. Joseph's pastries and many sites have pictures of these delicious Italian pastries, which made me want to go to the bakery now....

St. Joseph is the patron of the universal Church, given this title by Pope Pius IX, for his role as guardian and protector of the Church. A righteous, just and humble man, who descended from royal lineage (he is linked to the house of King David), he can teach us all something about humility. 

St. Teresa of Avila wrote this about St. Joseph, To other saints the Most High seems to have given grace to assist us in some special necessity, but St. Joseph, I know by experience, has power to help us in ALL. I recently found a St. Joseph prayer card that I had, which came from the Carmel of Buffalo and it had St. Teresa's quote on it, which is how it found it's way into this entry. 

NJA

One Hundred Prayers in Ireland

Tomorrow on March 17th, the feast of St. Patrick, two million people will descend on New York City to watch the St. Patrick's Day parade. After finishing a tour of duty in Afghanistan the New York Army National Guard's legendary Fighting 69th unit, will lead the parade. On the eve of this extraordinary parade, I thought a few words from the great St. Patrick would be appropriate, When I had come by ill luck to Ireland-well, every day I used to look after sheep and I used to pray often during the day, the love of God and the fear of him increased more and more in me and my faith began to grow and my spirit to be stirred up, so that in one day I would say as many as a hundred prayers and I used to rise at dawn for prayer, in snow and frost and rain because the Spirit was glowing in me.  No one doubts that the Spirit was glowing in St. Patrick and no one could possibly doubt the positive effects those one hundred prayers had. 

Another great Irish saint, St. Columba was also a remarkable human being. Adamnan concluded his biography of St. Columba with these words, He had the face of an angel. He was of excellent nature, polished in speech, holy in deed, great in council. He never let a single hour pass without engaging in prayer or reading or writing or some other occupation. He endured the habit of fasting and vigils without intermission by day and night. The burden of a single one of his labors would have seemed beyond the powers of man. And in the midst of his toils he appeared loving to all, serene and holy and rejoicing in the joy of the Holy Spirit in his inmost heart. 

Columba built a monastery on the Scottish island of Iona,  In Iona, Columba built a great seat of learning, he taught theology, Sacred Scripture and the classics. He also wrote poems and hymns and illuminated the books he so loved. 

I'm very inspired by the lives of the saints, I think that's quite obvious.

NJA

There is no way of telling people that they are all walking around shining like the sun.

Thomas Merton

Lessons in Humility

Lent 2009 is a strange one. If you walk down any street in Manhattan, you can see the unsettled look on people's faces. People feel unnerved by these times. According to columnists and Catholic bloggers, Church attendence seems to be up. Perhaps, in humility, more people will begin to realize their need for God. People of faith, who believe in God and the power of prayer, go through difficult times more easily. That's a fact. They can turn to God and prayer for inner strength and courage. 

Humility in prayer reminds us of how much we need a relationship with God and the importance of God's mercy. The great St. Teresa of Avila, saint and Doctor of the Church, believed that humility was crucial for spiritual growth. During Lent, especially this Lent, it's good to remember that. 

These are her words, We shall never learn to know ourselves except by endeavoring to know God; for beholding God's greatness, we realize our own littleness.....and by meditating upon His humanity we find how very far we are from being humble.

What are Christians to do? St. Teresa would say, Remember Christ crucified. Remember the humanity of Christ and meditate on his sufferings. 

In these uncertain times, it's best to trust in God and rely on the mercy and love of God. Prayer is a great gift, belief is a great gift. So many times I've heard people say, I couldn't make it through that experience without my faith, without prayer. Those are my words too.

The following prayer by St. Teresa is one that I read everyday. It's on a card that I have. It was sent to me from a Carmelite Bishop who lives high in the Andes Mountains of Peru, serving the people there with love and compassion.  NJA

Let nothing disturb you

Nothing frighten you

All things are passing

God never changes

Patience wins all things

Whoever has God wants nothing

God alone suffices.

St. Teresa's Bookmark

Distracted By Too Much Stuff

A socialite from Atlanta wears a dress to a party that she wore ten years ago and that's news now. And what's even more interesting is that, it is now considered trendy to spend less, simplify and admit conspicuous consumption is out. It seems people are changing their spending habits, because of the economy. Maxine Frankel, was quoted in a New York Times article (Extravagance Has Its Limits As Belt-Tightening Trickles Up by Shaila Dewan), "I think this economy was a good way to cure my compulsive shopping habit....It's kind of funny but I feel much more satisfied with the things money can't buy; like the well-being of my family. I'm just not seeking happiness from material things anymore." Here's the silver lining, people are starting to realize that perhaps they've over-accumulated stuff.  Most of us have too much stuff. Right now, flaunting wealth is considered bad taste and disrespectful. It makes people uneasy reading about families in California living in motel rooms and tent cities. Can something positive come out of this negative situation? 

Carol Morgan, who teaches law at the University of Georgia said "she felt a responsibility to cut needless spending. 'That is probably something that is a prudent thing to do in any event, but particularly now I see it as the right thing, as the moral thing to do." She now wants to increase her charitable giving.  I just read about an organization that helps families move out of motel rooms, by helping people to find jobs and apartments. It's called the Illumination Foundation, a cause worth helping. Ms. Morgan is quoted as saying she thinks people will replace extravagance with a "desire to live more simply-replace that with time with family or time for spirituality-what a positive outcome to a very negative situation."

Perhaps when things start to correct themselves, which I hope happens soon, people will find more time for things that really matter-like quality family time, time with friends and time for God. People rush from place to place in the modern world, when reflection, quiet time and prayer is so necessary for a balanced life.

NJA

 

This is a great quote from St. Basil--"If only we would permit ourselves not to see the present, but to gaze steadfastly with hope at things a little more distant."

Living Through "The Great Disruption"

As noted in a New York Times article this Sunday by Thomas Friedman titled, The Inflection is Near?, 2008 will be remembered as the year when things started to-dare we say- fall apart. He quotes an Australian environmental business expert who has a name for this moment in time-"when both Mother Nature and father Greed have hit the wall at once-"The Great Disruption."

Stated in the article, "Over a billion people today suffer from water scarcity; deforestation in the tropics destroys an area the size of Greece every year-more than 25 million acres; more than half of the world's fisheries are over-fished or fished at their limit."

"Just a few lonely economists warned us we were living beyond our financial means and overdrawing our financial assets, scientists are warning us that we're living beyond our ecological means and overdrawing our natural assets," argues Glenn Prickett, senior vice president at Conservation International. He warns, "Mother Nature doesn't do bailouts."

How to make sense of all this? Gilding is quoted in the article as saying, "When we look back, 2008 will be a momentous year in human history. Our children and grandchildren will ask us, 'What was it like? What were you doing when it started to fall apart? What did you think? What did you do?'"

As people of faith, people who believe in the power of prayer, what is our role, what is our mission, in all this? If this is the "Great Disruption," how can we help to turn things around? I'm not sure what the answers are but certainly we need to pray for God's wisdom. We need to conserve and educate. (Some countries have started making investments in clean power, so there is some positive news.) We need to help those who are suffering. Christians are a hopeful people, I guess with all this negativity one thing we can do is offer hope to others, a positive attitude, a smile, encouragement and a helping hand. We can proclaim that, "With God all things are possible." Even getting out of this mess, is possible with God's help and guidance. And in the Northeast where I live, Spring is around the corner, which means the return of songbirds, flowers, abundant sunshine and budding trees. There are some things to be optimistic about.

NJA

Paying Attention to Jesus

A catechist recently complained to me that his students don't seem to remember Catholic doctrine from one year to the next. His 7th grade students don't seem interested, he can't get them to pay attention or retain what he's teaching them in religion class. It's a frustration many catechists have especially those teaching junior high school students. He was so frustrated that I told him to try something totally different. I suggested he show them the movie, Jesus of Nazareth by Franco Zeffirelli, in short segments and then discuss it afterwards. It's an excellent movie, about the life of Christ, they could learn a lot from it. We have to try to "connect" students to Jesus and make his teachings come alive. As the Bishops' documents state, we should be putting children (and adults) in communion with Jesus Christ. I believe if we get them interested in Jesus, then they'll want to learn more and they'll pay attention.

At a religion workshop I attended this week titled, "Discipleship and Service", the presenter showed the DVD "Rich," one in a series of short movies called the Nooma series. I had never heard of them before, probably because they are produced by a Christian organization. They are short films, concise and to the point, each one about 10-15 minutes long. Rob Bell is the speaker and he's good. I just ordered my own copy of Nooma # 13, which is titled, "Rich." Rob Bell talks frankly about how blessed Americans are, how much we take for granted and how much we have compared to other people in the world. I've heard some of the statistics before but I never realized that only 8% of the people in the world own cars. This DVD really makes you think about how much we have and how it's our responsibility as Christians to care for others. It would be good to show this during Lent and use it as a motivator for service projects. Catholics are very charitable but we could do more and those of us who can should. 

In these horrific economic times we're living through, Americans are hurting too. During Lent I pray we can be the hands of Christ and reach out to those suffering right in our own neighborhoods. Little gestures of caring mean so much when people are in despair. 

NJA

Whoever confers benefits will be amply enriched and whoever refreshes others will be refreshed.   (Proverbs 11:25)

If you can't feed a hundred people, then feed just one.  Mother Teresa

Are You Losing Sleep?

One third of Americans are losing sleep over the economy. Eighty percent of health care is spent on stress-related disorders. Reducing stress sounds like a good idea and perhaps it would be good advice for Lent. It can be more difficult to pray when you're stressed and worried. There are many proven ways to reduce stress, one of them is journaling. Journaling is easy to do and inexpensive. All you need is some quiet time, a pen and a notebook. You don't have to be a good writer or worry about spelling or grammar. Just write on......Saints and spiritual seekers throughout the centuries, have used journaling as a way to reflect on their relationship with God and their struggles on the journey of faith. But journaling has other benefits too. It reduces stress, it can promote personal growth and help with problem-solving skills. It also helps to increase creativity. And this amazes me. Apparently, according to people who study creativity, just by writing down your thoughts everyday, (from the most mundane activities to your inspirational thoughts), your creativity increases over time. I find that fascinating. I often use favorite Scripture quotes in my journaling to reflect upon and think through. 

I found an article I saved on journaling from 2002 and it quoted Joan Migton, an academic specialist with Kean University, We don't listen to ourselves. We turn on the TV, the radio, anything so we don't have to listen to us. Writing in a journal may be the only time of the day when you listen to yourself.  Jonathan Progoff, an expert on journaling is quoted in the same article which is titled, Listening to What's Inside by Lisa Ann Williamson as saying, There is more research that writing is therapeutic to reduce tension, gain awareness...the journaling process can be particularly helpful during a life change, illness, job change or traumatic event. Sounds like good advice to me. 

Quotes I like on creativity-

Whatever you can do or dream you can, begin it. Boldness has beauty, power and magic in it.--  Johann Wolfgang von Goethe

I am still learning--Michelangelo

NJA