Reflections - St. Vincent de Paul



ReflectionsAdult Faith Formation in an Uncertain TimeApril 2020What ways have you used to nourish your faith during this period of social isolation? What resources (books, online websites, blogs, etc.) would you recommend?As far as what is helping me sustain hope in this extended time of isolation, I have had the opportunity over a lifetime to develop an interior locus of control and a rich interior life. Am very grateful for that. Going solo, as I have had to do, has many deficits but also many benefits, which are sustaining at a time like this. But balance is the golden mean. Look forward to face-to-face connecting again soon.?I’ve really enjoyed spending additional time in centering prayer. ?Unexpectedly, I’ve been given the gift of letting go of thoughts running through my head without effort on my part. ?I’ve called my sisters (and they’ve called me) more than we used to. ?Neighbors, friends and I check in on each other.I can’t even remember the last time I read a biography, so I enjoyed?The Good Neighbor: The Life and Work of Fred Rogers. ?He was from the same hometown - Latrobe PA - as Dick Shirey, came from a wealthy family and was a lonely only child. ?The more I read, the more I liked him. ?Now I’m reading a Jewish author’s documented proof that Pope Pius XII did all he could to save Jews during WW II. ?He had been the papal nuncio (ambassador) to Germany before the war and was highly critical of Nazism. ?In return he was slandered by them. ?Hardly ‘Hitler’s Pope!’I’ve taken advantage of nice days by starting to clean out flower beds.These are challenging times. ?One thing that is truly helpful to me is connecting with my Ignatian Volunteer Corps team virtually each morning at 10:20 am. We read “Give us this day” and then share. ?It’s a wonderful experience and sets the tone for my work which is busy, busy, busy as you can imagine.At this hour and in this place of ‘social distancing’ …“You do not need to know precisely what is happening,or exactly where it is all going. What you need is torecognize the possibilities and challenges offeredby the present moment, and to embrace them withcourage, faith and hope.” ~Thomas Merton“And the deepest level of communication is not communication, but communion. It is wordless. It is beyond words, and it is beyond speech, and it is beyond concept. Not that we discover a new unity. We discover an older unity. My dear brothers and sisters, we are already one! But we imagine that we are not. So what we have to recover is our original unity. What we have to be is what we are.”~The Asian Journal of Thomas Merton‘In the tender compassion of our God the dawn from on high shall break upon us,ta shine on those who dwell in darkness and the shadow of death,and to guide our feet into the way of peace. ~Canticle of Zechariah (Benedictus) Lk. 1:68-79‘You must give birth to your images,They are the future waiting to be born.Fear not the strangeness you feel,The future must enter you long before it happens.Just wait for the birth, for the hour of new clarity.’ - Rainer Maria RilkeHere is a partial list of resources I'm using during this enforced isolation. ? Every day, more and more appear in my inbox, most, if not all, interesting and worthwhile.? All of these can just be "googled" and up they come.? Subscribe or not, your choice.For now:Art and TheologyBrain Pickings by Maria Popova (the woman is a genius)The Rubin Museum?Sounds True with Tami SimonOn Being with Krista TippetThe Awake Network with tons of free material on Resilience?Cafe Lena "Stay at Home Sessions"NPR has a whole list of virtual concertsOxford University ......Curious Mind.? Wonderful material and free tutorialsJames Finley podcast on the Mystics from Center of Action and ContemplationAnd , of course, Richard Rohr also at CAC..? Particularly these next two weeks on the spirituality of descent.Father Scott Vandeveer has been uploading short videos regularly to keep people inspired. Maxwell has been singing worship songs with people in live events. On Sundays, it has been at 2PM during the last few weeks. you are interested in prayerful resources related to Ignatian Spirituality ….?Here is an?Examen?that was created in response to COVID-19.In addition to the Examen, the Ignatian Solidarity Network has created these?Prayers and Resources?in response to COVID-19.Here is a?Meditation for the Anxious.Ignatian Spiritualty?contains many prayerful resources, including?Ignatian Wisdom for Troubled Times?and, in addition to the Examen noted above, a?Coronavirus response lesson?for children in parishes and schoolsPray As You Go?has daily prayers by the Jesuits of Britain.? Also now is?Pray As You Stay, a weekly online retreat in response to COVID-19.? There is also a library of?Prayer Tools: the tool highlighted for this week is loneliness.Sacred Space?is the prayer website for the Irish Jesuits, with a?Reflection?on the coronavirus.The?Jesuit Prayer Team?provides reflections on Scripture as well as short biographies on the “Blessed Among Us,” the ordinary people who led extraordinary lives who have gone before usGod In All Things??contains many prayerful resources, including an?Audio Meditation?on “Beloved.”Heart to Heart?also contains a series of prayerful resources, including?Practices for the Pandemic - The Sign of the Cross Mediation?and?Seeds of Hope Lenten Series.There is a?Three Minute Retreat?from Loyola Press.Do you like podcasts? Jesuit podcasts can be found at?AMDG: A Jesuit Podcast?and?Jesuitical.Would you like to connect body and mind and prayer???Ignatian Yoga?may be something for you.?Other prayerful resources ….Give Us This Day, a monthly publication of Scripture and reflections, is offering its digital version without charge.The?Hallow app?is a Catholic mediation app.Another podcast?? Here is one from?Inside the Vatican.Would you like to participating in liturgy electronically???Pope Francis's Daily Mass from Casa Santa Marta?and?Bishop Barron's Daily Mass?are available, as well as Sunday Mass that are archived and livestreamed on Sunday in the?Albany Diocese.Holy Week at Home?prepared by Liturgical Press.?Would you prefer a prayer?? Here are some …Prayer for Healing??Prayer for Peace and Solidarity in a Time of the Pandemic.Pope's Prayer to MaryPrayer for Conscience and Courage During Times of Public Struggle?Reflections about living during this time …From Jim Martin, SJ,??Faith in the Time of the Coronavirus??From Simcha Fischer,?Good and Beautiful Things I've Seen Amid the Coronavirus PandemicFrom Richard Rohr, OFM,?Love Alone Overcomes FearFrom Thomas Reese,?Spirituality in a Time of QuarantineFrom Arturo Sosa, SJ, Superior General of the Jesuits,?What Part of the Path to God does COVID-19 show us??Have given serious thought to your invitation to share ways we nurturing our faith at this time of separation. I find the Youtube Mass now available on St. V's website to be very helpful. Also Rebecca from our choir has been providing a Sunday 2:00 PM sing-along. These two sources put us in touch with familiar faces. Also, every 3 days I go to Blessed Sacrament Church on Central Ave. for 45 minutes of quiet prayer and reflection. Church is open from 7 AM - 2 PM daily. It is a very large space with no chance of of contact with a human virus carrier. St. V's chapel is open and lovely, but small.The best resource in my experience is to search honestly and deeply within. Much truth is revealed and can be addressed more fully. The proverbial battle between good and evil, or generosity and self-protection is alive and well. Getting in intimate touch with that makes it easier to manage the inner tug of war and come to a median place or a place of balance.As a community, what virtual connections might we consider now and moving forward to nourish our Faith? What programs, topics and books might be useful subjects to that end?I now belong to the Upper Room in Albany.? It's an all inclusive community of Catholics. We meet each Sunday via Zoom and have Liturgy in our homes. We are able to share after the homily; so we are able to stay connected.? I have been reading Richard Rohr's Wondrous Encounters, Scripture for Lent. Also a 2020 Lent Devotional Wilderness, art,,poetry, and prompts for the Wilderness of Lent. Very appropriate for this time in our lives.Published by A Sanctified Art LLC.BooksWe Are Already One: Thomas Merton’s Message of Hope – International contributors celebrate Thomas Merton’s 100th birthday and honor his legacy of hope that we can recognize and act upon our essential kinship with one another. These reflections illumine how Merton inspired readers of his era and why he will mentor succeeding generations in co-creating a more peaceful and compassionate world.A Journey with Jonah: The Spirituality of Bewilderment – by Paul Murray, OP - The Book of Jonah emerges as perhaps the most profoundly Christian of all the books in the Hebrew Bible, and the book that speaks with the most telling resonance for our own age. The message of the Book of Jonah is a serious and compelling one. But what surprises us again and again, is its humor, a humor which forms part of the book’s core revelation. Jonah’s author makes it possible for us ‘to perceive God’s loving laughter over narrow-minded piety’.The Other Side of Chaos: Breaking Through When Life is Breaking Down – by Margaret Silf - Best-selling author Margaret Silf, looks closely at the subject of chaos – and the intrinsic transition it brings – through the lens of Christian spirituality. Through Scripture stories and verses, personal accounts, and other anecdotes, Silf helps us develop an authentic ‘spirituality of transition’ that leads us to live our life’s inevitable changes constructively, creatively and confidently. Ultimately this book gives us the courage to trust God when life is breaking down and to see our messes not as something from which to be rescued but as something that will help us break through to a place where God makes all things new.Turning to One Another: Simple Conversations to Restore Hope to the Future – by Margaret Wheatley – Would you like to talk about any of these questions? What is my faith in the future? What do I believe about others? Am I willing to reclaim time to think? What is our role in creating change? Can I be fearless? Our 21st century world is descending into aggression, fear, separation, war, genocide, violence, slavery, pandemics, poverty, natural disasters –all these are commonplace in this new century, despite most people’s deep longing to live together in peace. To support you who aspire to restore hope to the future, this book includes two new conversations: What is my role in creating change? And Can I be fearless? (National Catholic Reporter) many authors and columns of (Richard Rohr’s site, Center for Action and Contemplation)Sunflower Seeds Sr. Melanie Svoboda’s site on Mondays only; reflections that usually include a selected song to go with her theme and sometimes a video. David Stendal-Rast’s site of word for the day, reflections and newsletter of spiritual reflections, some podcasts, and more ................
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