 By Bro. Raymond Penyfort
Recently, the first Latino to hold the position was elected President of the Conference of Catholic Bishops of the United States, Archbishop Jose Gomez of Los Angeles. He had served as the Vice President of the organization since 2016. Los Angeles is home to the largest number of Catholics in the United States in one city. An immigrant from Mexico who is now a US citizen, he is an outspoken advocate for migrant rights. “I am humbled by your support,” the Archbishop said to the bishops who had gathered in Baltimore for their annual meeting after his election. “I think it is a special blessing for the Latino community.” (Wall Street Journal: Section US Watch, “LA. Archbishop to Lead U.S. Group” November 13, 2019, p. A2) It is interesting that this discussion should take place in Baltimore, a city which has a history as an entrance way for thousands of immigrants, many of whom dealt with some of the same struggles and difficulties as have recent arrivals. For many years, newcomers faced not only a sense of disdain based on class and economic distinction, but out-and-out hostility regarding racial, ethnic and religious affiliations. Some of these problems still linger on, but there are bright spots. One I happened to witness more recently occurred in East Baltimore, in the neighborhood of Highlandtown. I often return to this neighborhood where my family has roots, not only to see the progress that has been occurring but to enjoy patronizing some of the bakeries and stores in the area. I also have been very impressed to see the recent contributions of Latinos in a number of aspects: new stores, restaurants and markets. One of the examples of Latino progress has been regarding something near and dear to me and my family: our old parish Church of the Sacred Heart and its elementary school. Founded and begun by German priests and immigrants, it was always a shining symbol of hard work, sacrifice and pride. The huge complex and church with its two bell towers with beautiful chimes were symbols of the entire community. I recall that as older generations died or moved away, there was much concern for Sacred Heart’s Parish. On one of my recent visits, however, I realized there was no need to worry. It was the Tuesday of Holy Week and I noted the open doors and activity going on around the church. I wondered and hoped that there wasn’t a problem such as vandalism, whatever. I walked up the long steps and was shocked, surprised and impressed all at the same time. There must have been about fifty or sixty people, all Latinos, men and women, parishioners in work clothes, cleaning, painting and redoing the beautiful floors and statues. All of the workers, it turned out, were volunteers who came to prepare for the Triduum. They were busy with their work, but some turned and greeted me, then continued working. With the progress that had been made, I could see that Sacred Heart, that magnificent church, had never looked better. I also learned that not only had a number of the religious observances remained, but that in addition, there were new observances and festivals such as Our Lady of Guadalupe and Cinco de Mayo. Yes, there are still misunderstandings and criticisms and questions from some in the larger community, “Where did they all come from? Why can’t it remain the same? Can’t they learn English more quickly?” But these reactions are fewer and fewer. As the newcomers have demonstrated their abilities and strengths and have shown that they maintain these same values of family, religion and hard work, more acceptance is occurring. We are not talking only of the beauty of diversity, but the concepts of the Universal Church. Most of that community are going to the same church for the same Eucharist and our same Lord is looking down. Our Lord must be smiling—on the old original community and on the new energetic arrivals as well. I hope Archbishop Gomez will return to Baltimore and visit Sacred Heart Church. I’m sure he would be pleased.
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 by Sr. Mary Magdalene The Rosary is a beautiful prayer which is held in high esteem by many Catholics and perhaps, in a particular way, by those in the Dominican Order. Tradition has it that the inspiration for this prayer in its modern form may have come through a visitation of the Blessed Mother to the Order’s founder, Holy Father Dominic. Over the centuries, this prayer has been held up as a mainstay for Catholic prayer by Popes, religious and laity alike. In the 16th Century, Pope Pius V, himself formed in the Dominican Order, instituted the Rosary and outlined its original mysteries. Later, Pope Leo XIII, nick named “The Rosary Pope”, wrote several encyclicals expounding on the prayer and its efficacy for the people of God. Most recently, Pope John Paul II added the Luminous Mysteries and gave us more on the life of Jesus on which to ponder in its prayer. While we won’t go through the method for praying the Rosary in this blog post, you can find the basic instructions here. For those familiar with praying The Holy Rosary, you are likely aware of the various mysteries/Gospel moments in the life of Christ and His Blessed Mother and the prayer of contemplation that they are meant to invoke. They include: The Joyful Mysteries, The Glorious Mysteries, The Sorrowful Mysteries and the Luminous Mysteries. Each set is broken down into 5 separate moments in Scripture or Tradition into which we may enter in prayer and contemplation. In this blog post, I would like to share some thoughts on The Joyful Mysteries, in particular. The Joyful Mysteries include a decade of pondering on each of the following moments in time: The Annunciation, The Visitation, The Nativity, The Presentation of Jesus at the Temple, and The Finding of Jesus in the Temple. Recently, while I was praying these mysteries, it struck me that each of these moments of contemplation revealed a kind of “recognizing God” in the encounter. It is this that I would like to focus on. I encourage you to read the related scripture references in the citations and ponder them for yourselves! Let’s start at the beginning with The Annunciation (Lk 1:26-38). In her humility, the Virgin Mary both recognizes and welcomes God’s call through the Angel Gabriel. Her soul was holy and sensitive enough to know and heed the voice of God. Mary responds wholly and without reservation, “be it done unto me according to your will.” (Lk 1:38) How do we “hear”, or recognize God in our own lives? We are assured in both this passage from Luke as well as in another in John, when Jesus says “my sheep know my voice” (Jn 10:27) that it is possible! How does anyone recognize the voice of another? Perhaps the answer lies most readily in time spent with another…..listening…..and internalizing their words, their voice, their love and care for us. Mary recognized God, and so can we. The second Joyful Mystery is The Visitation (Lk 1:39-56). In this encounter we are told of Mary’s reaching out to her kinswoman, Elizabeth. Again we are met with a couple of moments of recognition. In Lk 1:41-42 we hear that upon Mary’s greeting, the child Elizabeth was carrying “leaped in her womb”. The unborn child, later known to us as John the Baptist, recognized the presence of his Lord Jesus and ‘leaped’. In response, Elizabeth “filled with the Holy Spirit, cried out in a loud voice and said, ‘Most blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb.’” Elizabeth and her unborn child, John, recognized and responded to the presence of God among them and Mary responds with her Magnificat, always pointing us back to God. The third Joyful Mystery is The Nativity (Lk 2:1-20). Of course we see and hear so much of this familiar event all around us in Scripture, Carols and Tradition. The Angel and the Heavenly Host proclaim to the shepherds the birth of the Savior child. They hear, they recognize the voice of God through the angels and they are drawn to find and adore the infant, Jesus. In Mt 2:9-11 we hear about the Magi and how they saw and recognized the star, following it to Bethlehem in order that they might bring gifts and worship the newborn king. We are told that when they saw the infant Jesus with his mother, Mary, they “prostrated themselves and did him homage”, recognizing Jesus as God among them. The fourth is The Presentation of Jesus at the Temple (Lk 2:22-38). In this account we encounter a wonderful moment of recognition in which Simeon, a “righteous and devout man” takes the infant Jesus into his arms and proclaims “Now, Master, you may let your servant go in peace, according to your word, for my eyes have seen your salvation which you prepared in the sight of all the peoples, a light for revelation to the Gentiles, and glory for your people Israel.” Simeon has seen God and is now prepared to die with a happy heart. The prophetess, Anna, likewise recognizes and proclaims Jesus as Lord, speaking “to all who were awaiting the redemption of Jerusalem.” The fifth and final of the Joyful Mysteries is The Finding of Jesus in the Temple (Lk 2:41-52). Here we hear the familiar story of the time that Mary and Joseph lost track of the 12 year old boy Jesus! They had gone to Jerusalem for the celebration of Passover and as they headed back home with the crowds, they hadn’t realized that Jesus had remained behind. They eventually found him in the temple speaking and asking questions of the teachers, and “all who heard him were astounded at his understanding and his answers.” They recognized the wisdom of God in the words of this boy. Later in the encounter, we hear Jesus himself with a moment of recognition, “Why were you looking for me? Did you not know that I must be in my father’s house?” Throughout The Joyful Mysteries we walk through a great depth of scripture with the power, by Grace, to bring us to greater understanding, encounter and love. In one of those moments, I encountered the ribbon of recognition of and hopefully response to the voice, the word, of God. May we all strive to spend time with the Lord, learning to hear His voice, recognizing Him in people and places and moments of prayer and sharing the fruits of that encounter. By Sr. Caterina de Siena A favorite Advent hymn of mine is “Waiting in Silence” by Carey Landry. Listen to it on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZpEj6pIwa6E The hymn begins with the lyrics: Waiting in silence, waiting in hope, we are your people, we long for you, Lord. Lord God, ever with us, Emmanuel. Come Lord Jesus. Maranatha! Amidst the hustle and bustle of pre-Christmas activities such as purchasing gifts, planning family gatherings, work parties and card writing, there stands the quiet and gentle call of the Advent season. Advent is the season where we slow down and take time to reflect and ponder the wonder of the Incarnation of Jesus who became one of us in order to redeem humanity. We are also Advent people who patiently and quietly await the second coming of Jesus when he will draw all things to himself. Advent is not the season to ramp up activities. Look at what nature does at this time of year. Trees lose their leaves; growth slows down and becomes internal – saving energy for the long, cold winter. Like nature, we benefit from this season of waiting in silence and hope – to experience the presence of Christ who is the light for the dark nights ahead. Will you be consumed by the attainment of presents and “things” which are a part of the material world that is passing? OR will you reflect upon the presence of Christ who eagerly waits to spend this time with you? The Eternal One wants to quiet your mind and heart in order to grow roots that are deep and rich in His love and mercy. As we bask in the presence of Christ, we are then called to go out and be Christ for others. Here are a few ways that you can be “the presence of Christ” in a world which desperately needs to experience the love of Our Lord:
 Are We There Yet? by Sr. Mary Magdalene
I suspect that most of us can recall riding in the back seat of the family car and asking our parents that eternal question, “Are we there yet?” It’s a natural curiosity, however annoying it may have been in its repetition, to want to know a bit more about the length and breadth of the journey at hand. It’s also a lesson in patient and watchful waiting. When my brother, sister and I were getting restless on the journey, our parents would re-direct our attention in such a way as to cause us to utilize the time in a more meaningful way. This, of course, also deflected them from further buffeting by the “eternal question.” One of the techniques included looking at license plates of other vehicles and imagining where their occupants were travelling from and how far from home they might be. We might also think about our destination and imagine what we might do when we got there. Along the way we might play the I spy game. I spy with my little eye, something purple! Maybe we would check out the highway signs and try to figure out what state we were in or how long it would take to get to the next place along the way. The Church, in Her Wisdom, gives us a journey, as well. In these last weeks of the liturgical year, the readings at the Mass have focused on the end times. In some ways, they may seem to pose more questions than they answer. Throughout the Gospel narratives, we are steeped in the words of Jesus on Mercy, Service and Love, but here in these last few weeks of the liturgical year we hear much about the real life questions of where are we going, what will it look like and what will be asked of me. Let’s walk through some of the Gospel readings for the end of the liturgical year and the beginning of Advent. In early November, we heard of Jesus’ journey to Jericho. The Gospel of Luke tells us that he intended to pass through the town but instead spied a man named Zacchaeus high up in a sycamore tree. Zacchaeus was a chief tax collector and not considered a friend of the people. And yet, Jesus called out to him “Zacchaeus, come down quickly, for today I must stay at your house” (Lk 19: 1-10). Luke goes on to tell us that this encounter with the Lord changes Zacchaeus. Jesus was on a journey, but he was aware of those whom he caught sight of along His way and thought them important enough to alter his temporal journey in order to allow for that encounter. Jesus noticed his fellow travellers. The very next week (in Cycle C of the Mass readings) we hear about the Sadducees posing a question about the nature of Heaven. What will it be like in heaven? The question wasn’t one of childlike curiosity in that the Sadducees did not believe that there is a resurrection. They question Jesus, saying “Teacher, Moses wrote for us If someone’s brother dies leaving a wife but no child, his brother must take the wife and raise up descendants for his brother. Now there were seven brothers…. Now at the resurrection, whose wife will that woman be? For all seven had been married to her.” The question reveals a general lack of understanding of the nature of heaven, and Jesus responds, “The children of this age marry and remarry; but those who are deemed worthy to attain the coming age and to the resurrection of the dead neither marry nor are given in marriage. They can no longer die, for they are like angels; and they are the children of God because they are the ones who will rise” (Lk 20: 27-38). The encounter reminds me that although I may try to imagine what heaven, the Beatific Vision and being in the eternal presence of God might be like, my expectation will necessarily fall short. My vision is limited by my temporal experience. The Lord is asking us to be open to something much, much more than we can imagine. As we travel through mid-November in this Cycle of readings, we hear Jesus address the question of when the end will come. “Teacher, when will this happen? And what sign will there be when all these things are about to happen?” Jesus answered, “See that you not be deceived, for many will come in my name, saying ‘I am he,’ and ‘The time has come.’ Do not follow them! When you hear of wars and insurrections do not be terrified; for such things must happen first, but it will not immediately be the end.” Jesus goes on to say, “Before all this happens, however, they will seize and persecute you, they will hand you over to the synagogues and to prisons, and they will have you led before kings and governors because of my name. It will lead to your giving testimony. Remember, you are not to prepare your defense beforehand, for I myself shall give you a wisdom in speaking that all your adversaries will be powerless to resist or refute” (Lk 21:5-19). I harken back to our family car trips. While my parents encouraged us to think of our destination with a sort of joyful anticipation and expectation, they also broke the chains of travel fatigue by helping us to take note of the people, places and things along the way. Jesus gives us some of the same lessons. See the people that He places before you. They may not be high up in a sycamore tree, but they will be found along the route of your particular journey. Take note of the sign posts of people and places along the way. Stay in the moment and allow the Lord, in prayer, study, and community, to give you what you need to respond. Trust that today’s moments are a crucial part of the journey. The liturgical year ends on the Solemnity of Our Lord Jesus Christ, King of the Universe. Of the many Gospel stories that might be good choices in depicting the Lord as “king,” the Church places Lk 23: 35-43, Jesus’ crucifixion and the words, “Above him there was an inscription that read, ‘This is the King of the Jews.’” This, the image of a God-King who died and was raised as He lived--with arms open wide in power, in prayer, in invitation and embrace. He calls us to live in loving obedience and under His kingship, in imitation of Him. Advent is an invitation to continue the journey. As we step into the Gospel of Matthew, we hear Jesus beckon to us to “Stay awake! For you do not know on which day your Lord will come.” And in the Third week of Advent we will hear the imprisoned John the Baptist ask the question, “Are you the one who is to come or should we look for another?” Jesus said to (them) in reply, ‘Go and tell John what you hear and see: the blind regain their sight, the lame walk, lepers are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, and the poor have the good news proclaimed to them. And blessed is the one who takes no offense at me’” (Mt 11: 2-11). John could take solace in the works of Love that accompanied the Savior, Jesus. Can we be known as the Lord’s followers, His people, by the words, deeds and actions of love that accompany our lives? This, is perhaps the truest component of an authentic Christian journey. The Scriptures, the lives of the Saints, and the exemplary example of Our Lord all point us toward the signposts of presence, awareness, trust in prayer and genuine encounter with our fellow sojourners as important aspects of this most excellent of journeys. by Br. Pio Benedict  This fragment of faith is in reference to the most famous story ever written by author Bram Stoker, Dracula. At this time of year, what could be more fitting? Stoker was a Protestant who was raised in the predominantly Catholic Ireland. His most famous story of all contains many truly Catholic symbols such as the Eucharist being used to ward of pure evil, the use of holy water, the symbol of the cross and even the persona of Dracula himself, a portrait of the antichrist. Religion is an important part of this book. During this season try it out if you’ve never read it. It might have an influence on you like it did for me.
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