st. anthony messenger october 2013

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ST.ANTHONYMessengerOCTOBER 2013 • $3.95 • FRANCISCANMEDIA.ORG

7 Key Moments in the Life of St. Francis

St. Francis and Jesus

Pope Francis: Why the Name Fits

A L S O I N T H I S I S S U E :St. Thérèse, My SpiritualCompanion

The Spirit ofSt. Francis

A PORTRAIT OF SISTER WENDY BECKETT

Reported by J. Page

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FEATURES

16 St. Thérèse: My Spiritual CompanionWhat I thought was a brief walk with thisbeloved saint turned into a lifelong journey oflove and admiration.By Heather King

22 A Portrait of Sister Wendy BeckettThis hermit has charmed TV audiences world-wide with her art commentary. Now, she sharesher own story.By Alicia von Stamwitz

50 Fiction: Rescue WorkFamily can heal a broken heart.By Kathleen O’Connor

SPECIAL SECTION29 THE SPIRIT OF ST. FRANCIS

30 7 Key Moments in the Life of St. FrancisThese events in Francis’ life brought him closerto Christ.By Jack Wintz, OFM

36 The Ultimate DiscipleIn poverty, he found the greatest of riches.By Murray Bodo, OFM

40 Pope Francis: Why the Name FitsThis first Jesuit pope chose the name Francis.His actions are telling us why.By Pat McCloskey, OFM

C O N T E N T S ❘ OCTOBER 2013 ❘ VOLUME 121/NUMBER 5

DEPARTMENTS

2 Dear Reader

3 From Our Readers

6 Followers of St. FrancisFather Jerry Bleem, OFM

8 Reel TimeGrace Unplugged

10 Channel SurfingExtra Virgin

12 Church in the News

20 EditorialWomen Leaders in the Church

44 Year of FaithOur Gaze Fixed on Jesus

46 Living Simply

54 Ask a FranciscanMonks, Friars, Brothers

56 Book CornerDiscernment

58 A Catholic Mom SpeaksHow I Pray

60 Backstory

ST.ANTHONYMessengerON THE COVERHe was a nature lover, a peo-ple lover, a God lover whosaw in all things the image ofour Creator. St. Francis ofAssisi, to this day, is the mostpopular of saints.

Illustration by Chris Koehler

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Saints—the formally recognized ones and the many oth-ers whom we have known personally—always point usto God. At the same time, they automatically help us torecognize all women, men, and children as people madein God’s image and likeness. Saints may not be famous,

but they are certainly real. St. Francis of Assisi (1182–1226) clearly impressed his contemporaries

that way. Living a Gospel-based, generous life was for here and now,not simply for distant times and faraway lands.

People saw themselves differently because of what Francis said, but,more importantly, because of his actions. Francis once warned his friarsnot to think that praising the holy lives of other people could excusethem from constantly giving good example to their contemporaries(Admonition VI).

Although Francis received on his hands, feet, and side the marks ofChrist’s passion, he knew that this was an unusual gift from God andnever a reason to boast. Francis frequently urged his followers to preachby their good example.

He was canonized two years after his death in 1226. The Churchworldwide honors him on October 4.

May we be living examples of God’s mercy and compassion!

ST.ANTHONYPublisher/CEO

Daniel Kroger, OFM

Chief Operating OfficerThomas A. Shumate, CPA

Director of Content Creation and ServicesJennifer Scroggins

Editor in ChiefJohn Feister

Art DirectorJeanne Kortekamp

Franciscan EditorPat McCloskey, OFM

Editor EmeritusJack Wintz, OFM

Managing EditorSusan Hines-Brigger

Associate EditorChristopher Heffron

Editorial AssistantSharon Lape

Director of Marketing, Sales, and InternetBarbara K. Baker

AdvertisingFred Limke

PrintingKingery Printing Co. - Effingham, IL

ST. ANTHONY MESSENGER (ISSN #0036276X)(U.S.P.S. PUBLICATION #007956 CANADA PUBLI-CATION #PM40036350) Volume 121, Number 5, is published monthly for $39.00 a year by theFranciscan Friars of St. John the Baptist Province,28 W. Liberty Street, Cincinnati, Ohio 45202-6498.Phone (513) 241-5615. Periodicals postage paid atCincinnati, Ohio, and additional entry offices. U.S.POSTMASTER: Send address changes to: St. AnthonyMessenger, P.O. Box 189, Congers, NY 10920-0189.CANADA RETURN ADDRESS: c/o AIM, 7289Torbram Rd., Mississauga, ON, Canada L4T 1G8.

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October 2013 ❘ 3Fr anciscanMedia.org

You’re Welcome!I wanted to send a note to let youknow how much we enjoy our St.Anthony Messenger. The articles aretimely, balanced, and informational.We especially enjoy Sister RosePacatte, FSP’s “Reel Time” column.

Father Bryan N. Massingale’sAugust cover story, “‘I Have aDream’: 50 Years Later,” was excel-lent—a reminder of the long historyof the civil-rights movement, howfar we’ve come, and how far we haveto go.

Thank you from two longtimesubscribers. Keep up the good work!

Carol and Henry SchuberthChicago, Illinois

Calm and ChaosI really enjoyed reading KristinaSantos’ August article, “Stopping byChurch on a Summer Afternoon.” I

felt as though, in almost every line,she was describing the many quietmoments I have spent in our emptychurch in the middle of my other-wise hectic day. How lucky we are asCatholics to be able to be physicallypresent with Jesus.

When I sit down in the pew andfeel his presence, I am instantly andpowerfully reminded that, despitemy hectic life as a mother and wife,Jesus is always present, always avail-able, always waiting for me to cometo him and lay my troubles at hisfeet. I, too, hear in the silence theechoes of the many Masses, wed-dings, funerals, and Baptisms thathave already taken place there, eventhough our beautiful church is justover one year old.

Thank you for such an enjoyablearticle!

Christina LeathaWoodinville, Washington

Religious Life DefinedThe item in the August issue’s“Church in the News” about themeeting of Pope Francis with leadersof the Latin American and CaribbeanConfederation of Men and WomenReligious may have given an incor-rect impression by describing thegroup of priests and nuns.

Male religious communitiesinclude both priests and brothers.Some male religious communities areentirely brothers, while others, suchas the Franciscans, include bothpriests and brothers. The brothers,unfortunately, are often ignored asthe priests’ ministries tend to bemore visible. St. Francis of Assisi wasa brother, not a priest.

Pat Sullivan, OFM CapOkinawa, Japan

The Big PictureI agree with Diana Meyer, who wrotethe letter “Life Must Be HonoredFirst” in the August issue’s “From

Our Readers.” I venture to guess thata large percentage of abortions takeplace because of the prevalence ofpoverty and hunger in the world. Inour time, a lot is being said—andrightly so—about abortion. At thesame time, not enough is being saidor done about the poverty that oftenleads to abortion.

It might help Ms. Meyer to readwhat the US bishops have said in thepast, prior to presidential electionsabout how to choose a candidate.The point of their remarks was thatwe must weigh our choices based onthe overall qualities and positions ofeach candidate and not vote basedon only one issue.

Peggy DohertyVallejo, California

Not All Catholics against Prop 8First, I was happy to see that letterswere printed in the August “FromOur Readers” that supported pro-lifeissues and did not support SisterSimone Campbell.

But in August’s “Church in theNews,” there was a news item aboutsame-sex marriage. The picture usedin the news item gave attention totwo young men who were obviouslyhappy with the Supreme Court deci-sion that ruled against Proposition 8.Why would they be given attentionin this shameful decision, especiallysince the citizens of California hadvoted twice to pass Proposition 8?

What group is the Public ReligionResearch Institute? Why is this groupgiven press for their information that62 percent of Catholics in this coun-try support same-sex marriage? Howdid they arrive at this number? Thisgroup didn’t ask our opinion.

We need to have our Catholicmagazine be Catholic in their factsand in their news items.

Al and Jane KleinPalatine, Illinois

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What’s on Your Mind? Letters that are published do not necessar-ily represent the views of the Franciscanfriars or the editors. We do not publishslander or libel. Please include your nameand postal address. Letters may be editedfor clarity and space.

MailLetters, St. Anthony Messenger28 W. Liberty St.Cincinnati, OH 45202-6498

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Sister Simone Unfairly JudgedI was very disappointed in the letterscondemning the article about SisterSimone Campbell in the August“From Our Readers.” I think thatsome people missed the point. I donot see that her address to theDemocratic National Conventionwas an endorsement of the presiden-tial candidate. She was addressingthe party that works more purpose-fully for the poor and sick—as Christcommanded us to do.

I am a Catholic Democrat and amember of Feminists for Life andDemocrats for Life, so I, like manyCatholics, am in the party because itdoes the most for social concerns.Sister Simone was at the conventionnot to endorse abortion rights, but toendorse what all political partiesshould do for us.

I admire Sister Simone for whatshe did: she reminded America thatJesus wants us to care for each other,especially those in most need. I haveread far too many articles and lettersthat would lead readers to think thatthe Church only cares about contra-ception and same-sex marriage.Whatever one’s views on those top-ics, they are not the essential mes-sage of Christ. I believe that toomany Catholics think that they are.

Get out the New Testament andremind yourself of what he empha-sized.

Dorothy CarterLexington, Kentucky

Good HabitsAs a member of the Sisters of theCongregation of the Holy Cross,Notre Dame, Indiana, I foundElizabeth Bookser Barkley’s July arti-cle “Nuns on the Battlefield,” veryinteresting. Many of the members ofmy congregation also served asnurses during the war as well.

The illustration that appears inBarkley’s article of a soldier beingcared for by a sister is captioned asfollows: “Sisters such as this Daugh-ter of Charity—one of 300—minis-tered to soldiers on both sides.” Thisillustration is mistakenly identified.The sister who appears is a member

of the Sisters of the Holy Cross fromSt. Mary’s, Notre Dame, Indiana.

In an excerpt from The JourneyContinues: A History of the Sisters ofthe Holy Cross, written by SisterCampion Kuhn, we read, “In Octo-ber 1861, six months after the out-break of the Civil War, GovernorOliver P. Morton asked Father Sorin(superior for the sisters) to send somesisters to care for the Indiana troopsthen serving in Kentucky. The morn-

ing after the request, six sisters underthe direction of Mother Angela Gille-spie left for Paducah. Before the warended, approximately 80 of the 160Sisters of the Holy Cross in theUnited States served in the westerntheater of the war and for one yearin a military hospital in Washington,D.C. Four of them served on the RedRover, the first Navy hospital ship.”

I appreciate the articles in St.Anthony Messenger and pray that thestaff will continue to do interestingarticles in the future.

Sister M. Genevra, CSCSalt Lake City, Utah

Correction: On page 25 in our Sep-tember issue, a proofreader’s errorresulted in an incorrect wording. Thesentence in “‘As God Is My Witness’”should read, “Mitchell also contrastsScarlett and her mother, Ellen, writ-ing that the former ‘was driven. . . .’”We said, “latter.”

StAnthonyMessenger.org4 ❘ October 2013

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rt has been a part of the life of theCatholic Church for centuries, reveal-ing God’s work through media such

as architecture, sculpture,and music. For Jerry Bleem,OFM, a priest and artistwho teaches at The Schoolof the Art Institute inChicago, religion and artgo hand in hand. “Religionand art are both symbolsystems,” he says. “Theyassemble a meaning struc-ture that points to some-thing larger than one’sself.”

Having earned a masterof fine arts from the Schoolof the Art Institute, FatherJerry, who was ordained in1982, believes the power ofart lies in its ability to com-municate in ways differentfrom the spoken or writtenword. “What has been forgotten is the placeof imagination and creativity in nurturingour lives of faith,” he says. “Perhaps one way

art functions in the life of the Church is toremind us that we don’t have God figuredout. We have to keep responding to God’s

grace, which is a slippery,confusing task, and yet wecan never tire of being alertto the surprising presenceof God in our lives. Inother words, art can helpus to discover awe, espe-cially in small, unspectacu-lar ways.”

Like St. Francis, “whowas amazingly gifted inrethinking, reseeing,reimagining the statusquo,” Father Jerry alsostrives to perceive what isactually in front of him,“rather than seeing tradi-tional interpretations”—anidea that forms the core ofhis art practice. “I try touse materials that are com-

mon, of little value, or discarded to raise theissue of valuation . . . and to re-present thatwhich is easy to overlook,” he says.

Father Jerry Bleem,OFM

Ministry of Art

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I was with my brother-in-law and my sisters in Ireland, and we went to a restaurant forlunch. Afterward, we drove to the sea to take a walk. When my brother-in-law got outof the car, he discovered his glasses were missing. We searched the car, he and my sisterwent back to the restaurant, but we could not find the glasses. Of course, I prayed to St.Anthony. The next day, as we were again riding along, something hit me on the headand fell on the floor in the car. Before I even looked, I knew it was the glasses. There wasno place they could have been caught—my brother-in-law was driving. We wereamazed. Someone commented that I was the one who prayed and they fell at my feet!

—Nuala Timoney, Pleasant Valley, New York

At Your ServiceLearn more about St. Anthony and shareyour story of how he helped you at AmericanCatholic.org/Features/Anthony.

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“Oil Flowers” made from plastic bags.

One of his current projects is an “OilProducts” series in which he uses post-consumer plastic bags to create pieces suchas “Oil Flowers,” floral forms crocheted from the plastic bags. “I’m hoping thatfocusing on this very specific material formy work invites viewers to become aware of their [needless] use of plastic bags,” he says.

Just as art plays an important role inChurch life, Father Jerry believes it can alsobe pivotal in an individual’s spiritual life.“Many have developed a kind of ‘magical’set of processes for their religious practice: Igo to Confession every week; I say therosary every day,” he says. “American spiri-tuality is too much about what we do as ifwe have to earn God’s love. Franciscan spiri-tuality reminds us that God loves us beforewe do anything. Art can help us broaden ourunderstanding of what it means to behuman in the face of the Almighty. It canshift the focus off the individual to beautyas an entrée to understanding the scale ofGod’s creation, our smallness, and theincomprehensibility of God.”

—Rachel Zawila


Recognizing ‘PerfectJoy’One day Francis told BrotherLeo that perfect joy wouldnot be the news that all thefriars had the gift of miracles,made many converts, or haddone similar things. Rather, itwould be enduring rejectionby the friar-porter at St.Mary of the Angels, theirheadquarters outside Assisi,and not responding angrily.

In Admonition XIX, Francis says, “What aperson is before God, that he is and no more.”We can rightly add, “And no less.” The moretruthfully we live, the more readily we will forgive others. –P.M.

To learn more about Franciscan saints, visit AmericanCatholic.org/Features/Saintofday.

St. Francis of AssisiST. FRANCIS

S T . A N T H O N Y B R E A DThe National Shrine of St. Anthony is located in Cincinnati, Ohio.Consecrated in 1889, it includes a first-class relic of St. Anthonyand serves as a center for daily prayer and contemplation.

The Franciscan friars minister from the shrine. To help them intheir work among the poor, you may send a monetary offeringcalled St. Anthony Bread. Make checks or money orders payableto “Franciscans” and mail to the address below.

Every Tuesday, a Mass is offered for benefactors and petitionersat the shrine. To seek St. Anthony’s intercession, mail your petition to the address below. Petitions are taken to the shrineeach week.

To post your petition online, please visit stanthony.org, whereyou can also request to have a candle lit or a Mass offered; oryou may make a donation to the Franciscans or sign up toreceive a novena booklet.

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Send all postal communication to: St. Anthony Bread1615 Vine St.Cincinnati, OH 45202-6498

StAnthonyMessenger .org8 ❘ October 2013

Eighteen-year-old Grace Trey (AJ Michalka)sings with her father, Johnny (James Den-ton), a full-time music pastor at theirchurch, but their relationship is suffering.Grace is talented and wants to express her-self like one of her pop idols. But Johnny,who once had a hit single appropriatelytitled “Misunderstood,” insists that she bepart of their worship group and not standout. Grace refuses to go to college, lies aboutwhere she is spending her time, and disap-points her music pupil.

Johnny’s old agent, Mossy (Kevin Pollak),offers Johnny a chance at an album. Herefuses, but, later, Grace contacts Mossy andruns away to Hollywood. She lands an apart-ment, a FIAT, and a large advance and fallsinto the temptations her dad warned herabout: superficiality, lying, and alcohol.

Grace meets Quentin (Michael Welch),who recalls seeing her and Johnny in con-cert at their church and tells her the busi-ness could use some light. But Grace hasstarted a long journey and has much tolearn about an industry focused on imageand one that has little mercy for someonewith a conscience and a love for Jesus.

Grace Unplugged is one of the best Christian-genre movies to appear in recent years. Themusic is very good, and the struggles of thefather-daughter relationship are real andmoving. The book that the movie promotes,Own It: Discover Your Faith in God by Michaeland Hayley DiMarco, almost over-reinforcesthe Protestant ethos in the film. Along withits obvious product placement, GraceUnplugged makes the same mistake mostChristian-genre movies do: they don’t trustthe audience to get it. It's all about Sundayschool rather than art. Still, I liked the storyand soundtrack.Not yet rated, PG ■ Mature themes, some lan-guage, sexuality.

12 Years a SlaveIn 1841, Solomon Northup (Chiwetel Ejio-for) was a free black man, a musician, and awell-established family man in upstate NewYork. One day when his wife and two chil-dren are away, he is invited by two menclaiming to be circus performers to go toWashington, DC, for two weeks to be part ofa well-paid act. Once there, Solomon is

Grace Unplugged

AJ Michalka playes an inxperienced musician who faces the trappings of stardom in Grace Unplugged.

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drugged and sold into slavery with otherswho have been kidnapped. He can tell noone he is educated because it will only leadto punishment.

Solomon ends up in Louisiana, and sub-mission to these “Christian” masters comeshard to him. One owner, William (BenedictCumberbatch), gives him a new violin, butlater passes him off to an even crueler plan-tation owner, Epps (Michael Fassbender),because a dismissed overseer, John (PaulDano), is determined to kill Solomon forhumiliating him. Solomon is brutallybeaten and is even forced to whip fellowslaves, which costs him terribly. Anencounter with Bass (Brad Pitt), a travelingbuilder with abolitionist leanings, offersSolomon the chance he needs.

12 Years a Slave is based on the book bySolomon Northup, whose story was laterresearched and confirmed by historians. It isan intense movie because of the reenactmentof the kidnappings, the inhuman realism ofthe beatings, and the practice of slaveryitself. In the 100th year since the Emancipa-tion Proclamation, the film is a fittingmemorial to the horrors of slavery. But, cin-ematically, I found it too much to take in.

The film belongs to Chiwetel Ejiofor. Hisportrayal of Solomon is as heartbreaking asit is a triumph of the human spirit.Not yet rated, R ■ Torture, intense violence andcruelty.

Blue JasmineJasmine (Cate Blanchett) is a superficial 40-something New York socialite who moves inwith her divorced sister, Ginger (SallyHawkins), and her two kids in urban LosAngeles. Jasmine is broke since her husband,

Hal (Alec Baldwin), was convicted of finan-cial fraud and they lost everything.

Jasmine is unfocused, unskilled, and drinkstoo much. She gets a job, loses it, and tries tolearn computers so she can get a fast onlinedegree. She’s also presented as a narcissist—ina role director Woody Allen usually reservesfor himself—whose incessant talking anddrinking belie a secret that plagues her con-science. But she tells no one until someoneforces the revelation from her control.

Allen’s latest offering seems to be anupdated version of what I think remains hisgreatest film, Crimes and Misdemeanors. Onlythis time the film has a female protagonistand other significant women characters.Whereas Crimes and Misdemeanors providedfamily background to explain a conflictedconscience, in Blue Jasmine the sisters wereadopted and there is no significant family oforigin to explain the values in contention.

This is a film about regret and conscience.Blanchett is brilliant; her performance isOscar worthy.L, PG-13 ■ Mature themes, some language, sexuality.

October 2013 ❘ 9Fr anciscanMedia .org

Michael Fassbender (left) is a cruel slave owner to Chiwetel Ejiofor(right) in director Steve McQueen’s 12 Years a Slave.

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Cate Blanchett is on the short list of Oscar contenders for heracclaimed work in Woody Allen’s Blue Jasmine.

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Catholic ClassificationsA-1 General patronageA-2 Adults and adolescentsA-3 AdultsL Limited adult audienceO Morally offensive

■ The Catholic News Service Media Review Officegives these ratings. See usccb.org/movies.

■ Find reviews by Sister Rose and others atCatholicMovieReviews.org.


The TalkWeekdays, 2 p.m., CBSWith its revolving door of hosts—and its penchantfor being too political—I can’t fault anybody who’stired of ABC’s The View. If you’re looking for some-thing more fun, look no further. Created by SaraGilbert, best known for her Emmy-nominated roleon Roseanne, The Talk follows a similar formula asits predecessor, but with a lighter touch.

Hosted by Gilbert, Julie Chen, SherylUnderwood, Aisha Tyler, and Sharon Osbourne,this daytime program tackles news headlines andcelebrity interviews, but its focus skews moretoward enriching the lives of moms and dads.Lively without being overwhelming, The Talk is justgood conversation.

Drugs, Inc.Sundays, 9 p.m., National Geographic ChannelAccording to the United States Government’sOffice of National Drug Control Policy, the estimated cost of drug use to our society is $6,120per second. Drugs, Inc., National GeographicChannel’s fascinating documentary series, seeks tofind out why.

What sets this series apart is its multifacetedapproach to the drug epidemic. It doesn’t focussolely on sellers or buyers, but also on harvesters,mules, and countless other lowlife players in an evilgame. Each episode reinforces what we’ve longknown to be true: drugs devastate societies. Andfor those who combat addiction, life isn’t just astruggle with a disease, but a war waged daily overthe dominion of their very souls.

UP CLOSE

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P. JAFFE/© 2013 CBS

Gabriele Corcos and Debi Mazar are a married couplewho host Cooking Channel’s Extra Virgin.

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C H A N N E L S U R F I N G W I T H C H R I S T O P H E R H E F F R O N

Extra VirginCooking Channel, check local listings

I had the greatest meal of my life in Tuscanya few years ago: a lemon and garlic roastedchicken with grilled asparagus. Wine wasflowing among friends, and a steady breezefrom the valley filled the room. Lookingback, it was the collective experience thatmade the meal, not just the bird. Food,friends, and a bottle of Tuscan Pinot: lifedoesn’t get sweeter.

I think about that meal every time I watchCooking Channel’s Extra Virgin. Tuscan-bornchef Gabriele Corcos and his wife, actorDebi Mazar, bring the cameras into theirkitchen as they work together to prepare ameal for a special event.

What I like best about Extra Virgin is thecontrast between husband and wife: he is aquiet and skilled chef; she is a funny andmildly profane celebrity. Their styles maycontradict, but their mission is the same: tofeed themselves, their two daughters, andtheir closest friends, body and soul. Channelsurfers should take note of Gabriele as heworks: it’s like witnessing a young Michelan-gelo create a masterpiece out of a hunk ofmarble. And Mazar, with her New York sen-sibilities and razor-sharp wit, is a riot.

But there’s no gimmick to Extra Virgin.What audiences can expect is a show thatcelebrates the real ingredients to a happylife: one another.

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Following Syria’s alleged chemicalweapons attack on civilians in lateAugust, Pope Francis and otherCatholic leaders issued a call for dia-logue rather than retaliation toaddress the situation, reportedCatholic News Service (CNS).

Following his recitation of theAngelus on August 25, the pope saidthe “terrible images” of the dead,including children, “push me onceagain to raise a voice so that the roarof the weapons would stop. It is notclashes, but an ability to meet and todialogue that offers prospects for ahope of resolving the problems.”

Fighting in Syria has been goingon since March 2011 as rebels try tooust Syrian President Bashar Assad.Not far from the capital, Damascus,this chemical weapons attack was onthe town of Ghouta, a strongholdfor opponents of the government ofPresident Assad. Hospitals reported

treating thousands of people suffer-ing with symptoms consistent with apoison gas attack. Videos and photosposted to the Internet showed chil-dren gasping for breath. DoctorsWithout Borders put the death toll at355.

Archbishop Silvano Tomasi, theVatican observer at UN agencies inGeneva, including the UN HumanRights Commission, said the onlyway forward is dialogue.

“As the Holy Father already hasunderlined, violence will not bring asolution and, therefore, a dialoguemust begin so that we can arrive atGeneva II (Middle East peace confer-ence on Syria), where representativesof all parts of Syrian society can bepresent, explain their thinking andtry to create some kind of transi-tional government,” he said.

Syrian-born Melkite Catholic Patri-arch Gregory III Laham issued a plea

for no military intervention. Such amove, he said, “would be a tragedy, atragedy, a tragedy—for the wholecountry and the whole Middle East.

“Enough with the intervention,”he said. “It is fueling hatred, fuelingcriminality, fueling inhumanity, fuel-ing fundamentalism, terrorism—allthese things are the fruit of interven-tion. Enough!”

Mystery Priest RevealedOn August 11, 19-year-old collegestudent Katie Lentz was driving onHighway 19 in Missouri when shewas hit head-on by another car thatcrossed the double yellow line. Theaccident left Katie trapped in her carand seriously injured. Emergencypersonnel worked diligently toremove Katie, but feared doing somight injure her further, reportedReligion News Service.

Suddenly, a priest appeared despitetraffic being redirected from thescene. The medics were concerned

C H U R C H I N T H E N E W S ❘ BY SUSAN HINES-BRIGGER

Catholic Leaders Respond to Syria Attack

12 ❘ October 2013

A man makes homemade masks for protection against chemical attacks in the Damascus sub-urb of Zamalka August 23. Pope Francis denounced the atrocities in Syria, calling again for allsides to end the fighting.

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Father Patrick Dowling, who serves in theDiocese of Jefferson City, Missouri, has comeforward as the “mystery priest.”

StAnthonyMessenger.org

Since mid-July, in the daily Mass he celebrates at theVatican’s Santa Marta residence, Pope Francis has beenusing Communion wafers that were made by a prisonerin Argentina, reported Religion News Service. GabrielaCaballero is serving a seven-year jail term in the San Martin Penitentiary outside Buenos Aires. Caballero gavethe hosts, along with a long letter to the pope, to BishopOscar Ojea of San Isidro. Bishop Ojea regularly visits the prison, and delivered the hosts to the pope on July16 during a visit to the Vatican. Caballero began her Communion wafer operation in one of the prison’s bath-rooms, using old machines given to her and some otherconvicts by some nuns.

Pope Francis wrote to Caballero thanking her for thegift. “From tomorrow on, I will celebrate Mass with thesehosts and I can tell you it’s very touching for me,” hewrote.

After receiving the letter, Caballero said, “I am proudto know that one can reach the Vatican even fromprison.”

The State of the Bible Report 2013 shows that 77 per-cent of Americans believe morals and values are declin-

ing in the UnitedStates, and 75 percentbelieve a valid reasonto teach the Bible inpublic schools is that itwould provide kidswith the moral princi-ples that are badlyneeded. The results

were from a nationwide study commissioned by Ameri-can Bible Society and conducted by Barna Research.

Pope Benedict XVI’s personal assistant, ArchbishopGeorg Gaenswein, is denying reports that the popeemeritus resigned following a “mystical experience” inwhich God “told me” to step back from the papacy.Zenit News Agency reported that the alleged experienceleft Benedict with an “absolute desire” to dedicate his lifeexclusively to prayer. The August 19 Zenit story was

reportedly based on the account of one of the formerpope’s few visitors.

Archbishop Gaenswein says the report, however, was“made up from alpha to omega. There is nothing true inthat story.”

What does the Vatican do with all the items thrown tothe pope when he’s riding in the popemobile? Well,according to Vaticanofficials, some end upcatalogued and stored,including in the VaticanMuseums, but theclothing and most ofthe edibles go to thediocesan Caritas—theVatican shelter run bythe Missionaries ofCharity—or the Vatican’s maternal and pediatric clinic,which serves immigrants mainly and is run by theDaughters of Charity of St. Vincent de Paul.

During World Youth Day this past August, Vatican offi-cials say they filled a jeep four times with objects of everykind. Alberto Gasbarri, the chief organizer of papal trips,said his partial inventory included “T-shirts, hats, scarves,balls, flowers, bandanas, photographs, letters, drawings,rosaries—and even a bishop’s ring.” (That last one waspresumably fake.)

In the aftermath of World Youth Day in Brazil, morethan 50 people who attended the event are seeking asylum in the country, reports CNS. Aline Thuller, Caritascoordinator for refugees in the Archdiocese of Rio deJaneiro, said the archdiocese received approximately 40asylum requests from pilgrims from Pakistan, SierraLeone, and Congo. The Archdiocese of São Pauloreported that at least 12 pilgrims have sought its help tostay in the country.

The pilgrims will have their cases analyzed by theNational Committee for Refugees.

For more news, visit AmericanCatholic.org.


NEWS BRIEFS NATIONAL AND INTERNATIONAL

about Katie’s condition, which wasdeteriorating. After the priestanointed Katie and prayed that herleg would no longer hurt, the youngwoman’s vital signs stabilizedenough for rescue workers to trans-port her—via helicopter—to a localhospital.

When emergency responders

sought to thank the priest, he wasnowhere to be found, and he did notshow up in nearly 70 photos of theaccident scene. Many began to won-der if the man had actually been anangel.

Carla Churchill Lentz, Katie’smother, said, “I do believe he cer-tainly could have been an angel

dressed in priest’s attire because theBible tells us there are angels amongus.”

But the angel actually turned outto be Father Patrick Dowling, a priestfrom Kilkenny, Ireland. Father Dowling was returning from cele-brating Mass in Ewing because theregular priest was sick. He says that,

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when he arrived on the scene,authorities were redirecting traffic.

“I waited till it was possible todrive up closer,” Dowling said. “Iparked behind a large vehicle about150 yards from the scene. I asked thesheriff’s permission and approachedthe scene of the accident. I absolvedand anointed Katie. Then I steppedaside to where some rescue person-nel and the pilot were waiting, andprayed the rosary silently. I left whenthe helicopter was about to take off.”

Father Dowling told reporters thatthe real heroes of the scene were theemergency personnel. “I think theremay have been angels there, too.God has blessed [their] work. I hopethe credit goes where it is due.”

Women Religious Gatherin OrlandoAmid an ongoing doctrinal assess-ment of the organization, the Lead-ership Conference of WomenReligious (LCWR) gathered inOrlando, Florida, August 13-15,where its president reminded mem-bers that “it is imperative to viewreligious life within the context ofour faith and in an evolving world,”reported CNS.

In her opening address, LCWRPresident Sister Florence Deacon

reflected on the doctrinal assess-ment, saying, “Our situation reflectslarger questions and concerns suchas the ongoing implementation ofthe Second Vatican Council; theecclesial roles of women religiousand of the laity, especially women;understandings of authority, faithfuldissent, and obedience; and the needfor spaces where honest, probingquestions about faith and belief canbe raised and discussed.”

LCWR is a Maryland-based um-brella group that claims about 1,500leaders of United States women’scommunities as members, represent-ing about 80 percent of the country’s57,000 women religious. The organi-zation’s canonical status is grantedby the Holy See.

During the assembly, attendeesfocused on a number of issues, suchas the doctrinal assessment of LCWRby the Congregation for the Doctrineof the Faith. The assembly adopted aresolution that says LCWR’s mem-bers “are compelled to work toward aworld where reverence for all livingbeings finds expression in anapproach to life free from violence.”

Archbishop J. Peter Sartain of Seat-tle, who was appointed by the Vati-can doctrinal congregation last yearto oversee a reform of LCWR, alsoaddressed the assembly.

He said, “Over the past 18months, we’ve had significant con-versations—serious, humorous, withsolidarity and understanding—onethat has made this a time I’ve lookedforward to. It is impossible for me toconceive of the task the Holy Fatherhas given me to achieve for CDFwithout thinking of you and all Ihave worked together with you.

“It is very personal. I am here as arepresentative for Pope Francis forthis one task, but I am here as yourbrother and friend.”

At the end of the assembly, SisterCarol Zinn was elected as the nextpresident of the organization.

Thousands Mark ‘I Have a Dream’ AnniversaryJoined by representatives of otherfaiths, Washington’s Cardinal Donald Wuerl called for people tojoin hands and walk together—notalone—for justice during an inter-faith prayer service marking the 50thanniversary of the Rev. MartinLuther King Jr.’s “I Have a Dream”speech on August 28.

According to CNS, Cardinal Wuerlnoted that the schools in the Arch-diocese of Washington, DC, wereintegrated “before the SupremeCourt got around to it.”

The faith leaders were joined byBernice King, the Rev. Dr. King’syoungest child, and the CEO of theKing Center for Nonviolent SocialChange. She said her father was firstand foremost a man of faith.

“It was the spirit of God thatinfused that [nonviolent civil rights]movement,” she said.

Earlier in the day, King addressed acrowd of thousands during a pro-gram at the Lincoln Memorial. Shequoted her mother, Coretta ScottKing, saying, “The struggle for free-dom is a never-ending process. Free-dom is never really won; you win itand earn it in every generation.”

At the close of the ceremony, Pres-ident Barack Obama said the day alsobelonged to the “ordinary peoplewhose names never appeared in thehistory books, never got on TV.” A


Franciscan Sister Florence Deacon addresses the Leadership Conference of Women ReligiousAugust 16 during its annual assembly in Orlando, Florida. The outgoing president gave areflection on what it means to be a faithful woman of the Church.

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S t. Th é r è s e

few years ago, Paraclete Press, a lovely,small press out of Cape Cod, Massa-chusetts, approached me with theidea of writing a book about “walk-

ing” with a saint for a year. Not abiography or a hagiography, but a sort of livedreflection on the saint’s works, thoughts,prayer, and path.

So I thought for a bit and chose Thérèse ofLisieux (1873-1897) because, let’s face it, thereis something irresistible about a beautiful,young French girl who wanted to be the brideof Christ so badly that, at the age of 14, shetraveled to Rome, knelt at the feet of PopeLeo XIII, and begged for permission to enter thecold, cloistered convent at Carmel.

This was the woman who spent the rest ofher short life in obscurity, but on spiritualfire. She was the woman who, after coughingup blood at the beginning of Lent one year, wasthrilled to know that more suffering—andheaven—lay ahead.

She was the woman who, with gangrenedintestines and no pain medication, once criedout: “I love Him!,” she, who first dashed off aspiritual biography in a cheap notebook thatcame to be known as The Story of a Soul, whichhas gone on to sell millions of copies.

Thérèse was sickly as an infant and had tobe farmed out to a wet nurse from whom shewas later separated. Her mother died of breastcancer when Thérèse was 4. Her two belovedolder sisters left fairly soon after for the clois-tered convent at Carmel. Thérèse herselfentered the same convent at the age of 15, liveda hidden, outwardly unremarkable life there,and died at the tender age of 24 from tubercu-losis.

Thérèse might have remained entirelyunknown had she not left behind the notes forwhat became The Story of a Soul, which her sis-ter Pauline edited and published. She was can-onized as a saint a mere 28 years later. In 1997,she was named a Doctor of the Church (one ofonly three women upon whom the honor hasbeen bestowed). Her “little way” continues toinspire, challenge, invite, and confound. Andpeople, including me, continue to write booksabout her.

A New SurrenderThis book I was writing did not have to be long:35,000 words. I was not getting a hugeadvance, which was fine with me. To receivea royalty check, just once before I died, wouldrepresent a major triumph.


What I thought was a brief walk with this beloved saint turned into a lifelong journey of love and admiration.

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So I got down to work and immersedmyself in St. Thérèse. I read some of thezillions of other books that have beenwritten about her (thinking that mine,of course, would be different). I livedanother year of my life writing andrevising, and went off to Taos, NewMexico, early in 2010 on a three-month residency and finished thebook. I waited months for the con-tract to be signed. I sent off the man-uscript and waited months to get notes.

And when the notes came back, itturned out there was too much of mein there and not enough of St. Thérèse.Naturally, I was mortified. What had Ibeen thinking? Who on God’s greenearth would want to read anythingabout me when the subject was St.Thérèse? So I cut all the parts aboutme—which was about half the book—and rewrote the first three chapters. Isent them off, at which point they saidthere was not enough about me andthey wanted me to put some back in.

The point being that, halfwaythrough the book, I was given to seethat this was not a mere job. The bookwas meant to be a way deeper “walk”with St. Thérèse than I’d envisioned.The book was meant to be a surrenderon a whole new level.

Because, while writing means every-thing to me, so does getting no-ticed. That we don’t get to say or seewhere or how our work bears fruit, infact, has to be one of the most difficultparts of the spiritual path.

So finding my voice with this St.Thérèse book was a challenge. I had tofind a way to incorporate the rightkind of “me.” I needed to be honest

enough to say that what I’d really beenstruggling with during my year withher was that, to be a single, agingwoman without significant means doesnot exactly put you at the top of thehuman heap. That it is all very well totalk about “the scandal of the cross,”but to experience it is a very differentthing.

That’s exactly where Thérèse camein.

A Little MiracleAs a toddler, Thérèse was sunny, win-ning, confident. But after her motherdied, she turned fretful and even neu-rotic. She suffered from scruples. Shetried to over-bond. She cried and thenshe apologized for crying. Then shemade matters worse by apologizing forapologizing.

But on Christmas Eve of 1886, whenTherese was 13, she underwent whatshe called her second conversion. “Godwould have to work a little miracle tomake me grow up,” she recognized,“and this miracle He performed onthat unforgettable Christmas day.”

Here’s how it happened: the customat the time was for the children of thehouse to leave their empty shoes by thefire for the parents to fill with Christ-mas candy. Thérèse, the youngest, wasthe last to keep up the custom.

Upon returning from Mass thatnight, her usually kind and piousfather, uncharacteristically cranky,passed the shoes and remarked, “Well,thank heaven, this will be the last year.Thérèse is really getting too old forthis.”

Thérèse overheard him. Ordinarily


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To learn more aboutThérèse of Lisieux, click here.

Digital

Extras

“A mystic, a comic, she is everything. She can

make you weep with devotion and just as

easily faint with laughing during recreation.”—Mother Marie de Gonzague


she would have burst into tears andmade a scene, devastated at thethought of having displeased herfather. Choking back sobs, she beganrunning upstairs to her room. But atthe moment, something changed.

Thérèse gathered herself, allowedherself to experience—but not be over-whelmed by—the feelings of hurt, andmarched downstairs like an adult toopen her presents with gratitude, goodcheer, and joy.

The episode marked a turning point.In The Story of a Soul, Thérèse wrote:“On that night when He made Himselfweak and suffering out of love for me,He made me strong and courageous. Heput his armor on me, and since thatblessed night I was never defeated incombat.”

She also wrote: “On that night oflight, the third period of my life began,the most beautiful of them all, themost filled with graces from heaven. Ifelt a great desire to work for the con-version of sinners, a desire that I hadnever felt so strongly . . . . In a word, Ifelt charity enter into my heart, theneed to forget myself in order to pleaseothers, and ever afterward I washappy!”

Thérèse turned a corner. She over-came her childhood fear of abandon-ment and rejection. After that, shenever had to insist on her own waybecause, in a sense, she always got herown way, which was to love and to beloved by God in total freedom.

Story of My SoulNot long before Shirt of Flame: A Yearwith St. Thérèse of Lisieux came out, Ihad an epiphany. I realized that I’dbeen led to St. Thérèse in order to expe-rience a similar conversion: to beshown that the point wasn’t whethermy book sold or how successful mywork was.

The point is that our suffering alwaysbears fruit; that our wounds are oftenthe richest and most useful thingsabout us; that our ongoing conversionis a mystery and blessing. It is not evergoing to be given to us on this side tounderstand.

Maybe our true gift is just to figureout who we are and be that. Maybe mypersonally painful habit of wearing myheart on my sleeve, if I could channelit the right way, was a gift.

Mother Marie de Gonzague, thesuperior at Carmel, ended up writing ofThérèse: “Tall and strong, with the airof a child, with a tone of voice and anexpression that hide in her the wis-dom, perfection and perspicacity of a50-year-old . . . a little ‘untouchablesaint,’ to whom you would give theGood God without confession, butwhose cap is full of mischief to play onwhomever she wants.

“A mystic, a comic, she is every-thing. She can make you weep withdevotion and just as easily faint withlaughing during recreation.”

May I take a page from that book asI continue to write my own.

Heather King is the author of four memoirs. Shelives in Los Angeles and blogs at shirtofflame.blogspot.com.

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On October 3–4, eight cardinals chosen byPope Francis will meet to advise him onreform of the Roman Curia and the gover-nance of the worldwide Church. The firstissue has gained more attention and interest,but the second one will prove the wisdom ofdecisions about curial reform.

Seven of these cardinals are lifelong pas-tors from Australia, Chile, Congo, Germany,Honduras, India, and the United States. Theeighth one heads the internal governmentof Vatican City State. All are men.

The next time such a group meets, couldn’t that group include women as well?How many crises in the Church might havebeen avoided—or at least better respondedto—if women had direct input about advicegiven to the pope?

Moving beyond StereotypesGuests in Their Own House was the title ofCarmel E. McEnroy’s 1996 book about Vati-can II’s 15 women auditors. Many Catholicwomen still feel that way about a Churchthat praises them for nurturing children,caring for the sick, advocating for social jus-tice, and carrying out every other Churchtask that flows from their Baptism.

Many cultures expect men to assume primary responsibility for life outside thehome, while welcoming women’s gifts onlydomestically. Today, however, women alsopilot jet planes, perform surgeries, headmajor corporations, and work at most jobsonce reserved to men. Why are women’s giftsappreciated everywhere except the Church?

Pope Francis will continue to need assis-tance in carrying out the unique ministry ofSt. Peter’s successor. But must his closest col-laborators be only men?

The number of existing offices, theirnames, and their internal relationships maycertainly change. Is there a valid reason whyonly men can head the current Congrega-

tion for Catholic Education or the Congre-gation for Institutes of Consecrated Life andApostolic Life? Women do most of the workin these two areas.

Furthermore, couldn’t a woman lead thepresent pontifical councils for laity, family,migrants and itinerant people, health-careworkers, culture, or social communications?

At times, the best person for a particularjob is a man; other times, it’s a woman. Theold stereotype of men as active and womenas passive arises from a historical misunder-standing of what each gender contributes toreproduction. Can the Church afford thinking that no woman will ever be thebest person for any Church job at this level?

Learning from Francis and ClareOn October 4, Pope Francis will visit Assisi,home to Sts. Francis and Clare, who mod-eled a new way of recognizing each other’sGod-given gifts. Between 1212 and 1215,Clare and her sisters oftenworked alongside the friarsin caring for lepers. Theybecame cloistered nunsafter Lateran Council IV;those were the only officialwomen’s religious commu-nities. The Church wouldwait several centuries beforefinally approving womenreligious as teachers, nurses, missionaries,and in other types of service.

We already have women leaders in theChurch: as heads of organizations such asCatholic Relief Services, Focolare, religiouscommunities, secular institutes, and laymovements.

As a priest, I sometimes pray at the altar:“And may your Church stand as a living wit-ness to truth and freedom, to peace and jus-tice, that all people may be raised up to anew hope” (Eucharistic Prayer for VariousNeeds IV). I look forward to the day whenthe Catholic Church is as open to the giftsof women disciples as Jesus was.

—Pat McCloskey, OFM

E D I T O R I A L

Women Leaders in the ChurchThe Church needs to recognize women’s giftsin areas still closed to them.

Jesus shocked peopleby recognizing womenas disciples. Is theCatholic Church reallyfollowing his leadhere?


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Sister Wendy Beckettbecame a household namein the early ’90s when she started providing art history on public-televisionprograms. In reality,though, she’s far from aTV star. She spends herdays in solitude and contemplation in a smalltrailer on the woodedgrounds of a Carmelitecloister.

ISTER WENDY BECKETT is an un-likely television star. She’s a bespec-tacled, 82-year-old hermit with aslight speech impediment, painfularthritis, and a weak heart. Were it

not for her voluminous habit, no one wouldnotice her in a crowd. But this woman is more,much more, than what first meets the eye.Like the religious icons she treasures, she willlead you on astonishing journeys if you let her.

For the past two decades, the South African-born nun has taken millions of public-television viewers on memorable journeysthrough art history. Her inaugural program in1992 for the BBC, Sister Wendy’s Odyssey, wasan instant hit; more programs followed, includ-ing Sister Wendy’s Story of Painting, which firstaired in the United States in 1997. Reviewershailed the five-part series, noting Sister Wendy’sastonishing grasp of Western art. Audienceswere enchanted by her enthusiasm, her wit,and her colorful commentaries.

Although some were surprised by her successas a television host, those who knew SisterWendy’s background were not. As a schoolgirl,she was a standout student with a knack for

theater. The School Sisters of Notre Dame,whom she joined at age 16, sent her to Oxfordto study English literature. There, she wasawarded a Congratulatory First in English Lit-erature—the highest possible honor—and wasoffered a faculty position by the president ofher finals board: J. R. R. Tolkien. After takingfinal vows, Sister Wendy returned to SouthAfrica where she taught for 16 years: first En-glish and Latin in a convent school in CapeTown, followed by a lectureship at the Univer-sity of the Witwatersrand in Johannesburg.

In 1970, after several bouts of ill health, herreligious superiors permitted her to follow herheart’s desire: to live out her days in solitudeand contemplation. She moved into a simpletrailer on the wooded grounds of the Carmelitecloister at Quidenham in Norfolk, England. Sheis not technically a Carmelite nun—she is a“consecrated virgin” living under the protec-tion of the community—but the Carmeliteslook after her by providing one meal a day andhelping with correspondence and other prac-tical matters. At first, Sister Wendy earned herkeep by translating medieval Latin manu-scripts. In the 1980s, she began studying art


B Y A L I C I A V O N S TA M W I T Z

A Portrait of

Sister Wendy Beckett

This hermit has charmed TV audiences worldwide with her art commentary. Now, she shares her own story.

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and writing essays for British magazines. Itwas her writing, explains Sister Wendy, thatprompted an observant young researcher tosuggest her name to the BBC. The rest, as theysay, is history.

These days, Sister Wendy spends the major-ity of each day in prayer, beginning at 1 a.m.,“when the world is silent and the owls praywith me.” Shortly before 8 a.m., she walks orrides her electric scooter to the communitychapel for daily Eucharist. Despite her fame,few know Sister Wendy’s spiritual story. That’sthe way she wanted it—until now.

“I’ve come out of the closet,” she saidrecently. “I’m unashamedly Catholic. Andthat’s what I’m talking about now.” Our inter-view with Sister Wendy took place on a Fridaymorning immediately after the 8 a.m. Mass, inthe parlor of the Quidenham Carmelitemonastery.

Q. Tell us about your decision to begin speak-ing about your faith more openly.A. When I started doing the television pro-grams, I wanted to show people who knewnothing about God that if they responded to beauty, they were responding to God. But Ididn’t want to use words that would makethem feel that this was only for religious. Ididn’t use Christian paintings, and I didn’t

use religious language, so as not to alienateatheists who would’ve said, “Oh, this is not forme.” I thought that if people haven’t got thejoy of knowing our blessed Lord, maybe theycan get somewhere into his brightness by look-ing at art.

Now I feel I no longer have to speak anony-mously. I don’t have to hide in the closet andspeak as though I am just a disembodied voice.I’m speaking now as a Catholic nun explicitlyabout the things that are my world, my real life.I’m talking only about religious art and reli-gious topics, and I’m speaking primarily toCatholics and to Christians who accept thesacraments.

Q. Were there any key moments in yourspiritual journey? A. There weren’t any internal key moments, Ithink, except perhaps when I was a very smallchild. I must’ve been about 4 when I becameaware of the constant presence of God and ofwhat God wasn’t. He was all love and care, andI knew I had nothing ever to fear because Godwas there. So you could call that a key moment.I woke up to the fact that we’re not our own;we’re living in God’s world.

Perhaps another key moment was when Iwas 7 and I made my first holy Communion.I had gotten it into my head—or perhaps Sis-


Author Alicia vonStamwitz traveled toNorfolk, England, to talkwith Sister Wendy. Herethe two of them are seenon the grounds of theCarmelite Cloister atQuidenham, where SisterWendy lives.

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ter had told us—that Jesus would speak to us.I was all agog to hear Jesus speak. I can remem-ber as though it were yesterday, coming backfrom the altar rail intent to hear Jesus speak.And after a little bit it dawned upon me whenthere was only silence, That’s how he speaks! Hespeaks in silence! And that’s also been somethingthat has held me in God’s light all my life: theknowledge that we don’t need anything exceptjust to open ourselves and to let him speak insilence.

But apart from that I was then just waitinguntil I finished school so I could be a nun.

Q. You entered the School Sisters of NotreDame?A. Yes. It is a very fine order, and they taughtme how to be a nun. I was a teaching nun for23 years [16 in South Africa], and then I beganto realize I needed more time for prayer thanthe teaching order provided. I needed hours ofjust being alone on my knees, hours that thesacrifice of the teaching order doesn’t provide.So I had to wait until the order said they sawwhat I meant and that they would sponsor megoing to lead a contemplative life.

I’ve been here 42 years now. I never dreamtanything could be as blissful. I’ve had all mylongings fulfilled. Just to be a nun was enough,really. And if God had said, “I want you to goon struggling as a teacher,” then I would haveaccepted that, if that’s what he wanted;because, after all, that is happiness—to dowhat God wants.

Q. Have you ever felt uncertain or won-dered whether you really are doing whatGod wants?A. No. I’ve always had a doubt that I’m notdoing what God wants very well, but I think Godreveals his will through what happens in everystage of our lives. If I had known in advancethat the demands of television would’ve meantthere’d be weeks away, I would’ve been veryreluctant to do it. But I didn’t realize it; Ithought it was going to be a very simple dayor two thing. I’ve no doubt that that has beenGod’s will, too, and it’s all been blessed. It istedious and very much what I would notchoose, but it became obvious that this is whatI was meant to do because people were gettingsuch help from it. I’ve just finished anotherprogram for the BBC called Novena.

Q. Hadn’t you tried to retire 10 years ago?A. Yes! Well, I thought I wasn’t strong enoughto go on, but it seems that if they look after me

and I can use a wheelchair, I can staggerthrough. If there’s an apostolic need, I can’t sayI don’t want to help. It would be so selfish. Idon’t think I would feel at peace in solitude ifI said, “I don’t want to do these films or writethese books.” I think the sacrifice is called for;it’s a necessity. Every life has to have sacrifice,and that’s mine.

Q. I think one benefit is that people whootherwise would never cross paths with anun feel at ease with you and listen to you. A. That is true. There’s nothing frighteningabout me. Even my teeth have been a blessing,you see. I mean, one of the sisters here, the for-mer prioress, is just beautiful—she has thosebeautiful bones, and she’s slender. She looksholy, whereas I just look like an old frump. It’sfine!

Q. Of course, your television fans don’treally know you. Do you pay attention tohow you’re described in the press? A. I try not to pay attention to what the presssays, really, as it is often very humiliating. Idon’t watch my programs, you know. Don’twant to watch them. And I’m very bad at talk-ing about myself. I remember when I was anovice, the novice mistress said, “Now, I wantyou to think about what is your best qualityand what is your worst quality.” I wasabsolutely stymied. When I try to look atmyself, I just see our blessed Lord. I can’t getpast that to isolate me.

As for an outsider view, Blessed Pope JohnPaul II apparently said that he liked very muchwhat I did because it showed people howhappy one is as a Catholic. That in itself isgood, you see, if a relatively plain, dull, elderlywoman can be filled with such happiness.

I think I’d like people to say, “She tries herbest to show the beauty of the Lord.” It neveroccurred to me that people would notice me.I remember my shock after I’d made my firstseries and somebody said to me, “You’re sodelightful. And the art is good, too.” And Ithought, Gracious heavens!—you know? Am Igetting in the way? But there’s no other wayto do it. To be true to the art, I can’t think ofmyself or be very self-conscious. I just have gotto forget about myself and think about whatI’m trying to say.

Q. Your commentary on art has been calledlearned, funny, and occasionally “shock-ingly” earthy.A. I know. I got a shock when I realized that

I’m speaking now as aCatholic nun explicitlyabout the things thatare my world, my reallife. I’m talking onlyabout religious artand religious topics,and I’m speaking primarily to Catholicsand to Christians who accept the sacraments.

people were shocked! As Catholics, we reverethe body because God made it. We’ve none ofthis prudishness that I’ve discovered is rampantin the world; that certain topics are a “no-no”just because they have to do with the human

body. That’s not our blessedLord. He speaks very franklyin the Scriptures.

The real shock is that somany people regard God ascold and judgmental, and theydon’t see that God is father inthe purest sense. This lack ofawareness is not their fault,

you know. St. Paul says, “How will they knowunless somebody tells them?”

Q. Could you tell us about your own aware-ness of God and practice of prayer? A. Well, I am on record as saying I spend sevenhours a day in prayer, but in actual fact, I con-sider my whole time as prayer, because I thinkprayer is a direction. We don’t stop prayingwhen we get out of our prayer position. So Ican’t think of anything I wouldn’t consider aprayer activity.

But strictly speaking—I don’t like makingthese categories, I don’t think they apply,really—when I pray I am sitting silently, look-

ing at nothing, but aware of the icons who arepraying with me. I don’t go through anythingspecifically, I don’t have any specific image,but, as I say, when I get up to make a cup ofcoffee, I don’t consider that my prayer hasstopped for making coffee. No, it is anotherform of prayer. First it was an intense silence,and now it’s a freer silence, but it’s equally away of opening myself to God.

Q. You mention praying with icons. Is anysaint particularly close when you pray? A. I feel when you pray the whole Churchprays with you, which, of course, includes thewhole Church in heaven. But the saint who’sbeen most encouraging to me is Saint Thérèseof Lisieux, who, I think, is the absolute para-digm of what sanctity means. A simple lifejust given to God with nothing special aboutit. I’ve always read and loved Thérèse.

Q. What other spiritual reading or writers doyou recommend? A. Well, I’ve always been against spiritual read-ing. Not all spiritual reading—I’m a greatbeliever in commentaries on the Scripture andinspiring lives of the saints—but I think bookson prayer are very dangerous, because peoplecan read them and think that’s prayingwhereas prayer needs nothing.

So, I say, don’t read books on prayer. Don’ttry to protect yourself against God by thinkingyou need to know how to do it or being afraidthat you don’t know how to do it. Anyone cando it. God does it. Simply be there and let Goddo it. Prayer is God’s business, not our business.All he wants is to give himself to us. We justhave to be there to receive him.

Q. What would be your hope for anyonereading this interview—the feeling he orshe would come away with?A. That God’s there for you; that there’s noth-ing to prevent you: just let God love you. Youdon’t need any special virtues; he will draw youinto those virtues. You’ve got to have yourdirection absolutely set on God, and it takes along time for God to be your sole direction. Butyou can begin by having 10 minutes in whichyou just stay still and let God shine on you.Then it will lengthen, and then it will grow, soperhaps after 50 years you will be able to spendyour whole day letting God shine on you.

And you shouldn’t want to do too much allat once, you see, because we’re weak. But Godwill give you what you want. If you want him,he will give himself to you.

Alicia von Stamwitz is a freelance writer based in St. Louis,Missouri. She studied journalism at Washington University.

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Click here to learn moreabout Sister Wendy Beckett.

Digital

Extras

I consider my wholetime as prayer, because

I think prayer is a direction.

When I get up to make a cup of

coffee, I don’t consider that my

prayer has stopped for making

coffee. No, it is another form

of prayer.

CUP

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Sister Wendy’s new books—Sister Wendy on theArt of Christmas, Sister Wendy on the Art of Mary,and Sister Wendy on the Art of Saints—all areavailable at FranciscanMedia.org.

©2013 BGE 01-16771-001-BIR

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Reverie

I dreamt of tawny maplescelebrating autumnfrom dawn till twilightwith a rhapsodyon a rainy night,with its melodyand under moonlightwith a symphony.Awakened by daylightI celebrate autumnwith poetry.

—Jean Gier

Prelude: Early Morning after the Rain

Wild stalk of lifethe heron standsmotionless in standing watercontemplating the quiet dawn

his wings unfoldmagnificent petals to the sungathering the empty airin delicate embrace

release the clinging earthhe rises—a burst of emptiness;water rushing back—a hushwild, stiff weeds bedrippling, gone

—Herman Sutter

Divine Violins

God’s grace plucks soul strings.Sweet melodies deep within:Divine Violins.

—Jeanette Martino Land

The House on Wilson Street

At the old abandoned houseon Wilson Street, a tire swingis no longer the family pendulum.Shutters, with their plies of paint,hang there, crooked pictures.Shingles sag like melted wax.The sidewalk is overlaidby rampant weeds, once at bay.Spatter of dirty, broken windowstoo dark to see throughand when the wind with rainis driving like Jehu, whistlingenters the house through them,tries to awaken whoever may be sleeping,but only memories are the tenants now.

—Herman Bush

Harmonica Player

He blows on a Silverbird,walking around silk walls,thinking in circles, notin lines like most of us.I hear him play in the long, southern night

And wonder if he is a youngand dreaming boy, or an old, tired manshaking the house inside himselfthe only way he can . . .in his harmonica.

—Marion Schoeberlein

Changing Sky

Leaves of gold and amber fall in unison from treesonce proud and lush. I try to catch these littletreasures, but the autumn winds refuse me,carrying them off and up to a patient, wintering sky.

—Ryan Cory

P O E T R Y

October 2013 ❘ 29

The Spirit of

St. FrancisILLUSTRATIO

N BY CHRIS KO

EHLER

He was a man ahead of

his time. In an era that

had seen only rich and

poor, a new group, the

merchant class, was arising. Wealth

came with trade, and more people

were getting in on it. One was Peter

di Bernadone, who, from Assisi, Italy,

was establishing a lucrative business in

selling cloth from faraway places. His

son, John, nicknamed Francis (“French-

man”) by his father, grew up as his

father’s business expanded. He was

one of the new wealthy.

Yet Francis saw that the rise of

the merchant class was still leaving

people behind—lots of them. Young

Francis left it all to devote himself

to God’s truth, that each and every

one of these people—even the fields,

forests, and animals all around—was

valuable. It was a shocking statement

that we grapple with even today, when

poverty and wealth seem inextricably

tied, one to the other, and environ-

mental destruction marches forward.

We often offer a new article on St.

Francis each October (Francis’ feast

day is October 4). This year, though,

Francis is in the news in a big way,

with the election of Pope Francis. We

decided to offer this special section,

written by four friars who are at the

heart of Franciscan Media: Jack Wintz,

Pat McCloskey, Murray Bodo, and Dan

Kroger. We hope you enjoy it.

—John Feister, Editor in Chief


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efore looking at the first key momentin the life of St. Francis of Assisi, let’sset the stage by focusing on his earlylife.

Francis was born in 1182 in Assisi. He wasthe son of a prosperous cloth merchant, PeterBernadone. His companions saw him as a care-free youth, calling him the “King of Revels.”Francis enjoyed partying with his friends andhad dreams of becoming a knight and gainingglory on the battlefield.

But shortly after riding off to fight againstPerugia, a nearby town, he ended up in theirprison, a broken and disillusioned young man.

It was after his return from prison, and dur-ing the recovery that followed, that Francis’ lifewas changed.

1 Francis Meets a Leper

Like most of his contemporaries, Francis felt adisdain for lepers and avoided them at allcosts. One day, before his conversion, Franciswas riding his horse alone in the countryside.As he moved along the road, he caught sightof a leper walking toward him. Francis’ instinctwas to turn back or move off to the side toavoid contact with the poor wretch. But Fran-

cis instead rode directly toward this man withparts of his face and hands eaten away by thisdreaded disease. Francis dismounted his horse,and warmly embraced and kissed the lepertenderly on his lips.

In his Testament, Francis writes, “When Iwas in sin, the sight of lepers nauseated mebeyond measure; but then God himself led


B Y J A C K W I N T Z , O F M

7 KeyMoments in the Life of St. FrancisThese events in Francis’ life brought him closer to Christ.

BSt. Francis’ encounter witha leper changed both oftheir lives. This bronzesculpture is at Rivorto,home of the earliest fol-lowers of Francis, in theplains below Assisi, nearthe place of theencounter.

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me into their company, and I had pity onthem. When I had once become acquaintedwith them, what had previously nauseatedme became a source of physical consolation forme. After that I did not wait long before leav-ing the world.” Francis eventually came torealize that he had actually embraced noneother than his Lord, Jesus Christ.

Francis soon found himself living with lep-ers and caring for them. His meeting andembracing the leper was the best preparationFrancis could have had for the founding of anew order in the Church, whose highest idealwas to serve the poorest of the poor.

Some time later, Francis was praying alonein front of a crucifix in the abandoned chapelof San Damiano, located down the hill fromAssisi. Suddenly, Francis heard these words ofChrist coming from the cross: “Francis, repairmy house, which is falling into ruin.” Francisrealized later that it was a much bigger house—the Christian Church itself—that Christ wasasking him to rebuild.

2 Francis Breaks with His Father

Not long after this, Francis, dressed in roughclothing, took precious merchandise from hisfather’s store and sold it to his customers, inorder to pay for the rebuilding of the fallen-down chapel. He also sold his father’s horse.Francis’ father, Peter, would have preferred tosee Francis go back to wearing fancy attire andthrowing parties for his old chums. He wasaghast and embarrassed, moreover, to learnthat Francis was often caring for the lepers, whowere living in the valley below Assisi.

In response, his father, boiling with rage,dragged Francis before the bishop of Assisiand demanded the return of his property andgoods. Francis readily agreed to this. In thehearing of all present, Francis said, “From nowon I will no longer say, My Father PeterBernadone, but Our Father who art in heaven.”Francis gave back to his father not only hisproperty and goods, but the money and all hisclothes as well. Francis carefully placed hisclothing on the ground.

The bishop, admiring Francis’ fervor, drewhim into his arms and covered him with hismantle. The bishop understood that Francis’actions were inspired by God—and were partof God’s way of leading Francis into an amaz-ingly new form of life. Francis’ heart was over-flowing with joy. His heavenly Father had sethim free of all attachment to earthly things.

Francis was now ready to serve the Lordsimply and without fear. For all who follow St.Francis of Assisi today, this kind of poverty anddetachment can lead to the freedom to, in St.Matthew’s words, become “children of yourheavenly Father, for he makes his sun rise onthe bad and the good, and causes rain to fallon the just and the unjust. . . . So be perfect,just as your heavenly Father is perfect”(5:45,48).

3 Francis, the Herald of the Great King

Francis, who used to wear fine garments, nowwent about clad in the poorest of clothing. Ashe went through a nearby woods, singingpraises to the Lord in French, robbers sud-denly rushed out upon him. When they askedhim gruffly who he was, Francis replied con-fidently in a loud voice, “I am the herald of thegreat King!” Then they struck him again andagain, and threw him into a ditch filled withdeep snow, saying, “Just lie there in the snow,‘Herald of the great King!’”

But Francis simply brushed off the snow.And when they had gone away, he jumped outof the ditch, and with great joy began to callout the praises of God in a loud voice. Francisthen walked along until he came to the stepsof a monastery, where he hoped the monks


Francis, who received thestigmata at La Verna, wasa Herald of the Great King,proclaiming God’s good-ness in deed, and whennecessary, in word.

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might clothe him in exchange for work. Theydid so, but Francis only stayed with them fora short while.

This whole episode seemed only to rein-force Francis’ sense of freedom and his trust inthe providence of God. He would need to cul-tivate this spirit more and more because hewould still face harsher challenges in the daysahead. True followers of St. Francis todayremain conscious of their great mission: to be“Heralds of the great King.”

In St. Paul’s Letter to the Philippians, wefind echoes of this lofty ideal: Christ Jesus“emptied himself, taking the form of a slave,coming in human likeness . . . he humbledhimself, becoming obedient to death, evendeath on a cross. Because of this, God greatlyexalted him. . .” (2:7-9).

Guided by the Holy Spirit, St. Francis’ follow-ers still strive to seek this ideal today!

4 Francis Spendsa Night in Prayer

Bernard of Quintavalle was the first brother tofollow Francis and his simple way of life. Awealthy Assisian, Bernard sold all his posses-sions and gave the money to the poor. He wasready to throw in his lot with Francis, but firsthe wanted to test Francis’ holiness. Oneevening, Bernard invited Francis to join himfor supper at his home. After a pleasant meal,Bernard invited him to stay overnight.

Bernard had a bed prepared for Francis in hisown room. Shortly after Francis entered theroom, he threw himself down and pretendedto fall asleep. A short time later, Bernard wentto bed and also pretended to sleep—with snoresand all. His plan was to watch Francis carefullyduring the night.

With Bernard secretly observing him, Fran-cis got onto his knees and raised his hands inprayer. Then Bernard was amazed to hear Fran-cis earnestly repeating throughout the night“My God and my all!” The Little Flowers of St.Francis informs us that St. Francis repeatedthe words while marveling at and contem-plating the goodness of Almighty God(Omnibus of Sources, p. 1303).

Time and again, God’s goodness and loveamazed Francis. In a prayer from his PraisesBefore the Office, St. Francis suddenly beginsrepeating the word good, almost as if intoxi-cated by it: “All powerful, all holy, most highand supreme God, sovereign good, all good,every good, you who alone are good, it is to youwe must give all praise, all glory, all thanks, all

honor, all blessing; to you we must refer all goodalways. Amen.”

5Clare Enters theFranciscan Family

The daughter of a noble Assisian family, Clarewas known for her love of God and of thepoor. She was attracted to the Gospel way oflife preached by St. Francis. Secretly in thedark of night, to the dismay of her wealthyfamily, Clare met with Francis and his smallband of brothers to commit her life totally toGod. There in the Portiuncula chapel, sheexchanged her golden hair for a simple habit.

She would soon begin a quickly growing com-munity of contemplative women devoted toliving the Gospel.

Clare remained a close friend and associateof St. Francis, even though she was committedto staying in her monastery alongside theother Poor Clare nuns, named after theirfoundress.

St. Clare died in 1253, outliving her greatfriend Francis by almost 27 years. Until herdeath, Clare kept her ideals: a passion forprayer, a life of poverty and humility, and agenerous concern for the needy.

The close bond between the Poor Claresand the Franciscan friars remains strong andjoyful in our day. The Clares serve as vibrant

St. Clare had a passion forprayer, a life of povertyand humility, and a gener-ous concern for the needy.She was a force to be reck-oned with.

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models of intense union with God, which allFranciscans—and indeed all human beings—are meant to foster, as the Holy Spirit prompts.

6 Francis Receives the Stigmata

Today the Chapel of the Stigmata sits on thesame sheer precipice where St. Francis stoodtwo years before his death. There he was sweptup into the mystery of God’s overwhelminglove for him and for humanity.

St. Bonaventure, an early Franciscan leaderand theologian, in his Life of St. Francis,describes Francis as being more inflamed thanusual with the love of God as he began a spe-cial time of solitary prayer on Mount La Vernain September 1224. “Francis’ unquenchablefire of love for the good Jesus,” Bonaventurewrites, “was fanned into such a blaze of flamesthat many waters could not quench so power-ful a love” (see Song of Songs 8:6-7).

St. Bonaventure goes on: “While Franciswas praying on the mountainside, he saw a Ser-aph, with six fiery and shining wings, descendfrom the height of heaven. And when in swiftflight the Seraph had reached a spot in the airnear the man of God, there appeared betweenthe wings the figure of a man crucified, withhis hands and feet extended in the form of across and fastened to a cross. Two of the wingswere lifted above his head, two were extendedfor flight and two covered his whole body.

“When Francis saw this, he was over-whelmed and his heart was flooded with amixture of joy and sorrow. He rejoiced becauseof the gracious way Christ looked upon himunder the appearance of a seraph, but the fact

that he was fastened to a cross pierced his soulwith a sword of compassionate sorrow (Luke2:35).” When the vision disappeared, writesBonaventure, “imprinted on his body weremarkings that were no less marvelous.” Thesemarkings were the stigmata—the five woundsof Christ.

What did St. Francis experience? The simpleservant of God had suddenly understood in aflash the unimaginable love of God, a lovethat holds nothing back from us—not evenGod’s only son. Many religious thinkers see thisas the secret of St. Francis’ spirituality, namely,Francis’ profound appreciation for the over-flowing love of God!

7 The Death of St. Francis

When Francis of Assisi’s days on earth weregrowing short, according Thomas of Celano,his first biographer, the saint instructed hisbrothers, “When I am dying, lay me nakedon the ground . . . and let me lie there after Iam dead for the length of time it takes to walkone mile unhurriedly” (Second Life of St. Fran-cis of Assisi, Vol. 1, CLXIII, Omnibus of Sources).

Francis’ brothers honored his request. Theyreverently placed his body on the ground andlet it lie there for some 30 minutes. Not longbefore he took his last breath, Francis invitedall creatures to praise God, as the saint had sooften done in his Canticle of Brother Son (alsoknown as the Canticle of the Creatures). Yes,Francis wanted to exhort all his “brother” and“sister” creatures to praise and love God.

The gesture of Francis lying naked onMother Earth strikingly reveals how comfort-


At the hour of the holy man’s passing . . .They came in a great flock

over the roof of the house and, whirling around

for a long time with unusual joy,

gave clear and evident testimony

of the glory of the saint.

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able Francis had become with thewhole world of creation, including hishuman body. Like Adam before thefall, Francis was not ashamed of hisnakedness. Francis had become keenlyaware that Jesus, in his incarnation,had entered our world and transformedthe earth (and the human form)through his saving presence amongus. St. Francis had come to believe thatboth the earth and his body—throughthe incarnation of Christ—had becomeprofoundly good.

St. Francis often said to his follow-ers,“What a man is before God, that heis and no more.” With great humility,Francis had often applied these wordsto himself.

As many of us know, when Francislay there on the earth, he was bearingon his body the stigmata—the brandmarks of Christ. These sacred marksremind us how closely Francis hadbecome identified with Christ. He wasalso filled with awe because of Christ’soverflowing love: As we read in John15:13, “No one has greater love thanthis, to lay down one’s life for one’sfriends.”

Our reflections on St. Francis’ deathend with a few short passages from St.Bonaventure’s Life of St. Francis: “Atlast, when all of God’s mysteries werefulfilled in him,” writes Bonaventure,“the blessed man fell asleep in theLord. One of his brothers and disci-ples saw his soul under the appear-ance of a radiant star being carriedaloft in a shining cloud over manywaters on a direct path into heaven.”

Finally Bonaventure describes a gath-ering of larks which appeared “at thehour of the holy man’s passing. . . .They came in a great flock over theroof of the house and, whirling aroundfor a long time with unusual joy, gaveclear and evident testimony of theglory of the saint, who so often invitedthem to praise God.”

The image of those larks is an invi-tation to us all.

Jack Wintz, OFM, is editor emeritus of this publi-cation. He is author of many books, including WillI See My Pet in Heaven? (available from FranciscanMedia). His free e-newsletter is Friar Jack’s E-spira-tions (FriarJack.org).

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The Franciscan Friars, Province of St. John the Baptist

Visit us at www.franciscan.org to learn more about the life of St. Francis and the work of the

Friars of St. John the Baptist Province.

St. Francis believed that every one of us could touch a life

and transform the world.

Follow in the footsteps of St. Francis by supporting the Franciscans’ work among

the poor and forgotten.

ANSWERS TO PETE AND REPEAT

1. Pete now has only four apples.2. The man in the background now has

a mustache.3. The leaves have changed to orange.4. A pumpkin has disappeared.5. Pete is no longer wearing a turtleneck.6. There is one fewer branch in the tree.7. The man’s jacket now has a belt.8. The bushes are lower.


he ultimate disciple. The poor, itin-erant, preaching brother of penance.He who suffered in the wildernesswith Christ, he who was misunder-

stood, betrayed by some of his own brothers,and who loved Christ so much that he becamethe Lovescape of Christ. This is St. Francis ofAssisi.

The great poet Gerard Manley Hopkinsinvented the word “Lovescape” to encapsulatehow he saw St. Francis’ relationship with JesusChrist. Francis was Christ’s “Lovescape cruci-fied and seal of his seraph-arrival.” Hopkins isspeaking of Francis on the mountain of LaVerna, where he received the sacred stigmataof Christ that sealed him as a visible image ofthe crucified Christ, Christ’s “Lovescape.”

On La Verna, St. Francis’ transformationinto Christ was made visible in his bodythrough the visitation of a seraph-angel whosesix wings surrounded the body of the risencrucified Christ. Francis had become the verypersonification of Christ’s words, “You willknow that I am in my Father, and you in me,and I in you” (Jn 14:20).

When you look at St. Francis, you see thecrucified Christ whose presence within Fran-cis was so real and so intense that the verywounds of Christ crucified broke forth in his

body, revealing to the whole world that here,indeed, was the ultimate disciple of Christ,who not only bore in his body the wounds ofChrist, but whose heart was filled with thelove that moved Christ to suffer for love of us.

As St. Francis himself articulates so beauti-fully in one of the prayers attributed to him,“May the fiery and honey-sweet power of yourlove, O Lord, wean me from all things underheaven, so that I may die for love of your love,who deigned to die for love of my love.”

Where, then, did this transformation beginand how did it come about? It all began withtwo transforming events in the young FrancisBernardone’s life: the embrace of a leper andhis attendance at Mass on what was then theFeast of St. Matthias, February 24, 1208. Bothevents represent the radical poverty of St. Fran-cis and how Gospel poverty defined who hewas.

This radical poverty, in the words of themedieval Franciscan poet Jacopone da Todi, isthis:

Poverty is to have nothingAnd to desire nothingAnd to possess everythingIn a spirit of freedom.It seems from these lines that to have noth-

ing and desire nothing is what Franciscan


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The stigmata, which St.Francis received on themountain of La Verna,confirmed Francis as a visi-ble image of the crucifiedChrist or, as authorMurray Bodo says, “theultimate disciple.”

poverty is all about, but it is the last line, “ina spirit of freedom,” that is the essence. It wasnot letting go of things that made St. FrancisChrist’s Lovescape, but letting go of his ego.

Francis’ EpiphanyHis had been a grand ambition: He wanted, amerchant’s son though he was, to become aknight, to ascend through military prowessto the ranks of the nobility.

He desired to be somebody, to be influential,to matter. But in his first foray into war, he wascaptured in a decisive battle between Assisiand the neighboring hill town of Perugia andspent a year in a Perugian prison. It is saidthat he tried to cheer his fellow soldiers, but hishealth began to decline; and when he returnedto Assisi a year later, he was a broken manwho had to spend another year recuperating.

When he finally was able to venture out-doors again, nothing seemed the same; theglow of nature no longer shone for him. Washe in a state of post-traumatic shock? Was hesimply depressed? Whatever the case, thethings that before had stimulated and excited

him—the revels, the beauties of nature, singing,and dancing—no longer lifted his spirit, untilone day when he heard about another call toarms, this time to join the papal forces in Apu-lia, south of Rome, under the command ofthe celebrated Walter of Brienne.

Francis was now awakenedfrom his torpor and once againset forth with other Assisi cav-aliers to join the papal armies.But after only one day on theroad, he had a dream in thenearby city of Spoleto in whicha voice asked him, “Francis,

who is it better to serve, the Lord or the ser-vant?”

“Why, the Lord, of course.”“Then why are you serving the servant?”Then, in a moment of insight, of epiphany,

Francis realized that he had it all wrong, andhe returned to Assisi, not knowing what he wassupposed to do, or even what he was search-ing for. He began to visit abandoned churchesand caves where he prayed incessantly forenlightenment.

Then one day when he was riding his horseon the road below Assisi, he saw a leper on theroad and was moved to get down off his highhorse, as it were—a huge gesture for the ambi-tious young man—and not only place coins inthe leper’s outstretched hand, but on anextraordinary impulse, he actually embracedthe leper, realizing as he did so, that he wasembracing the Lord, Jesus Christ, who is alsothe Servant. In embracing this servant, he wasparadoxically embracing the Lord. He hadrelinquished the dominance of his ego. Hewas no longer paralyzed. He was free.

A Poor, Itinerant PreacherIn overcoming himself and embracing theleper, Francis found true Gospel poverty; hefound a poverty that was a new kind of riches.Now he had only to rid himself of whatever

else was keeping him from this hidden trea-sure he had found. He discovered what thatwas in the small chapel of St. Mary of theAngels, hidden among the woods and marshesof the plain where the lepers lived.

It was February 24, 1208, and Francis wasattending Mass; at the reading of the Gospel,he heard the Gospel passage that changed hislife. It not only completed his vision of poverty,but it also gave him the lifestyle he was toembrace. And this is how it was, as his firstbiographer, Thomas of Celano, narrates it:

“But when on a certain day the Gospel wasread in that church, how the Lord sent hisdisciples out to preach, the holy man of God,assisting there, understood somewhat thewords of the Gospel; and after Mass he humblyasked the priest to explain the Gospel to himmore fully. When the priest had set forth in


For more information on St.Francis of Assisi, click here.

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This statue outside theBasilica of St. Francis inAssisi, Italy, depicts St.Francis returning to thetown, a humbled and bro-ken man, following anepiphany on the road toSpoleto.


order all these things, the holy Francis, hear-ing that Christ’s disciples should not possessgold or silver or money; nor carry along theway scrip, or wallet, or bread, or a staff; thatthey should not have shoes, or two tunics;but that they should preach the kingdom ofGod and penance, he immediately cried outexultingly: `This is what I wish, this is what Iseek, this is what I long to do with all myheart.’”

And that is what Francis did; he becamewhat Jesus asked his disciples to become: apoor, itinerant, preaching brother of penance.He took to the road, he had no fixed abode,and he was brother to everyone he met alongthe way and to all of creation. And he becamea brother in another way he never anticipated.Other men joined him, and they became abrotherhood who embraced lepers and livedout the Gospel passage, the form of life givento them in the Gospel for the Mass of St.Matthias. St. Francis relates the coming of thebrothers in these words:

“And after the Lord gave me some brothers,no one showed me what do; but the MostHigh revealed to me that I was to live after themanner of the Holy Gospel. And I had it writ-ten down in brief, simple words and the LordPope confirmed it for me. And those whocame to receive this life gave everything tothe poor, and they were happy with one tunicpatched inside and out, and with a cord andbreeches. And we had no desire for anythingelse.”

The Penance of ConversionAnd Francis himself began to fall deeper anddeeper in love with the Christ he met in theleper and in all those other servants who werereally Christ: the poor, the marginal, thoserejected by society, the weak, the infirm, thepowerless. For, in loving Christ, Francis realizedthat the servant is the Lord, and the Lord is theservant. More importantly, he realized thatthe penance he was to preach, and his broth-ers were to preach, is the penance of conver-sion, of letting go of one’s ego and surrenderingto a love which to others seems madness, butto the true lover is sanity.

True, even to a deeply committed disciplelike St. Francis, the embrace of Christ can feelat times like annihilation, like death itself,because, in fact, one is dying to something.One is dying to a false self that tries to beGod, that tries to always be in control. But thatdying is really life, the new life Jesus promisedto those who relinquish their own willfulness

as he did when he said in the Garden of Geth-semane, “My Father, if it is possible, may thiscup be taken from me. Yet not as I will but asyou will.”

That surrendering of his own will to theFather’s will was the beginning of Christ’s res-urrection and our resurrection, for by accept-ing the cup the Father offers us, we acceptdeath, but a death that is life-giving.

This text is excerpted from the new bookFrancis and Jesus by Murray F. Bodo (Fran-ciscan Media).

Murray Bodo, OFM, is a Franciscan priest and the author ofnumerous award-winning books, such as Francis: The Jour-ney and the Dream. He writes and lectures on Franciscan spir-ituality, and travels yearly to Rome and Assisi, where heleads Franciscan pilgrimages.

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St. Francis’ embrace of theleper, as seen in thismosaic located in VaticanCity, was a key point inFrancis’ conversion.


hen Jesuit Cardinal Jorge MarioBergoglio chose to be calledPope Francis after St. Francisof Assisi, many people around

the world were surprised but approved in-stantly.

Although Francis of Assisi was canonizedtwo years after he died in 1226, no pope hadever selected that name. Cardinal Bergoglio’schoice was innovative (patron of ecology), yettraditional (Francis and Catherine of Siena areco-patrons of Italy). Pope Francis will certainlyhave more to say about his namesake when hevisits Assisi on October 4, the feast of St. Fran-cis of Assisi.

A new papal style and new priorities haveclearly emerged. Indeed, in one of the generalcongregations before the conclave, CardinalBergoglio stated that the Church needs to beless “self-referential” and more focused oncalling attention to Jesus than to itself. Fran-cis of Assisi could not have agreed morestrongly.

Perhaps Popes Nicholas IV, Sixtus IV, SixtusV, and Clement XIV (all Franciscans) didn’t

choose the name Francis because they wantedto avoid setting the bar too high for them-selves. Or maybe they passed over the name forthe same reason other popes have not takenthe name Peter—out of respect.

Pope Francis has certainly set the bar highfor himself—and, by extension, for theCatholic Church. Other Christians quickly res-onated with his name choice because St. Fran-cis of Assisi can teach everyone a great deal.

Explaining His ChoiceOn March 16, Pope Francis told over 5,000journalists in the Paul VI Audience Hall thatwhen he was elected, Cardinal ClaudioHummes, OFM, hugged him and said, “Don’tforget the poor.” Pope Francis described his newpatron as “the man of poverty, the man ofpeace, the man who loves and protects creation. . . with which we don’t have such a good rela-tionship.”

After saying, “How I would like a Churchthat is poor and that is for the poor,” the popenoted that the Church “does not have a polit-ical nature, but a spiritual one.”


B Y PAT M C C L O S K E Y, O F M

Pope Francis

Why theName FitsThis first Jesuit pope chose the name Francis. His actions are telling us why.

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Pope Francis waves as he meets with patients, family, and staff at St.Francis of Assisi Hospital in Rio de Janeiro July 24. The pope addressed agroup of recovering drugaddicts, offering them amessage of compassionand hope as well as a callto self-determination.

Pope Francis sits withVatican workers after cele-brating Mass March 22inside the chapel of theDomus Sanctae Marthae,the Vatican residencewhere the new pontiffresides. The pope took aseat in the back row aspeople lingered for privateprayer.

That is reinforced through the pope’schoices. For example, he lives in a small suiteat the Vatican’s Domus Sanctae Marthae (amodest hotel) instead of the apostolic palace,and usually celebrates daily Mass and gives ahomily at his new residence. For years, Cardi-nal Bergoglio had lived in a modest apart-ment, done his own cooking, and taken publictransportation. He caught the world’s attentionby naming a commission of eight cardinals toadvise him on governing the Church andreforming the Roman Curia. They are meetingon October 3 and 4.

“The Church,” Pope Francis told the journal-ists, “is the people of God, the holy people of

God, because it is journeying toward anencounter with Jesus Christ. Christ is the pas-tor of the Church, but his presence passesthrough the freedom of human beings. Amongthem, one is chosen to serve as his vicar onearth. But Christ is the center, the focal point.”

The pope then urged thejournalists to continue trying“to discover the true nature ofthe Church and its journeythrough the world, with itsvirtues, as well as its sins.”

The pope’s July 8 visit to theItalian island of Lampedusa (to

show solidarity with immigrants) and, later, toRio de Janeiro (to participate in World YouthDay) reflected the concerns and style of hisservice as bishop of Rome and pope.

Pope Francis in BrazilHis July 22-29 visit to Rio de Janeiro and to theMarian shrine at Aparecida confirmed a newpapal style.

At Aparecida, the heads of bishops’ confer-ences of Latin America spent a month in 2007,drawing up a plan for evangelizing that con-tinent anew. Cardinal Bergoglio chaired thatwork. Catholic News Service reported that onJuly 24 he told pilgrims there, “The Aparecidadocument was born of this interplay betweenthe labors of the bishops and the simple faithof the pilgrims.” He later said, “Always knowin your hearts that God is by your side; henever abandons you.”

Later that day he described the Hospital ofSt. Francis of Assisi in a working-class neigh-borhood as “a shrine of human suffering”whose patients are “the flesh of Christ.” The

pope went on to recall Francis’ embraceof a leper outside Assisi. During thisvisit, Pope Francis dedicated a newwing for treatment of users of crackcocaine. He described the entire hospi-tal as a place where “the parable of thegood Samaritan is made tangible. Herethere is no indifference, but concern.There is no apathy, but love.”

On July 25, he told the residents ofRio’s Varginha shantytown: “Onlywhen we are able to share do webecome truly rich; everything that isshared is multiplied! The measure ofthe greatness of a society is found inthe way it treats those most in need,those who have nothing apart fromtheir poverty!”

That day’s welcoming ceremony atCopacabana Beach drew an estimated 1 millionpilgrims. Rhoe Price (20, from Narre Warren,Australia) described the humility and simplic-ity of the pope as “inspiring,” reported CatholicNews Service.

Two days later, Pope Francis urged Brazilianbishops to lead without being authoritarian, tolive simply and austerely, and to avoid episco-pal careerism. He also pointed out that cleri-calism has kept the Church from fulfilling itsmission of sharing Jesus’ good news.

At the final Mass, Pope Francis urged thosepresent to go, to not be afraid, and to serve.“The life of Jesus is a life for others. It is a lifeof service,” he reminded them.

Everything Belongs to GodSt. Francis of Assisi considered “appropria-tion” as the root sin because it claims for a per-son what belongs to God alone. In calling usto live more truthfully, Pope Francis is invitingus to avoid claiming for ourselves what belongsto God alone.


For more resources on PopeFrancis, click here.

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Pope Francis blesses a boyin the Varginha shanty-town in Rio de Janeiro July25, during his weeklongvisit to Brazil for WorldYouth Day.

(Above) Pope Francisaccepts the offertory giftsduring Mass on the islandof Lampedusa July 8. Thepope called for repentanceover treatment ofmigrants during his visitto the Italian island wheremassive numbers ofAfricans have landed inattempts to reach Europe.

(Left) Pope Francis holds a dove before his weeklyaudience in St. Peter’sSquare May 15.

To put it another way, Pope Francis, who wasa servant leader as archbishop of Buenos Airesfor 15 years, is encouraging Catholics and oth-ers to avoid appropriation, but, instead, to behumbly attentive to the truth, goodness, andbeauty that come from God alone.

At the July 25 welcoming ceremony atCopacabana Beach, Pope Francis cited St. Paul’sadvice, “Put on Christ” (Rom 13:14). The popecontinued: “Place your trust in him and youwill never be disappointed! You see how faithaccomplishes a revolution in us, one which wecan call Copernican, because it removes usfrom the center and restores it to God; faithimmerses us in his love and gives us security,strength, and hope.”

Francis of Assisi would heartily agree.

Father Pat McCloskey, OFM, is Franciscan editor of this pub-lication. He edited Franciscan Media’s updated and revisedSaint of the Day volume published last month.

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“During this time we will need to keepour gaze fixed upon Jesus Christ, the‘pioneer and perfecter of our faith’ (Heb12:2); in him, all the anguish and allthe longing of the human heart findsfulfillment.” Pope Emeritus BenedictXVI, Door of Faith, 13

When I read these words ofPope Emeritus Benedict, Ican only think of the

saint who inspires his successor. Itwas St. Francis who kept his gazefixed on Christ, in his personalprayer before the crucifix in the littleSan Damiano chapel. It was in prayerthat Francis began to make sense ofhis own life after the disappointmentand failure he experienced in chas-ing a dream of fame and glory as aknight.

There’s a mid-’60s film called Alfiewhich made an impression on mebefore I knew much about St. Francis.Alfie portrayed the tragic story of ayoung man who led a promiscuouslife. Eventually, after he experienceda series of bad breaks, Alfie decidedto reform his life. He found someonewhom he wanted to marry, only todiscover that she had other lovers.The film ends with the disheartenedAlfie searching for the meaning ofhis life. Finally, the credits roll paston the screen to the tune: “What’s itall about, Alfie?”

For me, the film was an existentiallesson at a critical time in my life.Alfie stiffened my resolve to live ameaningful life and move closer toGod. Today, whenever I hear thatAlfie tune, I feel pulled to continueliving my life as a Franciscan. I findhappiness in living a life in Christ,for I believe I am making a solid con-tribution toward building a betterworld. I testify that faith is the doorby which we humans will make

sense out of life. For me, Alfie is a1960s version of the quest for Godand the search for the meaning oflife.

Pope Francis’ recent encyclicalLumen Fidei (#20) highlights the factthat life takes on new meaning forall who search for love: “Faith’s newway of seeing things is centered onChrist. Faith in Christ brings salva-tion because in him our lives becomeradically open to a love that precedesus, a love that transforms us fromwithin, acting in us and through us.”

Only keeping our gaze fixed onChrist keeps you and me growingtoward fulfillment of the deepestlonging of our human hearts. It isgood for us to follow the example ofSt. Francis and keep our focus onChrist.

Father Dan Kroger, OFM, is the publisher/CEOof Franciscan Media. He has taught at highschools and colleges both in the United Statesand in the Philippines, and has a doctorate intheology from the University of Notre Dame.

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Y E A R O F F A I T H ❘ BY DAN KROGER, OFM

Our Gaze Fixed on Jesus

S T . F R A N C I S O F A S S I S IFrancis of Assisi was a poor little manwho astounded and inspired theChurch by taking the Gospel literally—not in a narrow fundamentalist sense,but by actually following all that Jesussaid and did, joyfully, without limit andwithout a sense of self-importance.

From the crucifix in the neglectedfield-chapel of San Damiano, Christtold him, “Francis, go out and build upmy house, for it is nearly fallingdown.” Francis became the poor andhumble workman.The rest, as they say,is history. He is the most imitated saint in Christendom whether it be byFranciscan priests, brothers, sisters, or secular Franciscans, or just bysomeone who is inspired to simplicity. His feast is October 4.

Most High, glorious God,

enlighten the darkness

of my heart

and give me true faith,

certain hope and perfect charity,

sense and knowledge,

Lord, that I may carry out

Your holy and true command.

– St. Francis of Assisi

Prayer before the Crucifix

ILLUSTRATION

BY JULIE LON

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L I V I N G S I M P L Y ❘ BY SUSAN HINES-BRIGGER

Fall Cleanup

1 Add color.Most of the year our homeshave basically the samecolor palette. Pick up a pil-low, candles, or someother small item in adifferent color fromthe rest of yourroom. That littlepop of color canmake a big differ-ence. You mighteven want togo outside andgather some colorful leavesand flowers, or pinecones, andput them in a bowl on a table.Make sure you haven’t brought in anylittle creatures with your treasures,though!

2Move things around.At least once a year, my husband,Mark, and I rearrange the furniture inat least one of our rooms. You’d be sur-prised how just changing the room’ssetup will make a difference. Plus, aswe always say, it’s much cheaper thanmoving.

3 Clean up.Everyone talks a lot about spring clean-ing, but how about doing a good deepcleaning of your home in the fall?Clean the windows. Pull down the cur-tains and throw them in the washingmachine. If you can, dry them outsidefor that fresh smell.

4 I mean clean everything.While cleaning your house is one goodidea, why not clean up some otherareas of your life, also? Go throughyour address book and update it.(Christmas card time will be comingsoon.) Remove names you no longerneed. Slog through your e-mail and©

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With the holidays fast approaching,many of us will be looking for waysto spruce up our homes without

breaking the bank. Here are some quick andeasy ways to get a change around the house.


pare it down. Clothes, books, movies,CDs: cut down your collection of eachof these.

5 Get cooking.In the next two months, you’re proba-bly going to be doing a lot of cooking,from meals to side dishes to dessertsand cookies. Try out some of therecipes that you’ve been stashingaway—either literally or on your com-puter/Pinterest page. If they’re a suc-cess, put them in rotation. If not, sendthem to the trash.

Fall is also a perfect time to start making thosecomfort foods. One of my favorite fall go-torecipes is my grandma’s BBQ.

2 lbs. ground chuck1 small onion, chopped1 green or red pepper, cut into small pieces

(optional)2 Tbs. sugar1 Tbs. vinegar1 15-ounce can tomato puree10 Tbs. barbecue sauceDash of dry mustard

Brown meat, onion, and green pepper in a pot.Add all other ingredients. Mix well. Let simmerfor about 1 hour, stirring occasionally to preventburning on bottom.

Grandma’s BBQ

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MY SON HAS TREMENDOUS EMPATHY for animals. It’s humansfor whom he lacks sympathy.

Tonight is a perfect example. Moments after we leave thehospital, Jeff stomps on the car brakes. My tense upper bodyjerks forward.

“Do you see that?” he asks.I see nothing. He continues pointing at the grassy median. In the

beam of our headlights, I make out a small, white animal.“Your father is having open-heart surgery in the morning. This might

not be the best time to rescue a dog.”My voice sounds unfamiliar and panicked. It doesn’t matter since Jeff

hasn’t heard me anyway. He is outside the car, feeding the dog stringcheese and coaxing it into his open arms. He is good at this. In a matterof minutes, Jeff plops the filthy creature onto my lap.

I like dogs. It’s just that I haven’t slept in two days and I’m not emo-tionally prepared for tomorrow. In less than eight hours, a team of sur-geons will harvest veins from my husband’s left leg, break into his chestcavity, and reroute the circulation system that keeps his heart beating. Ifall doesn’t go perfectly, I will be forced to take a leave from my work asa flight attendant. It is my job that keeps the family covered by healthinsurance.

The small dog licks each of the fingers of my right hand.“We have to keep the house sterile for when your dad comes home. He’ll

have open wounds.”“I’ll give her a bath. It’ll be fine. Everything will be fine.”Jeff is 19. I am almost 50. His optimism is due to a lack of life experi-

ence, but I wish I could grasp onto it anyway. He switches on the radioto the country station. I turn it off.

“I need quiet.”The dog tenses and Jeff reaches over to pet her. I have never felt so alone

in all my life.

As I prepare for bed that night, I hear the whirl of the blow dryerand suspect Jeff has given the dog a bath. He probably knows how.He’s been a volunteer at our local dog shelter since our beloved

sheltie passed away last year.I expect a sleepless night. Instead, I fall into an exhausted, dreamless

slumber. I wake only when my alarm buzzes at 4 a.m. Putting on a soft,blue tracksuit, I head to the kitchen where coffee is already brewing. Jeffis toasting himself an English muffin. I salute him with my coffee mug.

“Thanks. I didn’t expect you up so early.”“I’m coming with you to the hospital, and I want to take our princess

here for a long walk before we leave.”He gestures to the floor. I see a totally transformed creature wagging a

October 2013 ❘ 51

ILLUSTRATION

BY JACOB SAN

DERS

Family can heal a broken heart. F ICT ION BY KATHLEEN O ’CONNOR

Rescue Work

white tail. Her dark eyes hold mine asher tail continues to thump againstthe tile floor.

“She looks great.”“No fleas, skin diseases, or any-

thing,” Jeff says. “Her hair wasn’t evenvery matted. I’ll go to animal rescuelater and see if she has a microchip orif anyone is looking for her.”

“Yes, later,” I say. So much has tohappen first—namely Joe’s surgery.

My husband is upbeat when wearrive in his hospital room. I had fearedbreaking down, but our mood is almostfestive. Jeff tells him about the dog.

“She loos like a Pomeranian-Maltese mix.”

“Very cute,” I add.“Do we want to keep her?” Joe asks.Jeff gives a noncommittal shrug.

“We’ll see.”He never allows himself a dog

because he continually plans to leaveFlorida. Sometimes he talks about back-packing in New Zealand. Other timeshe mentions volunteer work in Cali-fornia. College doesn’t appeal to him,and in the year since he graduatedhigh school, there’s been no payingjob that has held his interest. Hespends most of his time doing volun-teer work at the animal rescue.

I pull out my cell phone and callmy mother-in-law in Iowa. She is anx-ious to tell her son that she will beattending Mass while he’s in surgery.

I hand the phone to Joe and hearhim say, “Thanks, Mom. I’ll talk toyou soon. Carole and Jeff will keepyou posted.”

Joe is tanned, trim, and just begin-ning to go gray at the temples. Helooks too young for blocked arter-

ies. But I know we are lucky because hehas a chance to get the problem cor-rected. The two uncles he lost to sud-den cardiac death weren’t so fortunate.

The surgical team arrives and in-structs us where to wait. A nursepromises to call me halfway throughthe surgery and let me know how it’sgoing. I give Joe a quick kiss and gowith Jeff to the waiting room, where acouple other anxious families are seated.

I sink down onto a chair and try totake deep breaths. Jeff pulls a cross-

word puzzle book out of his pocket.“Want this?”“Thanks. Maybe later,” I reply.I pat his hand. It is thoughtful of

him to bring my favorite distraction.Right now there is too much static inmy brain to focus on anything. Joe,who seemed in perfect health until afew days ago, is now being kept aliveby a heart-and-lung machine.

Jeff used to be our biggest concern.He seemed unfocused and direction-less. Now I am just glad he is here withme. He walks with me when I am sum-moned to the phone.

“It’s all going well,” the nursereports. “A textbook case.”

Jeff and I are encouraged enough toapproach the coffee urn and pour our-selves some strong, institutional coffee.We sit down and he starts a crossword.

“What’s a three-letter word foranger?” he asks.

“Ire.”He hands over the puzzle and, col-

lectively, we finish it. I do most of it,but he supplies the names of celebritiesI’m not familiar with. Jeff gets us somecroissants and I try to eat mine, thoughmy throat is dry and my hands areshaking. I’ve always tried not to burdenhim with my worries. Today it’s notpossible. Jeff watches as I flip throughmagazine after magazine.

“Do you think Dad got this hearttrouble from stress?”

I shake my head. We’ve had a fewtough years since Joe lost his corporatejob, but I don’t think that caused hisheart problems.

“It’s mostly genetics. Cardiovasculardisease runs in his family.”

“And mine.”“You’re right. Time to give up some

of that fast food.”Jeff’s favorite food is something that

can be eaten while driving. He ges-tures to the complimentary cardiaccookbooks on the table in front of us.

“Guess I’ll take one home.”An hour later, the door to the Car-

diac Intensive Care opens and the sur-geon summons us. A small man clad ingreen scrubs greets us warmly and takesus to a glass room where Joe is sleeping.We get to peek in from the doorway. Aswe were warned, there are lots of tubes.

“He won’t wake for some hours. It’sbest if you go home, get some rest,and come back tomorrow. There is stilla small risk of stroke or infection, butall is going very well.”

Jeff and I nod and repeat almost inunison. “Thank you, doctor.”

We walk silently toward the parkinggarage. As we emerge from the hospi-tal doors, a wave of heat envelops us.I rip off my jacket.

“It was so cold in there.”Jeff isn’t listening. He is keying the

numbers in his cell phone for a call tohis grandmother.

“It’s over,” he tells her. “Dad’s doinggreat. Mom’s a wreck.”

I couldn’t be that upbeat so I amglad he is being the family spokesper-son. “Thanks, Jeff. I couldn’t have sur-vived today without you.”

When we get home, the livingroom floor is covered withshredded newspapers.

“The dog freaked. Sorry, Mom.”As Jeff leashes up the puppy, he

waits for me to erupt in anger. In thepast, I’ve lost my cool over smallerproblems. Today is different. I grab awastebasket and broom.

“It’s OK. I need something method-ical to do. Besides it’s not her fault.She was left alone too long.”

After walking the dog, Jeff an-nounces, “I’m taking her to the res-cue to have them scan her and see ifshe has a microchip.”

“OK.”I fix myself some canned soup and

note the sodium content. Our way ofeating will have to change drastically.I try to keep myself busy with laundryand cleaning, but my concentrationis poor and, finally, I turn the TV onand just stare ahead. In the middle ofDancing with the Stars, Jeff returns. Heis alone.

“What’s happening with the dog?”“She had an identification chip.

Some old couple from Palmetto cameto get her. They were having theirkitchen remodeled. The contractor leftthe door open and she got scared andran out.”

“I bet they were thrilled.”“Yup.”


I want to tell him how much goodhe has accomplished, but he has goneto his room and turned on his music—loud. I stay put.

Jeff isn’t up the next morning whenI leave for the hospital. I leave him anote and go back to the waiting roomoutside the Cardiac Intensive Care.The room is still freezing. I give myname to the nurse and, after a three-hour wait, I’m rewarded with a briefvisit with my husband.

Joe is sitting up in a chair and smil-ing. His hands and feet are swollen,but he looks like himself as he says tome, “It’s tomorrow.”

“Yes, it is. You slept a long time.”That brief exchange exhausts Joe,

so I leave and let the staff do their job.I trudge up to the gift shop and buymyself a novel. It’s one of those booksthat have multiple narrators and acomplicated plot.

At page 40, I abandon it and just sitthere watching other families. Mostlook worn and anxious. I wish Jeff werehere with me, but I suppose he hasreturned to his own life. At dinner, Joeand I are allowed another brief visit.

“Go on home. You look tired,” hesays. “I’ll have my own room tomor-row.”

It’s Joe who looks tired.“OK.” I give him a quick kiss.As I reach the door, he says, “Re-

mind Jeff that he and I are watchingthe Hawkeyes tomorrow.”

I nod, but I doubt Jeff remembersthis. His focus has shifted back to theanimals and his loud music. I don’tsee how I can return to work next weekand leave Joe with an erratic teenageras his sole caregiver.

On the drive home, I comfortmyself with thoughts of a four-cheese pizza. There’s one in

the freezer that I intend to heat up,accompanied by a steaming cup of cof-fee. If Jeff isn’t home I may eat thewhole thing myself. For the first timein three days, I’m hungry.

Jeff is home and in the kitchen. Heis chopping a zucchini into huge, crudechunks.

“I thought we might have pizza,” Itell him before yanking open the door

and staring into my empty freezer.“I donated all that stuff to the

church’s food bank. We can’t eat thatmuch sodium anymore.” He gesturesto the cookbook he picked up at thehospital. “I thought I’d make someminestrone soup.”

I want to cry and scream simulta-neously. I know my emotions are outof proportion to my small disappoint-ment. I can hear my husband’s calmvoice saying, “Just because he doesn’tthink like you doesn’t mean he’swrong.”

I grab a near-empty tin of creamcheese that has escaped his purge andspread it on low-sodium crackers. AfterI’ve taken the edge off my hunger andsaid a quick prayer for both patienceand grace, I offer to help him with thesoup.

“I could use some guidance,” Jeffsays.

I demonstrate how to cut the veg-etables up into small pieces and weget a soothing rhythm going. I feelcomfortable enough to ask, “Were youdisappointed that dog had owners?”

“No,” Jeff says. “That was kind of asissy dog. If we get a dog, we should letDad pick it out. That could be a goodway to get him walking. Dogs can helpwith depression too. So this needs to behis dog.”

“You’re right.” While I’ve been stuckin the panicked present, Jeff is plan-ning for the future.

“Dad and I are going to watch foot-ball tomorrow and give you an after-noon off.”

So he did remember. My eyes start towater, and I pretend it’s from thesteaming broth.

Jeff dumps the chopped vegetablesinto the pot, gives it a stir, and says,“Dad and I will be OK here when yougo back to work.”

And in that moment, I know theywill be.

Kathleen O’Connor lives in Sun City Center, Florida,and is the author of four novels: The Way It Happensin Novels, No Doubt, A Private Matter, and Men of Par-adise. Her short stories and articles have appearedin Good Housekeeping, Liguorian, Redbook, Seventeen,and Woman’s World, as well as this publication.

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What difference is there between amonk, a friar, and a brother? Also,members of religious communitiesplace initials after their family nameto indicate the community to whichthey belong. Where can I find a listof those initials?

For almost 800 years, officially recog-nized religious communities in theCatholic Church had as memberseither monks (men), nuns (cloisteredwomen), or hermits (either gender).In the earliest days, few monks wereordained as priests; most werelaypeople who took religious vows.In more recent times, most monkshave been ordained after they madetheir final monastic vows.

Mendicant (begging) friars beganwith the Trinitarians in 1198 andwere soon followed by the Francis-cans (1209), Dominicans (1216),

Carmelites (1245), and Augustinians(1256). Minims and Mercedarianswere later classified as mendicants.

Some of the members of thesecommunities are priests or are study-ing to be priests; other members arebrothers. I am not aware of any friargroup that has a difference in its reli-gious garb to identify priests orbrothers. The generic English term“friar” comes from the Latin frater,“brother.”

Regarding initials after someone’sfamily name: these usually derivefrom the formal title of that group—in many cases in Latin. Dominicansuse “OP” for Order of Preachers.Franciscans use “OFM” for Order ofFriars Minor. Conventual Franciscansand Capuchin Franciscans add“Conv” and “Cap,” respectively.

Later apostolic groups adopted thiscustom. Jesuits are neither monks

nor friars. They use “SJ” to stand forSociety of Jesus.

Some religious families have bothmen’s and women’s branches. BothBenedictine men and women, forexample, use “OSB” to indicate“Order of St. Benedict.” Similarly,“OP” is used by both Dominicanwomen and men.

A list of initials used by religiouscongregations in the United Statescan be found in the Official CatholicDirectory. The Annuario Pontificio hassimilar lists for religious congrega-tions around the world. Both booksare published annually. Other listscan be found through Internetsearches.

Strictly speaking, only cloisteredwomen religious are nuns; membersof other types of women’s com-munities are more properly called sisters.

A S K A F R A N C I S C A N ❘ BY FATHER PAT McCLOSKEY, OFM

Monks, Friars, Brothers

May Everyone Receive Holy Communion?Last year I attended a funeralMass for a friend. A visitingpriest announced that thedeceased person wanted every-one present to receive holyCommunion. There were Christians, non-Christians, andprobably some atheists. Is thatallowed?

Also, can a priest give generalabsolution at any Mass?

The answer to both questions isno. The preference of a deceasedperson does not overrule theCatholic Church’s directivesabout holy Communion.

The “Guidelines for the reception of Commu-nion” have appeared in every Catholic worship aid

published in the United Statesfor over 20 years. These are usu-ally found on the inside front orinside back cover of these publi-cations.

General absolution is gov-erned by the Rite of Penanceapproved by the Holy See in1973. Use of the “Rite of Recon-ciliation of Several Penitentswith General Confession andAbsolution” (Form III in theRite) has been restricted in morerecent years.

It is normally reserved foremergency situations (a planeabout to crash or a ship about to

sink). Some Catholic military chaplains have givengeneral absolution to troops about to go into battle.

CNS

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Fr anciscanMedia.org October 2013 ❘ 55

Why No Saints on Some Days?After reading through FranciscanMedia’s Saint of the Day book, thefollowing question occurs to me:With many thousands of canonizedpeople, why are there approximately80 days of the year when no saint isassigned?

Our Saint of the Day book follows the Roman (worldwide) calendar,with a few additional entries for US,Canadian, Mexican, or Franciscansaints/blesseds.

You are correct that there are thousands of officially recognizedsaints (6,500 in the 2001 edition ofthe Martyrologium Romanum andmany more since then).

In an earlier “Ask a Franciscan”column, I answered a similar ques-tion, explaining the various types ofliturgical calendars: worldwide,national, diocesan, or special forsome religious congregation.

The feast of Sts. Simon and Judemust be celebrated worldwide on October 28. The feast of St. Marguerite d’Youville is celebratedon October 16 in Canada, but maybe celebrated elsewhere as well.

The situation is different for thoserecognized as blessed. At themoment, for example, the October22 feast of Blessed John Paul II (soonto be canonized) may be officiallycelebrated in Poland, Italy, theUnited States, and some other coun-tries. The feast of Blessed John HenryNewman may be officially celebratedon October 9 in Great Britain andperhaps elsewhere.

You can access my more thoroughNovember 2006 response via theArchive section at StAnthonyMessenger.org.

The worldwide calendar was com-pletely overhauled in 1970, and several feasts have been officiallyadded since then. A new overhaulwas announced several years ago, butit has not yet happened. The revised1970 calendar moved some feasts outof Advent and Lent but left others in those seasons.

The eighth edition of Saint of theDay was published last month. AtAmericanCatholic.org’s “Saint ofthe Day” Internet feature, you willfind two calendars. One of them hasall the saints on the worldwide cal-endar and a few more. The other cal-endar identifies many days with twoor more saints or blesseds.

Lourdes and FatimaWhat’s the difference between theseshrines? Was Theresa Neumanninvolved in either one of them?

The first difference is geographic:Lourdes is in south central France,close to the border with Spain.Fatima is in northern Portugal.

The second difference is chrono-logical: the Blessed Virgin Maryappeared to St. Bernadette Soubirous(1844-1879) several times in Lourdesin 1858. She was canonized in 1933.In 1917, the Blessed Virgin appearedseveral times to three young shep-herds in Fatima. Francisco and

Jacinta Marto were beatified in 2000.Their cousin, Lucia dos Santos, diedin 2005.

Theresa Neumann (1898-1962)lived her entire life in Konnersreuth,Bavaria. It is said that, in 1926, shereceived the stigmata of Christ’swounds. The Catholic Church hasmade no official pronouncement onthis. She had no direct connection toLourdes or to Fatima.

Correction: Fox News is headquar-tered at 1211 Avenue of the Ameri-cas, New York, NY 10036. Anincorrect address appeared in theFebruary 2013 column.

A

Father Pat welcomes your questions!Send them to: Ask a Franciscan, 28 W.Liberty Street, Cincinnati, OH 45202-6498,or [email protected]. All ques-tions sent by mail need to include a self-addressed stamped envelope. This column’sanswers can be searched back to April1996 at StAnthonyMessenger.org.

St. Anthony Messenger is only $39.00 for 12 monthly issues. This priceincludes our NEW digital edition: StAnthonyMessenger.org/DigitalEdition__ YES! Please begin my subscription.

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St. Anthony Messenger56 ❘ October 2013

DiscernmentReading the Signs of Daily LifeBy Henri J. M. Nouwen with Michael J. Christensen and Rebecca J. LairdHarperOne219 pages • $25.99Hardcover/paperback/e-book

Reviewed by ELIZABETH PILGRIM, a Catholicbook-reviewer with a longtime interest in signs.

THE FINAL VOLUME in Nouwen’s posthu-mous trilogy, this book builds on the previ-ous two as it moves the reader fromquestions to movements to signs. Thepremise of this book is that God is alwaysspeaking to us, and that discernment is thespiritual practice that accesses and seeks tounderstand what God is trying to say.

This third volume was also developedfrom original materials found in the Henri J.M. Nouwen Archives in the Kelly Library,Saint Michael’s College, University ofToronto, with the support and cooperationof the Henri J. M. Nouwen Estate andNouwen Legacy Trust.

Nouwen’s literary executrix, Sue Mosteller,took an active role in the previous volumesand worked especially hard on this final vol-ume, which all involved agreed was themost difficult to compile and develop fromthe Nouwen journals and availableresources. The book includes a preface byChristensen and Laird, a foreword byNouwen’s former Harvard student and closefriend Robert A. Jonas, an introduction, epi-logue, and appendix written by Nouwenhimself, and appendices.

While numerous, these additions do notseem superfluous to the primary text, andindeed shed light on Nouwen.

This third volume concludes the spiritualtrilogy, which presents his distinctiveapproach to contemplation, community,and compassion in the world through spiri-tual direction, formation, and discernment.

Part One explores the nature of discern-ment, including the spiritual gifts and scrip-tural practice of distinguishing spirits oftruth from falsehood. Nouwen defines thegift and practice of discernment as rooted inthe core disciplines of the Christian life:prayer, community, worship, and ministry.

Part Two focuses on the process of seekingGod’s guidance in books, nature, people,and events. Nouwen shares what he learnedfrom his mentor, Thomas Merton, anddescribes his own experience.

Part Three concludes with new insightsdescribed in the preface about “our core iden-tity as God’s beloved children, experiencingthe divine presence in the human heart(memoria Dei) and knowing when to act,when to wait, and when to be led or actedupon, according to God’s time (kairos) . . . .”

Each chapter ends with “Exercises forDeeper Discernment.” While the book can beread in a day or two, it is best read devotion-ally over a few weeks and accompanied byregular spiritual practice. These Exercises arean added value in this volume because, if thereader undertakes them, he or she will enterthe path of a Christian discernment processthat is not the same as decision-making.

Nouwen claims that discernment is aboutlistening and responding to that placewithin us where our deepest desires alignwith God’s desire. We sort through ourimpulses, motives, and options to discoverwhich ones lead us closer to divine love andcompassion for ourselves and other peopleand which lead us further away.

In sharing his own struggles and ongoingdiscernment process, Nouwen lives on for usas a spiritual friend. He takes us by the handdown that road where we’ll meet with thetimeless dimension of Jesus Christ, the lifethat the crucified and risen Jesus shares withus now.

B O O K C O R N E R ❘ BY CAROL ANN MORROW

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Common Sense FaithBy Patrick J. BrennanOrbis Books230 pages • $20.00Paperback/e-book

Reviewed by MARK WILKINS, a religion teacher atSt. Xavier High School, Cincinnati,Ohio.

THIS ENGAGING AND THOUGHTFUL seriesof reflections is a challenge to read orreview. To give a complete sense of thisbook’s value would mean reviewing each ofthe 67 essays individually!

Each reflection is three to four pages longwith some combination of Father Brennan’sreflection on his own life, the Scripture ofthe day, and issues in the news. Each one issuccinct, but not simplified.

The author has grouped the chapters bycentral themes, but the distinctions are notexclusive: Jesus, Conversion, Church, Sacra-ments and Prayer, and Mercy and Justice.Nor are the sections balanced, since 27 ofthe essays focus in some way on conversion.These were the chapters that hit closest tohome. Some of them were speaking directlyto me. Others might speak to my studentsabout the journey of faith.

In the preface, the Chicago priest saysthat people want a livable spirituality in thepreaching, welcoming communities, min-istries that center on real-life needs, andworship that offers an opportunity for gen-uine religious experience.

While I am not sure how many years ofpreaching and writing these essays repre-sent, one can trace the development of ideasand Brennan’s own spirituality by the last ofthe series. One could guess that these essaysare expansions of talks he has given inChicagoland and beyond (he’s a regular pre-senter, for example, at the Los Angeles Reli-gious Education Congress).

Fr anciscanMedia.org October 2013 ❘ 57

Becoming Catholic Again Connecting the Faith We Were Taughtwith the Faith We LiveBy Catherine Wiecher BrunellLoyola Press244 pages • $13.95Paperback

This book describes the discovery of an adultfaith that is congruent with both the author’slived experience and Church Tradition. To findgrace, she says, we should focus on the lives welead and meet the needs we see in the world.

Take the PlungeLiving Baptism and ConfirmationBy Timothy RadcliffeBloomsbury Publishing312 pages • $16.95Paperback

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Louder than WordsThe Art of Living as a CatholicBy Matthew LeonardOur Sunday Visitor Publishing160 pages • $14.95Paperback

“You don’t have to be a mystic or possess extraordinary gifts to become a neon sign thatpoints to Christ,” says Matthew Leonard. Hisbook is full of wry wit and engaging stories,suggesting ways Catholics can demonstrate anauthentic, powerful, and contagious faith,attractive to even the most cynical.

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A C A T H O L I C M O M S P E A K S ❘ BY SUSAN HINES-BRIGGER

How I Pray

“I’ll pray for you.”

How many times have I saidthose words to someone inresponse to something they

have told me or posted on Facebook?I’ve been part of prayer lists, prayerchains. I’ve taken part in novenas.I’ve been asked to be what might becalled a “prayer warrior.”

But a lot of times, amidst the bus-tle of life, despite my very best inten-tions, those promises to pray quicklyfall off my radar. While most peoplewould understand the occasionalfumble of intentions for which Ihave promised to pray, it bothers me.And it’s happened all too many

times. It bothers me because the factremains that this person, those peo-ple, the ones whom I have made apromise, need my prayers. So Idecided I needed to find some way tohonor my promise to pray for thatperson and his or her need.

A Needed InspirationShortly after, a friend gave me acopy of the book called The God Box,by Mary Lou Quinlan. I wasintrigued by the book’s premise. Theauthor recalls how her mother wouldwrite down all the intentions forwhich she had promised to pray andcollect them in a special box. That

way none of them would be forgot-ten or overlooked.

As I read, I wondered if this wasn’tperhaps an answer to my prayerproblem. I sat down and started writ-ing all the things for which I wantedto or had promised to pray—afriend’s daughter who is strugglingwith her diabetes, my dad as hemoves forward in life without mymom, for my daughter beginninghigh school, in thanksgiving for mysister-in-law beating breast cancer—the list went on and on. I went backand checked my Facebook page tosee if I had missed any promises. Loand behold, I had. I added them to


the list. How could I possibly rememberall of these? I wondered.

I didn’t want “I’ll pray for you” tobecome a rote answer that I gave topeople in a time of need just be-cause I didn’t know what else to say.

I wondered, though, what to dowith this list. Do I recite it every timeI pray? Looking at the long list ofintentions, I suspected that this prac-tice wouldn’t be sustainable. Instead,I decided to select one intentioneach day and dedicate my prayers tothat particular intention for the day.Of course, the others wouldn’t beforgotten, but rather remembered ina general prayer for all the intentionsfor which I had promised to pray.

The Next StepTelling someone I will rememberhim or her in my prayers is onething. But I decided that I wanted to

take it a step further and find waysto show that person I’m praying forhim or her. As I said before, each dayI choose one special intention forwhich to pray.

On that day, I decided to devotemy prayers to that person’s inten-tion, but I would also try to findsome tangible testament of myprayer.

For instance, I could drop a noteor e-mail to the person for whom I’mpraying, just to let him or her knowthat he or she is in my thoughts. Icould pick up the phone and callwhoever is connected to the day’sspecial intention. Or pick up someflowers—or make a bouquet from myown yard—and bring them to theperson. I might even make sometasty treat as a visual reminder of mypromise to pray.

If my intention for the day was

not a person, but rather an issue, Idecided to find whatever way toaddress it. That could be writing let-ters to my representatives, making adonation—just something.

Since I started my “God note-book,” I have found that I’m muchmore deliberate in my prayers. I findit easier to connect with each of theintentions, and the people or issueswith which they connect. I hopeyour God box can bring you thesame satisfaction and a moreenriched prayer life. A

These scenes may seem alike to you,

But there are changes in the two.

So look and see if you can name

Eight ways in which they’re not the same.

(Answers on page 35)

P E T E A N D R E P E A T

Do you have comments or suggestions fortopics you’d like to see addressed in thiscolumn? Send them to me at “A CatholicMom Speaks,” 28 W. Liberty St., Cincin-nati, OH 45202-6498, or e-mail them [email protected].

ILLUSTRATION

BY TOM

GREEN

E

WHAT DOES YOUR PRAYER BOX LOOK LIKE?

As I mentioned earlier, instead of a box to store myprayers, I prefer a notebook. In that notebook I some-times put photos of the person I’m praying for, or I’llcopy down particular prayers I find that seem to speakto me.

But you might find another vehicle to serve as yourprayer box. Perhaps it is truly a box. You can find onethat you find beautiful just the way it is. Or you can geta plain box at the craft store and decorate it any wayyou like.

Whatever you choose for your prayer box, make sureit speaks to you because, hopefully, the two of you willbe spending a lot of time together.

ILLUSTRATION

S BY MARY KURN

ICK MAASS

StAnthonyMessenger.org60 � October 2013

B A C K S T O R Y

Editor in Chief

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We have a few conversations going with our readers. Letters to

the editor (“From Our Readers”) is the oldest one, and it’s still

strong. We also have a steady stream of questions to Father

Pat’s “Ask a Franciscan,” which he personally answers. Some people send

donations to the Franciscans, which Father Dan handles, now with help

from Franciscan Sister Rose Lima. Once in a while, subscribers call and

want to talk to the editor.

As you might imagine, these are generally not satisfied people. Some-

thing in the magazine bothered them, and I’m glad to talk for a few min-

utes with them, listening to their point of view and trying to explain why

we published the so-called offensive story or column.

The editor who hired me years ago, Father Norman, had a

classic egg timer on his crowded desk. When someone started

to rant, he would turn over the egg timer and the sand would

flow. When the timer was done, so was he! So, three minutes

later, sand drained, he would argue the point a bit and,

inevitably, the caller would slam down the phone (pre-

cell phone). “They just called to hang up on the editor,” he

explained to this cub editor, as he settled back into his

anonymous “Ask the Wise Man” column.

Of course, these days we hear from a lot of folks via

AmericanCatholic.org, including prayer intentions (which

display behind the last pew at St. Anthony Shrine). We

have a lively Facebook page that Christopher Heffron moder-

ates (Facebook.com/StAnthonyMessenger), where he leads a real conver-

sation among readers and many others who are interested in St. Anthony

Messenger and the Franciscans.

Then there are the reader surveys, which are what got me thinking

about all of this. We’re re-starting the survey that we send out with

renewals. We did this for decades, then decided to take a break, as we

started our online survey (this month’s, for subscribers only, is at

StAnthonyMessenger.org/survey). Now, we see, it would be best to have

both surveys: online and the more labor-intensive print. As one respon-

dent said on last month’s new print survey, “I don’t have a computer.” I

know that’s the exception, but she reminds us there are different ways

readers like to talk with us. We welcome them all.

R E F L E C T I O N

I loved autumn, the one season of the year

that God seemed to have put there just for the beauty of it.

—Lee Maynard

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For 70 years, Catholics have put their faith into action

through the lifesaving work of Catholic Relief Services.

Join the compassionate champions of Christ who

serve the poor overseas. The goodness in your heart

can feed the hungry, heal the sick, care for orphans

and shelter the homeless in 91 countries. Love your

neighbors by answering their prayers with CRS.

Visit us at CRS.ORG to learn more.

Embrace the world with a Catholic heart.

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Cincinnati, OH 45202-6498

st. anthony messenger october 2013

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