The Blessing of Memories

“We all have our time machines. Some take us back, they are called memories. Some take us forward, they are called dreams. ”

— Jeremy Irons

Today, my heart was touched by the blessing of memories. The month of November offers me several occasions to think of my departed loved ones, All Souls Day, All Saints Day, and the anniversary of my mom’s death on the 19th.

As I recalled my loved ones, the phrase of our Jewish neighbours,  “May her or his memory be a blessing,” came to mind. One of the gifts of longer years is the treasure-house built up of memories to access, to be enjoyed. The beautiful human ability to evoke times, places, and relationships is indeed, as our faith companions often say, a blessing.

I invite you to recall one particular memory stored in your heart’s treasure house of memories today and behold the blessing.

-Nancy Wales, CSJ

IMAGES: Unsplash/Nathan Dumlao; Alex Guillaume

Celebrating Mother St. John Fontbonne

Love in the Underground

Mother St. John’s Anniversary of Death, November 22

Most of us are stunned with the recent results of the U.S. election.  For us Canadians, it is almost unbelievable that such a majority of Americans, our friends and allies, could choose Donald Trump over an excellent, integrous and forward-looking candidate like Kamala Harris.  How could this happen?

I won’t join the hordes of pundits who are trying to analyze what the Democrats did wrong, or what the Republicans did right.  What interests me, is just what is going on world-wide that makes this happening understandable?

The world’s pulse shows us a global shift to the far right, politically.  Many countries have had elections in the recent months and nearly all have opted to oust the incumbent, and choose someone farther to the right, more conservative, a party or an individual who promises to “make America great again”, “fix what is broken”, or “restore common sense” and make things stable the way they used to be.

People everywhere are experiencing chaos on many levels: floods, hurricanes, typhoons, volcanic eruptions, wildfires; housing crises, rising interest rates, economic instability, political polarization and upheaval of many kinds. Even the Catholic Church is experiencing the revolt of some Bishops and rebellion against Pope Francis’ leadership. Chaos seems to reign.

This is a scary moment to be alive. Folks are looking for something, someone, who can restore some order and stability. And so, they reach for someone who looks like a strong leader, who seems very sure of him/herself, confident and unafraid.  So they vote for an apparently strong leader, one whom they think will take charge, get a grip on things and bring them back to “normal”, i.e. the known, the secure, the stable. Of course, we all want stability and predictability. 

However, that impulse will not give us what we are looking for if that leader takes us in the wrong direction. Going back is not the way forward.  Helping us to ruin the environment even faster than at our current rate, will not bring us more stable global temperatures.  Deporting our countrymates, bullying other nations, reacting with force will not bring about peace.  Manipulating the markets for our own profit, will not produce economic stability.  These actions proceed from fear and end up producing more fear. “He who lives by the sword will die by the sword.”

Species that survive as the world evolves are not those that cling to their old ways of behaving, but those that adapt, change, and find new ways of doing things.  These species are not acting out of fear, but out of an urgency to survive.  Those that survive are not the majority, but they are the ones that make it to the next stage in the evolutionary process.

The earth and the universe proceed from Love and thrive on love.  When fear is the major dynamic at work, we need to counter that fear with creativity, bonding, mutual assistance, i.e. love, hope, trust, and gentle confidence.  In this war of world-views, “moving with love” is our way forward.  During the Second World War, thousands of people refused to cooperate with the Reich, by quietly working underground, harboring Jews, forging false documents to create new identities for them, carrying messages to the allied forces, and generally reaching across the divide, to do good, to be who they believed they were and wanted to be into the future. In time, that underground swell helped to carry the day.  Today we are called to be the underground, cooperating with the universe in its evolution into Love:  under the lies, to speak truth; under the hatred, to spread love, under the bullying to stand up for the undocumented, or the minorities, under the vociferous far-right of some versions of Christianity, to live the Gospel truth of love, compassion, inclusion and sharing.  It’s not glamorous.  It’s not big screen, but it is effective.  And it is Gospel. 

Mother St.John Fontbonne

Mother St. John and her Sisters lived through the reign of terror of the French Revolution.  Their moment in history took them there.  Our moment in history takes us here, now.  Will we react with fear, or keep on “moving with love”?

-Sister Mary Diesbourg, csj

Talking to a Stranger

Put Aside the Old Adage

With our childhood days behind us, it’s time to put aside an earlier message, “Don’t talk to strangers.” I’m hoping you are already aware that the week of November 18-25 is designated as Talk To A Stranger Week. But just in case you haven’t heard about it, hopefully, I can help you get up to speed. The week is intended to tout the positive advantages of reaching out to others and encouraging Canadians to try to engage with others. Something as simple as saying good morning, smiling, or striking up a conversation with someone unknown to us, displays trust. These friendly gestures have been correlated to individual well-being, thereby making a difference in our daily life and the lives of other people.

A 2021 Canadian Social Connection Survey highlighted that those who said they talked to a stranger just once a week were up to three times happier than those who didn’t speak to strangers. While this finding may seem unbelievable to some, other research suggests that only 20% of Canadians talk to strangers each day and it is nearly 100% of the time that both parties are happy that the exchange happened.  

Dr. Gillian Sandstrom, a Canadian researcher at the University of Sussex, suggests that a simple chat with a stranger can:​ improve well-being, make us happier, increase a sense of connection and improve levels of trust. Her research also indicates that practicing conversations with strangers for at least a week can reduce the fear of rejection and boost confidence!

For our well-being and that of others - let’s initiate reaching out to others. With the world as it is, don’t we all want a boost of confidence and a greater sense of belonging?

-Sister Nancy Wales, CSJ

IMAGES: Lina Trochez @lmtrochezz | Egor Litvinov @litvinov /Unsplash

An Anniversary Celebration in Le Puy

SISTER MARY DIESBOURG SHARES HER JOURNEY TO FRANCE

October 17, 2024 was the 20th Anniversary Celebration of the International Centre-St. Joseph in Le Puy, France. 

One of the magic moments that stands out for me, and remains in my recurring memories, is our first view of Le Puy as we approached the town on route 88, in the waning sunlight of early evening. By that time, we had been awake for about 32 hours or more and were struggling to keep our heads up and our eyes open.  Yet, as we saw the outline of the Le Puy skyline, we all gasped and drew in our breath, deeply moved by the gently rolling hills of that ancient volcanic area, with the statue of Notre Dame de France piercing the evening sky.  It was beautiful, and felt like a welcome, a homecoming. 

Sisters Josette, Sheila, and Mary

Sister Josette, of the Erie, Pennsylvania Congregation, Sister Sheila of the Philadelphia SSJ’s, and myself, (pictured above), had agreed to meet in the Lyon airport, so we could share a taxi for the 2-hour drive from there to Le Puy.  While we had driven those roads many times during our years at the Centre, at this stage in our lives we were reluctant to trust ourselves to renting a vehicle, and navigating the roads and traffic, which we were sure had changed significantly since our departure, 20 years ago.  That was a wise choice. 

The second moment was that after our arrival at the Ibis Hotel, just down the street from the Centre, we got checked in, dropped our luggage in our rooms, and went to the dining room for a quick bite of supper before heading straight for bed and a good long sleep.  However, much to our surprise, we had just placed our orders, when Olga, from the Centre arrived and announced: “You can’t eat  here.  We are all waiting for you at the Centre. We have supper for you there.  Come with me”.  After quick apologies to the dining room staff, we made our exit somewhat reluctantly, not really feeling ready to meet the Board members at the Centre and linger over a meal!  Olga whisked us away, and when we arrived at the Centre, we were welcomed with applause, cheers and much ado.  To say we were surprised, is an understatement.  Never in our years at the Centre, had we received such accolades!  We were abashed, touched and deeply moved. We quickly saw that as the “first team”, we had acquired a kind of aura that was new to us, and certainly embarrassing.  There followed a lovely dinner, with lots of conversation and sharing of memories.  

When, a few hours later, we were taken back to the hotel, it was with new energy, deeply touched hearts, and gratitude for all that had been, and for all that was yet to be in these next few days. 

The following day was a free day for us in Le Puy.  The Board was involved in their meeting, and the celebration day was to be the 17th.  So, free for the day, we set out to walk up to the Cathedral.  The many stairs took us a while to navigate, necessitating many stops for breath, but we got there, and once again experienced the awe-inspiring beauty of that ancient church.  There we prayed before the Black Madonna, and paused at the Healing Stone, entrusting to Notre Dame du Puy all the intentions that we had been entrusted with.  We lit candles and put intentions onto the list for the pilgrims setting out from there on the Camino.  It was precious time and recalled to us the millions of pilgrims who travel there each year, hoping to start out on a path of deeper discovery in their lives. 

From the Cathedral, we went to Martine’s lace shop. We first met Martine in the fall of 2004, shortly after we first arrived.  Preparing to have our first program that summer, we wanted to ask a lace maker to make lace in the background, while we told the story of our early Sisters making lace to support themselves and teaching women to make lace to help keep themselves and their families out of poverty.  I had found Martine outside her shop one day, quietly making lace, and asked her if she would be willing to make lace for us while we told the story of our Congregations’ beginnings.  She most graciously agreed, telling us that although she had known the local Sisters from her childhood, she had no idea we had been lace-makers too.  So began a long and beautiful friendship with us and with all the Sisters, Associates, and coworkers who visited Le Puy afterwards.   

As we entered her shop this time, Martine was moved to tears seeing us again and was deeply touched by our gift to her of a beautiful wall-hanging, hand-stitched by Sister Pat McKeon, and featuring an Inuk on a sled, lit by the midnight sun. We offered it to her, in gratitude for her for her great hospitality to our many Canadian Sisters, Associates, and co-workers who had visited her shop. Martine wept at the beauty of the hanging, its intricate stitch work, and its significance, coming from Canada.  She plans to hang it in her bedroom. 

The celebration itself was well documented, with its speeches, tributes, prayer service and elegant luncheon.  The Board had done much to ensure a lovely celebration, and Olga and Eluiza overlooked no detail in the planning.  For me, the highlights were the moments of reconnecting, with neighbours, former Board members, many of whom had been extremely helpful to us in our first days and years in Le Puy.  Those threads of connection remain strong, including those with some of the Sisters, and neighbours who are no longer with us.  We are still one. 

Of the speeches that were given, the theme that reached out to me was when Father Chamaly, former pastor of Les Carmes, the parish we attended, spoke of how our presence, the Centre, and its many international guests had widened the vision of the parishioners, helping them to envision and experience a bigger world.  The Mayor of Aiguilhe and the delegate of the Bishop also spoke of the broader vision brought to the tiny town of Le Puy by our presence and that of our global programs. That felt like something worthwhile to have been about. 

Globally, we are all experiencing the declining numbers of Religious and the increasing role of lay persons in all aspects of what we saw as “our mission”.  Truth be told, the mission is that of Jesus, “that all may be one”: love of God, love of neighbour without distinction.  This is at the heart of the Gospel, and so not intended as our property at all.  From the beginning, Father Medaille saw our collaboration with “all persons of good will” as essential to our mission and our existence.  The woman protestant minister, a Biblical scholar, who spoke to the Global Coordinating Group about the Eucharistic Letter, spoke of self-emptying, or anéantissement, as really being, “making room for the other”, not taking up all the room and attention for yourself.  It seems to me that our call at this moment in time is to make room for the laity, to let them take on responsibility for much of what we have called our mission.   

Will the Centre survive into the future?  We do not know.  As we interacted with our neighbours, with Martine, with the parishioners, with Board members and even the staff of the hotel where we stayed, I could not help thinking that if there is to be a future for Centre International St. Joseph, we need to “make room for the other” and take up less room for ourselves. 

-Sister Mary Diesbourg, CSJ