THIRD SUNDAY OF ADVENT

With the approach of the third Sunday of Advent, I have been reflecting on the African practice of ubuntu. You may wonder, what is ubuntu?  Author, Mungi Ngomane says, “If we are able to see ourselves in other people, our experience in the world will inevitably be a richer, kinder and more connected one. If we look at others and see ourselves reflected back, we inevitably treat people better. In a nutshell. It recognizes the inner worth of every human being starting with yourself.”

Today, in Luke’s Gospel account, John the Baptist is shedding light on the practice of ubuntu which involves love of neighbor, love of self, honesty, charity etc. In the gospel scene, John is speaking to a crowd of diverse people. Some are seekers, others simply curious, some are soldiers and others tax collectors. On a few occasions, these characters ask John a question, “What should we do?”  His terse reply urges them to change their lives. Like ubuntu-living, John invites the crowd to embrace a shapeshifting call for justice-making and of giving away as much as possible so that everyone has enough to live on. These life-giving practices are what ubuntu and John’s message proclaim to a world so in need of self-love which then can pour out on the neighbor. Hopefully, appreciation and love will be reflected to the giver. 

Image: Jeremy Bishop/Unsplash

All of us have had experiences of holding up a light for another human being. Like John, paving the way forward for the Light to come, we continue our journey of living mystery and tending to the emergent so that generations to come may live in peace, harmony, and justice-making.

Remember, John’s questioners asked, “What can we do?”  There is always much we can do!  It is most often in least expected ways.  I am reminded of a quote from the Quran. “Whoever saves a human life shall be regarded as though they had saved all humankind.” Wow! The smallest act of love might be that one lifesaving gesture for someone sitting or standing in front of you! This is indeed ubuntu in action!

-Sister Linda Parent, CSJ

Reflecting on the Second Sunday of Advent

“God has done great things for us…” (Psalm 126)

“Prepare the way …Every valley shall be filled… the rough ways made smooth...” (Luke 3)

The Second Sunday of Advent strengthens our longing for the God of Peace to come swiftly to our shattered world, bringing compassion and light to many troubled areas: Ukraine, Russia, Gaza, Israel, Lebanon, Syria, etc. Would we not surrender our petty grievances if peace could be had in the devastated areas of our world, in the troubled hearts of the lonely and addicted, in the trauma of those burdened by homelessness and financial concerns? How we long to reconcile Conservatives and Liberals, Democrats and Republicans. Can we open our hearts wide enough to seek understanding without judgment?

We ask God to restore the fortunes of those despondent who worry like watercourses in the desert. Can weeping be turned into carrying and sharing of sheaves?

Healing hearts and lives, and divisions within and between countries are the crooked ways that need straightening out and uneven ground that requires leveling. Such acts are the great things that God longs to do for our world.

As we immerse ourselves in the purple of Advent, may we walk with the people in our troubled cities and world; may we claim the pain that is within our own minds and hearts and lift it to the light, safety and compassion of God’s presence. As the writer of Philippians was confident “that the one who began a good work among you will bring it to completion by the day of Christ Jesus,” may we claim with confidence God’s compassionate presence and healing, both for ourselves and for our world.

Our country and the world are not broken; we need to rediscover and believe God’s promise of ongoing presence living in our hearts. We need to claim the strength, hope and commitment to prepare the way of God in our world today- an important task and not one done alone.

“… teach us, O God, to judge wisely the things of earth….”    (Prayer after Communion)

-Sister Helen Russell, CSJ

Images: Grant Whitty @grantwhitty/ Kelly Sikkema @kellysikkema Unsplash

Poking Holes in the Darkness

It is common in Advent to encounter the juxtaposition of the themes of light and darkness. In fact, they are found in the familiar, beautiful words of the prophet Isaiah alluding to the coming of the Savior.

The people who walked in darkness
have seen a great light.
They lived in a land of shadows,
but now light is shining on them.. (Isaiah 9:2)

A friend of mine shared a childhood experience of the novelist, Robert Lewis Stevenson, author of Treasure Island. The gist of the story was that on one occasion the delicate, young Robert was discovered by his nurse sitting with his nose pressed up against the glass of his bedroom window. He was thoroughly captivated by the scene of a lamplighter busily lighting the streetlamps below. The nurse, worried about her fragile charge, beckoned him away from the frosty windowpane into the warmth of his bedroom. Her charge, the young Robert, resisted her bidding, insisting that he wanted to continue to watch the man who poked holes in the darkness.

Is it not Advent’s clarion call to spread light as we go about performing our daily duties? Each of us has the potential to be a "lamplighter," whether through kindness, compassion, or simply being present for others. The Advent season invites us not just to wait for the light but to actively participate in spreading it. How much brighter our neighborhoods would be if there were more “lamplighters” among us poking holes in the darkness.

You might be interested in reading the late Pastor Dr. Peter James Flamming’s sermon on Christian Life: Poking Holes in the Darkness.  

“The Light Shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.”

John 1:5

 -Sister Nancy Wales, CSJ

Image: Paolo Nicolello @paul_nic/Unsplash

A Prayer Book for Advent and Beyond

Are you, by any chance, on the lookout for a book which would help you to observe one of the three traditional practices or pillars of Advent: prayer, fasting and almsgiving?

May I suggest a little, fifty-some page book following the ancient format of morning and evening prayer. I found this deceivingly simple prayer book drawing my heart to quiet prayer and a deepening relationship with the Sacred One. Praying with the Earth, A Prayerbook for Peace by John Philip Newell.

Each of the two daily offerings begins with a beatitude and a prayer of awareness followed by the call, “Be still and aware.” The author then offers three quotes from the inherited scriptures of both the Old and New Testaments  and the Quran, putting us in touch with the wisdom of Jews, Christians and Muslims. Each quote is followed by an invitation to pause and savour the sacred text.  Next, we are given words to pray for the world and to offer silent prayers for peace. Our time of prayer,  concludes with a blessing to grace us on our way.

John Philip Newell offers us a simple, contemplative way during Advent to pause, pray, and linger in stillness as we prepare our hearts to welcome the Prince of Peace anew.

-Sister Nancy Wales, CSJ

Header Image: Anthony DELANOIX @anthonydelanoix/ Unsplash

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John Philip Newell (born 1953) is a Celtic teacher and author of spirituality who calls the modern world to reawaken to the sacredness of Earth and every human being. Canadian by birth, and a citizen also of Scotland, he resides with his family in Edinburgh and works on both sides of the Atlantic.

Advent IV

“There is no way you make your way by walking”

(Antonio Machado)

I learned this saying on a Heart-Links work awareness trip to Peru. During Advent, we visualize the walk Mary and Joseph made to Bethlehem. Their circumstances of forced walking play out in the world today.

We know through constant news feeds that our fellow human beings are on the move fleeing from war, environmental disaster, starvation. They are OUR people on the move, desperate for shelter, for safety, and for a hopeful peaceful future for their families. We say there is room for you in me, but is there? We witness the call to walk beside marginalized homeless in our local communities, those struggling with mental health and addiction issues.

With so much darkness both on the international and domestic scene, Advent gives us the symbol of light to illuminate the way.

Image: Unsplash/Mario Losereit

From 1962-1994 the Sisters of St Joseph in Canada from the London area, served impoverished communities in northern Peru. They did so with open hearts, and some went on to give years of walking in Peru with the people. When it was time to leave, to continue their love and an active presence the Sisters of St Joseph in 1994 created an organization called Heart-Links.

I was privileged to be invited to serve on the first Board of Directors when the Sisters transferred this charity to an incorporated independent corporation in 2003 and I travelled to Peru, to the streets of Zaña, Mocupe, Reque, Aviacion, Nueva Arica, Cayalti, and Cajamarca.  Walking with the people, I felt a reciprocal exchange of love and connection. I met the dynamic Father Victor, well loved by the religious in London and Windsor. We ate bread from the bakery beside his church. Bread that was shared amongst the poor. Thick soups that were given daily at volunteer-run commodores.

Poverty in Peru continues. Heart-Links support stays strong with the oversight of a small office in London and inspiring partners in Peru, but we are fearful that in an instant the physical gains made can be wiped out as the dreaded El Niño is bearing down on them once again. Flooding caused by a warming of the Pacific Ocean brings with it a dengue epidemic, roadblocks, destruction of homes and livelihoods.

We feel firsthand how a perilous lack of resources

can be for the marginalized in our cities.

I am part of a small group that responded to the need to sponsor refugees. As a group that evolved from the commitment of Benedict Labre (formerly Kings College Chapel) and the Quaker meeting at Coldstream we decided to embrace the idea of refugee sponsorship.

Currently the United Nations estimates there are 110 million displaced people in the world, more with this current conflict in Gaza and Ukraine, and over 36.4 million refugees. There are 43.3 million forcibly displaced children. In 2022, Canada accepted 140,621 refugees. We are proud of the fact that our country is unique in its community support of refugee sponsorship, but now the way of walking with refugees is compromised. Government support at all levels has fallen behind the cost of living. Public support for efforts such as ours is declining.

The path we walk on has become very precarious. I am very worried about our latest sponsorship; one we carried out in partnership with the Catholic Diocesan church refugee ministry office.

This blended support sponsorship ends in a year. We have under our care one of the most vulnerable of family groupings. A very young mother and four-year-old son could be homeless in March, 2024. The only apartment we found for her and her son is over the allowable rate by Ontario Works. Landlords know this is a problem and are now refusing to rent to refugees without an individual from the sponsoring group signing the lease. This is not tenable going forward. Our little group is still walking but we need help… all we see right now is the darkness is coming in.

Image: Unsplash/Marek Piwnicki

The north star is a promise of fixed light for all of humanity. It does not divide or distinguish its gifts according to different expressions of faith, rather it gives hope. It illuminates darkness. Walking strengthens our resolve of how we want to go forward in this world.  I have felt in my social justice work that the gift is to the giver. There is a mutuality of walking with.

We share with you the beautiful song below, “Gracias a la Vida “by Mercedes Sosa has a lyric which talks about “the route of the soul from which comes love”.

NO HAY MANERA DE QUE HAGAS A CAMINO CAMINANDO.

-Pat Howe, Kindred Spirits Associate Group

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AN UPDATE ON THE SISTERS OF ST. JOSEPH WORK IN PERU

From 1965 until today the Sisters of St. Joseph from the Pembroke area have Ministered to the Peruvian people living in the Chincha Valley. This mission continues to respond to the needs of the Peruvian people through the great initiatives of Sister María Choquez and Sister Gloria Muchypiña who are both Chincha Valley woman working among their own people, and Sr. Teresa (a Carondelet Sister of St. Joseph) who continue to minister in the Parish of Our Lady of Fatima, Chincha Alta.

Sister Pauline Coulterman who lived in Peru for 23 years, continues to work for our Peru mission as promoter doing fundraising in Canada for the many projects happening in the Chincha.

Each year she invites interested volunteers to visit Chincha for a two-week experience. These volunteers visit the projects the Sisters are helping out with and get a feel for the needs of the people with the hope that they would be advocates for the mission in Peru.

These trips provided the people an excellent opportunity to experience:

• the Peruvian people and their culture

• the historical sites and shrines within the city of Lima

• the poverty-stricken areas surrounding Lima

• the wealthy community of Miraflores on the coast

• the city of Chincha Alta (located to the south of Lima) and its surrounding area

• the mountain regions of Cuzco and Puno.

Some of the work they assist in involves the formation of the Communities and Training of the leaders in the 58 CEB’s- Basic Christian Communities of the parish. Educational and Spiritual programmes for adults, youth and children. With the help of many dedicated parishioners, they continue to oversee the catechetical sacramental programs introduced by our earlier Sisters.

They work with and oversee the Social Assistance Programme which organizes the distribution of food and clothing to the needy families and attends to some medical needs.

Apart from their work in the parish, the Sisters are responsible for overseeing a number of Canadian supported projects that are happening in the area.

• Scholarship Program for Peruvian children whereby a Canadian Family agrees to sponsor a particular child from Kindergarten until the end of Grade 11.  Last year there were over 300 children sponsored.

• Water Projects, the earthquake of 2007 destroyed nearly all water pipe lines of the area.  The main pipes the town replaced but not the lines into the people’s homes.  The Sisters work with these families to get their land deed and the documents needed and this project pays for the pipes and the meters.  Another part of the Water Project is to build bathrooms inside people’s homes to get away from using the back yard as a toilet.  Once an inside washroom is built, showers are also put in. 

The Sisters are constantly looking to the needs of the people and doing what they can to respond. If any one is interested in a two-week visit to Chincha, Lima and (Machu Picchu), Sister Pauline would be more than happy to make arrangements for this. More information can be obtained by contacting Pauline at pcoulterman@csjcanada.org.