Braiding New Relationships

Food For Thought: Braiding New Relationships

-by Sister Priscilla Solomon, csj of Sault St. Marie on behalf of Federation Ecology Committee

As I child I learned to identify and pick it. As long as they were able, my parents used to pick it every June or early July.  We were taught that it is the hair of Mother Earth and that it was not to be over-picked. Sweetgrass. We were shown that each single-stem plant is rooted in the earth just as our hair is rooted on our heads. That speaks to a very different relationship to the earth than the kind of relationship that sees primarily financial or economic benefits in the land and its life. I remember seeing braids of sweetgrass, and my Mom teaching me that a single blade of sweetgrass is not as strong alone as three clusters of sweetgrass when they are braided together. I was also taught that sweetgrass is a sacred medicine of purification and blessing.

If you have read Robin Wall-Kimmerer’s book, Braiding Sweetgrass, you might remember her teachings on sweetgrass that are so like the ones I received.

I was thinking of these teachings as I reflected on the recent visit and apology of Pope Francis to Indigenous peoples on this land. Not that there is anything sweet about the horrific history that necessitated an apology but rather, that his apology was one of the strands of a braid that carry the hope of new relationships. He was responding to the Truth and Reconciliation’s Call to Action that the Pope come to apologize to Indigenous people on our own lands. The commission itself, the courage and determination of survivors, the growing awareness of the painful and damaging past as experienced by Indigenous people, and efforts by both Indigenous people and people of Settler origins to develop a new relationship are all part of this strand of the braid.

The second strand of the braid includes the efforts of Pope Francis to engage Catholics and all people of good will in addressing climate change and the ongoing destruction of our planet. Laudato Si’, The Synod on the Amazon, Querida Amazonia and Fratelli Tutti communicate very clearly and powerfully the need to recognize that everything is related. Destruction of one part leads to destruction of the whole; healing of one part can lead to the healing of the whole. Pope Francis listened to the people of the Amazon. He responded with a clear call to us to hear the cry of the earth itself and the cry of poor people of the earth as one cry for healing and the transformation of our relationships with them. Not dominance and extraction but rather, respect, compassion and care. Not arrogance but rather respect for Indigenous peoples’ wisdom gained over centuries, even millennia, of living in harmony with the land and the rest of creation.

“Destruction of one part leads to destruction of the whole; healing of one part can lead to the healing of the whole.”

The third strand of the braid leading us to hope and transformation is the recent preparation for the Synod on Synodality. Already, the work that is being done is engaging people at various levels of the church. Both locally and globally, structures have been created to enable people to speak their truth and offer their ideas and opinions on how we might move together into a new future.  Pope Francis vision is one of a church - a people of faith - walking together encouraging, supporting, serving and strengthening each other in faith, hope and love. This is a vision of church that prioritizes life-giving relationships with other living beings over one that focuses on management and control though structures and laws. Like the apology and the concern for new relationships with others in our common home, this strand of the braid seeks a new quality of community and solidarity with others.

When we braid these three strands together we can create a stronger, more unified effort to transform our own lives, the lives of others and the whole of creation. Even more, we can strengthen and grow our relationships with our Creator, with the Living Word and with and the Spirit who lives and works in each of these strands of life. Let us walk together in hope and trust!

-Sister Priscilla Solomon, csj of Sault St. Marie on behalf of Federation Ecology Committee

Ever-expanding Horizons

Ever-expanding Horizons: The Wondrous Gift of the James Webb Telescope 

By Sister Mary Mettler, Toronto, csj

A new telescope – the James Webb space Telescope has arrived and is delivering absolutely stunning pictures of the cosmos.  Do you remember when the book, “The Hand of God: Thoughts and Images Reflecting the Spirit of the Universe,”(1.) first came into your hands?

It was printed in 1999 and showed amazing pictures of galaxies with stars forming and others dying.  For many of us non-astrologers it was the first most significant revelation of the majesty of the universe and the wonder of space and of God’s creative activity.

These past months, we have had our minds truly blown wide-open with the pictures shown by the James Webb Space Telescope.  It reveals a truly infinite expanse of deep space, far beyond the work of the earlier Hubble telescope which has been beaming back jaw-dropping photographs of psychedelic nebulae whirling galaxies and radiant gas formations for more than 30 years.  Those are the pictures in the book referred to above.  Until the Hubble telescope, few of us ever knew that beyond the visible stars, moon and occasional planet, there lay worlds without end.  Yet the stars have always drawn us and like the ancient artists drawing petroglyphs on cave walls we too experience both awe and terror at the unknown. The universe has always captured us with its beauty and its mystery.  It has also left us with the existential question of its purpose and meaning.

Image: Pixabay

Brian Swimme reminds us that “we are the first humans to look into the night sky and see the birth of stars, the birth of galaxies, the birth of the cosmos as a whole.  We are the first generation to live with an empirical view of the origin of the universe.  Our future as a species will be forged within this new story of the world.” (2.)

In 1992, there was a gathering of scientists and religious leaders who came together in Assisi to hear and learn from each other.  The era of the separation of religions and science, brought about at the time of the Enlightenment needed to end.  The scientists were awestruck by what they were learning about the universe and knew that there was another dimension here beyond science but they didn’t have the language to speak of it.

And the religious leaders and thinkers of the time knew that the story of the universe being revealed through science needed to be brought into the religious sphere of knowledge and truth.

In his book “The Phenomenon of Man,” de Chardin wrote,

“Neither in its impetus nor its achievements can science go to its limits without becoming tinged with mysticism and charged with faith”. 3

The question for us today is: will these two, science and religion, once again come together as One – science expanding religion and religion enriching science?  May we live creatively in these challenging and awesome times.

- Sister Mary Mettler, Toronto, csj

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1.       Reagan, Michael, editor. The Hand of God: Thoughts and Images Reflecting the Spirit of the Universe. Templeton Foundation Press. 1999

2.       Ibid pg. 156

3.      Ibid pg. 90

World Kindness Day

World Kindness Day was initiated in 1998 to promote kindness throughout the world. It began in response to the increasing violence in the world as a way for participants to make the world a better place by celebrating and promoting good deeds and pledging acts of kindness for the days ahead. It continues to be celebrated in many countries including Canada, Japan, Australia, and the USA to name a few. Many schools take the opportunity to engage students of various ages in learning about kindness, compassion, and empathy in their curriculum. The theme for 2022 is Be Kind Whenever YOU can.

As spiritual people we have always been encouraged to be kind long before 1998 and not just for one symbolic day per year.

For the Islamic people displaying acts of kindness is a fundamental aspect of their religion. Islam encourages kindness, compassion towards everyone no matter what colour, status or religion they follow.

For Christians we are reminded that by our works we shall be known. We should treat others as we want them to treat us. We are to be lovers of all creation and so love is patient and kind, is not arrogant or rude. Love rejoices in the truth.

So, what is kindness? Well, it’s not difficult but it is a consistent choice. It is a type of behaviour marked by acts of generosity, consideration, helping without expecting praise or compensation in return. You know this in the core of your being!! It’s the little things you do choose to do every day, without thinking wave to your neighbour, smile at a stranger, pet a dog, call a friend, wear cheery colours, send a card, drive a friend, take muffins to a shut in. We’ve got this! The challenge is for us to make kindness as contagious as covid but way more fun.

Keep up the KINDness every moment, it’s good for your health!

Maureen Condon, Associate of the Sisters of St. Joseph

Greater Love Hath No Man Than This

“Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends.” - John 15:13

Most families have stories to tell about the Second World War or others that have followed since, whether it be about battles fought and won, the pride of country or way of life that led men and women to sign up and join the fight against the ‘foe’.  Less talked about are ones of soldiers who returned but remained devastated by trauma and closed off emotional responsiveness. Yet the story that causes me to observe a Moment of Silence every November 11th is of a less universal nature … or perhaps we simply come to understand universal truths by way of our own experience. 

Uncle Dave, 36 years old when he signed up in 1942 and already a married man of ten years, was trained initially as a cook and mechanic. He ended up in the Calgary Highlanders on the front lines of northern France after the D-Day invasion. In the meantime, the love of his life, Flo, who had been unable to have children, went from the West to visit Dave’s family in Hamilton, Ontario.  While there, she decided to seek medical assistance for her fertility issues so they might have a family upon Dave’s return. Tragically, she developed sepsis following the required surgery and did not survive.

Dave was killed on the battlefield three months later.  The family learned that a few of his fellow soldiers had gone off to a tavern in town and returned to the trenches inebriated and very loud and disorderly. Afraid that the noise would attract the attention of the ‘enemy’ and have them all killed, Dave jumped out, grabbed them and pushed them into the trenches. They survived; tragically, he did not. Dave is interred in the Calais Canadian War Cemetery near St. Inglevert, France. My Grandmother requested that the John 15:13 verse appear on the gravestone. 

Did heartbroken Uncle Dave no longer care about surviving once he knew his wife had gone? Had life lost its meaning? Or was his selfless act to save another an expression of his inner understanding that we are here to care for each other, to reach out whatever the personal cost and offer ourselves in service to the ‘neighbour’. That no matter the circumstance, we are here to bring about peace and love? We will never know what Dave thought, but his life and death assault me each Remembrance Day and demand that I engage in deep introspection about my life and capacity to serve in selfless and loving action.

-Susan Hendricks, Associate | Peterborough Neighbourhood

ALL SAINTS' DAY

All Saints’ Day is celebrated in many Christian churches to honour all those deceased who have attained what might be called spiritual maturity whether they have been formally canonized or not.

When I was a little girl I loved reading the Lives of the Saints series. The martyr, St Lawrence, remains one of my favorites because of his bravery and humour. Imagine asking his torturers to turn him over on the spit because he was done on one side. Martin de Porres was another favorite because of his kindness and dedication. St. Patrick, after whom my Dad was named, continues to be well celebrated in my family because of our Irish heritage. The list seemed endless.

To a child the stories of the saints were full of adventure and mirrored what I believed a good Christian life might look like. It was amazing how many different paths took them to be honoured in heaven.

I continue to be grateful for the short reflections available in the back of the Living with Christ periodical. As an adult their stories give me pause to reflect on my own journey to goodness. What might I learn from their experience that will help me to embrace each moment ?

In these days I most often experience the lives of the saints in the people whose lives have touched mine. Quiet pauses throughout the day bring the gift of memories to me of former caring neighbours, listening teachers, discerning priests, loving parents, faith filled friends and justice seeking religious and fun loving relatives. I know they are certainly among the communion of saints.

This All Saints’ Day I will spend time with those closest to my heart who have gone before me but left many gifts leading me act justly, love tenderly and walk humbly towards the God who call us home.

-Maureen Condon, CSJ Associate