A Christmas Message

Merry Christmas from the Sisters

What a memorable year this has been! One thing the pandemic cannot change though is the anticipation and the joy that is Christmas. While all our celebrations will be more low key this year, we still rejoice in the goodness found in people around the world which has perhaps never been so evident as than during this world crisis. People putting their health on the line every day to provide care to those suffering from the virus or some area of life with ramifications of the virus. Individuals and organizations and congregations continue to reach out to the dear neighbour in whatever ways they can.

Jesus came to earth those many years ago as a vulnerable child: let us risk being vulnerable too in solidarity with others.

On behalf of all the Sisters of St Joseph in Canada,

we wish all of you a joyous Christmas and a New Year filled with hope.

In the Company of Birds

Even the sparrow finds a home, and the swallow a nest for herself, where she may lay her young, at your altars, O Lord of hosts, my King, and my God. Psalm 84

Throughout the year a variety of birds spend time in my yard. This past summer I was visited by pairs of Purple Finches, Western Tanager and Rose-breasted Grosbeak. I was delighted when a pair of Yellow-bellied Sapsuckers decided to build their home in a poplar tree close to my back deck. I was able to observe them every day as they tapped for two weeks making a hole for their nest. Before I knew it, the chirping of baby birds could be heard. I watched as the parents took turns bringing food to their young.

As autumn set in, many birds began migrating and the yard was quiet and empty, almost lonely. But soon, as the snow arrived, the winter birds returned. 9 to 12 variety of birds visit the feeders every day. The vibrant colours of the summer flowers are replaced by the warm colours of rose, rust and ruby feathers.

Set against the whiteness of the snow, the male pine grosbeak is resplendent in his rose plumage with silver-grey wings. The Common Redpoll sports a beautiful ruby patch on its head. On a sunny day, it shines like a jewel. Last March the Snow Buntings visited the front deck for almost two weeks. It is difficult to see these little birds up close since they swirl and fly quickly as you come near them. I was able to see the beautiful brown dotted necklace on their breast. What a treat!

Birds have taught me many lessons over the years. Two experiences are very vivid in my memory. The first memory happened in the summer of 1972. I was making a 30 - day retreat prior to my profession of Final Vows. As I was walking on the grounds of the retreat centre, I came upon an adult robin lying on the ground under a tree. At first glance, I thought it was injured. But I could also hear chirping coming from above. I watched in amazement as the mother robin would raise one wing and lower it and then chirp to the young chick on a branch in the tree. The little one would stand, flaps its wings, and then promptly sit down. This went on for several minutes. I presume the chick did eventually fly as I continued my walk.

The second memory is more recent. I was experiencing grief as my sister had recently died quite unexpectedly. A redpoll had hit the front window. The sound of the thump alerted me to look in the snow. The tiny bird was lying there. I went out, picked it up from the snow and cupped its body in my hands. If this happens soon enough, often the bird will recover its breath. For several minutes there was no change. I was thinking that this one had hit the window too hard.  But then, I felt the tiny beat of its heart. It was an incredible moment. Keeping the bird on its side in my cupped hand I soon felt it begin to move its wings. When the fluttering seemed stronger, I opened my hands, and the redpoll flew away.

One of my many visitors

As I reflect, lessons of patience, co-operation, hope, and perseverance come to mind. My heart is filled with gratitude to the Creator for the beauty, variety, and companionship of these feathered friends. I appreciate why Jesus used parables to teach.

The season of Advent has been likened to a nest. A nest provides shelter, comfort, and new life. The last nine months of the COVID-19 virus have been stressful. There has been loss, uncertainty, anxiety, but also opportunities for new ways of seeing and living life. As I prepare my heart this Advent season, my “nest” will be made of the “twigs of my everyday life” for the indwelling of my God.

Blessings in this season of Advent.

-Sister Maggie Beaudette, Hay River, NT

Come on, Folks

Come on folks, we can do this….

United Nations Covid response

I feel like Rick Mercer wanting to rant a bit concerning the Covid Pandemic.  We have been on this journey for eight months.  In the beginning, we all felt it would pass like the flu.  But that has not been the case.  This virus, the enemy we can’t see, can kill us.  But why do we seem so ready to tempt fate and ignore the very simple and possible guidance we hear day after day about washing hands, social distancing, wearing a face mask, and stay home?  It is not perfect, but these behaviours can make a huge difference.  I don’t understand why so many seem to ignore or push against this simple guidance.

Those who claim these guidelines are violating my rights, I want to ask what if exercising your rights are endangering me or others around me?  Our rights are not absolute, nor are they only personal.  These human rights assume we live in communal settings and we have to balance the personal and the communal.  We must work together. 

Are these guidelines inconvenient?  Yes, sometimes they are, but we are strong enough and mature enough to weigh what will benefit all of us.   Are we tired of the impact this virus has had on our lives?  Yes, but if we value our own lives, and the lives of loved ones, and neighbours in the towns and cities and rural areas around us, we can encourage each other to keep living in safety. And we know that many scientists working in labs in Canada and other countries are working long hours to find a vaccine to help all of us.  The motto we see on TV in our schools, at our health care facilities, and in our businesses, and written on sidewalks in chalk by children – WE ARE ALL IN THIS TOGETHER – are not empty words.  We need to listen to each other, see the multiple perspectives that need to be considered, and we can hang in together until a vaccine is available to help us resume our usual activities.  In the meantime, help each other at home, call a neighbor or friend and family member, facetime or zoom someone you care about, and encourage each other.  And as we all stay close to home in the weeks ahead, we will get through this.  And those of us for whom faith is important, we can turn to those spiritual centres within and find some peace and calm to help us through the day.  Really all we have is the present moment and it can teach us a lot about ourselves, and it is full of many blessings.

-Sister Joan Atkinson, CSJ

Requiescet in Pace

The loss of a loved one is painful and deep. Recently I experienced this, again for the first time, when Ted, Leanne’s husband, phoned.  That he took the time to call me personally, to tell me the circumstances of her passing, was an honour since Leanne comes from a large family which could have taken up all Ted’s time. Leanne and I had a special relationship – I can hear many others who had known Leanne much longer say so did we.  Leanne and I partnered in introducing Christian Meditation into the Hamilton Wentworth Catholic District School Board beginning in 2011.  It was a friendship of like minds and hearts. I used to say to her ‘Leanne, we are tied at the hip’ as we trotted off to school with brown bag lunches and high hope of engaging with the students and teachers. Leanne had just retired after 40 years teaching and was 20 years my junior and she used to say, ‘Sister, you make me feel young’.

For Christians, November is the month dedicated in a special way to remembering our beloved dead.  It is also the month the world honours those who made the ultimate sacrifice for country and freedom.  So I could say that Leanne’s passing was appropriately timed even though she has left a huge crater in the lives and hearts of her family and friends still on this side of the veil. I thought this evening as I prayed my evening prayers (Night Office), now Leanne you know the answer to all those questions we used to ask each other:

what does living your faith look like;

how does prayer work for you;

how do you forgive deeply and authentically unforgivable hurts?

Rest in peace my friend

- Sister Ann, csj.

Talk the Walk

We often hear the expression “Walk the talk” to denote a person who is authentic in living out his/her values that are professed verbally.

But when there is an invitation to “TALK THE WALK” it has a slightly different twist: it assumes that the person has already or is engaged in the walk that is professed.  For example: Recall a time when you have experienced a situation in which you have been unexpectedly called upon to speak or act out of personal truth and conviction,.  What was that like for you?

This Talking the Walk is done in the Kairos Teaching and Sharing Circles that have recently been birthed to educate mainly Non-Indigenous peoples, although not exclusively, about the history and culture of the Indigenous peoples of Canada.  The TALK is given by an Indigenous person, who has and continues to WALK in the steps of the ancestors.  These Talking and Sharing Circles have become another forum along with the Kairos Blanket Exercise, for the true history of the relationship between Indigenous and Non-Indigenous peoples of Canada to be told from the Indigenous perspective and provide an opportunity for ALL people in Canada to become more knowledgeable to “Walk the Talk”.

We, as a nation have just embarked on implementing the Truth and Reconciliation Commission’s report that came out in 2015.  We have an opportunity to SPEAK OUT, to move towards reconciliation.  https://secure.kairoscanada.org/civicrm/mailing/view?reset=1&id=800

In our own personal lives, what might it mean to “Talk the Walk”, to “Walk the Talk”?  

- Submitted by Kathleen Lichti, CSJ