In the Shadow of His Wings

Sponsa Christi September 28th, 2010

    Today I shall conclude my sharings about our celebration of 100th anniversary of the presence of the Passionist Nuns in the United States. I’m starting where I left off last time.

    On Monday, the day following our Anniversary Mass, we honored the Queen of the PassionistCongregation by having the votive Office and Mass of Our Mother of Sorrows. Holy Mass began with a tremendous surprise, as Fr. John Harvey presented to us the mission crucifix used in 1738 by our Holy Founder, St. Paul of the Cross, during his first retreat to our Venerable Mother Mary Crucified’s Benedictine community, 33 years before she became the co-foundress of the Passionist Nuns. This moment took us back in time to a sacred meeting between our Holy Founder and Foundress.

    After receiving the apostolic blessing, each Nun came forward and venerated this most precious relic loaned to us by our Nuns in Tarquinia, Italy, the motherhouse of all Passionist Nuns’ monasteries. Being in the presence of the crucifix was like being in the presence of our Founder and Mother Mary Crucified – a very powerful and inexpressible moment.

The Mission Crucifix of Saint Paul of the Cross

    Mother Mary Crucified of Jesus (1713-1787) wrote of her first encounter with our Holy Founder: “A few years after my profession in St. Lucy’s convent of the Benedictine Order, almost 41 years ago, I became acquainted with Father Paul of the Cross on the occasion of his coming to preach the retreat to the Sisters of that community; and seeing that he was full of zeal and of the knowledge of God, and therefore perfectly qualified to be an able director, I commenced a correspondence with him.”

    During 33 years of trials and disappointments, Mother Mary Crucified (who has been called the co-foundress of the PassionistNuns together withSt. Paul of the Cross) exercised heroic faith and trust that one day she would indeed become a Passionist. Not until May 3, 1771—at nearly 58 years of age—did her great dream come true. She and 10 other companions, all prepared by the founder himself over many years, entered the newly built monastery in Corneto (now Tarquinia) to begin the life and mission of the Passionist Nuns.

    Of the many letters of St. Paul of the Cross to Mother Mary Crucified only 31 remain. They are filled with the wisdom of the cross and the spirituality of profound abandonment to the will of God, and are included in the 3-volume collection of the letters of St. Paul of the Crossavailable from Passionist Publications. 

    Now on with our story…

     Later Fr. Jerome Vereb, CP moved our hearts by taking us, with Our Lady, into a deeper appreciation of our Passionist charism. He challenged us to embrace generously our lives of silence, solitude, communal and contemplative prayer, spiritual reading and self-forgetfulness, so that we, like Our Lady of Sorrows, may bring people to the sacred side of Christ, to encounter love. This is what we are here for! To bring everyone to this Sacred Font of Mercy and Love.

Fr. Jerome Vereb with two of our Nuns from the Passionist Nuns monastery in Erlanger, Kentucky.

    A high point during our stay was the visit we paid to the Church and Monastery of St. Paul of the Cross where we were warmly welcomed by the Rector, Fr. Gerald Laba, C.P., and his community. St. Paul’s Monastery, founded in Pittsburgh in 1852, was the first monastery of Passionist men in the New World. 

    The Passionist men of the Eastern Province were instrumental in bringing the Passionist Nuns to Pittsburgh in 1910. For these one hundred years the Passionistshave supported our Nuns both spiritually and temporally. Our visit to St. Paul’s Monastery reminded us of this deep familial bond and awakened the gratitude we owe them for our Passionist presence in this country…

Fr. Gerald Laba, Rector of Saint Paul of the Cross Monastery, Church and Retreat Center with Mother Joyce, Superior of Our Lady of Sorrows Monastery of Passionist Nuns in
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

Upon our arrival Fr. Gerald led us through a prayer service before the tomb of the
Servant of God, Father Theodore Foley, C.P.

We then partook of a delicious banquet

followed by an historical tour during which we enjoyed the breathtaking view of the Pittsburgh skyline

Some photos from the gardens

    The next morning we took our leave with hearts full of gratitude to God, to the Pittsburgh community, and to Mother Catherine Marie for making this experience possible. This once-in-a-lifetime experience was an amazing, grace-filled opportunity to meet and share our joy in the Passion of Christ with our Sisters from throughout the world. Yet, the parting was bittersweet as we knew we might not see one another again in this life.

This image of Crucified Love is in the garden of the Saint Paul of the Cross Monastery

    May God be praised for 100 years of Passionist cloistered living in the United States. And may He send us many holy and healthy candidates to continue our contemplative Passionist mission with Mary at the foot of the cross for the next 100 years!

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• Passionist History , Passionist Saints , Saint Paul of the Cross
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Sponsa Christi September 23rd, 2010

I am writing in haste but wanted to give you a link to a short bio of one of our Passionist Saints whose Feast is tomorrow.

Saint Vincent, true son of Saint Paul of the Cross, ora pro nobis!

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Sponsa Christi September 18th, 2010

   Don’t miss our latest newsletter!

    If you would like to receive a paper copy in your mailbox leave your name and address in our comment box below. Also, your email address as well, in case your address does not match up with USPS address standards for bulk mail and we need to contact you.

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Sponsa Christi September 17th, 2010

    A couple weeks ago I promised to share more details with you regarding Bl. Dominic and John Henry Newman. This is part of an article from our most recent newsletter.

     Many of you are familiar with the writings of John Henry Cardinal Newman, the former Anglican theologian and Oxford professor who became a Catholic in 1845. In a day or two (depending on what part of the globe you dwelling as you read this post!) Pope Benedict XVI will beatify Cardinal Newman, raising him to the honors of the altar. What makes Newman’s beatification particularly important for Passionists is that our own Blessed Dominic of the Mother of God had a profound influence on Newman and was the one privileged to receive him into the Catholic Church.

     Newman himself had said of the Catholics: “If they want to convert England, let them go barefooted into our manufacturing towns—let them preach to the people like St. Francis Xavier—let them be pelted and trampled on, and I will own that they can do what we cannot.” God answered by sending Blessed Dominic Barberi, who has been called “the shepherd of the second spring”. This humble yet brilliant man, came barefooted. He preached to the poor, he was pelted and trampled upon. He was called “the stuttering Papist,” “Friar Demonio,” and other abusive names. Even children shouted obscenities at him, pelting him with rocks, or pulling at his habit when he walked by.

     Dominic wrote at the time: “My God, for what distress and sorrow You have reserved me! I spent so many years before coming to this Island preparing myself at all times for suffering. And now it seems to me that if I had ever foreseen all that awaited me, I should never have had the courage to step aboard ship!”

     Dominic’s conviction that he was called to England began early in life as we learn from his diary: “Toward the end of [1813]…I was on my knees before God …praying and beseeching Him to provide for the necessities of His Church, when I heard an interior voice (which only those who hear can understand) in actual words which did not leave a shadow of doubt as to its being from God. The voice told me I was destined to announce the truths of the Gospel and to bring stray sheep back to the way of salvation….As I felt I could not doubt that the communication came from God, I could not doubt for an instant that it would be fulfilled.”

     The next year, he again wrote in his diary: “One day [in 1814],,,I went for a few minutes into the church to pray before the altar of the Blessed Virgin, and while I was on my knees, the thought occurred to me—how was the prophecy of last year to be fulfilled? Was I to go as a lay Brother to preach, and to whom was I to go? … While I was thus racking my brains, I understood … that I was not to remain a lay Brother, but was to study, and that…I was to labor…in the northwest of Europe and especially in England….”

     Dominic would go on to be ordained a priest in 1821.

     Thus convinced that he had received a mission from God to evangelize England, Dominic began a long crusade of prayer for England. He begged others also to pray. The Passionist superior general sent him forth at last in 1841. Dominic first established the Congregation of the Passion in Belgium and from there, in England. He was to labor there only about 8 years before his death. The crowning of his years of prayer, labor and suffering came when on Oct. 9, 1845, he received John Henry Newman and others into the Catholic Church.

     Here is a description of the blessed night – Dominic arrived at Aston Hall in Littemore late at night, dripping wet, for he had been sitting on the top of the coach exposed to the continual rain. On entering the house he went at once to the fireplace to dry himself. The door opened quietly and Newman entered. In a moment he was a Dominic’s feet, praying for admission into the Catholic and Roman Church! ”What a spectacle it was for me to see Newman at my feet! All that I have suffered since I left Italy has been well compensated by this event. I hope the effects of such a conversion may be great.” Thus did the humble and joyous Dominic write to his superior general, Father Anthony Testa in Rome.

     Dominic was to live only four more years. On Friday, Aug 27, 1849, he suffered a heart attack enroute to another Passionist monastery. Fearing cholera, the passengers of his train demanded that he be put off at once. Through the compassion of a physician he was helped into a room as his excruciating pain increased. Throughout the ordeal, Dominic kept whispering, “Thy will be done!” At 3 p.m. that Friday afternoon, Dominic breathed his last. He was 58 years of age.

     Later, Newman wrote of Blessed Dominic: “Father Dominic was a marvelous missioner and preacher, filled with zeal. He had a great part in my own conversion and that of others. His very look had about it something holy. When his form came within sight, I was moved to the depths in the strangest way. The gaiety and affability of his manner in the midst of all his sanctity was in itself a holy sermon. No wonder then that I became his convert and his penitent. He was a great lover of England.”

Don’t miss this excellent interviewby Marcus Grodi of Bl. Dominic on EWTN’s The Journey Home!

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Sponsa Christi September 13th, 2010

    For Passionists this Feast is celebrated with great solemnity.  Here is a segment of a letter from our Holy Founder Saint Paul of the Cross regarding this feast…

Have you celebrated with solemnity the feast of the Triumph of the Holy Cross? You will answer ‘yes,’ but do you know what I really mean? The feast of the cross is celebrated every moment in the inner temple of the true lovers of the Crucified. How is it celebrated? I will explain as well as I can. It is celebrated spiritually in silent suffering, without the support of any creature whatever. Since feasts are celebrated with joy, lovers of the Crucified celebrate the feast of the cross with interior silence and suffering, but with an appearance of serenity and joy.

Thus, the feast is hidden from creatures and revealed only the the Supreme Good.  There is a banquet at this feast, because we are nourished by the Father’s will, as our crucified Love was. What sweet nourishment it is! The dishes are seasoned in various ways, now with bodily or mental pain, again with the opposition, misrepresentation and scorn of men. O how sweet to the palate of the soul with savors them in pure faith and holy love, in silence and hope…

     In case some would wonder, when our founder says to suffer in silence he does not mean one cannot / should not speak with an appropriate person about suffering.  No man is an island! We all need spiritual companions, persons who will encourage us to take up our cross and follow Him.  What he is talking about is not complaining to everyone and anyone about our sufferings.  How difficult it can be to keep one’s mouth shut and not complain!  May Our Lady of Sorrows, whose Feast is tomorrow, September 15, aid us to carry the cross with love, hope and courage.

    Happy Feast days!

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• Passion of Jesus , Passionist Spirituality , Saint Paul of the Cross
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Sponsa Christi September 8th, 2010

Happy Birthday Mother!

  Today, Wednesday, September 8th, we celebrate liturgically the birth of our Blessed Mother, our Advocate, Co-Redemptrix and our Mediatrix of all Graces.  As Passionists this is the day we begin our 7 days of prayer (a septenary) to prepare for the Feast of Our Lady of Sorrows which we celebrate with great solemnity.  Our Lady of Sorrows is the principal patroness of our Congregation. She is our teacher in how to keep alive a grateful memory of Christ Crucified. 

    If you would like to join us we will be praying a Seven Dolor rosary each day. There will also be a meditation during Vespers of the history and spirituality of Our Lady of Sorrows in the Passionist Congregation. 

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Sponsa Christi September 6th, 2010

    Our Nuns had not wanted a big celebration and they weren’t going to tell anyone about it. It was just going to be the Passionist Nuns, some friends, relatives and Passionist religious from nearby Saint Paul’s Monastery, yet the word got out. They wanted it small but God wanted it big! He wanted to show His love and appreciation for a hundred years of faithfulness.

    Above is the front of the card our Sr. Mary Therese designed as a gift for our Pittsburgh nuns. Except for the image of the Queen of Martyrs everything else is hand-painted!

     This is our family tree – 8 foundations of Passionist Nuns sprouted from the tree of the cross planted by the five foundresses in Pittsburgh, PA in 1910.

    Sister Mary Grace (Pittsburgh) and Mother Vincent Marie (Japan) under the protective mantle of St. Therese of the Child Jesus and the Holy Face – also known as “the Little Flower”. Is there any monastery that does not have a statue of this great contemplative Doctor of the Church!?  Congratulations dear Sr. Mary Grace upon your Final Profession of the Five Passionist Vows!!  May our Lady of Sorrows obtain many graces for you to continue in loving and grateful fidelity as a valiant bride of the Crucified!

Mother Mary Grace (Korea) peaks around the beautiful donated flower arrangement

    Christie and Sr. John Mary were amazed as things unfolded in preparation for the anniversary Mass on Sunday, July 11th. Everything was being donated: food, flowers, bottled water, catered meals, large cakes, even a butterfly garden! On Sunday the guests filled the chapel and there was overflow seating outdoors. Our Lord even provided the perfect weather, a real concern since they have no air conditioning. Whereas the temperature had been close to 100 degrees, it plummeted 30 degrees the day we arrived and remained in the 70’s and 80’s the whole weekend.

     One woman in poor health, recently hospitalized, wanted to be at the celebration so badly, and when she insisted on coming, the Sisters expressed their concern. “No,” she said, “I have to be there. Even if I die, I have to be there.” This is an example of the outpouring of love and gratitude to God for the foundation of the Passionist Nuns in the United States 100 years ago.

Sr. Maria Dolores (Korea), Mother Mary Grace (Korea) and
Sr. John Mary 

    Sr. Mary Elizabeth’s (Pittsburgh) niece plays preludes and postludes on the harp with a masterful and gentle touch

Some of the Sisters with Bishop David Zubic, Bishop of the Pittsburgh diocese

   On Sunday July 11th, the great day had finally come. Rev. David A. Zubik, Bishop of Pittsburgh, and the retired auxiliary bishop, Most Rev. William J. Winter, were joined by diocesan and religious priests, including many Passionists, in a glorious celebration of the Mass of Thanksgiving.  Friends and relatives packed the Chapel and overflowed outside. This culmination of 100 years of holy Masses was simultaneously the beginning of the next 100 years in which the Passionist Nuns would participate deeply in the Sacrifice of the Cross perpetuated down the ages through the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass.  

The rest of the photos were taken during the banquet following the 100th anniversary Mass. 

Fr. Gerald Laba, CP (Rector of St. Paul of the Cross Monastery), Sr. Paul Marie (Pittsburgh) and a diocesan priest friend

Sr. Marguerite Marie (Philippines) and Fr. Donald Ware, CP (Vice-Rector of Saint Paul of the Cross Monastery)

Fr. Timothy Figtzgerald CP in center; unfortunately I can’t recall the name of the Passionist priest at left!

Fr. Paul Vaeth, CP with Sr. Mary Elizabeth (Pittsburgh)

    Sr. Maria (Pittsburgh) with Fr. Robert Joerger, CP (Provincial of Saint Paul of the Cross Province) and Fr. Robin Ryan, CP

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Sponsa Christi September 1st, 2010

    It has been a while since Christie and Sr. John Mary arrived home from the Centennial celebration in Pittsburgh. But we still have lots to share with you. I’m going to just dive in where we left off. So, if you haven’t been following the story see the previous posts.

    Saturday found us exploring the grounds where the five foundresses settled in 1910. 

Here is a lovely old shrine

This quote fits in beautifully with these photos but it is actually a plaque found at our Passionist Father’s monastery in Pittsburgh which we also visited. More about that in a later post.

Isn’t it glorious?

A sweet little butterfly garden donated by a friend in honor of the 100th foundation anniversary.

The next four photos are of the public chapel

Here some of the sisters pray in the nuns’ choir

The Sisters in the above photo were the first five to leave Pittsburgh to make a foundation. In 1926 they made the foundation in the diocese of Scranton, Pennsylvania.  Mother Mary Agnes (seen here at far right) was one of the five Sisters chosen from Scranton (now Clarks Summit) to then make the foundation of our monastery in the Owensboro diocese in 1946.

It just love this photo! Pictured are the foundresses who made the foundation in Japan.

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