Mercedarian Formation

Taking a break from the blog till next spring, 2011

2010-09-05T20:56:00.002-04:00

Please keep me in your prayers and know that I will be praying for all my followers and all people of the world! Prayer warriors unite!

Mercedarian Beggars

2010-09-01T08:52:00.002-04:00

Mercedarians are also a group of the mendicant orders, casually known as beggars. One of the historical writers of our order, Brodman, speaks of this.

Mercedarian Formation: Solemnity of Saint Raymond Nonnatus

2010-08-31T08:54:00.000-04:00

Mercedarian Formation: Solemnity of Saint Raymond Nonnatus

Solemnity of Saint Raymond Nonnatus

2010-08-31T08:44:00.003-04:00

Mercedarians around the world celebrate the solemnity of our most recognized saint: Saint Raymond Nonnatus. He is the patron of the unborn, Christian families and expectant mothers and midwives. I have a sister and a sister in law that are expecting. St. Raymond, please intercede and ensure all expectant mothers, especially Emily and Christine that they have healthy deliveries without incidences and that the babies are perfectly healthy, holy and live a long life of virtue, pro-life values, saintliness and charity to all people in the catholic faith!

Novice master quotes

2010-08-30T13:14:00.002-04:00

As the phone rings, "It's the Vatican!"

as we go out the door to work, "CBS News on the move!"

as you make a joke, "Laugh it up!"

May Our Lord and Lady and St. Peter Nolasco bless our beloved Fr. Euguene!

First book report of novitiate

2010-08-30T11:58:00.003-04:00

Better said, we have a spiritual book report due on the novice masters choice of books. This month it was Called to Communion: Understanding the Church Today by Joseph Cardinal Ratzinger. Here are some quotes that stood out for me:

"New Testament as a whole strikingly demonstrates the primacy of Peter; we have seen that the formative development of tradition and of the Church supposed the continuation of Peter's authority in Rome as an intrinsic condition. The Roman primacy is not an invention of the popes, but an essential element of ecclesial unity that goes back to the Lord and was developed faithfully in the nascent Church." pg. 72.

In reference to St. Peter's primacy...

"The men in question (apostles) are so glaringly, so blatantly unequal to this function that the very empowerment of man to be the rock makes evident how little it is they who sustain the Church but God alone who does so, who does so more in spite of men than through them." pg. 73.

"The reconciliation with God that the Eucharist offers always demands reconciliation with one's brother as a prior condition (Matt: 5:23)" pg. 79.

"What is great and liberating about the Church is not something man-made but the gift that is given to us all. This gift is not the product of our own will and invention but precedes us and comes to meet us as the incomprehensible reality that is "greater than our heart" (1 John 3:20)" pg. 140.

Weekend visitors2

2010-08-30T10:53:00.004-04:00

Weekend visitors....

2010-08-30T10:29:00.005-04:00

Thoughts of religious life

2010-08-25T13:10:00.003-04:00

The novitiate reading involves a lot of articles and books about the origins of religious life, which of course is Jesus Himself and trying to closely live out the gospel. The reason consecrated life, the more correct term, seems at times to be irrelevant is the encroachment of the pagan world, a place where we all live. We all have to deal with the present moment we find ourselves and to find a way to communicate the gospel to those who are deepest estranged from living the gospel message. Mercedarians are particularly focused on redeeming those in captivity, whatever form that captivity may take. Consecrated life blossoms from families and people of faith, though not necessarily Catholic, yet none-the-less. God calls, no matter your situation, but it helps if you have the disposition to hear it because a family is already prayerful and open to different vocations. As you can read in this picture, "hearing the message" is often more about being disposed, quiet enough to hear it, and observant enough to see how it is manifesting itself over time. Do you want to live the gospel as close a possible? Do you have a desire to give yourself whole-heartedly to Jesus and Mary? Do you want to do great things for God? Have attempts at dating and married life gone awry, despite your best efforts? Do you have a great desire to be a martyr for the faith, or be heroic in saving souls? Maybe you have a vocation to be a consecrated religious?

Consider asking Jesus and Mary to give you the grace to see, understand, know and feel what your true vocation is. Ask Our Lady to grant you the grace to see the fruits of your vocation and know your vocation you've had your whole life. God doesn't make mistakes, we do. So we have to detach ourselves from sin and vice of all sorts and ask Jesus to show us how to see and then see the way He wants us to see so that we can find our true vocation. It worked for me, it can work for you. Peace and blessed discernment to all those who seek the true vocation of their life.

Catechesis conference

2010-08-25T07:41:00.002-04:00

Sunset at Mercygrove

2010-08-24T21:56:00.002-04:00

Lunch at the convent

2010-08-24T21:46:00.004-04:00

I had an eventful day and God the Father gave us a truly extraordinary cloud cover and sunset! May Our Heavenly Father be blessed forever and ever with great love for His Creation and Generosity!

Called to Communion

2010-08-20T16:35:00.002-04:00

My monthly book report is coming due at the end of August so I'm starting to piece together my paper, despite my occasional blocks. Here are some notable quotes from our beloved Pope Benedict XVI, writing as Joseph Cardinal Ratzinger:

"Morality retains its seriousness only where there is forgiveness--real forgiveness ensured by authority; otherwise it lapses back into the pure empty conditional." pg. 151

"He who loves desires to know." pg. 130

"If loving Christ implies getting to know him, it follows that the willingness to undertake committed and careful study is a sign of the seriousness of one's vocation ad of the earnest inward search for intimacy with him." pg. 130

"...throughout her history, the Church will have to apply constant care that an excess of human structures does not disguise her authentic spiritual center." pg. 94

Off to grocery shopping...

2010-08-19T09:50:00.003-04:00

Last night afforded a great evening sky for about 20 minutes. I scurried to get my gear set for the right shot and was getting a blood transfusion by the hordes of mosquitos. Don't let anybody tell you a northern climate doesn't have mosquitos...I'm sure they called all their buddies to suck me pale last night! Despite all that I was happy that God gave several good pictures to take back to the computer. Praise be Our Heavenly Father!

Nursing home

2010-08-18T15:13:00.002-04:00

Fr. Eugene, my novice master, had me come with him to mass at local nursing home here in LeRoy. 195 beds! We met in the lunch room and set up an ad hoc altar amidst about 20 residents. I had a conversation with a resident who wanted to know if it was okay for her to sit in on mass, even though she wasn't catholic. Recognizing her good intentions, I said, "yes", and then began to tell the story of Scott Hahn's conversion story that involved sitting in the back of a catholic mass and discovering how much scripture was in the mass, how it all made sense the way it was put together. After mass, Father went around to several rooms and distributed Our Eucharistic Lord to those who were bedridden. What a graced time to bring Jesus to people!

I also had an opportunity to talk about St. Joseph. How God chose him in all of time for to be the earthly provider and protector of the Blessed Virgin Mary. And so, God was also giving us a model saint to call upon to provide and protect us as well in our lives and needs. Looking to pay off a house, I told her to pray to St. Joseph or Our Lady of Good Remedy.

What a great day when you get to talk about the faith with those who are open and believing!

Hobby

2010-08-13T15:32:00.004-04:00

I've noticed when I engage in my hobby of photography, it frees me up to live my faith because I can be spontaneous and creative. Many creative people fear they will lose their inspiration, but after having lost it several times and then having been shown by Our Lord how to regain it, you trust it will always be there. If only we could remember how we were found and reborn again in creativity and spontaneity.

St. Joseph Oratory

2010-08-07T15:43:00.001-04:00

Br. David gets air

2010-08-04T08:51:00.002-04:00

Our Lady and Lord: Pieta

2010-08-04T08:48:00.002-04:00

The power of this image is worth keeping by itself in a post. May the whole world awe at the greatness of Our Lord's sacrifice and Our Lady's sorrow.

Church as body of Christ

2010-08-02T09:43:00.003-04:00

Class today focused on images of the Church, especially described in Lumen Gentium of the Vatican II documents. Remembering the importance of the faithful to the head, who is Christ, and also the importance of the head to the faithful, the body. I like to emphasize how like any relationship, but especially the relationship of the body, there is constant care and nutriment that is needed to maintain homeostasis (balance) throughout the body.

Off to another day or reading. Today is about discipleship, a call to religious life. I pray to my heavenly teachers, who are the Divine Teacher, saints Albert the Great, Thomas Aquinas and Bishop Fulton Sheen and Fr. John Hardon, S.J. to assist me in all my learning. I usually say a Our Father, Hail Mary and Glory Be to give prayers to help me learn. Good to have preparation prayer for important events of our life. How often that has made a difference and how often before I ever learned this were things more miserable. God first, let everything else follow. Praise be my heavenly teachers!

Here are some flowers in the back property of Mercy Grove next to the retreat houses. I've been wanting to get back there and capture those cute little flowers blossoming among an old foundation of a house. The mosquitos take a beating on me while I'm outside at that late part of the evening, but the pictures are always worth the welts. I now know you can get a mosquito bite on top of another mosquito bite...let the record be noted. Thank you Sacred Heart of the Eternal Father for allowing me to take pictures of your beautiful creation. May the whole world come to love your creation knowing it comes from Your Almighty and Benevolent Hands!

Great weather, great reading, great photography

2010-07-30T22:53:00.003-04:00

That last few days have been great, hooking up with friends and getting into my novitiate books about the early martyrs, how monasteries came about, how the early Mercedarians figured out how to grow despite challenges of their day. God has also given great weather and photographs these past days, images I'd never image could be had. I'm grateful for Br. David's openness to being my model for shots and sharing conversation while I click my camera and use the last bits of daylight to snatch a shot here and there. Praise God!

St. Maximus early Christian martyr

2010-07-30T10:20:00.003-04:00

"From the time that he entered the monastic life in 613, St. Maximus spent most of his time in the defense of orthodox doctrine against the heretics, frequently moving from one monastery to another because of persecution. Ultimately he was arrested in Rome, together with Pope Martin I, and sent into exile. In 662 he was again in Constantinople, where the heretics condemned him to be scourged and to have his tongue and his right hand cut off. He dies in that same year as a result of his sufferings."------Christian Spirituality in the Catholic Tradition, Jordan Aumann 1985, pg. 55.

Imagine spending your entire life defending the faith...perhaps we aren't as faithful as we should be to the faith of our fathers, to the true faith passed, cherished and protected by the Holy Spirit? May the whole world have a such a flame of love for Christ to spend their lives living, defending and spreading the faith.

What stands out about St. Maximus's writings is his complete focus on Christ.

"...Having defended orthodox Christology against the heretics, he was thoroughly imbued with love for the Savior. He saw Christ not only as the meritorious cause of our salvation but also the exemplary cause, for which reason the great law of the Christian life is the imitation of Christ. By imitating Christ, the soul can achieve victory over the enemies of the spiritual life, the greatest of which is self-love. This involves a detachment from created things and one's own selfish desires so that egoistic love can be replaced by the love of God and neighbor."------pg. 56.

Sunset in front of Mercygrove

2010-07-28T21:11:00.002-04:00

I nearly missed this great sunset! I didn't have time to shoot on a tripod so had to shoot handheld as fast as I could. If only I had gone out after the rainstorm and not gone wimpy about the wet grass and mud. Never again!

Prayers going out to all people

2010-07-28T19:43:00.004-04:00

We pray the Liturgy of the Hours as Mercedarians, morning prayer as well as a morning offering and devotional prayers, midday prayers which include the Divine Praises, Evening prayer with the Rosary and Night prayer and office of readings. For all of these prayers, I offer them for somebody, something or the world. So know that if there is anybody who is in need of prayers, here I am everyday praying. If you have a petition, by all means let me know. You can email me or leave me a message in Facebook. Peace and blessings to you. I regularly have prayers on my hear that I offer. Peace and may the whole world be on fire for the love of prayer to heaven.

First day at the nursing home

2010-07-27T15:49:00.003-04:00

Just got back from my apostolate at the county nursing home. I had my fears, but today was great! The manager grilled burgers and delicious hotdogs for everybody and a long row of residents made conversation to the new guy in white while we enjoyed the splendid weather. Thanks Jim and Sue for giving me something to talk about. God bless you and may Jesus give you perfect and long health!

I'll be going all day on Tuesdays and visiting all the catholic residents, who I'd count to be about 75 total on 5 floors. That's a lot of people, so I expect to start offering prayers and sacrifices for them as well as developing a regular schedule to meet them at least once in the next month.

The cooking there is terrific! I can't gripe about this government food. Well, you know how comparisons get you in trouble, so I'm going to quit while I'm ahead.

I had lots of great encouraging conversations and opportunities to hear the troubles where prayer is needed. So many sweet elderly people and plenty of good natured humor and grumpiness too. Look forward to going back next week. Great staff too...gosh, can this be that good? More human reality next week. May they be blessed with great care and holiness!

2 weeks

2010-07-27T08:31:00.003-04:00

My novice master is leaving for 2 weeks of vacation today, so I'll have to follow the schedule myself steering myself through a lot of assignments and continue in reading my books. Br. David is arriving today, perhaps as occasionally companionship in the absence of Br. Martin and Fr. Eugene. The summer here is terrific! Great temperatures, sunshine and lush greenery. Of course, I know the heavy and long winters they have so I'm living it up, as I suspect the locals are too. May God bless these 2 weeks and help me stay steady in my schedule and help me get ahead on my studies.

Here is a thumb size flower I found in the backyard adjoining with our neighbor's property. Hard to get these flowers to stand still while I get a shot. Much patience.

Angels and Saints

2010-07-26T10:11:00.003-04:00

I'm real proud of these shots from last night. Perhaps this is God's way of making things better after a little bout of loneliness. Working an hour a day at dusk is my usual photo vacation. We have purple skies up here in LeRoy, which is a surprise for me because I've always wanted to have that kind of sky. They are so inspiring. Back in Seattle, they'd go out on the Oregon coast and find skies that like, whether they used a filter or not, I'll never know, but it really is captivating. I love color, so now I have finally found it..at least occasionally. The silhouetted angels have a real apocalyptic look to them as they look forward to the setting sun, which may looking like the rising sun. As far as the saint statues, it is interesting to note that some religious imagery speak of saints as starts (e.g. Jesus being the Sun, Mary the moon because she reflects the Sun, and saints being the stars) so now putting a star on a saint makes sense. How will I get the Sun and the Moon and statues of Jesus and Mary? Argh...gerr...scratching head!

Rainy day at the grove

2010-07-23T08:28:00.003-04:00

I like rainy days in the summer. Being one of those creatures who have light colored sensitive eyes, I applaud days with less intense sunlight. Now I love sun, don't get me wrong, but I also appreciate the rainy, lush, easy-on-the-eyes days where there isn't the squinting going on that happens on days, well frankly, like yesterday. God gave us all days, so I'm grateful, but I can tell I'm fitted for the rainy day lush. The Garden of Eden comes to mind.

That said, I'm still adjusting to the expectations of the novitiate. I remember the difficulty of a 36 day silent retreat I took about 6 years ago. You are confronted with stuff you don't usually have to deal with, for example, boredom and loneliness. I'm not afraid of those feelings and they are natural human feelings, though they can be attacked by evil spirits of the same name. Of course the Eternal Father overlooks and allows temptations from evil spirits, so there is a lesson learned, hopefully and merit earned. Before we forget we are called the church militant, so there is a battle going on, whether we are conscience of it or not, believe it or not, or are honest enough to admit it. But for the novitiate, being the desert experience, in some regards, it is only natural to have to wrestle with boredom and loneliness. Now, as my religious brothers have advised, I've got a good schedule but it isn't quite the same without the usual human interaction. I have a great novice director, Fr. Eugene and my house brothers have been very hospitable and fun-loving since I've been here, but yet there is still me in a new place...the adjustment, the transition...loneliness.

I invite Our Lord and Lady into it of course, going deeper and looking for the source, in case there is something more there..recounting the other times of my life when I've been lonely. Thinking of my psych training...sitting with the feeling, not fearing it, sorta looking at it..studying it and talking to Jesus and Mary about it, as the drizzle of New York rain coat the blacktop outside with a glisten. I'm thinking of the New Testament passage yesterday in class about the calling of the twelve...Jesus says, "bring out to the deep..." Perhaps that is just what Jesus is calling me to do in my loneliness...calling me out into the deep. Go bravely into the darkness....where'd I hear that one?

I have class in 15 minutes....may Our Lord and Lady direct us all to be honest and brave, objective to our feelings and choose the good Will of the Father. Peace....

Receiving Mercedarian practice habit for novitiate

2010-07-21T16:51:00.003-04:00

Sunset sets Our Lady apart

2010-07-21T07:10:00.002-04:00

As a Mercedarian we consider Our Mother Mary, specifically Our Lady of Mercy, the heavenly founder of our religious order. The habit we wear is Hers, given to us through an apparition from our founder, St. Peter Nolasco. So it is all the more fitting that we have a statue of her at the front of our property in Le Roy, New York, known as Mercy Grove.

Front yard of Mercygrove at edge of night

2010-07-19T21:12:00.005-04:00

Some meditative imagery from our grounds. The angel bearing the torch at night under under the half moon reminds me the angelic choirs adoring the bread of angels.

Early Mercedarian martyrs

2010-07-19T15:31:00.002-04:00

"Dangers were lying in ambush on land and sea. Mediterranean crossings claimed a high share of redemptive brother's lives. Yet, the hardships endured by the redemptive brothers in Saracen lands were numerous and greater. In the words of a chronicle of the time, 'many times, they are slapped, stoned, beaten, wound by sword, spat upon, dragged through the streets and the mud and finished off as martyrs.'

At the time of the important 1317 chapter, the white habit of Holy Mary had already been reddened by the blood of numerous martyrs. The best known are:

Raimundo de Blanes, protomartyr of the Order. He was beheaded in Granada in 1235; Diego de Soto, from Toledo, the second martyr of the Order, dies near Granada in 1237; Guillermo de San Leonardo and Raimundo de San Victor, two Frenchmen martyred in Mula (Murcia) in 1242; Fernando Perez fro Castile and Luis Blanch from Aragon were captured by pirates in 1250 and thrown into the sea with stones tied to their necks; in 1251 when he was sailing from Algiers, Fernando de Portalegre, a Castilian, as seized by Moslem pirates who hanged him from the ship's mast and shot him with arrows. His companion of redemption, Eleuterio de Platea was cruelly whipped and finally run through with a sword. Both bodies were thrown into the sea. Teobaldo of Narbonne, thrown alive in a bonfire, burned to death in Algiers in 253; Guillermo of Sagiano, an Italian, as stoned and burned alive in Algieers in 1270; Pedro Camin, a Frenchman, as martyred on the coast of Africa in 1284; Matias Marcos from Toulouse was hurled from the top of a tower of a castle in ruins in Tunis in 1293; Antonio Valecio from Liguria, a 60-year old redeemer was stoned to death by kids in Tunis in 1293; Luis Gallo stayed behind as hostage in Moroco and he was burned alive in 1268; Guillermo Novelli, also known as Florentine Guillermo because he was born in Florence, was martyred in Algiers in 1306; Pedro de San Hermes was cruelly martyred in Almeria in 1309; after achieving a redemption, two Catalans, Jaime and Adolfo, were both murdered and the captives were sent bck to their dungeons in Tunis in 1314; Alejandro from Siciliy was burned alive in front of the palace of King Muley Mahomet in order to entertain the people of Tunis in 1317.

Quite often, Moslems did not honor the safe-conducts that they themselves had issued. Beyond the shadow of a doubt, Peter Nolasco and his brothers experienced in person and ahead of time the cruelties of what is now called Moslem fundamentalism.--------- The Order of the Blessed Virgin Mary of Mercy 1218-1992: A Historical Synthesis, pg. 59.

May the spirit of my redeeming brothers live on and be ever blessed and our order grow forever in the fervor of their martyrs blood for the love of Christ, His Mother and those in captivity! Long live the Mercedarians!

Simple yard shots

2010-07-19T13:06:00.002-04:00

Martyrdom and religious life

2010-07-19T11:50:00.004-04:00

Here is another quote from my reading....

"In the religious life on the contrary one chooses to live each day at this level of deep and conscious and perpetual response. The religious as such is asked not to wait for a flash point or a crisis: he is committed at all times, every day, every moment of every day, to say a total 'Yes' to Jesus Christ. That is why religious life is traditionally aligned with martyrdom. The crisis of the martyr is his trial before before the public authorities when usually, in the court, the charge will not be that he is a Christian, but something more specious--that he is an atheist, a traitor to the state, a black-marketeer or some such thing--but in this crisis he must pierce through the camouflage and see what the issue really is, namely, his fidelity to Christ. Once again we state that what the martyr faces at the climax of his life the religious is asked to live, no doubt in a less dramatic way but nevertheless equally really, all the days of his life. ------------ A Biblical Approach to Religious Life by Sean B. Kelleher, C.Ss.R., pg. 46.

I think this is commonly known as the white martyrdom, compared to the red (blood) martyrdom. However, both are associated with a death to self and the white has more deaths than the red, so there may be a difference of which is more efficatious.

I also don't think this white martyrdom is only done by religious, though the idea may have been best developed there and certainly a true witness of that from centuries of devout and ascetic religious saints. Today, and I think as much as before God can make life itself a martyrdom. Christianity if it is truly lived has within it's cross plenty of travails of martyrdom. How else do you suppose to die to your own selfishness and do it Jesus's Way? The life of holiness is a life of white martyrdom.

My friends and family back home I love for all their dedication to the faith, who I know live a daily white martyrdom for truth, love and what is right. They love their faith and live it whole-heartedly. I take my example and inspiration from them, the living saints in my life!

Relationships, including the marriage, consecrated and just honest living in general, are white martyrdoms too. A saint said, "marriage is a constant mortification". Consecrated religious would say the same about living in community.

The Church

2010-07-19T10:46:00.003-04:00

One of the focuses in our classes is the Catholic Church, what it means, how it was established, importance, scriptural grounding, authority, etc. I read a book by Cardinal Ratzinger's books, Called to Communion. We are also reading excerpts from the Catechism of the Catholic Church. I showed Fr. Eugene some apologetic books by Catholic Answers that talk about the Church, especially their 11 book volume that address certain categories of apologetics. I have 4 books to read on the topics too so I have a lot of work to do. I'll ask my heavenly teachers, saints who I've assigned that job, to intercede and help me get through it with as much retention, focus, attention and grace to receive the best learning from the reading.

Family fun in Philly

2010-07-19T10:38:00.005-04:00

Rachel is in the smiling girl the furthest away that is looking at the photographer.

One of the highlights of my older brother's family visit to the monastery in Philadelphia was our visit to the Ukranian Catholic Cathedral which had a papally approved and blessed life-size photographic replica of the Shroud of Turin, the burial cloth of Jesus Christ. We receive a blessing by touching it, so that explains the picture. The Ukranian's are in full union with the Roman Catholic Church. From left to right is my brother Glenn, me, Mariko, and Yurie my sister-in-law.

Day of prayer and reading

2010-07-19T08:49:00.003-04:00

Overcast skies and Br. Martin has left on his much anticipated vacation with Fr. Matthew Phelan across the US of A. So we are a brother short in our community here at Mercygrove. I did an hour on the treadmill yesterday and an extra Rosary around the property and let the blood sucking mosquitos have another annoying feast on me while I captured some shots in the front yard, trying not to twist my ankle on the many ground hog holes. One of these days I'm going to be setting up a shot while my foot is on the top of one of those groundhog holes and the whole lot of them are going to come to rescue of their stopped compadre...and then, I'll see the white of their eyes and have to run or fight...and see the real number of those furry rascals! We are inundated with them here. I'm going to camp out next to one of their holes, at a safe distance, and catch a shot of them, eventually, in a bug suit...I wish.

I have class now...

Story of a Mercedarian Martyr

2010-07-18T14:15:00.003-04:00

One of the important aspects of a novitiate is reading the history of the order. I love to read about the lives of the saints. Here is a quote from Mercedarian history:

"At the General Chapter held in 1247, in Taragona, Peter of Saint Denis, a French priest, and Bernardo de Pradas, a noble Catalan, were appointed redeemers. In that same year, both religious went to Tunis where they ransomed 209 captives. However, since they did not have the money to liberate others in great need of being redeemed, Brother Bernardo returned to Spain with the former captives while Brother Peter stayed behind in Africa to comfort the unfortunate and to avoid their renouncing their faith. he accomplished his mission with such enthusiasm and zeal that infuriated the Moslems arrested him, mistreated him and beating him through the whole city, they took him outside the walls and beheaded him. His body was thrown into a bonfire.

--------------The Order of the Blessed Virgin Mary of Mercy 1218-1992 a Historical Synthesis, pg. 39.

Flowers from the novitiate

2010-07-17T10:43:00.002-04:00

Saturday at the novitiate

2010-07-17T10:39:00.002-04:00

Sunny morning...getting to sleep in an hour and we have the Salve at St. Joseph church with parishioners and the sisters. Yeah, new venue! Scheduled time with the sisters to fix my work habit that is too long. Sisters are great! Had a nut covered donut and a handful of local cherries for breakfast and a tall glass of milk. Not the best nutritional menu, but that's what I got. Off to the parade and festival downtown. Hope to get some pictures and have a good time seeing the local folk. Thank you Heavenly Father for this beautiful day!

The habit

2010-07-16T10:11:00.002-04:00

Our tradition in this vicariate is to take the habit at the beginning of novitiate to practice with it, and then formally taking it at the end of novitiate when you take simple vows, sometimes called simple profession.

I'm still getting used to the habit and the extra work in involved...in few words: safety issues. Stay away from ceiling fans and paper shredders! I can't emphasize that enough! Use your imagination. I spent 3 hours yesterday cleaning, ironing and Scotchguarding my first habit. I'm hoping that time is greatly reduced since I've just begun the learning curve. Things I've learned...pick up the habit when you walk up stairs, before you kneel, and before you sit. "Boy, the floor sure is slick...no, that's the heel of my dirty shoe sliding around the floor on my scapular like a dustmop!" I turned my smooth running ceiling fan into a wobbly mad bomber fan trying to pull my habit over my head...now I suffer a room that sounds like a bunch of Kamakazzi's are dive bombing me in my sleep. A brother of the house said over breakfast he heard me in my sleep last night making a racket...I decided not to tell him about the fan...build the mystery...why not? Then there is the rush to mass in the morning as we dash in our car to the parish...dragging my habit stuck in the door...rainy days are the best...nothing like walking into mass with my scapular looking like the mudflap of a semi! Oh the lessons of the new guy, no wonder we have mercy as our charism....bleed it dry, novice! I'm still learning how to put the habit on fast and get the prayers done before prayers, mass and class. Expectations are to wear it at the above times, but I nearly wear it all the time just to stay in practice and not worry about changing. Surprisingly it isn't any hotter than normal clothes, except if you have many layers underneath. You can scoop up puzzle pieces, food, and playing cards too. A brother of the house who always has a 1000 piece jigsaw puzzle (998 now..oops!) on a table for us to play noticed several missing pieces this week. My habit ate it; it can't help it. Eating spaghetti and meatballs goes to a whole new level when you wear all white at the table. I'm waiting till I pick up a meatball and it rolls out of my habit, finding myself speechless while people are watching. Pleading the 5th won't do me any good then, but maybe that's just a catastrophe of my imagination.

Take it slow the habit can be a dangerous, but grace-filled experience.

May Our Lady make her proud of wearing it for her and souls.

Running the schedule

2010-07-15T08:18:00.002-04:00

Br. Martin is preparing for his vacation and is whistling behind me with much glory and jubilation. The rains have stopped and we have a beautiful sunny day this morning which will involve an hour of work outside today. Perhaps I will have more power trimming around the trees. Fr. Eugene said mass this morning at St. Joseph parish church. About 10 daily communicants were there and the sisters. I have class at 9am and need to finish reading Dei Verbum and start writing a paper on my spiritual take on Ratzinger's book about church in communion. Today is my laundry day too, which means I'll be scrubbing the habit for the first time...lots of soaking and simple soap. I need a teflon coat for our habits to resist stains. Ideas anybody?

Peace and blessings to your day...

Feast day of Kateri Tekakwitha yesterday

2010-07-15T08:10:00.002-04:00

Our property has 40+ statues and hiding under a large oak tree and behind a wooden swing is a statue of yesterday's North American native blessed Kateri. I like the green blur behind her and the simple, but pleasant expression on her face. At the base is an a translation of a "nick" name, Little of the Mohawks. Thank you Kateri for all your sacrifices and witnesses to the love of Christ on this earth. May your feast day bring many new converts to the one true faith and instill a great hope to all those living apart from Christ that with God all things are possible.

Rite of Initiation at the beginning of the Novitiate

2010-07-10T17:41:00.002-04:00

Vicar Fr. Richard Rasche, O. de M. says to me, "Dear son what do you ask of us?"

I respond, "That you allow me to share in the experience of your religious life for a certain time, that you evaluate my suitability and that I may deserve to be allowed to follow Christ in the Mercedarian Order, in which I desire to be made a son of the Blessed Virgin Mary."

Vicar responds, "May the Lord help you fulfill this desire"

I answer, "Amen."

Vicar: "Dear brother what do you ask of God and His Holy Church?"

Postulant (Patrick): "Prompted by God's Mercy I wish to share your religious life; teach me to follow Christ the Redeemer and to imitate Mary, Our Mother, and Saint Peter Nolasco; to live chastity, poverty and obedience, to practice charity for the suffering, to be constant in prayer and to practice penance, to be of one heart and soul with you; help me to follow the demands of the gospel at all times. I will learn your Rule and your Constitutions and I will observe the precept of fraternal love."

Vicar: "May the Lord help you with His grace and guide you on the paths of justice and holiness.

Postulant: "Amen."

After the readings, the superior speaks to the community and the postulant about the nature of religious life and the specific characteristics of our Order, or reads an appropriate chapter from the Rule or the Constitutions.

After that postulant approaches the vicar who confers the shield of the Order on him, saying:

Receive the shield of the Order as a sign of your being admitted to share our religious life; may the Virgin Mary, our Mother, help you with her maternal protection and may Saint Peter Nolasco, our Father, be your model and guide so that you may fully realize your desires.

Postulant: "Amen."

Sunset at Mercygrove Novitiate

2010-07-10T12:55:00.003-04:00

A beautiful sky in front of the Jello Mansion. What you don't see is me running around the fountain swatting mosquitos and howling from horse flies. The sacrifices for good pictures, offering it up!

Received habit...

2010-07-09T16:12:00.003-04:00

It was great to see all the brothers appear for the renewal of vows of the simply professed and the vesting. I had a first visit with Br. Scott, who was in Rome while I was in Philadelphia for my postulancy. Blessings on your studies Br. Scott!

Getting used to the habit...3 extra layers of clothes...sometimes 5 if you have a collar underneath, but remarkably cooler than normal clothes if you are dressing up. I've stepped on the scapular a few times and spooked a few folks with my hood and a bulging eyeball. Paper shredders are definitely a nightmare disaster waiting to happen. Wind blows the capuche (hood and shoulder piece) all over the place, so that you never see you feet. I have 2 extra pockets and for those you know I love pockets, will provide more room for prayer cards and Mercedarian paraphenalia for evangelization on the fly. Restroom breaks are a bit complicated...glad I have a year to adjust to that. A whole new reason to cut the rations at the feed trough...ahem...table. Temperance and mortification never found a better place.

The grounds here are lovely, well groomed and interspersed with white devotion statues of Jesus, Mary and the saints. They even have a little bridge in the middle of the woods over a brook, made hardly, and probably capable of withstanding class 5 rapids and hurricane winds.

Big thanks to all those who have been involved in making the steps thus far, principally Fr. Joseph Eddy, fellow Mercedarians and the great intercessory support that give of themselves for my welfare and the Church, may they be rewarded generously!

Look forward to seeing the sisters, brothers and priests in Philly when I come back next year. Thanks for the habit cleaning...I can smell your fabric softener way all the way up here!

Arrived at Novitiate...

2010-07-09T13:29:00.003-04:00

First moments after doing the usual greetings I take a prayer walk to check out the vast 56 acres of contemplative acreage. The blazing hot temperature and humidity was undaunting, so enthusiastic at being here. A curious kid doesn't stop to worry about bug bites and toe slams. Arriving back to the mansion I noticed the doors were all locked. Walking around the problem I noticed an escape ladder coming down from the 2nd floor, looked around, then zipped up and pushed my way into the door on the roof landing. Expecting a burglar's welcome, I was surprised Br. Martin hardly lifted his head while working on his jigsaw puzzle. He mumbled something...about a bear maybe...I can't remember now. I thought I'd escaped that one without a scratch...I'm in!

Our fabulous cook Meryl

2010-06-16T15:46:00.002-04:00

With 8 hungry men in a busy monastery providing meals can become a full time job. A gifted friar will have to cook sometimes, for example on weekends and when the cook is sick, but most evening meals are prepared by our delightful Dominican (that's from the Island of Dominica, not the religious order of the same name) cook from the Spice Islands, Miss Meryl. She is amazingly versatile and can improvise from any scraps in the refrigerator. Her speciality is fish and I'd like to add sauces. In the last 6 months she has come down with all sorts of illnesses and yet she comes back, alive and happy as ever to whip up a dinner for us. Her inviting smile is as fantastic as her spiced dishes! May Miss Meryl be blessed with great happiness, joy, perfect health and a lively faith, the rest of her life and may Our Lady and Lord reward her abundantly for her dedicated service to the monastery. Thank you Meryl, I'll miss you in novitiate!

Burning DVDs, cleaning out photos from lab

2010-06-15T21:41:00.002-04:00

Finally burning all the gigs of photos from the last 2 months of shoots. The excitement of shooting my niece Charlie and working for Mount Carmel was great. I think the sisters will invite me back again for another litany of photo assignments for their website. I'm hoping to do a "one-day-in-the-life" of sister Jeannette, Anna or Rosario. Honestly, it is a great way to study a person for a day, anticipating their gestures, learning what to capture, making a story in your head, looking for the missing shot that tells the plot and is unique and compelling about the person. Of course, each shoot has a purpose, and in this case thinking of vocation work for possible new sisters. Exciting for Mercedarians!

Last week of postulancy

2010-06-14T17:07:00.002-04:00

The bulk of the postulancy is in my wake, a safe place where giving thanks to God for it all seems all the easier. Praise God! As you might remember I was granted an abbreviated time of 6 months because of prior religious life experience. Now with less than a handful of days to count down I'm looking to my vacation and then a new place, novitiate. May all be according to God's plan.

New York tour-32

2010-05-18T22:22:00.004-04:00

New York tour-31

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New York tour-31

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New York tour-30

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New York tour-29

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New York tour-28

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New York tour-28

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New York tour-28

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New York tour-27

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New York tour-26

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New York tour-26

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New York tour-25

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New York tour-24

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New York tour-24

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New York tour-23

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New York tour-23

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New York tour-22

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New York tour-21

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New York tour-20

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New York tour-19

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New York tour-18

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New York tour-17

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New York tour-16

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New York tour-15

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New York tour-14

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New York tour-13

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New York tour-12

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New York tour-11

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New York tour-10

2010-05-07T21:46:00.001-04:00

New York tour-9

2010-05-07T21:28:00.003-04:00

New York tour-8

2010-05-07T19:16:00.003-04:00

New York tour-7

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New York tour-6

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New York tour-5

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New York tour-4

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New York tour-3

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New York tour-2

2010-05-07T12:36:00.003-04:00

New York tour-1

2010-05-07T08:55:00.002-04:00

Mount Carmel 8th grade goes to NYC

2010-05-07T08:46:00.002-04:00

Fr. Joseph and I were asked to accompany the 7th and 8th graders of Our Lady of Mount Carmel parish in Cleveland, one of our two Mercedarian houses we staff. Our Mercedarian sisters of the Eucharist are there as well and two of them, Sr. Rosario (principal) and Sr. Jeanette (teacher), came as well. Fr. Michael from the parish also came. Lorraine Slogik was our tour guide for most of the trip, with the exception of Michael our NYC guide for an informative 4 hour personally guided explanation of NYC. Thank you for the invite and those who's generosity made it possible for us to go, parents, benefactors, prayer warriors and our well-tempered and brave bus driver.

May Our Lady of Carmel bless and reward you all generously!

Nearing novitiate

2010-05-01T22:26:00.004-04:00

We had our good bye dinner tonight at a local fine Italian diner. The SOLM sisters and the Philadelphia brothers and priests were present, as well as two seminary friends, all on the vigil of the feast of our founder Saint Peter Nolasco. It has all come suddenly after a busy pace through Holy Week and Brother Justin's diaconate ordination. Here we are on the cusp of yet another transition and movement in formation. We'll take all this to Our Lord and Lady and request their preparatory graces, folding in the fabric of Their hearts so to bring good fruit.

I'm looking forward to meeting the other members of the Mercedarian community who I've previously met for short visits, but now I will be living, praying and working with them, alone. I'm the only novice this year, as I was for postulancy. In some ways, while fraternity is great, there is a movement into the desert that the novitiate has a perfect opportunity to cultivate. Novitiates are intentionally isolated places where soul and geography meet to simplify down to the most fundamental levels. Some call it a spiritual "bootcamp" or "hot box"; a place where you learn the history, constitution and charism of the order in an environment that becomes spiritually intense. The imagery of the grapes in a wine press where only the essence extrudes in a final basin, comes to mind.

A one week retreat and a two week vacation comes before the novitiate, starting on the feast of the Most Holy Redeemer. Taking a fourth vow of redemption this is timely and appropriate for the Mercedarian novitiate, may I receive all the graces necessary to complete it according to God's Will and be perfectly prepared to take the next step prepared by Our Lord and Lady!

Diaconate ordination of Br. Justin Freeman O. de M.-23

2010-04-28T14:04:00.003-04:00

Diaconate ordination of Br. Justin Freeman O. de M.-22

2010-04-28T13:40:00.002-04:00

Diaconate ordination of Br. Justin Freeman O. de M.-21

2010-04-28T13:05:00.003-04:00

Diaconate ordination of Br. Justin Freeman O. de M.-20

2010-04-28T12:49:00.002-04:00

Diaconate ordination of Br. Justin Freeman O. de M.-19

2010-04-28T10:49:00.002-04:00

Diaconate ordination of Br. Justin Freeman O. de M.-18

2010-04-28T10:29:00.002-04:00

Diaconate ordination of Br. Justin Freeman O. de M.-17

2010-04-27T22:39:00.002-04:00

Diaconate ordination of Br. Justin Freeman O. de M.-16

2010-04-27T21:50:00.001-04:00

Diaconate ordination of Br. Justin Freeman O. de M.-15

2010-04-27T21:32:00.002-04:00

Diaconate ordination of Br. Justin Freeman O. de M.-14

2010-04-27T21:18:00.001-04:00