Palm Sunday Pagentry

As we gathered this morning for the blessing of the palms to begin our procession with Jesus on this Holy Week Pilgrimage, the mood was somber, but at the same time jubilant.  We heard the following words of instruction: "Today we gather together to herald with the whole Church the beginning of the celebration of our Lord's Paschal Mystery, that is to say, of his Passion and Resurrection.  For it was to accomplish this mystery that he entered his own city of Jerusalem. Therefore, with all faith and devotion, let us commemorate the Lord's entry into the city for our salvation, following in his footsteps, so that, being made by his grace partakers of the Cross, we may have a share also in his Resurrection and in his life."

As we processed outside to the chapel on a glorious spring morning, the mood was jubilant with the knowing of embarking on a most gifted journey.  The singing of "Hosanna! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord! can't help but raise our hearts in glorious anticipation for the gift of Easter.

The first reading (Isaiah 50:4-7) immediately brought on a somber mood as we heard the following Messianic prophecy: "I gave my back to those who beat me, my cheeks to those who plucked my beard; my face I did not shield from buffets and spitting."  The Responsorial Psalm (22) uttered the feeling of complete abandonment, "My God, my God, why have you abandoned me?"  The second reading (Philippians 2:6-11) was more jubilant as it sings of Jesus' mission, emptying himself, coming in human likeness, becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.  This act bespeaks his ultimate gift of love whereby "at the name of Jesus every knee should bend, of those in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord."  In fact, this message reminds us of our Baptismal commitment and vocational call in life, to follow Jesus and proclaim Jesus with the same heart of love.

Then we listened to the long Passion narrative (Mark 14:1-15:47).  It would take me to this time next year to blog about the meaning of this Gospel because it is just so full of implications for my life's journey.  Perhaps it is an invitation to take just one section per day throughout Holy Week and place myself in the story to ponder its meaning at this time in my life.  While listening to the Gospel, my heart flip flopped between feelings of sorrow and joy: the joyous extravagance of the woman with the alabaster jar anointing Jesus' head and Jesus' recognition of her prophetic role, the sorrowful betrayal, the making ready for the Passover celebration, the sharing of bread and wine (Body and Blood) at the Last Supper, Peter's denials, Jesus' Gethsemane and Sanhedrin experience, the Crucifixion, and the Burial.  The Gospel ends with "Mary Magdalene and Mary the mother of Joses watched where he was laid."  And so I am called to watch also.  To continue to watch my heart as I ponder this Passion narrative throughout the week.  I will hear sections of this Gospel repeated in the liturgy throughout the rest of the week.  And, of course, I will again experience the various nuances of sorrow and joy as I hear it again on Good Friday.  In the meantime, I "Remain here and keep watch" as I journey with Jesus on the most holy of journeys.

Agony in the Garden of Gethsemane
Sacred Heart Monastery
Cullman, Alabama













Bread and Soup Night TOGETHER



nytimes.com

Wednesday and Friday nights during Lent at the monastery are reminiscent of more traditional monastic times when meals were, for the most part, eaten in silence while listening to holy table reading.  Monastics were not only fortified physically, but their souls were nourished in holy silence as they mulled over the words they heard as the reader shared whatever she was instructed to read by the Abbot.  St. Benedict, in Chapter 38 of his Rule, The Reader for the Week, exhorts "Let there be complete silence.  No whispering, no speaking- only the reader's voice should be heard there.  The brothers should by turn serve one another's needs as they eat and drink, so that on one need ask for anything." 

Our silent monastic meal tonight consisted of split pea and ham hock soup with homemade zucchini bread right out of the oven.  St. Benedict always advocates a second choice, so those who were not particularly fond of this flavor of soup could be seen navigating to the kitchen for a bowl of cereal.  The silent atmosphere somehow invites one to slow down, to truly taste the food, and to listen attentively to the word being read.  In a way, this is prayer time TOGETHER, silence TOGETHER, community time TOGETHER, formation TOGETHER. 

Tonight, as I listened to the reading, I realized we are all on the same journey TOGETHER, intent on our Lenten Pilgrimage TOGETHER.  After the reading was over, we sat in silence for a few minutes until Sr. Janet Marie rang the bell, the sign that the meal was completed and we could then proceed to clear the tables and take our dishes to the cart for dishwashing.  I sat for a few minutes just to watch the Sisters.  I noticed several Sisters taking dishes for Sisters who needed help.  This reminded me of our holy service TOGETHER that should flow out of our silence and our interiorization of God's message through the spoken word.



The book that Sr. Janet Marie chose for our Lenten table reading this year is The Gift of Years, Growing Older Gracefully by Sr. Joan Chittister, OSB.  The following paragraph struck me as a possible Lenten message for us all as we live this monastic life TOGETHER, "growing older gracefully" TOGETHER:

"A burden of these years

is that we must consciously decide how we will live,

what kind of person we will become now,

what kind of personality and spirituality we will bring into every group,

how alive we intend to be.

A blessing of these years is being able to live so openheartedly,

and to adjust so well,

that others can look to us and see what being old can bring

in terms of life,

of holiness, of goodness

to make the world new again."

~Joan Chittister, OSB

The Gift of Years

BlueBridge Pub. 2008, p.65

So our Lenten time TOGETHER is an opportunity, a call, to make everyday a new day so that the Christ within us can make the "world new again."









Lenten Pilgrimage

The readings for this first Sunday of Lent are packed with rich imagery of water, rainbows, creatures of every kind, and desert wilderness.  We once again travel the covenantal pilgrimage of salvation history.  In the words of Patricia Sanchez, “through the story of Noah and the great flood, the authors of Genesis remind us that no one goes it alone in this world. God has chosen to be bound forever to us and to our world in a covenantal relationship

...This covenant supersedes all the differences that divide us and all the controversies that place us at odds with one another.  Just as Noah and company were preserved in the ark from the flood waters, those who are baptized into Christ are saved through the waters of the sacrament.  …The bow in the clouds stands as a witness to God’s ever deepening love and commitment to all.  Among the ancient Near Eastern peoples, the rainbow was thought to be a divine weapon used by the gods to inflict harm on humankind.  However, with the biblical narrative of Noah, the bow (undrawn) became a symbol of God’s unwillingness to harm covenantal partners.  It bore silent, colorful witness to God’s “never again” pledge…” Through our own response to God’s covenantal relationship with us, “we are to echo God’s “never again” promise so that future generations might also know” this covenantal relationship.

In the Gospel of Mark, we join Jesus on his wilderness pilgrimage.  Having just been baptized in the Jordan, he escapes to the desert for 40 days, a “fearsome place where wild beasts were a constant danger, [but] also the place where Israel and God sealed their relationship and where they had come to rely on God for their survival. Similarly reliant on God and strengthened by the Spirit and the ministrations of the angel messengers, Jesus not only survived the desert experience, he emerged victorious and eagerly intent upon beginning his mission.  He would preach the gospel of God!” (Patricia Sanchez, from “Preaching Resources,” Celebration, February, 2012)

Jesus calls us to be serious about our own Lenten pilgrimage, to recall our baptismal commitment, our moments of monastic profession, our sufferings, our conversions, our joys.  As the rite of “election” or “enrollment of names” for the catechumens who are to be admitted to the Sacraments of Christian Initiation at the Easter Vigil takes place tomorrow, we recall our own Baptismal celebration, the many catechumen celebrations we have witnessed, and all of our Sisters who have responded to Jesus’ call throughout the years to form new members into God’s covenantal relationship.

Each day of our daily monastic pilgrimage, with its desert and garden moments, its peaks and valleys, is a re-commitment to our Baptismal commitment- to our vow of stability, no matter what.  The Lenten journey, indeed, our everyday journey, is definitely an adventure.   Joyce Rupp, in her book, Walk in a Relaxed Manner, Life Lessons from the Camino, shares that “adventure depends on openness and an attitude of risk taking.  Life can be boring and yawningly predictable or it can be surprisingly eventful and growth- filled.  It depends on how we see it and what we allow it to be for us. The landscape of our daily routines may be the same but we are never the same inside.  There is always something new waiting for us, if we will only open ourselves to it.  What we consider to be everyday and ordinary can have freshness to it if we are willing to enter into it fully.  Every day is an adventure daring us to be more fully alive.”

Our daily lives enrich our understanding of the liturgical readings from year to year.  Something new is always waiting for us.  With our listening hearts, we stand ready to embark on new adventures, inviting others, through our hospitality and ministry, to embark on the holy journey of life with us. 

We can easily see the readings for tomorrow as the Paschal Journey.  The water images of the flood might make us think of the virulent budding of spring gifts to come, the desert sands conjure up times of aridity and tribulation, the rainbow assures us there is hope, and Jesus’ presence in the desert reflects that in God all things are possible if we look to Him as the Way, the Truth, and the Life.

The scallop shell design, worn as a badge by pilgrims to Compostela, symbolizes the many European starting points from which medieval pilgrims began their journey, all drawn to a single point at the base of the shell, Santiago de Compostela.  So perhaps we should keep this scallop shell in mind as our symbol to carry along on our Lenten journey, where each week of Lent is drawn to a single point at the base of the shell, the arrival at our Easter destination.

 As we think of pilgrimage, the following quote from James Healy is appropriate:

"Whether we gaze with longing into the garden or with fear and trembling into the desert, of this we can be sure---God walked there first!  And when we who have sinned and despoiled the garden are challenged now to face the desert, we do not face it alone; Jesus has gone there before us to struggle with every demon that has ever plagued a human heart. Face the desert we must if we would reach the garden, but Jesus has gone there before us." 

              (from A Lent Resource Book, The Forty Days, Book One, pg.68,

               Liturgy Training Publications, 1990)

  

"The Rest of the Story"

Postscript to yesterday's blog- "Angel at the Super Bowl"

(must read blog of February 4, 2012)

What a game!!!! The Patriots tried so hard the last 50 seconds or so to score a touchdown to beat the Giants.  Yet, for most of the game they were ahead.  I felt a real adrenalin rush at their last-ditched effort to come through for the win and heard myself shouting for Dave to help them out.  Believe it or not, I shed a little tear for their loss, but I think I heard Dave say, "Sis, it's allright, the score shows they are BOTH the best.  And don't forget, I was in New York for several years and attended a few Giants' games. Though I love the Patriots, I'm OK with the Giants winning since they were part of my life too."

David M. Cohen
In Memoriam
February 6, 2005
Our Super Bowl Angel

I celebrated with you this night
you coaxed me to the Super Bowl
your most favorite delight.
Your beautiful face with Stetson hat
I did not see
but never mind that
my heart felt your presence.
Tell God thanks
for all of us!
We love you and miss you so much!
So we promise
to meet you every year at the Super Bowl
and we know one day that you will meet us at the gates of the Real Super Bowl.

From Mom and all your brothers and sisters



Angel at the Super Bowl

             Super Bowl Sunday is always a special event for me and my family.  At the forefront of this ultimate sports extravaganza, is the memory of our dear brother David.  He loved the Super Bowl.  As generous and hard-working as he was (coming to our rescue if we had a flat tire, electrical problem, illness, or ANY request), all time stopped on Super Bowl Sunday.  What makes Super Bowl Sunday so special for us is that David died on Super Bowl Sunday in 2005 after a heroic eighteen-month fight with cancer.  My sister Frances recalls that, as she and her husband were visiting with him just two nights before he died, David was already anticipating the Super Bowl and hoping that the New England Patriots would win.  As we were gathered at his bedside during his last hours, we coaxed him on to his heavenly journey, reminding him that he would have the “best seat in the house” to watch the game.  He died right before the start of the game.  The Patriots came through for him, 24-21, against the Philadelphia Eagles.

             I am certain that David journeyed to heaven by way of Jacksonville, Florida, so he could watch the Patriots’ victory.  After all, Pensacola is much closer to Jacksonville than Heaven and I can just hear David telling God, “First things, first!”  I know of this tenacity from my brother Steve and their working buddies as they share stories of their time working together on power plant startups in New York. Steve speaks of their travelling the subway systems in New York.  He paints a picture of David wearing “his Stetson black hat and handcuff on his belt and carrying a throw down wallet (an empty wallet he was prepared to throw down and run in case it looked like he was in imminent danger of being mugged) as we followed him through Penn Station and it was like the parting of the sea but he was always so polite: ‘How you doing?’ ‘Good Day!’  He was always smiling comfortably in his skin; he just was unafraid.” His license plate even reflected this spirit- NO GRIEF.

            The Patriots will be playing again in this year’s Super Bowl in Indianapolis.  My sister Lynn got “goosebumps” when she heard this.  Though I am not that much of a football fan, all time will stop for me and I will be watching this game. Why? Because I know Angel David will be there.  He has probably already convinced God of his need to be present for the Patriots and he most likely has successfully won permission to bring his mentor and good friend, Bob Libbey, my brother Kenny who followed him to heaven almost a year later, and any other heavenly Super Bowl buddies with him.  And I know all his New York buddies still here on earth, Robert, Walker, Bob, Rick, Mike, Blue, and Ken, will join him to cheer the Patriots on the road to victory.  I am sure there is one SUPER-DUPER tail-gaiting party already going on in heaven at this moment and throughout the night.

New York Work Crew:
left to right
Robert Frady, Walker Anderson, Dave Cohen, Steve Cohen, Bob Libbey, Rick Cotton,
Mike Owens, Blue Larry, Ken Orange

 Tune in tomorrow evening for

“rest of the story!”

“…but this one thing I do:

forgetting what lies behind and straining forward

to what lies ahead, I press on toward the goal

for the prize of the heavenly call of God in Christ Jesus.”  Phil. 3: 13-14

from Memorial Card

DAVID M. COHEN

February 6, 2005

“Grieve not…

nor speak of me with tears…

but laugh

and talk with me

as though I were beside you.

I loved you so…

‘twas Heaven

here with you.”

“You are most cordially invited

to join me at the Super Bowl

February 5, 2012.

 See ya’ll there!!!!

Love,

Dave

           

Forever On My Heart

 

If Emmy awards were given for TV commercials, I would have to submit my vote for Johnson and Johnson’s 2011 television advertisements as part of its Campaign for Nursing’s Future in an effort to address the nursing shortage.  The commercials’ message to the public is to portray nursing expertise and emotional support to patients.  Each commercial ends with the message “Nurses Heal.”  There are two of these commercials that bring tears to my eyes and place me in a soul searching mode as I reflect on my own nursing ministry.

 

One of the commercials portrays a male nurse sitting at the bedside of a pediatric patient whose name is Emma.  As he is preparing to administer her chemo, she is gazing at him with her beautiful eyes, waiting for him to start their poem song as he administers the chemo.  Together they sing: “Emma, emma, bo-bemma, banana-fanna, fo-femma, fee-fi-fo-femma…Emma!  While the nurse is seen putting skill to practice, he is also seen as utilizing psychosocial skills in putting Emma at ease.

Another commercial highlights an ER nurse caring for a trauma patient.  As the patient’s clothes are cut off, the contents of his pocket fall onto the stretcher.  The nurse spots a large metal shamrock charm on a key ring.  After the patient is stabilized, the nurse approaches the ventilated patient and places the charm in his hand.

Every time I see these commercials, I take a few moments to recall experiences where I have sat at the patient’s bedside with an attentive and caring heart.  In the above two commercials, the nurse is present to only the one patient.  I know the chemo nurse has other patients he is caring for also, and the ER nurse probably has several other trauma patients as well. 

 

Throughout our health care experience, we probably all have memories of patients who have touched our hearts in a special way because of unexpected consequences in their plan of care.  Sometimes it seems that it is the emergent situations that often bring out the compassionate side of our hearts, although we don’t realize it until after the fact.

 

We all know that the worst of the unpredictable always crops up during our extremely busy shifts.  My first encounter of this realization occurred just three months after I had graduated from St. Vincent’s  School of Nursing in 1974 (yes, I’ve been a nurse for a long time).  I was working 3-11 on the old 3 East post-surgical unit. As I was making rounds, I was called to the bedside of a woman who was three days post-op for abdominal surgery.  She was undergoing a post-op complication I had certainly learned about in nursing school, but I definitely became quite frazzled that this unexpected complication was occurring on my watch.  I notified her surgeon, booked a bed for the OR, and proceeded to prepare her for her return to surgery.  When I sat at her bedside to inform her she would be returning to surgery, she was actually calmer about it than I was.  She looked into my eyes and said “Don’t worry; everything is going to be all right.”  She grabbed my hand and we just sat there, waiting for her family to arrive.  The OR tech came to take her to surgery around 8:45 pm.  I took her by the hand, looked into her eyes and told her God would be with her and that I would see her when she got back.  As I got busy finishing up my shift, giving my taped report, and thinking about her every breathing moment, I made up my mind that I would wait for her to return before I went home at 11:15.  I clocked out and waited. I was still waiting at 12:15 and then started getting worried.  The family was getting worried also, so I sat with them and tried to reassure them that if something went wrong, I knew the surgeon would let them know.  I took them to the waiting room and told them I would go try to find out something.  Just then, the surgeon walked in, surprised I was still there.  I told him I was determined to see her when she got back to the floor.  He explained he was going to keep her in ICU overnight and that everything went well.  After he spoke with the family, he walked me out to the parking lot.  The patient was on my mind as I went to bed and when I awoke the next morning.  When I returned to work that evening, I went to see her.  She looked wonderful and I felt wonderful.  I have thought of her on many occasions throughout my career and have often used this memory for teaching purposes.  She will forever be on my heart.

Fast forward to 2011, the week before Christmas, I was assigned to another patient with post-op complications from abdominal surgery. When he was informed he would be going back to surgery, he began crying.  All I could do was hold his hand; I couldn’t think of anything to say.  Finally, God gave me the prayerful words of His love and compassion for this patient’s solace and healing.  I stayed with him until OR arrived, and as he left told him I would be praying for him.  While I was with him before surgery, it seemed as if time had stopped and that he was my only concern at the time.  I was not thinking about my other patients.  I believe God must have been taking care of my other patients, since no one seemed to be looking for me while I was being present to this one patient.  After he left for surgery, I got very busy again, but none of the patients seemed to have missed me.

 

The surgeon said the patient would be going to ICU after surgery.  That was my last day to work until after New Year’s.  I left work knowing that I would not be able to see him.  I remember his name and I don’t feel I will ever forget it.  I have prayed for him daily during Morning and Evening Prayer, at Christmas Midnight Mass, and I put his “initials” on the Monastery prayer list.  When I returned to work on January 5, I did not see his name on the unit’s census list, I did not search for his location, and I did not hear anyone mention his name.  I still remember his name and I still pray for him and his wife every morning and evening.  Wherever he is, he will be Forever On My Heart.

   

<>    <><>   <>

“Very often I feel like a little pencil in God’s hand.      He does the writing; he does the thinking; he does the movement-      I have only to be a pencil and nothing else.”      ~Blessed Mother Teresa of Calcutta, Total Surrender

 

 

<>    <><>   <>

 

The Wonderful Gift of Family

"When they had finished everything required by the law of the Lord, they returned to Galilee, to their own town of Nazareth. The child grew and became strong, filled with wisdom; and the favor of God was upon him." Luke 2: 40

On this the sixth day of Christmas, we celebrate the Feast of the Holy Family.  In Luke 2: 40, Mary and Joseph bring Jesus to the temple for his consecration to the Lord as prescribed by law.  The Holy Family is approached by Simeon and Anna who recognize God’s Light in Jesus as gift to the world.  Simeon proclaimed to Mary “Behold, this child is destined for the fall and rise of many in Israel, and to be a sign that will be contradicted-and you yourself a sword will pierce-so that the thoughts of many hearts may be revealed.” Luke 2: 34-35.  

When I listen to these words, I can see Mary and Joseph with a perplexed countenance as to the meaning of this message.  What were they thinking? Did they understand?  It seems that they were called to keep pondering their call in the Incarnation Mystery.  Were their hearts heavy as they returned with Jesus to Galilee?  They probably travelled on in silence and humbly resolved to fulfill God’s plan so that “the child grew and became strong, filled with wisdom; and the favor of God was upon him”(Luke 2:40) and Mary and Joseph too.

The Holy Family puts before us the image of community in family living.  At Eucharist this morning, Father Joel shared that “life begins in family.”  It is in family that we learn to live, love, and share our inner life with others.  Our immediate family life molds us to generate extended family life, either in married life or religious community life.  As I took time to thank God for my parents and my brothers and sisters, a wave of beautiful memories surfaced:

My mother’s attentive, caring, presence as she watched us take our first steps,

recorded our first word,

walked with us on the first day of school,

nursed us when we were sick,

made sure we ate together as a family EVERY night,

went to bat for us if there was a teacher-student conflict,

sacrificed her own needs so that we would have school clothes and books each year, 

hosted our birthday and graduation parties,

travelled with me when I entered the Monastery,

sat as Mother of Sorrows as two of my brothers lay dying,

and the list goes on and on. 

In other words, whenever there is a family celebration, whenever there is an unexpected or sad event, she has been right there with her heart wide open in love.

My parents on their Wedding Day
What were they pondering within their hearts?

I think of my father also, always faithful to his parental duties in our early years as he supported my mother in the raising of nine children,

diligently worked to support us,

insisted we be on time at the supper table,

helped us with homework,

took us on family outings such as the circus, the zoo, drive-in movies in the family station wagon dressed in our pajamas with plenty of popcorn and soda,

and going to Church every Sunday and getting there on time to make sure we sat in our regular pew (the Cohen Family pew).

I think of all my brothers and sisters and thank God for all the love they have shown me and am thankful for all the love I have been able to gift to them.  I thank God for their part in generating new life- for bringing so many nieces and nephews into the world for me to love.  I thank God for all my nieces and nephews who are now bringing forth more new life- all the grand nieces and nephews.

Life does indeed blossom forth from the Holy Family.  In our daily prayer with the Scripture readings of Jesus' life, we are formed and steeped into the qualities needed for holy family life-love, respect, kindness, consideration, generosity, humility, obedience and sacrificial service.  How can we not follow their example of community?  How can we better grow and become strong, be filled with wisdom, and definitely know that the favor of God is upon us also?"

My own holy family life fashioned me in preparation for my monastic family life.  St. Benedict, in his Rule, addresses parameters for a holy family life in community.  He insists on punctuality at prayers and meals, obedience to the Abbot and mutual obedience, humility, proper  order of work and prayer, proper care of the sick, and correction of faults. In Chapter 72 of the Rule, The Good Zeal of Monks, St. Benedict presents an exemplary model for holy family living, whether secular or monastic:  "This, then, is the good zeal which monks must foster with fervent love: They should each try to be the first to show respect to the other (Rom. 12:10), supporting with the greatest patience one another's weaknesses of body or behavior, and earnestly competing in obedience to one another.  No one is to pursue what he judges better for himself, but instead, what he judges better for someone else.  To their fellow monks they show the pure love of brothers; to God, loving fear; to their abbot, unfeigned and humble love.  Let them prefer nothing whatever to Christ, and may he bring us all together to everlasting life."  (Rule of St. Benedict, Ch. 72: 3-12.

What else is there to say about the wonderful gift of family?  There is probably so much more, but the important thing is to thank God for all the memories, good and sad, and in this remembering, the heart is softened to continue to grow the holiness of family life.

Sacred Heart Monastery
Monastic Community
Christmas Day 2011

The Cohen Family

 "Today the Church calls our attention

to not simply the importance of family life,

but the necessity that our families be holy.

Holiness is discovered in the realization that our lives are not about ourselves,

but are meant as a gift for others.

The families that embody this radiant gift of self to each other

imitate the Holy Family of Christ."

~Fr. Robert Barron

Sermon 468

"What Makes a Holy Family"

http://wordonfire.org