Blessings for the New Year to one and all!

Mary and Joseph started the new year by presenting the Infant Jesus to the shepherds and to the three Magi. Then the Holy Family presented Him in the Temple. Anna and Simeon recognized the Holy Family, that their Infant was the Messiah. How did Anna and Simeon see that special aspect of this family, among all the thousands of families presenting babies over many years? Saint Katharine noted that “activity follows from the spirit of prayer.” Their prayer life enabled Simeon and Anna to see beyond surface qualities and to see the God in the Holy Family.

Perhaps our prayer life could help us to see beyond the superficial, to see the God in others. If Jesus is truly our light, does His Light shine through our actions? Blessed James Alberione, SSP, said that we represent Christ “as an extension of his humanity” (Christ Lives in Me, p.43). Christ no longer walks the face of the earth but we do. We can be Christ’s hands, feet, and heart.

January 9, 1895, was the day on which Saint Katharine pronounced her vows for life. Her motto, inscribed on her ring at that time, was “My Beloved to me, and I to Him.” This phrase, from the Song of Songs, referred to the love of a married couple. For Saint Katharine, it represented her personal relationship with the Lord and, subsequently, her relationship to all of His children. May we see all others as fellow children of our Savior and God, Jesus Christ.

January also includes Rev. Martin Luther King’s day. Dr. King advocated working for social justice in a non-violent way. Saint Katharine said that “Working for social justice can take many paths.” Whichever path we take, it can help us to appreciate the paths others have taken or are taking. Both believed in the importance of education. Dr. King said: “Intelligence plus character – that is the goal of true education.’ Saint Katharine found “no more elevating work than education.”

Dr. King believed in non-violence. Saint Katharine wrote letters to newspapers, members of Congress and to the President in support of racial justice as well as supporting the schools the Sisters had founded and the NAACP. We can find our own path through prayer and other means

Stephanie Morris, Ph.D., A.S.B.S.

Awakening

 

With the first Sunday of Advent, we begin a new liturgical year. Many of us make “New Year’s Resolutions” around January 1^st, to revive our earthly life. Perhaps we could make similar resolutions to re-awaken our spiritual life.

St. Katharine noted that “The first Christmas was the beginning of the Human Life of Jesus. This Christmas is the beginning of a new life in us.” Jesus came as a baby, taking little steps at first. We can take comfort in the thought that we, too, can begin our new spiritual life with small steps. Caryll Houselander noted that “The Christ–life in us follows a natural growth.” A child advances from shaky small steps to confident adult strides. We can strengthen our Christ-life by small steps. If done for God, nothing is small in God’s eyes, St. Katharine reassures us.

St. Katharine urged the Sisters to “Arise from your Christmas thanksgiving to find your Jesus with you.” He is always with you, whether you are in your prayer corner or interacting with people throughout the day. When we receive Holy Communion, we hold Jesus as closely as when the Blessed Mother held her Infant Son on that first Christmas.

Where we see Jesus, we also see Mary, from Christmas to Good Friday, Easter and beyond. Toward the end of December, we celebrate the feast of the Holy Family of Jesus, Mary and Joseph. We can remember our own families in prayer and with gratitude during this season. We are closer in spirit to those who no longer walk the earth when we receive Communion as we were when they were with us. May this Christmas season awaken a new spirit of appreciation for the members of our families.

Reminding us that following Christ does not guarantee an easy life, we also remember the first martyrs, St. Stephen and the Holy Innocents. May we celebrate life in all its manifestations.

May the New Year bring you many blessings and happy memories.

Stephanie Morris, Ph.D., A.S.B.S.

Formerly the Director of Archives for the Sisters of the Blessed Sacrament, I often commented on Sr. Annette Marie O’Donnell’s blog. When she retired from writing her blog, I was asked to write a blog. St. Katharine said we are typewriters in the hands of God; it has been my privilege and pleasure to act as St. Katharine’s typist.