12.14.09

Advent Reflection - Week Three

Posted in AV Alumni at 7:09 am by osavolor

At this time of year when many people are consumed with the hustle and bustle of our culture, it’s so refreshing to take the time each day to read the Scriptures and reflect on the goodness of the Lord. As we search God’s Word and meditate on His attributes, we come to see His magnificent love and wondrous plans for our lives. We become more in tune with the Lord’s greatest desire for humanity, for us to become worshippers of Him for who He is. This week our readings from both the Old and New Testaments show us this.

The first OT reading comes from the minor prophet Zephaniah. He’s only called minor because of the short length of his book, but he has a mighty message like all prophets of the Lord. In Zephaniah 3:14-18 we read that we are to sing, shout, be glad, and rejoice in the Lord! Verse 17 says three very important things for us: 1) God will rejoice over you with gladness. 2) He will quiet (tranquil) you with His love. 3) He will rejoice over you with singing! Isn’t this absolutely amazing? The God of all creation is rejoicing over us, what an awesome promise to claim this day!

Our next reading is in Isaiah. Isaiah was a major prophet with a book of 66 chapters, considered by many theologians to be a type of mini Bible as the entire Bible also has 66 books – 39 books in the OT and 27 in the NT. Isaiah’s message was of great prophetic importance as he is considered the Messianic prophet with many references to Christ’s coming hundreds of years before the birth of Jesus. In our reading Isaiah 12:2-6, we read of the greatness of the Lord. It says that Yah, the Lord, is our strength and our song! We are to praise the Lord, call upon His name; declare His deeds, and exalt His name. Isaiah goes on to say that the Lord has done great things and this is known in all the earth. God is our salvation by what Jesus Christ has done for us all on the cross. We only need to have faith, to simply believe that God sent His only Son Jesus Christ to die for our sins that our payment would be covered in full! Faith, that’s it, wow! Not works, reputation, skills, abilities, or position in this world. We only need to have faith in Christ’s death and resurrection! This calls for great reason to celebrate with joy this Christmas Season!

The last two readings come from Paul’s letter to the Philippians, whom he writes to from prison in Rome, and Luke’s gospel. In one of the more quoted and popular passages of Scripture, Philippians 4:4-7, we read about the great joy Paul has in Jesus Christ. Paul says, “Rejoice in the Lord always, again I say rejoice!” He goes on to say, “Let your gentleness be made known to all men.” Verses 5 and 6 encourage us to prayerfully with thanks give the Lord our deepest pains and greatest desires, while also allowing God’s peace to guard our heart and minds in Christ Jesus.

Luke 3:10-18 records Jesus’ public ministry beginning at about age 30 with His water baptism done by His cousin John. John was the one who prepared the way for Jesus, as all previous prophets had done in the OT before him. John the Baptist said, “I indeed baptize you with water; but One mightier than I is coming, whose sandal strap I am not worthy to loose. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire.” We see here that John was prophesying that Jesus would come as God in the flesh that all may have the opportunity to receive Him into their hearts by faith. Christ came that all people may have the freedom to choose Him as their King by faith and receive the power of the Holy Spirit to live a life fully surrendered to the Lord. We are called by God to be holy people, meaning to be set apart for His purpose but not perfect because Christ fulfilled that part for us. This cannot be done by our own merit, strength, good works or anything in and of ourselves. Rather, it must be done by the power of Christ living within us by His grace, mercy, love and power! What an awesome thought! We are free to live for Christ and He gives us His Holy Spirit to glorify Him!

Ephesians 2:8 says, “For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast.” God has given us each the choice for salvation by the shedding of Jesus’ sinless blood on the cross for our sins. This is the Gospel. This is the Good News! We are sinners, condemned to death, but have the option for eternal life by God’s great love for us – simply by faith! What a wonderful fact to think upon this Christmas Season as we celebrate the birth of our Lord and Savior. Truly our salvation is the greatest gift God could give us; much beyond our understanding is His perfect love, wisdom and provision for all humans. As the Lord spoke through the prophet Isaiah in Is. 55:8-9, “For My thoughts are not your thoughts, nor are your ways My ways.” “For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are My ways higher than your ways, and My thoughts than your thoughts.”

As I reflect on my time as an AV in San Diego during the 2000-01 years, I think of how great the Lord has been to me between then and now. His grace and mercy have allowed me to see how much He cares for every one of us. In that time as an AV I began to develop a great spiritual hunger and thirst to know and understand God more. I desired to know Him personally as a real Person, not an invisible and obscure figure off far away in the unknown universe somewhere. I began to search the Bible and read His Holy Word to get to know God through His Son Jesus Christ. This decision to dive into the Scriptures on my own with the power of the Holy Spirit as my teacher has forever changed my life in ways that I cannot possibly express in my own words. It has led me to develop a daily walk with God in a personal relationship with Jesus Christ. My life verse written by David in Psalm 16:11 sums up how this decision has affected me. King David says, “You will show me the path of life; in Your presence is fullness of joy; at Your right hand are pleasures forevermore.”

God has an abundant life awaiting each of us. It’s amazing, this life is given not to be filled with the pleasures of this world which are temporary and fading away. We can be blessed with the riches of eternal life with forgiveness, peace, joy, love, mercy, wisdom, and on and on and on. Only God through His Son Jesus Christ can fulfill the spiritual hunger and desire we have deep within our soul. What a joy this life is with Him!

James 4:8 says, “Draw near to God and He will draw near to you.” God loves you so much, this Christmas, the ones of the past and ahead. The Lord has great plans for your life. Let me encourage you to seek His will for your life and search His Word to gain understanding of His unfailing love and the promises He has made for you. He will give you fullness of joy that we know this world will never provide. Psalm 32:8 says, “I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go; I will guide you with My eye.” May the Lord grant you peace and joy this day, season and New Year as we reflect on His goodness that came through the birth of Jesus Christ.

Joe Maloney
San Diego, ‘00-01

Joe recently moved to Bonners Ferry, Idaho with his wife and son. The moved their to help plant a Christian church serving nearby populations in both Idaho and Montana. Their goal is to plant a number of churches in the area to continue to spread God’s word. Please keep them in your prayers as they minister to the people. During his Volunteer year, Joe served as a teacher’s aid to the Kindergarten class at St. Patrick School.

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12.06.09

Advent Reflection - Week Two

Posted in AV Alumni at 9:26 am by osavolor

I’ve always been a list-maker. And each year around this time-the hectic weeks between Thanksgiving and Christmas- my lists begin to multiply, becoming itineraries filled with holiday-related specifics I aim to conquer before the 25^th.  And as always, with the satisfaction of checking one thing off comes the addition of three somethings more.  I’m perpetually playing catch-up.

Throughout my Volunteer year my list making was at an all time high, and during Advent they emerged in rapid production.  Added to my usual tasks of gifts, shopping, and Christmas cards, were pageant rehearsals, window decorations for 14 classrooms, and gift drives; all the while trying to balance the unique opportunities offered in sharing Advent with my community.     

With the approach of each Advent season, I intend to make “prayer” a top priority on my list.  However, prayer somehow falls short of making my agenda, let alone being at the top of my to-do’s.  As I devote myself to my lists, I seldom find time to devote to prayer- especially in the mad dash that is the last few weeks before Christmas.  Recently, somewhere in the holiday potpourri mix, a friend shared with me one of Paul’s letters to the Thessalonians.  Paul suggests, “Rejoice always, pray constantly, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.” (Thes 5:16-18).  

Rebekah Callaghan
Lawrence ‘08-09

Rebekah is living in Havertown, PA with her family, where she is substitute teaching and assisting with music ministry at her parish while she pursues a future in art.  As a Volunteer, Rebekah served at St. Mary School in Lawrence as a Pre-K Aid and Art Teacher.

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11.28.09

Advent Reflection - Week One

Posted in AV Alumni at 8:09 pm by osavolor

As we all know, Advent is a time of waiting and preparation. Preparation, but for what? When I think of preparation, I generally think of studying for a test, training for a race, or getting ready for a big Christmas dinner. We take certain steps so that when whatever it is that we are waiting for arrives, we will be ready for it. But how do you prepare to celebrate the birth of Christ? How do you prepare for something when no matter what you do, you will never really be ready for it?

Advent marks the start of the Church year. It is a time to reflect on the birth of Jesus, and understand the importance of this event to you and your faith as an Augustinian volunteer, this Advent is really special for you. You get to share it (just like you currently share almost everything else) with your community. I could sit hear and preach to you about what Advent means to me and what I think you should do to prepare, but who am I?  By now, you have already figured out that every member of community comes with differing beliefs, ideas, and values. In community, we differ in our views towards things ranging from expressing our faith to what temperature the heat should be set on. These differences are both a blessing and a curse. They cause tensions and stress sometimes, but they are also the best opportunities we have to learn from each other and grow.

With the business of the Christmas season, it is very easy for people to look at Advent as nothing more than a countdown to Christmas.  The thing that I don’t like about countdowns is that they keep you focused so much on the future that you might lose sight of the present. The great thing about your volunteer year is that you have the opportunity to truly live in the now, perhaps more than you ever will again.  During Advent (and for the rest of your year) I challenge you to do just that. Take the time to figure out what this season means to your roommates and to you. There is a reason that Advent lasts 4 weeks. We need that much time, so use it.  Reflect, pray, and above all appreciate each day and what it means as you look forward (but don’t count down) to the celebration of the birth of Christ and to the rest of your AV year.

Dan Roderick
San Diego ‘07-08

Dan is currently still living in San Diego and is working at Hogar Infantil la Glora, the orphanage in Tijuana where he spent part of his time serving during his AV year.  He is the General Director and Development Director of the orphanage.

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12.24.08

Fourth Week of Advent

Posted in AV Alumni at 1:26 pm by Patrick

Here we are in the final week of the season of Advent. During these last few short days it can prove difficult to keep the spirit of Advent from being lost in the anticipation of what is to come. There are last minute presents to buy, food to prepare, cards to write, plans to arrange, family to visit…but if we lose ourselves in all these details we will miss out on that to which this last week of Advent is calling us.

When I was young, I used to see Advent simply as a countdown to Christmas (to presents really). As I grew older I began to understand it as a time of preparation. At first I thought this “preparation” was about readying ourselves for the birth of Jesus at Christmas. Then, I came to realize that Advent is also a season of waiting, watching and hoping for the Lord’s return—for what ancient Israel’s prophets called “the day of the Lord”: a day when God will bring peace and justice to the whole earth. Now I realize that, during Advent, our anticipation for the birth of Christ and our hope for final justice and harmony on Earth are really two sides of the same coin.

What we prepare ourselves for during Advent and what we celebrate at Christmas is the incarnation of our God. Emmanuel literally means “God is with us.” We celebrate because God comes into our world. We hope because our God is not a distant God who watches things unfold from afar. Rather, our God is intimately present in all the sufferings, challenges, joys and blessings of our lives. And what’s more, God has a plan for each of our lives and for our world as a whole. Despite the suffering and injustice that exists—injustices that many of you who are volunteers encounter daily—God’s presence among us is our reason to hope that all of this is headed somewhere. It is our reason to trust that the good work we do as Augustinian volunteers, or as Christians, or as human beings is not a vain effort, but a participation in the work of God.

I recently read this quote from Pedro Arrupe, a former superior general of the Society of Jesus, which I think speaks to the heart of our Advent hope:

I am quite happy to be called an optimist, but my optimism is not of the utopian variety. It is based on hope. What is an optimist? I can answer for myself in a very simple fashion: He or she is a person who has the conviction that God knows, can do, and will do what is best for humankind.

So, recognizing today that God’s presence among us and work within us and through us is the foundation of our hope, take some time to reflect on how God is and has been truly present—in small ways or large—in your life this Advent season. And if you need (I know I do) take a moment to pray for renewed trust that God is at work in the messiness of your life and our world.

Have a blessed Christmas and best wishes in the New Year!

~Jake Schneider (Lawrence, MA 2006-2007)

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12.16.08

Third Week of Advent- REJOICE!

Posted in AV Alumni at 11:07 am by tpe1979

“Gaudete in Domino semper; iterum dico, gaudete….”

“REJOICE IN THE LORD ALWAYS; AGAIN, I SAY, REJOICE!”

REJOICE!  GAUDETE!  As I listened and learned during the homily on Sunday, I discovered that this, the third week of Advent, is also referred to as Gaudete Sunday.  We are all called in a unique way this week to rejoice, to realize we have every reason to be joyous, to empty ourselves, to prepare… the time of the Lord’s coming is near!

“Rejoice in the Lord always and again, I say, Rejoice!”  The priest reiterated this verse from Phillipians several times throughout his homily this past Sunday and I wondered why it was ringing some bells distantly in the back of my mind.  It ran and ran over in my brain until its cadence changed and it then persisted as a sing-song type of memory…and then it came to me!  We, as a community of Augustinian volunteers and priests in South Africa, would share meals quite regularly and pray over the meal together.  Fr. Eddie Hattrick, an incredible man devoted to the Zulu community he served and loved, had a unique way of saying grace by inviting us all to join hands, to swing them joyously back and forth with those on either side of you (which always seemed to stir up a few smiles and chuckles), while singing ”Rejoice in the Lord always, and again, I say, rejoice! REJOICE! REJOICE!”   When this meaningful memory became crystal clear again as if I had just prayed it with Pat, Erin, Matt, Amy, Mary, Fr. Al, Fr. Benji, and Fr. Eddie, I felt present to the joy of being a volunteer and also found a new perspective during this Advent week.

All of this week’s readings from Scripture exclaim this as well— from Isaiah 61:1-2, we can identify as volunteers with being called, feeling the Lord come upon us, being anointed to bring good news to the poor, to comfort the broken-hearted, and to tell those who mourn that the time of the Lord’s favor has come.  This is what we do.  This is what you have done as an AV alum, continue to do in your lives, and live out each each day as a current volunteer.

………………………………..We are called to be in constant preparation for His coming…..

This week’s second reading of Paul’s letter to the Thessalonians proclaims it as well— quite clearly and imperatively— “Rejoice always. Pray without ceasing. In all circumstances, give thanks, for this is the will of God for you in Christ Jesus.”   Even amongst the sadness of what I experienced in South Africa, my heart learned to not only be peaceful with the death surrounding me, but to find the joy and in every beautiful passing through prayer.  As volunteers, our hearts and souls are challenged by what we hear, see, learn, and discover to be the realities of those we serve everyday.

………………………………………………..We are called to pray unceasingly and give thanks in all circumstances….

And in the Gospel of John, John the Baptist is introduced as the humble one whom God sent and whose vocation it was to empty himself and reveal Jesus to others…. A “witness to the light” and a “voice shouting in the darkness,” John proclaimed that although his ministry as baptizer came first, he was not worthy of even being Jesus’ servant.  “Someone is coming after me who is far greater than I am, for He existed long before me.” (John 1:15).  This humility opened the space within him to be filled with true joy.  And with that, John is the perfect sign of how to live and the manifestation of Gaudete Sunday.   The path to freedom and lasting happiness is through living a lifestyle of self- emptying, lifting another up while we, ourselves, strive to be more humble.  While living in community, there are joys as well as challenges so this request to follow John’s example may seem overwhelming….

…………………..We are called to empty ourselves and use that sacred space within us to be filled with His grace……

REJOICE!  GAUDETE!  The Lord is near.  Let us prepare a place for Him to be born anew within our hearts, our lives, and our homes.  Let us hear the invitation of John the Baptist and walk through the remaining two weeks of Advent with joy and peace in our hearts, realizing how our lives parallel the Scripture as volunteers.  Find ways to rejoice even in the struggles in your ministry or in your communities.   Pray with one another to discover the depth of what this time of preparation means.  Let us strive to choose the way of humility and find the happiness of heaven, even here on earth.

Tierney Norris- South Africa 2005-2006

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12.09.08

“Prepare the Way of the Lord”

Posted in AV Alumni at 8:14 am by Patrick

The readings of Isaiah and Mark, on this second Sunday in Advent, impel followers of Jesus to “Prepare the Way of the Lord”. 

From the Latin, “Adventus” meaning “coming”, Advent marks a special time in our liturgical calendar.  It serves as a dual reminder to cherish and honor the Anniversary of Christ’s birth and to prepare our souls for the promise of His final coming.

As modern incarnations of St. Augustine, we may have been secretly praying his words “O Lord help me to be pure, but not yet”.  With the dawn of Advent, the yet is here and the time to prepare is now. 

This is no easy task and so the Church gives us about four weeks, or about 10% of an Augustinian Volunteer year, to accomplish the task.

A priest once told me to “think of Advent preparation as getting ready to host the most important dinner guest of your life”, because in a way you are.

In light of this, I offer you 6 tips to consider in your own spiritual preparations:

1.)  Clean your house!

Just as you would clean your house for an important guest, Advent invites you to cleanse and purify your heart and mind.  Take off the armor that surrounds your heart and prevents love from entering and exiting.  Allow yourself to become vulnerable to your community through honesty and openness.  Think about the barriers that may be preventing you from a full relationship with God, your community, a family member, or a friend.  A key to lifting the barriers will be forgiveness.  Forgiveness of self and of others.  If you need help, read Nelson Mandela or Desmond Tutu.

2.)  Be on your best behavior! 

Jesus knows even more than Santa when you’ve been naughty.  Advent is a good time for you to exercise the patience and love you strive to embody.  That roommate who you’re having difficulty with, the co-worker or boss who you’ve reached your limit with, the client, child, or student who continually frustrates you, think again to Augustine who encourages us to, “Pray as though everything depended on God. Work as though everything depended on you”.  Pray for the grace you need to act in a way consonant with your values and faith.  It may help to re-read your Augustinian Volunteer statement of mission.

3.)  Stock the shelves with your guest’s favorites!

The clearest is delineation of what Jesus wants from us can be found in Matthew 25:31-46.  Here the Master of Parables sheds narratives for commands and states his desires in unequivocal terms.  The very nature of Augustinian volunteer work aims to place you in direct contact with the materially or spiritually poor - the least of our brothers and sisters.  Armed with a supportive community of fellow volunteers, Augustinian infused values, a committed passion and energy, you have gone into battle for almost 4 months to love and serve the poor.  How have you done so far?  Would Jesus see your work as reflective of His hope for the world?

4.)  Your guest wants to discuss religion and politics!

Your service as an Augustinian volunteer comes amid a global economic crisis.  The poorest among us are in an increasingly vulnerable situation.  The principles of Catholic Social Teaching demand that we display a ‘preferential option for the poor’.  Reflect on this principle in light of your current work and consider how you can more fully embrace it - immediately as well as structurally.  Charity and Justice are the highways to human dignity.  Mother Theresa and Archbishop Oscar Romero are the leading caravans for each respectively.  Familiarize yourself with their work and others who inspire you. 

5.)  Rest up and pray!

As Augustinian volunteers, many of you are serving 40-50 hours a week in 1-2 jobs.  You’re expected to put in requisite community duties, chores, cooking.  You are in placements far from family and friends and you walk the tightrope of remaining present and staying in touch.  You’re physically and emotionally tired, which are the prime conditions for despair, resentment, and cynicism to take root.  Your guest is coming soon and you don’t want Him to see you distressed.  You remember the Prayer of the Empty Water Jar and you recite it with your community during prayer night:

THE PRAYER OF THE EMPTY WATER JAR. 

Jesus, I come to the warmth of your Presence
knowing that You are
the very emptiness of God.
I come before You
holding the water jar of my life.
Your eyes meet mine
and I know what I’d rather not know.

I came to be filled
but I am already full.
I am too full.
This is my sickness
I am full of things
that crowd out
Your healing Presence. 

A holy knowing steals inside my heart
and I see the painful truth.
I don’t need more
I need less
I am too full.

12.03.08

First week of Advent

Posted in AV Alumni at 7:03 am by Patrick

Happy New Year! As we begin the liturgical season of Advent, we also begin a new year in the Church. Like New Year’s Day with its resolutions, the season of advent often begins with a renewed desire to pray and set our minds and hearts on God. But as so many of us have experienced with both new years (New Years Day and the beginning of Advent), the promises and high expectations are often unfulfilled. They begin to fade as we are overcome with the busy schedules we face each day: a full day of volunteer service, preparing dinner, spending time as a community, staying in touch with family and friends and figuring out what to do with our lives after our time as Augustinian Volunteers.

Advent jolts us with the reminder that we are not ready for the coming of Christ – both on Christmas Day and His Second Coming. Advent gives us a renewed opportunity to get our lives back on course.  During this preparatory time of Advent, take some time to reflect on your experiences as an Augustinian Volunteer, focus more of your energy towards your prayer life, and have some quality conversations with your housemate that has been annoying you or the person that is challenging you during your ministry.

As we begin this celebration of Advent, let us make the decision to carve out time for our prayer life and to our community – to schedule special time with God as we schedule time for holiday shopping, Christmas decorating and time with family and friends.

Nancy (Ata) Lee - Lawrence 2003-04, Advisory Board 2005-present

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12.26.07

God made fresh…

Posted in AV Alumni at 10:11 pm by jcoito

Merry Christmas! We didn’t end up having much of a fourth week of Advent this year since Christmas was on a Tuesday, so this fourth Advent reflection is really a Christmas reflection. This Christmas, two ideas are at the forefront of my thoughts: Incarnation and Posadas. As I began to reflect on the mystery of Christmas, the Incarnation of God, I remembered an answer given by one of my high school students four years ago. Teaching them about the Incarnation and the etymology of the word, we talked about how, in Jesus, God was made flesh. Somewhere along the line, notes were either copied or re-read incorrectly and, on the test, my student wrote that the Incarnation was “when God was made fresh”. At the time, it was one of those amusing responses that gave me a chuckle while I was grading, but as I recalled this response this week, reflecting for this blog post, I saw a deeper insight in it.

God “was made fresh” by entering into human history, in a human life, to share the entire spectrum of human experience and to walk with us as a friend and brother, as well as our God. I feel called during this Christmas to think again about what that means. It really is an amazing thing that we proclaim and celebrate every year at Christmas time, and yet I find it’s easy to take it for granted, because it is so familiar. During this season, we celebrate the fact that through the yes of a young, engaged but unmarried, Jewish girl from Judea, God was born into the world, as a baby named Jesus, who was God, and who was also fully human. So God is made fresh for me this Christmas in the remembrance of just how new and special it was that God came to humanity, humbly, without fanfare, as a helpless infant, and lived a life full of all of the pains and joys that mark our lives. God is also made fresh for me as I recognize an opportunity to think more deeply about this aspect of my faith.

I had an opportunity to look with a new perspective on the familiar story of Christmas just two weeks ago, on a service trip to Tijuana with undergraduates at the university in L.A. where I work and am pursuing my M.A. In the celebration of las Posadas I experienced the mystery of Incarnation, God made both flesh and fresh for me. “Posadas” is Spanish for “inns”. During las Posadas, participants reenact Mary’s and Joseph’s search for a place to stay in Bethlehem. Our group participated in Las Posadas sin Fronteras (The Posadas without borders). Participants gathered on both sides of the fence separating the US and Mexico between San Diego and Tijuana. We sang the songs of las Posadas and prayed together across the fence, and afterward we threw candy back and forth to each other and celebrated, passing warm tamales across to the US side, despite the metal fence that separated us. What touched me most about this celebration was that families were gathered, some members on the American side, and the rest on the Mexican side. The entire family was not able to come to the US together, and so they were separated. Las Posadas usually end with a celebration when the last “innkeeper” welcomes the “travelers” into their home. This wasn’t possible at the border. So what did we accomplish? In my view, what we gathered to do was to reflect on the reality of the border that divides two counties and on the mystery of Jesus’ birth.

Las Posadas normally end with a celebration of the welcome of the Holy Family. We symbolically celebrate during Advent and Christmas how we, in like fashion, welcome Jesus into our lives, as the innkeeper welcomed the Holy Family. Though even those of us who are American citizens could not even legally cross where we were that day, since it was not a border checkpoint, we welcomed one another and took one another in, if only in a small and incomplete way. We didn’t solve any of the problems that contribute to issues of injustice across nations, but we prayed about them, learned more about them and perhaps planted seeds that will bear fruit in months and years to come. Learning to welcome in the stranger that we can see, and to see the love of real families seeking shelter in the face of adversity, separated by fences at Christmas time, put a human face on the story of Mary and Joseph’s journey to Bethlehem. It helps me continue to understand more deeply how to welcome the stranger, so that I might welcome in the God that I cannot see in the same way as I try to welcome those I can. In the experience of las Posadas, God was made fresh and flesh for me in the faces of those who I stood with at the border fence and in the way those faces connected me to two pilgrims seeking shelter among strangers a couple of millennia ago.

Jason Coito

Lawrence, MA 2002-2003

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12.22.07

Mary’s Example

Posted in AV Alumni at 3:04 pm by Eileen King

Last year, my sister gave me a daily Advent reflection book with excerpts from Henri Nouwen. The front cover of the book has the best depiction of the birth of Jesus that I have ever seen. It’s a painting called The Nativity by Gari Melchers (you can see it if you google it.) It shows the Holy family it what appears to be an old clay shack that reminds me of something I would see in Latin America. Joseph is sitting on a chair gazing down at Jesus lying in a manger. It’s Mary, though, that catches my eye. She’s sitting on the floor with her head resting on Joseph’s side. She looks completely exhausted and depleted, like she doesn’t even have the energy to pick Jesus up or get up from the floor.

What about Mary? She did all the hard work necessary to bring Jesus into the world, and yet, in all the Jesus-celebrating that goes on at Christmas, her vital role in that event seems overlooked. She doesn’t get the recognition she rightly deserves. I find myself always drawn to the Christmas song Breath of Heaven by Amy Grant, perhaps because it’s one of the few Christmas reflections that stops to consider the event from Mary’s perspective. My favorite line goes like this: “Do you wonder when you watch my face, If a wiser one should have had my place? But I offer all I am for the mercy of Your plan.” It ends with an almost desperate pleading that God give her strength. “Help me be strong, help me be.” And finally, she just gives in, “Help me.”

I have recognized a change in myself in recent years. My relationship to my faith is at a restless, sometimes adversarial place. As I try to settle into an adult faith with which I feel at home and a part, I frequently push up against apparent inconsistencies of faith that I witness among the faithful, myself included—abuse of power, violence, apathy, oppression, intolerance. Mike Scuderi, an Augustinian who worked at the parish when I worked in the AV office, used to joke that I couldn’t get through lunch without pontificating about this thing or that being an example of misogyny.

Perhaps this fight in me comes from an underlying desire to feel like my faith is relevant–to find a part of faith to which I can relate. The image of Mary in that picture and the lyrics of that song resonate; I can relate to feeling exhausted and depleted as Mary looks in that picture. Although not a mother, I can imagine as a woman how it must feel to give up your whole life–and your body for 9 months–as a sacrifice for your new child as Mary did for Jesus. I can relate to the desire to live my life according to God’s plan yet feeling like I have no idea how to do that. I can relate to thinking that, if I’m going to do God’s work on earth, I’m going to need her help in doing so.

In addition to preparing for Jesus’s birth this advent, I’m focussing on Mary as an example of service, humility and faith. I hope that, by connecting with and relating to the struggles she may have felt in her life, I will learn how I can better serve God and others, and live humbly and faithfully as she did.

Eileen King, San Diego ‘02-’03

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12.13.07

Your God will come

Posted in AV Alumni at 3:18 pm by jmpowers

Advent is a time of big promises and expectations. From the very beginning, as God is handing down His curse on Adam and Eve after their disobedience, He promises them a savior. The promise happens so fast most people miss it. But in case anyone missed it the first time, God gives the promise over and over  telling Abraham that his descendants will be a blessed people, telling David that the savior will be of his line, and having the Messiah foretold by the prophets. And what a promise it is. Before the fall, man was in full communion with the deepest desire of his heart: God. To lose that is an incredible blow. Like losing a family member, the separation is overwhelming when we let our souls consider it. Imagine if there was no hope of reuniting with God. How fearful and empty our lives would be.

Isaiah 35:4 says, “…say to those with fearful hearts, ‘Be strong, do not fear; your God will come… He will come to save you.’” Just read that verse again. Say it out loud. Consider how powerful that is. Your God is coming. He’s coming to save you. It’s a powerful promise, and it’s the promise of Advent (at least part of it). There’s a lot to expect from a promise like that. It’s enough to get excited about.

Consider now that the people who heard those words when they were spoken, and many generations after them, never lived to see them fulfilled. But they waited in faith, as Hebrews 11:13 says, and welcomed what was promised from a distance.

Since Advent started two Sundays ago, that’s what I’ve been wondering about. We all know Christ was born. We all know for sure that Christmas is coming. But before Jesus was born, those who hung their hopes on the God of Abraham didn’t know when this Savior would come. They didn’t know when Christmas was coming. All they really had to go on was that the Lord said it was going to happen. If I’d been one of those people, I wonder if I would have believed the promise, if I would have lived in hope that a Savior would come.

Let’s add to that, that when the Savior did finally come, he could be found laying in a trough for animal food, being attended to by a man and woman of no worldly note, with shepherds (a class of people commonly despised for not being able to keep the ceremonial law) milling about. It’s certainly not the scene that the promise conjures. I would think more along the lines of a nice dignified birth indoors, a proper bed for the baby, perhaps some trumpets and harps playing. I wonder if I’d been one of the shepherds that night, would I have accepted that this was the Savior my God had promised me. Would I look on the baby and know that I was looking at the Christ?

Aside from the group gathered on the night of His birth, there were three people, the Magi, who did accept that this was the great king that was promised. They weren’t even Jews, the people to which this Savior had been promised. Nonetheless, these gentile specialists of the supernatural saw the star, believed that it heralded the birth of the king, and traveled to see Him. It’s not as if the Magi simply wanted to visit Jesus out of curiosity. No, as Matthew 2 reports they were overjoyed when they found the child and immediately they bowed down and worshiped Him. And rightly so. As we all know, Jesus grew up and became the ultimate sacrifice, paying our ransom so that we can one day live in eternity with the Father.

Because that has happened - Christ was born and His earthly mission accomplished - does not mean that Advent is only a time of thinking back to the expectation of the Savior’s birth. As Christians, we live in a constant Advent season because Christ is promised to return once more. In this season, we find ourselves also looking forward to the second coming of Christ.

Advent to me, among other things, is about the promise, the anticipation of its fulfillment, and what I do when I see how the promise is fulfilled. I want to be the person who hears the promise, who lives in faithful anticipation of its fulfillment, and the person who is overjoyed and on my knees worshipping when I meet Christ.

So, if I’ve heard the promise, and I believe it will be kept, what do I do until He comes again? How do I make straight His path? I must love Him and be about the business of the Kingdom. But how do I do that?

During my volunteer year in the Bronx (2001-2002), Fr. Joe challenged us to spend part of each week doing something that was outside our comfort zone. In those early days of my volunteer year, I was on fire and ready to change the world, so I decided to accept the challenge by spending some time each week at the Tolentine Soup Kitchen (which is now, sadly, closed). I’d never been comfortable around the homeless. I was never sure how to act, and, looking back, my reactions to them were usually something shameful. But I wanted to give it a go and really spread some love.

The first three weeks were the worst. I went to the soup kitchen three days a week to serve lunch and from day one, I wondered how I would ever love the people I served. Human wreckage was the only way I could describe them. There were drunks, drug addicts, the mentally disturbed, smelly ones, dirty ones, and those that looked on the verge of violence. And a lot of them in my first weeks didn’t seem to be thankful. I waited for a feeling of love, or even just good will, but it escaped me. Had it not been for Brother Michael Duffy, who ran the soup kitchen, I probably would have stopped going. Eventually I decided I would never feel any special affection for the guests in the soup kitchen so I resolved to simply go in, serve soup, and leave.

It took a few months of doing that until one day it suddenly occurred to me that I loved our guests at the soup kitchen very much. I looked forward to going to work at the soup kitchen more than any of my other jobs. I looked forward to seeing the guests, serving them some soup, and making sure they got their fill. My love for them didn’t arise because they’d suddenly become more desirable sorts of people or had been courteous and said thank you. All that foolishness had melted away when I gave up my expectations and desires — the way I thought it was supposed to be — and just decided to love them. I loved them by giving them something they needed. I expected that I’d be the one bringing Christ into the soup kitchen. Instead, He met me in the soup kitchen and all I needed to do to see Him was to stop searching for a feeling and do His good work. True Love opens our eyes to the ways Christ appears in our lives. It seems so simple to me now, but I have to confess that I was ignorant when I started my volunteer year.

The promise during my volunteer year was that I would be an instrument of God’s love to the community I served. I anticipated that to be accomplished in a certain way. If I’d waited for a feeling or something else that looked more like what I expected, I would still be waiting.

Christ never comes in the way we expect Him. He didn’t when he was born. He was not the one many people were expecting, but He was the One that was promised.

Looking back in this season, I thank the Father that He sent the Son for our benefit. Looking at what is promised from a distance, I pray that we will be open to seeing the ways in which Christ reveals Himself to us. I pray that we will be guided by the star to the place where He is. And when we get there, we will be overjoyed and we will worship.

It is Advent. Our Lord is coming. Let us have the ears to hear and the eyes to see Him.
John M. Powers, Bronx AV Community 2001-2002

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