Uncertain, Dangerous Times!: The Silent Courage of Mother St. John

We Sisters of St. Joseph already know about the imprisonment of Mother St. John during the French Revolution, and her almost miraculous release from the sentence of death at the guillotine, when the tyrant Robespierre was himself guillotined on July 28, 1794 and the prisons were opened. But I have been reading about the times afterwards and was struck by the fact that nothing was stable. No one knew if there would be another revolution. Supporters of King Louis’ relatives to reclaim the throne were armed for war in the cities and besides that the Austrians and Russians had armies on the very borders of France, planning a takeover. Yet, we do not have any signs in Mother St. John’s life that she allowed any of these terrible threats to cause her to change her regular, daily outreach to the poor, homeless, sick and abandoned. She and the Sisters dealt with the needs right in front of them. We only have signs her complete confidence in God, and her constant prayer of trust. So, when Pope Francis was here and urged us to deal not with “ideologies’ but rather with the needy before us, I was thinking of Mother St. John’s brave example in her own times of instability and suffering. She is an inspiration for me.

Sister Wendy Cotter csj (L) Chicago.

Youth as Problem Solvers

Last month at the Air Canada Center in Toronto I learned a very important lesson. I learned that together anyone can make a difference if WE believe that WE are powerful. I learned this at WE Day. WE Day is an event by invitation only. It's a gathering of famous people that help young people to be inspired to make a change in our world.

At WE Day we listened to a lot of empowering people.  My personal favourite was Craig Kielburger (the founder of Free the Children) precisely because of what he said, “We need to stop thinking that the youth are a problem that needs to be solved, and realize that they are the problem solvers!”

Craig Kielburger also reminded us (the audience) that as the next generation the future is in our hands. It gave me the confidence and courage I needed to believe that I too can make a difference.

During the school year our Social Justice Group is focusing on different issues. Currently, the Club at my school (St. Gabriel Catholic Elementary School, Windsor) is doing a campaign called WE Scare Hunger. What we did was to collect cans from October 15 to November 6 and we donated them to the Windsor Downtown Mission. Craig and many other speakers such as Demi Lovato and Henry Winkler gave us the confidence to beat our school record of over 4000 cans last year.

Youth guest blogger, Evan Bonyai 

For more information about this youth engagement movement can be found on We Day website at http://www.weday.com/what-is-we-day/our-story/

Photo: Evan's "Selfie" 

A Legacy of Resilience

As we witness the unfolding of the terrorist attacks in Paris this weekend, I am reminded of an excellent book I read earlier this year, The Nightingale set in France during the years of World War II. The story highlights the courage of the French people who were involved in the Resistance Movement during that time, but this is particularly the story of the courage of women – that of two sisters – who worked fearlessly, in different ways, to free or protect the citizens of France from the horror of the Nazi Regime.

The sisters, of very different temperament and ability to act, are forced to deal with the turmoil and despair of war, each with immense courage in whatever way they are able. Kristin Hannah’s writing is well researched, even to mentioning the Sisters of St. Joseph and the original six women!  (I couldn’t believe it when reading the book!). She portrays the harrowing days with clarity, but moments of light, love and kindnesses emerge through the darkness.

This well researched epic novel is set for the most part in a small town in France during the occupation but it also gives a good picture of how Paris might have been during the years following 1941 when the Germans marched into Paris, till the end of the war in 1945. The ending will surprise you - the story goes further than 1945, but I will leave you to find that out.

There are many other good historical novels about the Resistance Movement in Europe during World War II – such as Villa Triste by Lucretia Grindle set in Florence (five stars) and All the Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr – these can be for another day. And we can be sure that the resilience of the French people will emerge again today, as it has over the centuries in facing such injustices.

Guest Blogger: Margaret Magee

Give Thanks for Speech

Earlier this week the mother of a friend died, Fran was ninety-two years old. We may think she was blessed with a long journey through life, and this is true; however, for the last 21 years as a result of a stroke she has not been able to speak. I can hardly imagine not being able to communicate without using speech. Our voice, which we take so much for granted, expresses our thoughts and feelings. Sometimes our voice conveys our pleasure and other times our displeasure or disappointment. Our voice even asks or answers questions, makes our opinion heard, enters into a conversation, or makes our needs known.

Think over the last day—how did your voice add or subtract to the world around you? Speech is something we take so much for granted—it is just part of our everyday life. Think of your mother’s speaking words: the endearing, “I love you” or the reprimanding, “you should know better young lady!” Her words of wisdom like “learn from your mistakes”, daily chatter, “so how was your day?” “call your sisters for supper.” or “be in the house before the street lights come on.”

Speech allows us to express our simplest needs: “I am hungry”, “I’m tired”, “I’m too hot”, “I’m too cold”, and many more…

Fran tried to communicate to the best of her ability but could never replace the power of the spoken word. You can hardly imagine how difficult this was for her family and friends, as they struggled over the years to encourage Fran and how saddened they were when at times they couldn’t relieve her frustration.

Now Fran is speaking, chatting, and singing all over heaven. In her first face to face with her loving Creator, I can hear her telling God how thankful she is for her family and caregivers—speechless no more! “Bless my family and caregivers I know they were your special gift to me!”

“Come to me, all you that are weary and heavy burdened, and I will give you rest, says the Lord (P5 11:28)” St. Fran intercessor for the speechless… pray for us.

Barbara Vaughan, CSJ

... In Flanders Field ...

How can one small red poppy which we wear on our lapels carry so much meaning?  The Battle of Ypres left buried in makeshift graves thousands of young men who gave their lives for freedom. From these poppy-laden fields emerged a simple symbol crying, “Never again war”!  

It was Canadian physician Lieutenant Colonel John McCrae who raised the poppy to prominence exactly one century ago.  His poem, “In Flanders Fields,” penned on the Ypres battle field in 1915, immortalized the fallen soldiers who were buried hastily among hosts of bright red poppies. His lament, echoes the horrific human cost of war.

Alas, a century later, our world is awash in conflicts, oppression and battles on many fronts.  As the aged soldiers of two world wars fade away, newly minted young men and women rise to take their place. They dutifully represent Canada at home and abroad fulfilling the plea of a grieving soldier on a blood-soaked battle ground:

“To you from failing hands we throw

The torch; be yours to hold it high.

If ye break faith with us who die

We shall not sleep, though poppies grow

In Flanders fields”.

Jean Moylan, CSJ