Category: Spiritual Journey

Finding light in the darkness

On By dpavinatoIn Catholic faith, Every day Catholic, praying for peace, sacred seeing, Spiritual JourneyLeave a comment

Sunny days like yesterday and today give me hope. I know it will stay light a little longer, perhaps until 5 or so, instead of 4:30 on dark and cloudy days. I treasure whatever moments of daylight we can get before the evening settles in.

I canceled my cable subscription a couple of months ago. I don’t miss the mindless TV and have other opportunities to catch up on news each day. I have a streaming app for $6/mo and can watch local Chicago news if I am free or something is happening that I want a quick update on. With YouTube and phone news apps, as well as ability to search for anything online, there are ways to stay informed. It is important to stay informed, but not let the news of the world consume or overwhelm us.

After reading a link to The Washington Post from Maria Shriver’s Sunday Paper, I was left confused reading the disagreements between United States, the United Nations, Israel and Hamas over the differences between a humanitarian pause and temporary cease-fire regarding the war in the Middle East. Neither side can agree or is willing to budge for the sake of the lives of innocent civilians. Both were viewed as “tactical pauses” that would result in the continuation of the war and continue to delay the work of those trying to get aid to those impacted by the war as well as continue to negotiate the release of hostages. It can be overwhelming to think about the pain and suffering of all the lives being ravaged by this war.

In a world that feels more and more divisive, with the wars in our world, as well as political and religious dissension looming large in the news, I found comfort in the words I saw in a post yesterday of the first African-American Nobel prize winning author Toni Morrison (1931-2019), written in 2015:

“This is precisely the time when artists go to work. There is no time for despair, no place for self-pity, no need for silence, no room for fear. We speak, we write, we do language. That is how civilizations heal.

I know the world is bruised and bleeding, and though it is important not to ignore its pain, it is also critical to refuse to succumb to its malevolence. Like failure, chaos contains information that can lead to knowledge – even wisdom.

Like art.”

In his Angelus message today from Rome, Pope Francis also offers us words to reflect on, looking to the Gospel for today, from St. Matthew, and the parable of the 10 virgins, 5 prepared and 5 unprepared with their lantern oil, for the arrival of the bridegroom and the wedding feast. The Pope asks us to consider the many ways we are more concerned with the things of the world, our appearance and our image to others, instead of “taking care of the things that cannot be seen…caring for the heart.” He suggests we should not ignore the “oil of inner life” and take time to look at our inner lives, of God’s gaze upon us.

Let us let the chaos in our world, lead us to that time of inner reflection, listening deeply to how God might be calling us to reach out to others in our broken world.

Like Bela in my photo today, look for the light wherever you can find it. Find stories of hope and inspiration. Stay informed but pray for peace and watch for the uplifting stories of those helping others, whether in war ravaged parts of our world, like the Middle East and Ukraine, aid being given to refuges being bused to cities with no homes or job, or those seeking to help those less fortunate in our country – veterans, mentally unstable and the homeless. Keep our inner lanterns replenished with nourishing oil by dedicating time to the matters of the heart and soul, being service to others as much as we are able, and to the things that matter to our spiritual lives.

Abundant blessings, Deena

When it is revealed

On By dpavinatoIn Catholic faith, Doing what we love, Every day Catholic, Life in the Spirit, sacred listening, sacred waiting, Spiritual Journey, Uncategorized2 Comments

On three different occasions this week I was involved in a conversation with someone who said “I could never…” or basically, “I don’t see myself having the talent to”…. I have to admit that in one of those conversations, I was the one saying it.

I picked up my copy of The Word Among Us this morning and saw the November title and theme of “Already and Not Yet.” The editor and president quoted the letter of St. John saying “We are God’s children now; what we shall be has not yet been revealed. We do know that when it is revealed we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is” (1 John 3:2). I understand that Jeff Smith is talking about the heavenly kingdom, the promises of Baptism and our citizenship in heaven, but it made me pause a moment and think about those conversations this week.

In meetings this week, for Ignatian Ministries, and our continued discernment about the ways we accompany others in their lives of faith, we reflected on where we were at this time last year and how things have been unfolding in a very exciting way. There are days that we are surprised and in awe. There are days we question what lies ahead. The discernment process we engaged in, and our openness to the promptings of the Spirit, allowed us to move forward in faith and trust in what God was revealing to us. I believe we can do that as individuals as well. But we have to be willing to state the grace we are seeking, listen in prayer for the voice of God to respond to us, or fill us with a sense of joy and consolation so that we know we are on the right track, then begin to take action as the opportunities unfold before us.

I think back to last year, as I prepared to begin this blog in Advent, for the beginning of the liturgical year in the Church. I would never have imagined being at the point of publishing 50 posts! I am quite confident I said something to the effect – “what could I possibly have to write about?” Yet each week, an idea or nudging from the Spirit has guided me to a topic to reflect on.

Where might you be limiting yourself by saying words like “I could never…” “I don’t have the talent to…” or “I would love to but…”?

The first step might be as simple as exploring what it might be that you would love to do. I find journaling a helpful way to explore those thoughts and ideas. But I have to make myself actually sit down, consistently, so that the ideas get to the paper! One of the journals I use is a 5 year memory book. I have noticed lately it is filled with statements, for the previous year, regarding the weather that day, appointments I had or friends I visited with. Those are great memories to look back on, but I am going to challenge myself to make more soul statements – what’s on my mind, what would I like more of in my life, what are the important decisions I am faced with? Then as I reflect back next year I will be able to look back at the things that were “already and not yet” moments to see if they have become more tangible in my life experiences.

Join me, in whatever way feels comfortable for you, and let’s see how the year unfolds!

Prayerful and abundant blessings, Deena

Image: A picture from my Italy trip of a mosaic at the Vatican of Jesus calling Peter and Andrew to follow Him.

Guide our feet into the way of peace

On By dpavinatoIn Catholic faith, praying for peace, sacred waiting, Saints as Models & Guides, Spiritual Journey2 Comments

In the tender compassion of our God, the dawn from on high shall break upon us, to shine on those who dwell in darkness and the shadow of death, and to guide our feet into the way of peace. (Benedictus, Canticle of Zechariah – Morning Prayer)

As I continue to recover after my trip, today is shaping up as another day to stay in and rest. I guess if the results were different I might be tempted to get ambitious and do more than my body is ready for. As my friend, and healing arts practitioner, Kate Brown cautioned me yesterday “You need rest. Active rest. Sleep… be patient and allow yourself to heal.” Patience…I am not very good at it!

This time of waiting, and resting, has allowed me the opportunity to tune in to the services and bulletins from the Vatican by Pope Francis praying for a ceasefire and an end to the violence in the Holy Land, especially in Gaza. At Ignatian Ministries, we joined the world in prayer, on October 27, with a rosary at 11. LaSalle Catholic Parishes held a beautiful rosary, in English and Spanish, for peace on Friday evening (you can still find it on their Facebook page. I think our need for prayer continues so you might enjoy praying with it.). Then Friday night, I watched the Rosary and Prayer Service, with Adoration and Benediction, held earlier in the day in St. Peter’s Basilica on Vatican News. Fr. Carlson coached us, during our pilgrimage, to learn the Hail Mary in Italian, so I tried my best to pray in Italian but soon found responding in English easier. Again, patience….

Having just been to the Basilica the previous week, I felt I was attending along with the other clergy and pilgrims who were participating on Friday. I looked at the sanctuary and the statues that I gazed upon not so long ago. I looked at the marble floor that demarkates the size of other Basilicas in the world and where they would fit inside St. Peter’s. St. Peter’s is the largest Catholic Church in the world. In the floor of the central nave, as you move forward toward the sculpted bronze pillars and canopy that cover the baldachin, or high altar, there are circular markings and the names of the basilicas. I have attached a picture at the bottom of this post of the marking for our National Basilica of Immaculate Conception in Washington D.C. I recall thinking that we have our individual buildings and structures, the circles were symbolic for me, we are one holy and apostolic church.

I also pondered the weight of the concerns that Pope Francis must carry; prayers for peace in the world, prayers for those impacted by the mass shooting in Lewiston, Maine, prayers for all those impacted by the hurricane in Acapulco, Mexico, prayers for answers for climate change and prayers for the Church and the closing of the Synod. Yet, despite all the worries and criticisms he faces, when we saw him in the Papal Audience, you feel the joy in his spirit, the love of God being shared with each of us.

Is it prayer and faith that brings that level of peace and patience? This feels like something for me to reflect on in my life. I reflect on St. Catherine of Siena’s devotion to the Eucharist and think more time in prayer and adoration might be a worthy goal for more peace and faith in my life.

While not related, I can’t close this blog this week without talking about three very special days this week. As we bring October come to a close, I have to mention three of my favorite days; Halloween (All Hallow’s Eve), All Saints and All Souls Days. It’s true I love to share all the pumpkins, black cats and spooky images of Halloween but really for me it is a threshold space, a holy time to think about and ask for the help and guidance of the Saints and the ancestors as we prepare to bring the year to an end (liturgically and then soon after the calendar year). In past years I have participated in retreats or days of reflection, calling upon the wisdom of those gone before. This year I plan on time alone, quiet reflection with a candle and sacred images, reading and prayer. Another Old Country tradition is to place a candle on the tombstone of loved ones on the evening of All Saints Day. I have found myself using electronic candles so the flames don’t go out but my intention is there. The light helps wandering souls or is viewed as an offering to help guide a soul on its way to Heaven. The Day of the Dead, Dia De Los Muertos, celebrated on November 1 and 2, is another beautiful tradition of visiting gravestones with candles, flowers and celebration to honor those who have passed on.

Perhaps you might create a ritual for yourself as we cross from October to November. What saints (big or small S) do you turn to for guidance? Who might have a message that you need right now?

All you holy men and women of God, pray for us!

Deena

The post image is from Assisi with the word Pax (peace) sculpted in shrubs.

Life as a pilgrimage

On By dpavinatoIn Catholic faith, Every day Catholic, Saints as Models & Guides, Spiritual Journey1 Comment

I must admit that I am still a bit tired from my two week pilgrimage to Italy so I have been doing a lot of resting. Butters, one of my cats, seems to enjoy the companionship for little cat naps. He snuggles in close so he can be right next to me, or on an arm or a hand! Perhaps to be sure I don’t leave him again. With that said, I have had a lot of time to think back on our journey and all the sites and cities we visited. It occurred to me at 4 a.m. this morning that our pilgrimage was a perfect analogy for life.

At a time that I was Chair for the Bishop’s Commission on Women for our Diocese we had a similar thought discerning our purpose for the Commission. We wanted to create a resource that would support Catholic women and provide opportunities to journey to places that would inspire and nurture our Catholic faith. We visited shrines in Chicago, Wisconsin, and took an amazing pilgrimage to Spain and Portugal. That theme, of journeying, has never left me, as you have noticed in my selection of the title of this blog series on my website.

Highlights of the Italy trip were always the morning gatherings for coffee before leaving the hotel for the day, our daily Masses in the most beautiful chapels of churches and Basilicas, and our evening dinners together as a group. Stories were shared from adventures that might have been taken apart from the group.

Our trip didn’t lack mishap either; a broken wrist due to a fall in Assisi for one of our pilgrims and another finding a priest, from another tour group from Ireland, that had fallen or died suddenly in a stairwell in Rome.

There were times that we rushed through sites moving on to the next one. Crowds of people, especially in Rome, seemed to arriving, snapping pictures then quickly moving on to the next place. I regret that, at certain sites, we didn’t linger a bit longer to reflect and savor the experience.

My favorite memories were always the quiet pauses for cappuccino, or wine, to savor the aromas and sounds. Last Sunday I sat in a piazza in Assisi listening and watching families gathering after Mass at the Basilica of Santa Chiara (St. Clare). My heart was full observing all that was happening around me.

At the weekly audience we attended on Wednesday, at the Vatican, Pope Francis continued his catechesis on apostolic zeal. Pope Francis spoke of St. Charles de Foucauld as someone that attempted to imitate Christ with his life. He spoke about the importance of lay people in the Church, to be open to the Spirit and to live with compassion, meekness and tenderness. He reminded us that we can evangelize in simple ways, with kindness and a smile for those around us. He speaks with such sincerity and love for the gospel and how we can grow closer to God. I follow Vatican News but read a bit more carefully these two weeks because of the Synod of Bishops, which has been going on in October, and being in Rome. I was captivated seeing so many priests, bishops, and cardinals walking around Vatican City. I pondered the immense weight that the Pope must feel guiding the Church during these turbulent times. I hope you saw the amazing photo I took that day as Pope Francis drove right by us on his way to his chair to speak to us. It was an incredible experience to see him that close and in person. He radiates joy and had an amazing energy and attention for those he drove by.

So it is with life, we rush through too many moments in order to get on to the next one. We have ups and downs, losses and sadness along the way. There are also interludes of pause and rest to savor the moment at hand, family or friends. But I am reminded to build more of them into my day. We have teachers and leaders we can turn to for guidance and inspiration when needed. The saints and mystics are there to show us, by the example of their lives, to keep going despite the hardships and challenges. Even short lives like Blessed Carlos Acutis who died in 2006 at the age of 15, who helped those in need around him around his home and on the way to school and built a website to document Eucharistic miracles, inspire me to use social media to share positive messages.

Lastly a pilgrimage, or life, is only a spiritual experience if I make it so. It can be a collage of moments that I rush through and visit or it can be moments I tune in and listen to the voice of God and what I might need to hear. My prayer is to be transformed by this experience I was so fortunate to have taken, to listen more carefully and move a bit more intentionally, always moving in the direction of greater peace and joy in God.

Photo is a walkway in Assisi. I shared many photos and descriptions of the places we visited but I have hundreds more! I look forward to going through them and sharing them over time. Thank you for commenting that you enjoyed seeing the pictures and reading about them.

A picture paints a thousand words

On By dpavinatoIn Benedictine Oblate, sacred listening, sacred seeing, Spiritual JourneyLeave a comment

Last week I talked about the power of sacred reading, or Lectio Divina. This week I am going to share a few thoughts on Visio Divina, or sacred seeing. When we view a painting, sculpture, landscape, photo, or gaze at nature we can, if open to the invitation, allow our hearts and minds to view life in a new way, shift our focus from the mundane, enter a sacred silence, and allow that image to speak to us of greater realities.

As I mentioned last week, I was doing some audio recording, guided Lectio Divina and Visio Divina reflections, for an Advent retreat and I thought about my upcoming pilgrimage to Italy. I recall from my last trip to Italy, and more recently to Spain and Portugal, seeing beautiful and moving artwork. Artwork that touched me on a spiritual level. Artwork that helped me speculate about my spiritual beliefs on a deeper level. For this trip, I am especially looking forward to seeing the Fra Angelico frescos in Florence at the San Marco Museum, which was formerly a Dominican convent. Far Angelico was a monk there, then later the Prior, who painted the walls so that monks could reflect on the images of scripture as they prayed in their cells (rooms). Some of his paintings are my favorite but I have only seen most in images online. I wait in eager anticipation of seeing these frescos in person.

In a recent article written by the team at Center for Action and Contemplation, thoughts by Barbara Holmes regarding sacred art were shared in the daily email update. They quoted Barbara as saying: “Art can amplify the sacred and challenge the status quo. The arts help us to hear above the cacophony in the midst of our multitasking. The arts engage a sacred frequency that is perforated with pauses. Artists learned … there were things too full for human tongues, too alive for articulation. You can dance and rhyme and sing it, you almost reach it in the high notes, but joy unspeakable is experience and sojourn, it is the ineffable within our reach.” “This shift of focus bends us toward the universe, a cosmos of soul and spirit, bone and flesh, which constantly reaches toward divinity.”

Visio Divina can unfold in the same four steps as Lectio – read a scripture and/or gaze at the image asking what captures your attention, reflect again asking what the image might have to say to you, view it again and state a prayer that comes to mind or a grace you seek in life, then lastly sit in silence and just be in the presence of God.

While Lectio is listening with “the ear of the heart”, we can say that Visio Divina is praying with the “eyes of the heart”. During my pilgrimage I am going to share some photos of art or images along the journey. I might add a scripture or reflection based on the art we encounter. I invite you to spend some time with the images and see what it inspires for you.

This week’s image is a favorite. It is a watercolor by Corby Eisbacher entitled Jump for Joy, depicting the Visitation of Mary to Elizabeth. You can visit Art by Corby on Etsy here. Spend some time with the image. What speaks to you as you view it? What does the image have to say to you?

Create Joy, Deena

Your words are life

On By dpavinatoIn Catholic faith, Every day Catholic, sacred listening, Spiritual JourneyLeave a comment

Reflecting on today’s gospel (Matthew 21: 28-32) for the Twenty-Sixth Sunday in Ordinary Time, our pastor, Fr. Paul Carlson, spoke of the words of the sons to their father, not matching the deeds. Even though one of the sons didn’t act on the words he spoke, affirming to the father he would follow the request to go work in the vineyard, the words themselves still had value. He, we hope, showed respect and obedience. The son that said he didn’t want to go to the field and work, but changed his mind and went, shows us the value of reflecting on the word or the instruction we hear in the words spoken and letting them impact our behavior. All of the words in scripture point out who Jesus was and what He asks of us, in our own lives. As we reflect on them, and comprehend the words, we allow them impact our behavior, and transform our lives.

How can we integrate this in daily life? As I spent some time reflecting on Fr. Carlson’s homily, I thought about some guided prayers I was recording for work this week. One was a Lectio Divina, another a guided contemplation or imaginative prayer and lastly a prayer using Visio Divina. I am going to talk about two of them, Lectio Divina today and Visio Divina next week, and how these prayer methods of sacred listening or viewing can help us enter into the Word and let the Word enter into us.

Lectio Divina, a common monastic prayer method of praying with Scriptures, means “divine reading”. I learned this almost 30 years ago as I began my formation as an Oblate and it has been, to a greater or lesser degree, a part of my daily prayer. Sometimes I spend more time with Lectio, some days it is a very condensed version. The longer time spent in Lectio is always more fruitful, but life gets in the way. Lectio is simply reading or listening to a particular scripture passage, prayer or poem and letting those words enter our hearts. We read the passage once, and listen for a word or phrase that speaks to us. We read it again and reflect on what God or the Holy Spirit might be trying to say to us in those words. We read it a third time and contemplate the words, or sit in silence with them. Lastly we offer a prayer of gratitude for what we heard or a prayer of intention that rises up as we reflect on what God has asked of us as we have listened to the Word. The fruit of the prayer comes from really listening, with the ear of the heart, to the Word and then letting it impact our thoughts, words and actions.

We all know what it feels like to hear someone say one thing but then behave in a way that is contradictory to what they have spoken. It may not be intentional or malicious, but if the behavior and the action don’t correspond, then it gives us something to consider about the person or our relationship. Seeing this within our own behavior, helps us assess why we aren’t being true to the things that we say are important to us. We can assess, and change, when we see that we aren’t living in alignment with the values we say are important to us.

As our words and actions begin to become one and the same, we become the things we value and that we speak in life. I love the quote that you see on social media posts or in self improvement articles, we become what we think about. Or, another, your mind will believe everything you feed it, so feed it hope, truth and love.

If you have not prayed using Lectio Divina before, try it this week, it only takes a few minutes when praying it alone. Pick a short scripture or poem, it doesn’t have to have a lot of words to be impactful. Ask Spirit to guide your thoughts and speak to you with the words you need to hear. May it bring you peace!

Create joy, Deena

Photo from my PicMonkey account

Time slips away

On By dpavinatoIn Doing what we love, Life in the Spirit, Spiritual Journey, UncategorizedLeave a comment

This week the gospel is Matthew’s writing of the landowner and the workers (Mt 20:1-16a). You have probably heard, like I have this weekend or in years past, about God’s mercy freely given and open to all or on envy and how it holds us back from viewing heaven as we should. Today I find myself thinking about a different aspect of the gospel. What were the workers doing until they showed up at the location to be hired? If they were there earlier in the day, surely they would have been hired. Were they at other locations trying to find work? Or were they busy with other things and delaying getting there? Were they putting off the work to be done?

I can put off things for a later date or time like nobody’s business! I get things done on time if there is a deadline or it’s a goal for the day, so I don’t mean procrastination. I mean putting off things I want or need to do because maybe later will be a ‘better time’. I’ll be in a better space to pray or meditate later, only to get too busy and spend less time even though I would feel greater peace. I need more time to sit and journal (draw or write) all the thoughts in my head and then later it’s too late, I’m not in the mood anymore, something else demands my attention. I want to move more or change my diet to healthier options but work, errands and household tasks haven taken the time and expendable energy I have. Now planning for my trip to Italy, I find myself worrying about everything – what to take, the flight, the cats while I am gone…. I try to remind myself it will all fall in place. Worrying doesn’t change the amount of time left or get the things I want to get done accomplished any faster.

I was having a hard time focusing on writing this today. Time has been cut short, time in this life for her family and friends, for a colleague and friend. She died on Friday due to an illness and I have been shocked and heartbroken. I learned so much working for Terri, she was top notch! Terri and I did a virtual painting session one day while she was still in the Chicago area. Each working on our own painting, we just chatted about life and our love for attempting to express our creativity. We had said to each other that we should do it again. Last year I mentioned Terri in a post, regarding her new marriage and how happy she looked in each photo. She was simply radiant with joy! I also shared a quote by Paulo Coelho, “One day you will wake up and there won’t be any more time to do the things you’ve always wanted. Do it now.” (Is 40 days long enough...)

In that post I talked about embracing the present moment more. I find myself thinking about that again. I need the reminder, maybe you do too. How many times do we say there will be time, later, to meet with friends, visit with family or spend time growing closer to God? We don’t know the day or the hour, let’s embrace the life and connections that we have. Let’s spend time doing the things that make us better people, in relation to God and to each other.

Create joy! Deena

Image from my PicMonkey account

The gift of friendship

On By dpavinatoIn Every day Catholic, Life in the Spirit, Spiritual JourneyLeave a comment

I am writing this on Saturday night, in anticipation of a Sunday afternoon gathering with friends. We are a group of friends that have grown up together. We fondly call our group “The Oglesby Girls”. Most of us grew up in Oglesby and started kindergarten together at Holy Family School, another joined us later in grade school then two others joined in high school.

Sadly, we lost one of our “girls” to cancer. We have shared weddings, the birth of children, the loss of parents, and divorce. We have donated together on large projects for Holy Family Church, even though only three of us remain parishioners because the rest of the group lives out of town. We still manage to get together and celebrate our friendship. The bond of our affection is strong. Many have commented on the steadfastness of our little group when I talk about our gatherings and escapades. Our friendships, and I would also include friendships from high school and those formed in our small rural area, are rare, enduring and admired by others I have encountered in life. Our lives have changed in so many ways but despite 50 years, we still have fun like the girls who headed to Friday night football and basketball games.

I have mentioned recently that I work part time for an online ministry. In the role of Director of Programming for Ignatian Ministries, I work on our community retreats, customer support and the coordination of our weekly blog, which is published on Sunday nights and is shared in an email on Monday morning. Over the past few weeks our core team and supporting “team” members have been writing the blog related to our ministry founding and purpose. I wrote the post, last week, on Community. I shared three examples of scripture quotes and personal experiences that I felt the support of community. As we discerned moving to a non-profit, and ways we want to serve others, one of the founding principles is community, accompanying and supporting others who are seeking the deeper waters of faith.

As I reflect on my small group of friends, I believe that we have embodied all of the aspects of community that I wrote about last week. We have created a space that we know we belong and are always welcomed. We are there to support each other, especially when we experience the difficult losses of family and friends. We encourage each other as we each use our individual gifts in life, regardless of the various paths our lives have taken.

If you are lucky enough to have friendships like this, treasure them! If you didn’t come upon them from childhood or young adult years, perhaps there are friendships that you developed in work or church communities. How can you nurture those friendships? Is there someone you would like to get to know better; someone you feel could be soul friend, someone you could support and you would welcome support from? What step can you take to get to know that person better?

I close with a quote from Thomas Aquinas, “There is nothing on this earth more to be prized than true friendship.” Amen!

Create Joy! Deena

The art of the soul

On By dpavinatoIn Daily Prayer, Doing what we love, Life in the Spirit, Spiritual Journey, UncategorizedLeave a comment

This morning I posted an excerpt from a book, Beauty, The Invisible Embrace by John O’Donohue on my Facebook page. I read it yesterday and it has continued to capture my thoughts and imagination since reading it. In the quote, John states: “All through your life, the most precious experiences seem to vanish. Transience turns everything to air. You look behind and see no sign even of a yesterday that was so intense. Yet in truth, nothing ever disappears, nothing is lost. Everything that happens to us in the world passes into us. It all becomes part of the inner temple of the soul and it can never be lost. This is the art of the soul: to harvest your deeper life from all the seasons of your experience.”

I have found that one of the richest ways of “harvesting” the deeper life is through the use of ritual.

Rituals are those practices, ceremonies or actions done in a customary way (Vocabulary.com). They are ways of behaving or a series of actions carried out in a particular situation (Collins Dictionary). They can be prescribed or established rites (Dictionary.com). They can be personal, such as pizza dinners on Friday nights or rites of passage such as a quinceanara for a Latino girl turning 15 or a bar mitzvah for a Jewish boy at the age of 13. Funeral rites for the dead or incensing the altar at a feast day Mass or High Mass are examples of religious rituals or sacramentals. There are endless examples of prayer rituals and practices in religions or religious communities, whether Jewish, monastic or buddhist. They are ways of setting our intention and bringing the invisible in a more tangible way in to our visible world. Setting a rose on the tombstone of my parents on their birthdays or anniversary dates is a special way that I ritualize my love and remembrance of them.

Part of the reason that the quote has captivated my soul for the past 24 hours is that I have been contemplating offering a workshop/retreat on ritual for the past few months. I know the value that ritual has had in my life, personally and spiritually, but I have allowed many of the daily practices I use to give my time and attention to go dormant. So, of course, the natural reaction is to question and chastise myself saying “who are you to offer meaningful advice on ritual when you aren’t committed to it yourself!” I try to remind myself of the advice I received from one of my spiritual teachers, Gurudarshan Singh Khalsa, when I moved back “home” from Michigan. He wanted me to teach yoga so that I would maintain my own practice, he advised we teach what we want to learn and what we want to practice. I did that for awhile when I taught personal development classes, as part of the continuing education program, at the local community college. As I returned to corporate work, I stopped teaching and my time was more personal, such as daily morning prayer and scripture reading, journaling, and time spent in creative activities, such as art journaling.

So today, I am reflecting on the reasons that some of the little daily rituals or practices, that were important to me in the past, have taken a back seat each day. I have allowed work, daily responsibilities and worry to take their place. I “fit in” things like morning prayer and daily Mass or evening prayer, applying my essential oils, instead of setting aside the time to be still and connect, to linger a bit in those moments, allowing peace to enter in. That is not to say that the tasks we have to complete each day aren’t important, but the things that nurture us and sustain us need their place too. I believe we need to create space for the “more subtle brightness that sustains us” (John O’Donohue, Beauty, The Invisible Embrace). In the sacrament of Reconciliation Friday evening, I was reminded that worry, even the despair I recently experienced, are attempts to block my connection to, and relationship with, God. A return to some of the daily prayer practices will be a healing balm and will help build up the “sureness” of that relationship.

Simple actions such as lighting a candle, setting a special place or time or journaling are ways of creating a daily ritual around silence, meditation or prayer time. Going for a walk each morning, or evening, or writing a daily poem, might be a good time for daily reflection. Selecting dates and times that are meaningful when engaging in a new activity can be part of naming and setting a clear intention for the pursuit.

So this week, I invite you to look at the rituals that are part of your life, acknowledge the good they bring, and consider ways you might be interested in creating new rituals. What would be your goal or intention in creating the ritual? I will join you in doing the same and devote some time and attention to what I might offer in November, in the form of a short workshop or retreat, as a way to invite more ritual in to our lives. I leave for Italy in a month, so I will have my eyes and heart open to the many ways that our pilgrimage is a renewal experience of many of the rituals and sacred sites of my Catholic faith.

Until then, I wish you peace.

Create Joy, Deena

Prosper the work of our hands

On By dpavinatoIn Catholic faith, Doing what we love, Every day Catholic, Spiritual Journey, UncategorizedLeave a comment

This weekend in the United States we celebrate and recognize Labor Day and the efforts of all people who work. We acknowledge the American Labor Movement, and the social and economic achievements of all who have worked since the holiday was established. The Library of Congress says that the first Labor Day was established by the Central Labor Union and was celebrated on a Tuesday in 1882. Then in 1894, Congress enacted the law making Labor Day a national holiday, celebrated on the first Monday in September. Over the years it seems to be more of a final long summer weekend, a demarcation of the end of summer and the beginning of the school year for students. What if we honor and celebrate the work that we do all year on this weekend?

I listened to an interview this week with Bishop Robert Barron on the Word on Fire Show regarding the Theology of Work. It was a wonderful interview talking about the Catholic Church’s teaching on work. I especially loved the story of Bishop Barron’s first job, as a high school student, at Kroch’s and Brentano’s bookstore in Oakbrook, Illinois, and his brother throwing a used copy of A Seven Story Mountain by Thomas Merton at him and how that book ended up being so influential in his life.

Bishop Barron discussed how our work participates in the creativity of God and that if done with loving purpose, work is sanctifying. He talked a little about work before and after “the Fall”, and how we have gotten the idea that work is laborious, with all its negative connotations, but he stated that work is ultimately life-giving and how we “work creation” to make it even more beautiful. I was struck by his statement that God has nothing to gain from us. It’s true, my work doesn’t make God or the world any better, but it can participate in “His causality”. Everything God has created is good, but Aquinas says it doesn’t make it finished, it continues to unfold with our participation in it.

Bishop Barron talked about Pope Leo XIII’s encyclical, Rerum Novarum, and the importance of that writing at a time of horrible conditions for workers. I probably relate more to Pope John Paul II’s encyclical, writing on the anniversary of Rerum Novarum, Laborem Exercens in which he talked about the value of human work. Work has value not because of the work being done but because of the human person that is doing the work. Regardless of the work we are doing, God wants us to invite Him into that work, to prosper (not necessarily financial) the work of our hands.

I reflect on the many jobs, or variations of work, I have done over the years. There wasn’t a weekend growing up, in high school, that my brothers and I didn’t have to work at our family business, waiting on customers, drying off cars after the car wash (the unique spin my father added to the automatic car wash he operated), washing towels (Oh, the towels in the winter!) and working in the little store that had snacks, beer and soda, and a lottery machine. When I had my own little shop, I worked harder than I ever have at any job, cleaning ice cream/yogurt machines at 5:30 in the morning, making soup and washing the floor all before opening for the day, but I can honestly say I have never loved any work as much as that, because it was my business and I took pride in it and enjoyed the customers I served.

Any employment, if just viewed as a job with tasks to complete, will make work tedious. But when we begin to view the efforts of our labor as a use of our gifts and talents, a contribution in some way to the lives of others, even if solely providing for our families, or the way we are adding to, or contributing to creation, perhaps we will see, and feel, the dignity of that work in a new way.

I am fortunate that in all my different jobs and careers, I have always tried to ask “how am I serving God in this work?” It’s a gift now, to be in a ministry position, with Ignatian Ministries, where we constantly, and openly, seek the greater good for the ministry and our gifts, seeking “the magis”, the more, in all we do. This seeking, or reorientation, is available to all of us as we consider the work of our hands.

Don’t forget that we have just entered the Season of Creation, which began on September 1st with the World Day of Prayer for Creation, a season of grace to consider our way of living and renew the relationship between Creator and creation. It will conclude on October 4th, the Feast of St. Francis and the publication of Pope Francis’ follow up to Laudato Si’. As we reflect on the work of our hands, we are called also to consider that our work, or the way we live and consume products each day, does not exploit the earth. It is one of the most significant challenges of our day.

Create joy, Deena

Fill us at daybreak with your mercy,
that all our days we may sing for joy.
Make us glad as many days as you humbled us,
for as many years as we have seen trouble.
Show your deeds to your servants,
your glory to their children.
May the favor of the Lord our God be ours.
Prosper the work of our hands!
Prosper the work of our hands!

Psalm 90

Photo from my PicMonkey account