UT CHRISTUS REGNET. A publication of the School Sisters of Christ the King. Behold, I make all things new.

Transcription

1 UT CHRISTUS REGNET A publication of the School Sisters of Christ the King Behold, I make all things new.

2 Dear Family and Friends, RENEWAL is on our minds these days: Advent is a spectacular time to prepare more intensely for the coming of Jesus Christ. We are making valiant efforts to cooperate with God s grace to be renewed in spirit and ready for our King! The whole motherhouse is in disarray right now due to the renovation of the HVAC system. We can t wait for the accomplishment of this physical renewal (Completion date is March 2019). Election of our new Mother General (Yes, new! another Sister will become our Mother) and General Council happen on Easter Tuesday; we will be in community meetings called the Chapter of Affairs for four days in late July - early August. Chapters are a great time of renewal in Religious Institutes. Praise God! My wish for you this Christmas is that you may experience renewal in your life in the way you most need it. May you sense the great affection God the Father has for you; may you also realize more deeply the unfathomable love of the Infant of Bethlehem who can provide for all your needs and wants. May the Infant King bestow upon you and your families abundant Christmas blessings. May He grant you Christmas joy and peace. Please know that all the Sisters will remember you and your intentions prayerfully during our annual Christmas novena of Masses. In the heart of Christ our King in the manger, I am, with loving gratitude, Mother Joan Paul, CK

3 In this Issue... Birthdays, New Years Eve, the first pages of a book, there is something in all of us that enjoys a beginning. Renewal is just that, choosing to start again, a little wiser for the wear, on the road toward holiness. In this issue we take a look at renewals, from the hearts of children to the heart of our community. May the love of God fill your homes and hearts as we celebrate the greatest beginning of all, when God chose to come to us as a little baby to begin, in a new and radical way, His work of redemption. The priesthood constitutes the continuation of the mystery of the Incarnation. Pope Saint John Paul II Thank you to all of our priests who daily manifest God s presence in the world. May God bless each of you and your flock!

4 Our Brokenness Restored Do you know that sinking feeling you get when you ve just broken a jar of jam? It comes careening out of the refrigerator door, and the next thing you know, you ve got a sticky and glass-filled mess in front of you. The other experience that causes a similar feeling is when I ve broken a glass vigil candle holder. There s no salvaging it, or hope of repair. Perhaps we ve had that feeling regarding ourselves. We feel like we are beyond repair. It could happen in a variety of areas of our life, such as difficulties in relationships or apparent failure in school or at work. It can be even more excruciating when you ve put a lot of effort into something. The image could be like having an overflowing amount of good things going your way, to suddenly finding yourself with nothing. Thoughts can come like, I m beyond hope, or There s no fixing me now, or I ll always be this way. I know I ve been there, and it s not a pleasant place to be. In fact, it is not from God. Jesus does not respond to us like that. Rather, He comes to meet us and draws us to Himself. The greatest way He did that was to take on our humanity in the Incarnation. He did not regard equality with God something to be grasped. Rather, He emptied Himself, taking the form of a slave, coming in human likeness; and found human in

5 appearance, He humbled Himself (cf. Philippians 2:6-7). His response to our inadequacies, that sinking feeling, those thoughts of hopelessness, is, Behold, I make all things new. He makes new not some things, or those things that seem manageable, but all things. Recently a new word has stood out to me: restore. Restore has a similar meaning as renew, and is filled with hope. In the first letter of St. Peter, 5:10, he writes: The God of all grace who called you to His eternal glory through Christ Jesus will Himself restore, confirm, strengthen and establish you, after you have suffered a little. True, there will be some suffering, but it is not the end of the story. I invite you to take each of those verbs restore, confirm, strengthen, establish and meditate on each of them. What do they mean for you in your life? How can you entrust yourself more fully into His hands? One of the big differences between a broken jar of jam and the brokenness in our lives is that with us we don t need to remain a big mess on the floor. Jesus meets us where we are, lifts us up, restores and renews us, cleans out any of the sins and areas of our life that are sticking to us, and makes us shine with greater transparency, reflecting His light. Even if it means going through a time of humiliation and suffering, we re on the right road, for that was the path He traveled as well. And the end for which He created us is beyond our imagining. To Him be dominion forever. Amen. By Sister Mary Agnes, CK

6 Renewed in the Heart of the Church How many beautiful things has God done for me? This question of Pope Francis at a general audience still resonates in my heart as I reflect on the beautiful things God has done for me during my threeweek stay in Rome during the Council of Major Superiors of Women Religious (CMSWR) Summer Renewal Program. It is hard to capture in words the gift of this special time, but I would summarize the experience as an expansion of my heart. First, the community formed by our group of fourteen Sisters from eight congregations was like that of a new family. We learned about and delighted in one another. Next, the holy adventures of each day were like jewels that Jesus was just waiting to pour into our laps. Although we had plans, they would often be interrupted by delightful surprises, like the time we had Mass at Chiesa Nuova and afterward a seminarian gave us a beautiful tour of the rooms where St. Philip Neri lived and worked, or when a Jesuit priest at the Gesu offered to show us the original rooms of St. Ignatius of Loyola and later celebrated Mass for us in the room where this saint died. In our tours and classes we learned, and in a sense experienced, Rome and Christianity: the rise and

7 fall of the Roman empire with their amazing organization, construction, culture and government; the ebb and flow of the Christian persecutions in the early centuries and why they happened; the influence of so many saints in various time periods. It was evident that God raised up the personalities needed to meet the needs of the times throughout history as He continues to do today. Wonderful speakers shared about particular Vatican offices and how they serve the Church which broadened my vision to see the needs of the universal Church in a new light. Their quiet and faithful dedication to daily tasks and challenges reminded me of my own call to fidelity in the ordinariness of daily life. Overall, I came home feeling greatly enriched in ways I had never expected. The beauty of the Church, encompassing all times, peoples and cultures, had penetrated my heart more deeply than ever before. Like Pope Francis and our Blessed Mother, I could truly say, The Almighty has done great things for me, and I am grateful for this gift. By Sister Mary Angela, CK

8 Photo Album

9 To see more photos, like us on facebook.com/cksisters

10 What is General Chapter? This year we will hold the two phases of our General Chapter. Chapters are times of extraordinary grace as we elect a Mother General and General Council during the Chapter of Elections and discuss matters of greater importance during the Chapter of Affairs. Chapters have been part of the fabric of renewing religious life for more than a thousand years. A Brief History: 700s St. Benedict gathered his monks to read a chapter of their Rule and discuss how to better live what the Rule prescribed The Cistercian monks, scattered throughout Europe, invited the Abbot of each monastery to come together for a chapter meeting once a year to discuss and discern renewal and reform in the order. The Fourth Lateran Council mandated that all religious communities convene chapters. The Code of Canon Law states that chapters are to be a sign of the community s unity and charity.

11 Other Helpful Facts: The goal of each General Chapter is to foster renewal. The chapter delegates, through prayer and discussion, examine how the community is called to authentically live out the charism of the community given to the founder by the Holy Spirit and passed down through the members. w w w w International communities send delegates to the represent the members in their General Chapters. In our community, every perpetually professed Sister can be a delegate. There is a year of preparation before the General Chapter where the members discern, through prayer and discussion, where the Holy Spirit is leading the community and what areas are in need of reform and renewal. In our community, General Chapter is held every six years.

12 A Moment of Grace Every Advent, as the Christmas decorations are pulled from storage, up go the winter housecleaning check lists. We attack with abandon every corner, high and low. Nothing, from the covers on the lights to the legs of the chairs, remains untouched. Well, then there s my desk. Funny how, when I don t really want to do something, I come up with a million things to do first: dusting the mop board, taking items out to be recycled, even asking half a dozen Sisters if they could use my help. There always comes a time when my desk can t be put off any longer. I empty the contents of the drawers on my bed and begin sifting through the letters from my family, old notes from Sisters, booklets and other odds and ends. I soon begin recalling the year as I laugh again at a ridiculous card from one of my siblings, or say a quick prayer of gratitude for a Sister whose encouraging note came at just the right time. I marvel at how my nieces and nephews have grown and wonder where some of my former

13 students are now. Cleaning out my desk becomes a moment of grace as I thank God for the blessings of the year and make some small resolutions as I sort out which items to keep and which to throw away. In many ways the community s General Chapter is like winter housecleaning. During the year of preparation leading up to the meeting, we take a good look at what it means to be a School Sister of Christ the King. We empty out the desk drawers of our prayer, community life, and apostolic work. Looking back at the beginnings of our community, we reread the conference notes of our founder, Bishop Flavin. We recall with gratitude the blessings that have come through the years, through both the joys and struggles. Done well, this type of renewal takes a lot of honest, hard work. As we sincerely share our individual joys, struggles, and hopes, spiritual piles begin to form of what, as a community, the Holy Spirit is asking us to keep, change, or clean out. This is also a graced time to make resolutions, asking the Holy Spirit to show us, individually and as a religious family, where we may have cut corners or cluttered our lives so that we can make room for where He is inviting us to let the reign of Christ radiate more brightly from the community. This process of renewal is so important that the Church requires it of every religious community. What a blessing to, every six years, step back to examine our life with Christ. We thank you, in advance, for your prayers for us as we prepare for our Chapter: elections of Mother General and General Council in April and discussion of matters of greater importance in July. Maybe this new year can become a time of grace for you and your family as well. A time to look back with gratitude on the blessings of the year and ask Christ, who came to live among us, how He is inviting you to spread His kingdom in your corner of the world. By Sister Mary Gabriel, CK

14 How does God change Heart? your We asked some students and Sisters. This is what they said: By pouring out His mercy. - Alondra, Grade 3 When God smiles at me and I can feel it. - Caroline, Grade 5 God changes my heart by talking to me in Mass, at home and at school. - Elizabeth, Grade 2 God changes my heart through the Eucharist. - Rafael, Grade 2 He changes my heart one little act at a time. - John, Grade 5

15 He lets me know someone loves me. - Ben, Grade 6 He gives me freedom. - Sister John Marion Through the grace of sharing in His suffering. - Sister Mary Guadalupe God changes my heart by making little, but important, things happen... He wants the best for me. - Marguerite, Grade 5 He changes my heart through other people. - Joseph, Grade 2 Spring 2019 Vocation Dates Discernment Retreat Come & See Visits ck-vocations@cdolinc.net March April May 5-11

16 Blessed Christmas & Epiphany! Immerse yourself in the true Christmas spirit of awe and joy and gratitude. We must remember to be grateful to God for becoming man for our salvation and also for becoming man in the very beautiful way that He did the lovely story of Christmas. - Bishop Flavin Villa Regina Motherhouse 4100 SW 56th Street Lincoln, NE For address updates contact or vrrl-mission@cdolinc.net Winter 2018 Vol. 23, No. 2 Non - profit org. U. S. Postage PAID Lincoln NE Permit No. 73