Best Birthday Ever!

A blessed and happy New Year! I have hardly the words to express my joy! We've had the most wonderful Christmas and Epiphany with the children, as we eagerly awaited the birth of our first grandchild, who arrived in the wee hours on the Feast of St. Raymond of Penafort, a day before my birthday.

During Advent, the word that came to me for the next year was Freedom. To be free from fear; to write, to sing, to paint freely. I want to be free to do the right thing, to be free from sin. On New Year's Day I played Jennifer Fulwiler's Saint Name Generator--guess who came up?!!! St. Joachim--the father of Mary, the grandfather of our Lord Jesus! And patron of fathers, grandfathers, and grandparents. How fitting as we begin this new chapter in our lives. 

Here are the young parents, waiting to meet their little one! We are so happy Dagny had a hard and fast labor; it brought back memories of my first labor and I'm so grateful that she was able to give birth without any complications (unlike mine). Deo gratias! And thanks to all our prayer warriors! I've had a lovely time reminiscing with Dagny (below, newborn Dagny). Like the Magi, I fall in Adoration and Thanksgiving to our Lord Jesus. 

What a privilege it is to see a new life enter this world, and especially to see my baby hold her baby. I will always be grateful for these moments of grace. What struck me again is how protective the hands of the father are, cradling the baby. I have always loved Michael's hands, and I know Dagny will always appreciate Ian's. God bless him and all the work of his hands. They're home now and enjoying getting to know their sweet little baby boy! As per the wise new mom and dad's request--no more baby pictures online. 

This little one is the best birthday gift. Dagny and I had planned on doing a session with Painting with a Twist for my birthday, but with baby's arrival, it was not to be. Saturday evening, I decided to go by myself. It reminded me very much of what Julia Cameron calls an artist date. I had such a good time and learned a lot too. I title this WONDER. The cute birthday card is from a dear friend.

Christmas Blessings

What a joy for us to sing at the Midnight Latin Mass at Stella Maris; it was recorded for those who aren't able to come to church. Our choir director, Huey, and his wife, Tatiana, sing beautifully together and at Communion, Tatiana sang one of my favorite anthems, O Magnum Mysterium, a solo piece composed by Morten Lauridsen (~1:08). And for the first time we sang on Christmas Day too at Sacred Heart. We are so blessed. 

It's been such a gift to have the children home for an extended time--below I post some pictures of our time together. They left this morning to resume their studies at Ave Maria. They are in the best possible place, under the care of our Lady, our Mother, our Queen, who, if we ask, will clothe us in all her virtues and prepare us to be a gift to her Divine Son.

And...Dagny's bunny inspired me to get some faux rabbit fur scarves--they are soooo soft. 

Alas our Nativity is never safe from the cats. Benny has been chewing on the twigs and this year after we moved our three Kings to the Nativity he managed to decapitate one of the Kings. But all's well with a bit of glue :) Despite the many broken pieces, I treasure this Nativity, our first, where many hours have been spent contemplating the Incarnation. May Christmas blessings be yours throughout the New Year.  

Adoration

Adoration of the Magi by Bassano Jacopo and Francesco

A few people have asked me what Adoration is. The short answer is: worship. The  consecrated Host is Jesus, all of Him: Body, Blood, Soul, and Divinity. And so we fall on our knees in adoration like the Magi did when they worshipped the new-born Babe.

The long answer is my personal experience: I anticipate this date a week beforehand. Like a lover, I think about what I might wear, what I might talk about, what He might reveal to me. The night before, I am excited. And when the day finally comes, I can't wait to finish my morning chores so that I can go meet Jesus. I dress nicely, bring my veil, rosary, some spiritual reading, and my notebook. I read, write, pray, just be. My biggest challenge is staying awake especially in the afternoon or night. I get very, very sleepy. I suppose I'm not a very good lover. But it is lovely to rest in the Lord.

I've been doing this now monthly for about 2.5 years, ever since St. Clare of Assisi parish on Daniel Island was formed. The pastor at the Anglican church has graciously allowed us to use their church for daily Mass and Adoration. Weekend Masses are at Bishop England. I pray that when we have our own church building that we'll have a perpetual Adoration chapel. All it takes is a willingness to commit to spending time with Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament, even if it's at 3 am. And it's so wonderful to be able to pop in for a few minutes. Even if Jesus isn't exposed, you can still visit with Him if the lamp near the Tabernacle is lit.

So I encourage my readers to go visit Jesus. You don't have to be Catholic or even Christian. Just sit with Him. And I can guarantee you that you will receive graces. Some illumination or insight into the spiritual world. Maybe even an epiphany!

Here's a directory.

During our conversion, I used to wonder why Jesus was all locked up in the tabernacle, but it is for His own safety. Many satanic groups will steal the Blessed Sacrament to desecrate it. I've even read stories of people in the satanic groups who can identify a consecrated Host from one that isn't. I find this amazing since even many Catholics have lost the sense of the Real Presence of Christ.

I still cannot wrap my head around the fact that the Lord of the universe comes to us in humble bread. This is why I love the hands of priests, because it is only through them we receive Jesus in a substantial way. One would have thought that Jesus couldn't do anything more humble than to come down to earth as a helpless baby, at the mercy of humans, to save us. Even one drop of His Precious Blood would've saved us all, but He loves us so much He suffers and dies for us. That's Passion!

The fruits of Adoration are many. The quiet time is a blessing. And there is something wonderful that happens being still. Many Masses, psalms and hymns come to mind but when I'm deeply in prayer, there are no words. It's heart to Heart. Last year I meditated upon the Hours of the Passion as recorded by Servant of God, Luisa Piccarreta. Having seen Mel Gibson's Passion of the Christ, many of the images that come to mind are from his movie (He based it on the visions of Bl. Anne Catherine Emmerich). It's amazing how many of the details match both of these saints, separated by time and space.

Well, these are just some of my thoughts on Adoration.  And here are a couple of quotes from a dear saint, Mother Teresa. 

When you look at the crucifix, you understand how much Jesus loved you then. When you look at the Sacred Host you understand how much Jesus loves you now.

Jesus has made Himself the Bread of Life to give us life. Night and day, He is there. If you really want to grow in love, come back to the Eucharist, come back to that Adoration.

Sweet Sacrament is one of my favorite hymns and I love both this particular arrangement and the pictures that Msgr. Pope compiled for this video. 

Cologne Cathedral and Epiphany

I had no belief in God when I was a post-doctoral fellow at the Max Planck Institute in Cologne, Germany. But I was very much attracted to the Koelner Dom -- this grand Gothic Cathedral -- and made several visits. Friends gave us private tours and if they mentioned the Three Wise Men, I don't remember paying attention or taking many pictures. These scant few are all I have. I was awestruck, marveling at the structure and the beauty within.

Shrine of the Three Kings in Cologne Cathedral -- photo taken from Wikipedia

Do these really house the bones of the three wise men? Who knows? Fr. Dwight Longenecker writes about it in some depth here. It's believed that St. Helena, the mother of Constantine, who discovered the true Cross, also discovered the remains of the three wise men in the East (probably in India) and brought them back to Constantinople. Yes, legend has it that one of the Wise Men came from India :) Of course, if there's any mention of the East, Indians will claim some part of it. LOL. My mother also told me Elvis Presley was from India.

Our priest gave a wonderful homily for Epiphany. We all know the Gospel story (Matt 2:1-12). The wise men from the East have been following the star that prophesizes the birth of a King. They naturally go to see Herod, who was ruling at the time. He consults with the scribes and priests and indeed, there is a prophecy. Herod is afraid of losing power so tells the Magi to tell him where the Babe is so that he too can give Him homage. Of course, he has no such intention. When the Magi return home another way (warned by an angel) Herod murders all the male children under the age of two. The first martyrs.

Consider the reaction of the three types of people. Herod, afraid of the newborn King, of losing his power. His response is murder (he was such an evil man that he murdered several family members and when he knew he was going to die, he had people killed so that there'd be mourning). Then we have the scribes and the priests, who were indifferent. They check out the Scriptures but aren't moved to do anything. Nowhere do we hear that they are curious or want to see for themselves this amazing event, the coming of the Messiah. Then there are the three wise men, who seek Truth, and will undertake an enormous journey because it is their treasure. They find Truth. And with it, also Beauty and Goodness. They humble themselves and offer what they have and leave completely changed. Once you encounter Christ, you cannot be the same. You will either hate Him, be indifferent, or fall on your knees to worship Him. This is the truth. I am a witness to it.

G. K. Chesterton wrote The World's Desire. I imagine this is what the three Wise Men saw and felt deep in their hearts. Yesterday, Faith posted a poem -- Here is a Little Door -- by his wife, Frances! I like these little coincidences, being on the same wavelength.

May we all receive the gifts of the magi: eyes to seek Him, feet to follow Him, and hearts to worship Him. Wishing you a blessed and happy Epiphany!

Write this upon your doorpost: 20 + C + M + B + 16
The CMB stand for Caspar, Melchior, Balthazar and also Christus mansionem benedicat.

The Wise Still Seek Him

Adoration of the Magi by Murillo

Have I mentioned how much I love this time of the year? I love the Feast of Epiphany. How well it reflects our own journey to the Christ-Child. My heart overflows with gratefulness at been given the gift to seek Him. May we all receive the gifts of the magi: eyes to seek Him, feet to follow Him, and hearts to worship Him.


This version of We Three Kings from Kings College is so beautiful. If you are in the mood, just let the mix of Christmas music play!  

A New Year, A New Friend

Happy New Year!!! Today is the first day back at school for the kids and I'm surprised that nobody groused about getting up early. I suppose it's because they are churched out. It's been such a gift to have this time at home together.

On New Year's Day, I found a new friend, or rather he found me. I was flipping through the latest Magnificat and the first thing that made me stop was: St. Alphonsus de Ligouri. His Stations of the Cross are my favorite, but I had no idea that he suffered so much. How silly of me ... all the saints were purified through some sort of suffering. Anyway, I turned a few more pages and discovered that this entire month is devoted to saints who suffered from chronic illnesses. How perfectly fitting for me to learn to suffer with the saints. I keep rather good company, don't you think? In any case, St. Alphonsus is going to walk with me all year with his 12 Steps to Holiness and Salvation. Each month, I will work on increasing one virtue. Jan is Faith. By the end of the year I should be ready to read Uniformity with God's Will.

You can read some remarkable things about his writings and sufferings here. An excerpt: St. Alphonsus wrote his first book at the age of forty-nine, and in his eighty-third year had published about sixty volumes, when his director forbade him to write more. Very many of these books were written in the half-hours snatched from his labors as missionary, religious superior, and Bishop, or in the midst of continual bodily and mental sufferings. With his left hand he would hold a piece of marble against his aching head while his right hand wrote. This made me smile. I often write with an ice pack on my head. So I will be asking him to pray for my writing, mothering, and suffering.

On this Epiphany, I leave you with a Star and the Wise Men at the Crib. May we have the gifts of the magi: eyes to seek Him, feet to follow Him, and hearts to worship Him.

 

 

An afterthought: My daughter made the star and thought she was going to annoy me by making it seven-pointed, but I love it. I only get upset when people make snowflakes with fourfold or eightfold symmetry. People -- please, please make your snowflakes with SIX-fold symmetry. Sorry to shout. But it's a pet peeve of mine.