Practicality of Discernment and Prayer

Where the Rubber Meets the Road:  Practicality of Discernment and Prayer  

I would like to use this post to let you all know why I have not posted weekly blog posts for some time. As those of you who know me well already know, two of my deepest desires have been to be happily married and have children, neither of which I have been gifted with.   These desires have been part of my prayer for as long as I remember, but I also have surrendered those desires to the Lord asking for the grace to want what He wants because I know He loves me more than I will ever understand and that He knows what is best for me.

I really was content with my life, but then Our God of Surprises kept pulling on my heartstrings as it relates to neglected or abused children. For years, I thought I might do missionary work in orphanages but life circumstances led me in a different direction.  The last few years while in graduate school, I have been journeying with my parents through the aging process and subsequently moved them closer to me to allow me to spend more time with them and care for them.

December 2013 First Christmas in Addis, Louisiana

I realized then that at least for their remaining years here on earth that I was called to not head out to the mission field in foreign lands to work in orphanages, but to stay local.  Through much prayer and discernment, I had to face that I could not support myself and assist Mom and Dad on my ministry work alone. The Lord revealed to me that I had many gifts that I should not put under a bushel basket as He speaks to in the Gospel according to Matthew 5: 15 (http://www.usccb.org/bible/matthew/5) so I returned to full time employment using my business skills in March 2014.  The transition has not been easy for me because I am so passionate about retreat ministry.  I began to be very intentional in my prayer periods about what I could do locally in Baton Rouge, Louisiana and the Lord revealed to me that a large part of my ministry had become my family.  I continued to pray for guidance.

Through the Daily Examen, I noticed how moved I was each and every time I saw anything about child abuse on the news or read about it in my newsfeed. Paying attention to my interior movements was key to my discernment.   I was literally haunted by some of the stories.  One in particular that moved me deeply was the case in Atlanta (http://www.cnn.com/2014/09/04/justice/hot-car-death-ross-harris-grand-jury/) of the Dad who left his son in the car all day while he was at work and the child died.  At first, it was treated as an absent minded Dad who forgot the child, but subsequent facts led to his arrest for murder because research was found on his computer about how hot a vehicle had to be to kill a child.  This was really a turning point for me, but I still was not clear about what I was being called to do.  Several weeks later, there was another news article locally about a 6 month old left in a hot vehicle in the Wal-Mart parking lot in Livingston parish (http://wgno.com/2014/07/01/police-say-livingston-parish-couple-left-baby-in-locked-car/).  Thankfully, this child was rescued by a police officer who saved the child and arrested the parents.  The news story tells how the parents were impaired on drugs and that when they finally cooperated and told the officer where their other children were, he went to the home and found a 6 month old twin and 2 other children with a family member.  Well that day, I sobbed at my desk reading the newsfeed.  The Holy Spirit moved me to call the Livingston Parish Department of Children and Family Services(DCFS) knowing I was not certified to help with those children but passionate about helping abused and neglected children.  This phone call started a beautiful process of discernment which led to my certification to become a foster/adoptive parent.

These prayer periods and times of discernment have not always been easy and without pain and suffering along the way. I looked for patterns and I looked for the fruits of the Holy Spirit vs. the disquiet, confusion, and turmoil that surrounds the work of the Unholy Spirit.

In my periods of disquiet in my soul during the process of certification, I was faced with the humanitarian crisis on our border and what if anything I might be being called to do in relation to that.   I met with some of the Sisters of St. Joseph to discuss the orphanage that they closed many years ago to determine why they closed it and the difficulties they faced.  I considered contacting my local bishop to discuss the possibility of starting an orphanage of sorts locally but decided not to do so.    I continued to take all of this to prayer and listened intently for what the Lord wanted for me.  The Lord showed me in prayer that the local orphanage was too lofty with all of my other responsibilities of caring for my parents so I returned to prayer.

I then began to think I should take in as many children into my home as DCFS would allow. I had daydreams of being the Old Lady in the Shoe.  However, the disquiet remained calling me to consistently take it to the Lord.  I explored in prayer why I was so moved by the Livingston case and went deeper into how the Lord uses our own woundedness to help others.  In prayer, I was able to see that the circumstances of the Livingston case touched me deeply because since I was a young girl I have always wanted multiple births.  In addition, God brought to the forefront my deep love for my beautiful cousin, Mira, who suffered so much with her drug addiction and I saw her although she was not a mom in the young mother with all the drugs in her purse when arrested.  I continued to pray.

He gently revealed me to myself and spoke to me in the depths of my soul telling me, “Yes, my child…..DCFS is the right path, but let’s do one child at a time. Perhaps 2 or 3 if siblings of multiple births arise, but you’ll know when the circumstance presents itself.”

So here I am, thrilled to inform you that I attended DCFS orientation in July 2014, completed the DCFS Model Approach to Partnership in Parenting Classes in August 2014, submitted my comprehensive profile including medical, psychosocial, criminal and financial background information in August 2014, and completed my 3 Home Study visits in October 2014. After a few minor setbacks due to new pool safety regulations, the DCFS supervisor informed me that I was certified on November 3, 2014.

Pool Safety Fence Installation

I am a Mommy in Waiting!

My Little Girl’s Room

My life has been full!  The certification process along with having to return to full time work outside of ministry in March 2014, caring for mom and dad on an ongoing basis and not neglecting my own prayer life has kept me hopping.    However, all this to say that after reflecting back on my journey, my life has been a very practical application of Ignatian Prayer and Discernment which fills me with gratitude.  I have not had enough hours in each day to blog my experience and really have missed blogging and my interaction with you all, my faithful followers.  I can’t promise weekly posts going forward, but want you to know that I will post as often as I can and you are all in my thoughts and prayers.   I ask for your prayers as well for me and whatever child/children God blesses me with.

May God Bless You All!

Peace and love,

Patti

How Would Jesus Respond to a Drunk at Mass?

Parable of the Ten Lepers

Luke 17: 11-19

As I sat in mass this evening and heard today’s gospel of the Parable of the Ten Lepers from the gospel according to Luke proclaimed, I could not help but think about one of the first post I read on Facebook today written by a friend of mine, who is a priest in South Louisiana.  He was commenting about how he had to celebrate mass in the dark at one of his masses and how “the town drunk” had come to another mass.

Earlier in the day when I read the Facebook post, the first thought that came to mind was,  “I wonder what Jesus would have done if a town drunk would have come to one of his masses?”  Yes Facebook can lead us to prayer.  Where the Holy Spirit led me was amazing.  I actually thought well the historical Jesus would not have celebrated mass like we do today, but what if an intoxicated person had shown up when Jesus was teaching in the synagogue as we know he did in Capernaum or when He was delivering the Sermon on the Mount?  I was led to place myself in those scenes and use imaginative prayer in those two scenes.  I imagined someone in a drunken state(in bondage from their addiction) entering both scenes.   I begged Jesus for the grace to see the situation through His eyes, to feel what He felt, to understand as He understood and to love as He loved.  I watched along with all the other people in the crowd as Jesus gently paused from his teachings and tenderly ministered to our drunken neighbor offering him to participate,  They conversed in private, but I imagined Jesus welcoming him to stay but giving him boundaries by telling him that he could not be a disruption.   I saw the drunk man transform before my eyes because Jesus had acknowledged him, invited him to participate in the teachings and shown him love and respect.

Then I asked myself how I would respond today at mass if a drunk came in and attempted to disrupt the service.  I was really challenged because my first reaction was not to let anyone disrupt my/the sacred time especially the consecration of the Body and Blood of Christ during the Eucharistic Prayer.   I also thought of how difficult someone in a drunken state could be to deal with.  To avoid dealing with my own resistances, I found myself dwelling on how I would hope the priest would respond.  This question stayed with me most of the day and through mass this evening.  I pray often for the grace to have Jesus transform my heart to His and today was no exception.   Today’s gospel proclamation was a great reminder to me of how leprosy in first century Palestine was such a horrible disease.   Lepers were outcasts and rejected by society.    They were sent away to live.  They were rejected by family, friends, and strangers; but we know from today’s scripture as well as others in the gospels that Jesus healed the lepers and always sided with the outcasts, the marginalized, and the downtrodden.

As I sat and reflected on who are the lepers today in my world(those people who family, friends. and strangers often reject), what Jesus ultimately showed me was that if a drunk person appeared at a mass that I attended, I should somehow be hospitable and attempt to help the person feel welcomed, loved and respected whether or not anyone else acknowledged him.  I had to acknowledge that I could not do this in my own strength, I begged the Lord for the grace to give me the strength and the courage to do His will in all circumstances.

How would you respond?……………………………

Let me hear from you in the comments or click the “like” button if this post speaks to you……

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Feel Free to “cut and paste” any of these texts for Prayer or Worship Aids and simply add this reference:

“Taken from the The Hopeless Romantic: Falling in Love with God site of Patti Clement. www.patticlement.wordpress.com Used with Permission.”

Befriending Those Who Go Before Us-Part 3

St. Francis of Assisi

As I studied the life of Francis of Assisi and Franciscan Spirituality in general, I befriended this great saint also.  I was really challenged by the realization that because I did not understand the rise of urban life, the birth of the universities, the crusades, the reforming councils and the culture of mercantilism that were all prevalent in St. Francis’s era (1181-1226); I really did not understand him at all.[1]  As I reflected on the fact that I had accepted the romanticized view of Francis as the flower child from the film, Brother Sun, Sister Moon (1970’s) as the St. Francis I knew, I was really challenged.  I love the garden statues that depict him as the animal and nature lover promoting peace, joy and love, but had never connected his peace with the animal world as a sign of his purity and holiness.[2]  I was shocked to find out the beautiful prayer of St. Francis which I have prayed many times cannot be traced to his writings.

Lord, make me an instrument of your peace,

Where there is hatred, let me sow love;

Where there is injury, pardon;

Where there is doubt, faith;

Where there is despair, hope;

Where there is darkness, light;

Where there is sadness, joy.

O Divine Master, grant that I may not so much seek to be consoled, as to console;

to be understood, as to understand;

to be loved, as to love.

For it is in giving that we receive.

It is in pardoning that we are pardoned,

and it is in dying that we are born to Eternal Life.  Amen.

Instead his “peaceable kingdom” message indicates that the created world is good and makes a polemical point against pessimism expressed by heretics of his day who saw the material world as evil.[3]

Prior to my studies at Creighton University, my main contact to Franciscan exposure had been Fr. Richard Rohr.  I have been drawn to Fr. Rohr for years always viewing him as someone who speaks directly to my heart and pushes the envelope in promoting social justice, but never really knowing the profound depth coming from his founder with his emphasis on poverty and the humility of Christ as part of the Incarnation itself.[4]   As I befriended Francis of Assisi and pondered the following words, “Preach the Gospel, use words only when necessary” which are often attributed to him;  I realized that I had a distorted view of St. Francis.  He really was a very humble man and attempted to live as closely to Christ crucified as possible.    I remember being challenged because my previous views were so romanticized, but at the same time I am overjoyed to realize that St. Francis’s message of peace and joy were desperate cries to end the violence that filled the streets of Assisi during his time and clearly are still relevant in our desperate times.  To be able to promote peace as he did particularly to the Islamic world and being willing to risk martyrdom in the name of the gospel is something that I view as very pertinent to the modern world in the promotion of unity amongst the great religions.  Now I have a new found appreciation for Fr. Rohr’s passion for promoting the “One” church and am left challenged by my own discernment about what I am called to do in relation to promoting world peace as well as peace within my local community.

Questions to Ponder:

• How might befriending Francis of Assisi help you to see that the material world itself is not evil but how our misuse of the gifts given to us by God can lead to evil?
• What is it in the created world that reminds you of God’s care for you and all of mankind?….. 
• How might St. Francis’s message of peace and joy which I believe are being portrayed and exemplified so vividly by Pope Francis today be a desperate cry to end the violence and injustices that fill our streets today? 
• Are you aware of and appreciating how God reveals Himself in the ordinary and simple as well as the extraordinary and spectacular?………… 
• How might St. Francis help you to see the created world as a source for realizing the divine?

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[1] Lawrence S. Cunningham, Francis of Assisi:  Performing the Gospel Life (Grand Rapids, Michigan:  Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Co., 2004), 127.

[2] Ibid., 97.

[3] Ibid., 105.

[4] Ibid., 74.

Please let me hear how these reflections speak to you….

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Feel Free to “cut and paste” any of these texts for Prayer or Worship Aids and simply add this reference:

“Taken from the The Hopeless Romantic: Falling in Love with God site of Patti Clement. www.patticlement.wordpress.com Used with Permission.”

Befriending Those Who Go Before Us-Part 2

St. Benedict

As I spent time studying St. Benedict, the Rule of Benedict, and Benedictine Spirituality in general;  I struggled with some of the key concepts presented.  However, by befriending St. Benedict I was able to experience his struggles and our struggles became intertwined.  I shared in his deep intimacy with God.  I had to seek out additional healing within my own heart to be able to accept what this wonderful tradition has to offer.  I found consolation in recognizing that he too had to grapple with the issues he faced.  The first concept that I struggled with was obedience.   The root of obedience is listening and discerning at a personal level.[1]  As I read the Rule of Benedict and Columba Stewart’s insights regarding obedience, I initially was turned off by the concept of obedience because of negative connotations I had regarding the word obedience as one person dominating another.  I previously viewed obedience as a vow or grace that I had no interest in attaining.  As I reflected further on St. Benedict’s teaching regarding obedience becoming fully mutual as the members of the community act with ‘most fervent love’, I began to view this as something desirable and attainable.[2]  In addition, when I realized the Latin root meaning of the word obedience is listening in silence and discernment on a personal level, as a Spiritual Director, I grappled with this new meaning as listening and discerning God’s small voice and a new door opened for me.  I embraced obedience as something I desired and could attain.

In my humanity, I have struggled to know God’s will and to be obedient to God’s small voice.  I am grateful that I have come to a deeper realization that in all these years of being in spiritual direction discerning the patterns in my own life and becoming more and more aware of God’s presence in my daily life and striving to hear God’s voice in my daily prayer that I have been being obedient.  I had to see obedience from the perspective of a loving God who would never harshly dominate me or anyone else, before I could accept obedience as something I desired.  Going forward, I will enthusiastically incorporate a request for the grace of obedience in my daily prayers and begin to articulate my new understanding when delivering conferences in my retreat ministry.

The second topic from St. Benedict that has helped me tremendously to recognize that our growth in holiness is not for ourselves is that personal salvation is interdependent on how we live in community.  I am not complete without the community and cannot grow spiritually in isolation and this concept is not something that is only applicable in a monastery.[3]  Columba Stewart suggests that for St. Benedict, total dependence on God rather than on one’s own desires and preferences develops best in community.[4]  I came to understand that my initial resistance to this insight was deeply rooted in the individualistic culture in which we live.  As I reflected on the Rule of Benedict and Stewart’s insights on community, I immediately thought of one of the Catholic Social Teaching Themes which is that we are all called to family, community, and participation.[5]  In pondering these thoughts, I recalled that it is in relationships that our virtues are called forth and where we are called to fulfill the greatest commandment to love one another as the Lord loves us.[6]  My own life’s journey came to mind and how I have no problem finding God in what most people would call sacred spaces and in solitude, but how I have often failed to find Him in the workplace and in the messiness of family struggles.  I was convicted about my own role in the relationship problems that exist in my life.    During one of my eight-day directed silent retreats, with the help of Fr. Fagin’s book, “Putting on the Heart of Christ”, I realized I had succumbed to the Army of Satan and was filled with compunction when I realized my own sinfulness and shame in relation to some of the relational issues.  As I went deeper in prayer about my own sinfulness in relationships, what I came to was a deeper realization of what being a “6” on the Enneagram means for me.   I noticed a pattern in my own life of over working or being overly responsible and then becoming resentful of others about the state of my life.  I know now that as a “6”, I have worked most of my life out of fear rather than love.  I worked to survive and often times compromised both work and family relationships along the way.  Through prayer, I was convicted and came to a profound realization that I was in need of spiritual freedom.  As much as I can see how God has been faithful in my life, I always get caught up in the uncertainty and unknowing of what next.  I recognized my own lack of trust and dependence on God and its negative implications.  Amazingly, it was the following two scripture passages “perfect love drives out fear”[7]  and “but whenever a person turns to the Lord the veil is removed…there is freedom….all of us, gazing with unveiled faces on glory of the Lord are being transformed into the same image”[8] that helped me to realize that my early conditioning of a punishing God keeps resurfacing and that I am in continual need of relying on God to transform my heart.

I am so grateful for the healing power and the loving mercy of Our Lord.  I know now that part of my ongoing struggle will include this continual tension of fear and that I will have to pray for the grace to become more and more aware of when I am losing my spiritual freedom and succumbing to the Army of Satan.  I have asked my ongoing spiritual director to help me be accountable in regards to purifying my motives for action.  I will strive to live out the beatitude “blessed are the pure of heart” and rely on God’s grace in making decisions.  I will also strive to be diligent about journaling so that the patterns will be evident sooner.

Questions to Ponder:

• What bubbles up inside of you when you hear the word “obedience“?  Any negative connotations?

• How might befriending St. Benedict help you to understand what being obedient really means?

• How do you view your personal growth in Holiness?  Is it for you or for the community?

• How might the individualism promoted in our culture be affecting your relationships?

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[1] Columba Stewart, OSB, Prayer and Community:  The Benedictine Tradition, (Maryknoll, New York:  Orbis Books, 1998), 54.

[2] Ibid., 54-56.

[3] Ibid., 54.

[4] Ibid.

[5] United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, Call to Family, Community and Participation, http://www.usccb.org/beliefs-and-teachings/what-we-believe/catholic-social-teaching/call-to-family-community-and-participation.cfm (accessed August 1, 2013).

[6] John 15: 12, NAB.

[7] 1 John 4: 18, NAB.

[8] 2 Cor 3: 16-18, NAB.

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Feel Free to “cut and paste” any of these texts for Prayer or Worship Aids and simply add this reference:

“Taken from the The Hopeless Romantic: Falling in Love with God site of Patti Clement. www.patticlement.wordpress.com Used with Permission.”

Happy St. Ignatius of Loyola Feast Day!

What a Great Gift this Man has Left to the Universal Church in the Spiritual Exercises!

Let us all celebrate his life today.  Thought I would share a short video done by Fr. James Martin, S.J. about the Life of Ignatius to help us all acknowledge the power of conversion and transformation when we turn our lives over to Jesus.  Enjoy!

Questions to Ponder:

• What, if anything, do you resonate with about St. Ignatius’ life?
• How might he help you Find God in All Things?
• How does his life and the Society of Jesus that he founded help you recognize the importance of both action and contemplation?

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Feel Free to “cut and paste” any of these texts for Prayer or Worship Aids and simply add this reference:

“Taken from the The Hopeless Romantic: Falling in Love with God site of Patti Clement. www.patticlement.wordpress.com Used with Permission.”

Inspiration by the Holy Spirit Works Miracles

 God Will Do Amazing Things When We Strive to Live In Step with the Holy Spirit and Live Out His Most Holy Will!

One year ago today, I launched this website after much prayer and discernment.

For several years, retreatants had been asking me if I had a website at the end of retreats.  I would squirm and admit that I did not.  The Lord used many others to help me see His path clearly, but particularly one retreatant in early 2012 at Ignatius House in Atlanta jolted me into serious discernment.

Our Dialogue:

Male Retreatant:  “Do you have a website that we could follow to get regular spiritual reflections, follow what books you might suggest, look for where and when you will be directing future retreats, and find other Ignatian Spirituality resources?”

Me:  “No, I have considered a website and have been asked by many others this same question, but I really don’t have the skills to develop a website.”

Male Retreatant:  “I will do it for you. You really need to keep this going for us.”

Me:  “Oh, how generous, but I could never allow you to do that for me.  That is a lot of hard work.  I will continue to pray about your request and see where the Lord leads me.”

I continued to pray about the many requests and pay attention to the Holy Spirit active around me and within me.  At the beginning of Summer 2012, I was on staff at Montserrat in Dallas teaching others how to lead preached retreats and one of the participants and I began sharing about a book she was in the process of publishing.  I was really excited for her and also really interested because several professors had recently suggested I publish some of my papers.  One thing led to another and we began discussing publishing in general and how she had a website.  She shared with me how she had used WordPress and she was very encouraging about how I, too, should pursue the tutorial and launch my own site.  What a gift she was from God!

My Path of Discernment was not Unique

It included many periods along the way and took several years.  I used one of the many gifts of the Spiritual Exercises of St. Ignatius of Loyola, steps to good discernment from the Rules of Discernment to help me:

• Praying for guidance and clarity
• Gathering data and facts and making a lists of pros and cons
• Praying for empowerment and light to see God’s will
• Getting really excited and Being discouraged
• Praying to know His will and purity of heart about motives
• Feeling empowered and Experiencing doubt
• Praying for Knowledge and Spiritual Freedom(Holy Indifference) needed to accept whatever God really wanted
• Visualizing what the website would look like and Paying Attention to Interior Movements
• Praying for Obstacles to be Removed and looking for Feelings of Consolation about Choices
• Making a Decision to proceed with website
• Praying for those who helped me along the way and looking for God in all Things
• Getting scared about not doing it right
• Praying to dismiss the Unholy Spirit that often comes in Discouragement, Fear and Doubt
• Taking steps to Design the site
• Praying with Requests from Previous Retreatants and for the Lord to use me to Deliver what was requested
• Launching the Site
• Prayers of Thanksgiving for the Guidance I received, both Divinely and Earthly
• Being Affirmed in my Decision to Launch the Site by the many emails and comments
• Continued Prayers for Humility to always stay rooted in Jesus Christ and what He wants me to share on an ongoing basis

I am humbled and stand in awe each time I receive a message or comment from someone about how my sharing has helped them.  Did I ever think I could launch this site and keep it current?  No…but With God All Things are Possible!

I am also amazed with the far-reaching implications of the internet.  Through the internet I have been able to touch lives I may never be able to visit in person.  Did I ever think I could reach people all over the world?  No….but With God All Things are Possible!

In one year, I have had approximately 8000 views on this site and have reached my brothers and sisters in 80+ countries all over the world.  Only God could do this!

Questions to Ponder:

• Is there something in your own life that you may be thinking you don’t have the skills to do?

• What does the Lord say about your situation?

• Have you taken it to prayer?

• Are you ready to seriously discern what God wants?

I hope and pray that my discernment process shared above helps you in some way.  I am truly humbled and grateful for the privilege I’ve been given to enter into your sacred space.  Thank you for a year of journeying together and I look forward to many more.  God Bless!

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Feel Free to “cut and paste” any of these texts for Prayer or Worship Aids and simply add this reference:

“Taken from the The Hopeless Romantic: Falling in Love with God site of Patti Clement. www.patticlement.wordpress.com Used with Permission.”

Action or Contemplation? Both are Necessary!

Martha and Mary

(Luke 10:38-42)

As I placed myself in the scene of the Gospel for this Sunday, July 21, 2103; I was reminded of how I am alot like both characters.  My first tendency is to jump into the busyness of whatever is going on around me.  I find much joy in giving of myself and love to help others; but I also love spending time at the feet of Jesus.  Jesus reminded me that he loved both sisters equally and that he was using Mary as a sign of breaking down barriers of his day where it would have been taboo for women to sit at the feet of the teacher like the men of his day.  I believe there is also a message for me in sitting at his feet.  My favorite verses in the passage are “Martha, Martha, you are anxious and worried about many things, but Mary has chosen the better part.  There is need of only one thing. Mary has chosen the better part and it will not be taken from her.”  I often need to be reminded that both action and contemplation are necessary.  If I am only active with no contemplation, my actions can become empty.  However, if I become too pious and only want to worship and contemplate, I can succumb to one of the seven deadly sins, slothfulness, and not do what Jesus calls forth from me.

I imagine Jesus chiding his good friend Martha……and telling her to lighten up……let go of your anxiety and worries and join your sister Mary…..she has chosen the better part.    He knows someone has to do the busy work, but he is trying to help her to realize that relationships and love of others no matter their race, sex, socio-economic background etc. are the most important things in life.    I often fall into the trap of thinking I need to do more to make a difference systemically and am sometimes afraid to help the homeless on the streets that society tells us not to give money to because they might go spend it on booze.   However, as I watched the following video sent to me by one of my Creighton family members, I realized that I can make a difference with whatever I have to give if I focus on finding God in all things and remember Jesus did not say only give if they will not go spend it on booze ……He said to feed the hungry, clothe the naked, etc.  Matthew 25: 31-46.    I had to admit that my own fear and my concern for wanting to make a big difference can be a hindrance and prevent me from being as generous with my time and money as Jesus calls me to be……..

Imaginative Prayer Experience

I invite you to watch the video embedded above and place yourself in the scene of the Martha and Mary Story using Ignatian Contemplation and allow Jesus to speak to your heart……….

Let us all stop and ponder:

• How might we be like Martha?  Allowing our busyness to hinder our love of God and love of neighbor?
• How might we be like Mary?  How do you respond to her gentle spirit?
• Do you ever fall into the trap of being overly zealous about your prayer allowing it to prevent you from the action Jesus is calling you to?
• Do you ever fall into the trap of busyness allowing it to prevent you from the contemplation needed to make your actions filled with love?
• What barriers might need to be broken down in our day?
• What might Jesus be trying to teach you about yourself and others through the Martha and Mary Story?

Let me hear from you in the comments or click the “like” button if this post speaks to you……

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Feel Free to “cut and paste” any of these texts for Prayer or Worship Aids and simply add this reference:

“Taken from the The Hopeless Romantic: Falling in Love with God site of Patti Clement. www.patticlement.wordpress.com Used with Permission.”

Which One Was Neighbor?

Parable of the Good Samaritan

(Luke 10:25-37)

The Gospel for this Sunday, July 14, 2103 is very familiar to most of us. There are even ministries named after it, the Good Samaritan Ministry providing assistance to those in need.  This week, in his first trip outside the Vatican, Pope Francis referred to the parable in his homily in Lampedusa.  Lampedusa is the southern Mediterranean island which is a major point of arrival for impoverished immigrants, mostly from Africa and the Middle East, seeking to reach Europe.  Lampedusa is much like our border areas between the US and Mexico.

According to John Allen, Vatican correspondent, authorities estimate that as many as 20,000 migrants have died since the late 1990’s attempting to cross the Mediterranean Sea by boat en route to Europe, with survivors generally ending up in detention centers in settings such as Lampedusa.  Pope Francis made a bold statement by making his first trip outside of the Vatican to be in solidarity with the migrants.  He began his remarks Monday by saying he had read recently of a tragedy in which migrants died while trying to make a boat crossing, and the thought of it was “like a splinter in the heart that causes suffering.”  “I felt the duty to come here today to pray, to perform a gesture of closeness, but also to awaken our consciences so that what happened doesn’t repeat itself,” he said.

He compared apathy in the face of the suffering of immigrants to the Gospel story of the Good Samaritan, in which a half-dead man lying in the street is ignored until the Samaritan finally stops to help.

“So many of us, and I include myself, are disoriented,” the Pope said. “We’re no longer attentive to the world in which we live. We don’t care about it; we don’t take care of what God created for all; and we’re no longer capable even of taking care of one another.”

“When this disorientation takes on the dimensions of the world, it leads to tragedies such as what we’ve seen [here],” the Pope said.

He spoke out against the “globalization of indifference” that leads to tragedies like the deaths of so many migrants seeking a better life.

 My Reflection

When I’ve prayed with this parable before, I have always really resonated with the biblical character that stopped to help and felt pretty good about how I live my life.  It really has been a “feel good” parable until this week when I prayed with the parable and Pope Francis’s homily from Lampedusa.  This homily and some of the commentary from John Allen really helped me to get in touch with something that makes me a little uncomfortable and is pretty challenging…..the thought that I, too, can become disoriented and fall into the trap of globalization of indifference that Pope Francis spoke of and not just as it relates to immigration.  I had to come to the sad realization that I, too, at times pass my neighbors who are in need.  Sometimes those neighbors are friends, sometimes strangers and sometimes family.  I only came to this realization by placing myself in the gospel scene and begging the Lord to place me with whatever character I needed to be with.  The Lord gently revealed that I, too, have been the other biblical characters who have not helped for various reasons.  Who represents the immigrants in your life symbolically or realistically?

Be honest with the Lord and expect Him to be honest with you!

Imaginative Prayer Experience

I invite you to place yourself in the scene of the Good Samaritan Parable using Ignatian Contemplation, read the excerpt from the homily below and ponder the questions that Pope Francis posed…….

The following is an excerpt from the homily:

In this world of globalization we have fallen into a globalization of indifference. We are accustomed to the suffering of others, it doesn’t concern us, it’s none of our business. The globalization of indifference makes us all “unnamed,” leaders without names and without faces. “Adam, where are you?” “Where is your brother?” These are the two questions that God puts at the beginning of the story of humanity, and that He also addresses to the men and women of our time, even to us. But I want to set before us a third question: “Who among us has wept for these things, and things like this?” Who has wept for the deaths of these brothers and sisters? Who has wept for the people who were on the boat? For the young mothers carrying their babies? For these men who wanted something to support their families? We are a society that has forgotten the experience of weeping, of “suffering with”: the globalization of indifference has taken from us the ability to weep! In the Gospel we have heard the cry, the plea, the great lament: “Rachel weeping for her children . . . because they are no more.” Herod sowed death in order to defend his own well-being, his own soap bubble. And this continues to repeat itself.

 Let us all stop and ponder what Pope Francis asked the audience to consider:

• Let us ask the Lord to wipe out [whatever attitude] of Herod remains in our hears
• Let us ask the Lord for the grace to weep over our indifference, to weep over the cruelty in the world, in ourselves, and even in those who anonymously make socio-economic decisions that open the way to tragedies like this.
• “Who has wept?”
• “Who in today’s world has wept?”

Let me hear from you in the comments or click the “like” button if this post speaks to you……

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Feel Free to “cut and paste” any of these texts for Prayer or Worship Aids and simply add this reference:

“Taken from the The Hopeless Romantic: Falling in Love with God site of Patti Clement. www.patticlement.wordpress.com Used with Permission.”

Beyond Jealousy

As I sit tonight pondering how Jealousy has destroyed Relationships and Lives in my own family and within the families of many others that I journey with, I opened an email with Fr. Henri Nouwen’s Daily Meditation on Jealousy that I felt I should share with you all……………..

Beyond Jealousy

“Jealousy arises easily in our hearts.  In the parable of the prodigal son, the elder son is jealous that his younger brother gets such a royal welcome even though he and his loose women swallowed up his father’s property (Luke 15:30).  And in the parable of the labourers in the vineyard, the workers who worked the whole day are jealous that those who came at the eleventh hour receive the same pay as they did  (see Matthew 20:1-16).   But the Father says to the older son:  “You are with me always and all I have is yours” (Luke 15:31).  And the landowner says:  “Why should you be envious because I am generous?” (Matthew 20:15).

When we truly enjoy God’s unlimited generosity, we will be grateful for what our brothers and sisters receive.  Jealousy will simply have no place in our hearts. ”

By:  Henri Nouwen

My Thoughts  to Ponder About this Matter 

• How can I/you be the reconciling love amidst the jealousy?
• Am I/you doing my/your inner work to nurture and heal the hurts within our own hearts caused from the alienation?
• Am I/you humble enough to look beyond and love even when we are being persecuted?
• How can I/you help others experience God’s unlimited generosity to inspire them to be grateful for what my/your brothers and sisters in Christ receive?

Let me hear from you in the comments or click the “like” button if this post speaks to you……

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Feel Free to “cut and paste” any of these texts for Prayer or Worship Aids and simply add this reference:

“Taken from the The Hopeless Romantic: Falling in Love with God site of Patti Clement. www.patticlement.wordpress.com Used with Permission.”

Abraham as a “Christ-type”-What is it About Abraham that Points Others to Jesus Christ?

 How Do We Respond to God’s Promises?

While I was in Dallas recently, a dear friend took me to the Museum of Biblical Art.  Oh, what a gift that was!   For those of you who have not had a chance to experience this museum, the pilgrimage piece in the museum is a magnificent mural of the Resurrection of Jesus by artist, Ron DiCianni.

When the artist was asked to replace their previous pilgrimage piece that had been destroyed in a fire, he prayed and was given two demands:  the work had to be about the Resurrection of Jesus and it had to be sized at 12 feet high by 40 feet wide.  It is definitely a piece to experience!  In his recent book about the painting, he states, “Any painting can make you look, I hope mine can make you see….”  Well thank you Mr. DiCianni for helping me to see how Abraham and the others you depicted in Jesus’ cloud of witnesses based on Hebrews 12: 1 all definitely point me to Jesus Christ.

As I placed myself in the various scenes from Genesis  inspired by the artwork and the liturgical calendar during the last week or so, I came to a deeper understanding of many things about myself including my deep need for Jesus Christ, my Savior.

I think the first thing that really struck me was the scene from Genesis 17: 17 where Abraham fell facedown to the ground and laughed at God when God made the promise to make him fruitful.

I was reminded of my own tendency to doubt the power of God.  In this story, we have Abraham and Sarah close to one hundred years old being promised they will bear a son.  Sacred Scripture reveals their first reactions as one of laughter.  We all know the story, Abraham and Sarah did have a newborn son, Isaac.  For me,  my first reaction is usually fear of the unknown and frustration with the lack of clarity about how something I deeply desire might be possible.  I found much consolation in coming to a deeper realization of how God follows through with His promises no matter what the odds look like.   I particularly resonated with the rhetorical question posed to Abraham in Genesis 18: 14, “Is anything too hard for the Lord?”

Another scene that I resonated with is in Genesis 22: 1-19 where Abraham is tested by God.

Mr. DiCianni posits that Abraham like no one aside from God Himself has ever been asked to do what God Asked of Abraham—-to kill his only son.  Wow!  I really resisted entering that scene with Abraham when he was asked to surrender his only son as a sacrificial offering on one of the mountains.  I imagined the deep love Abraham must have experienced from God to be able to trust God so totally and was able to come to a deeper experience of how much God loves me too.   What an incredible witness of faith for Abraham to obey God’s request and journey with Isaac and two servants to the place of sacrifice!   What an amazing act of faith to build the altar, tie his son up, put him on top of the altar, and then to raise his hand with the knife to slaughter his son!

I was really challenged by this scene.  I spent a long time with God the Father in prayer about my own lack of trust when the going gets tough in my life.   I had to confront my own Isaacs( those things that I am tempted to put before God).  This was very revealing to me because I realized that I still have many attachments that I am holding onto.  I came up with lots of “buts, ifs, and what ifs”.    I found myself bargaining with God again.  Thanks to this artist and sacred scripture I was able to go a little deeper about my own lack of faith and trust in the Lord and what holds me back.

I found great consolation in gazing at the Abraham character depicted below in Mr. DiCianni’s mural and pondering those sacred words from Genesis 22:11-12, “Abraham, Abraham!”  ” Yes, Lord,” he answered.  “Do not lay your hand on the boy,” said the messenger.  ” Do not do the least thing to him.  I know now how devoted you are to God, since you did not withhold from me your own beloved son.”

I imagined the great relief Abraham must have felt when he was spared the agony of sacrificing Isaac.   Although it took me awhile to see through God’s eyes, I was reminded of the many times God has provided for me in ways that I could never have imagined when I did trust him totally and kept my eyes on Him.  With the help of the artist and scripture, I was able to recognize that I am called to be a woman of great faith just as Abraham was a man of great faith.  I am called to trust just as much as he did when he proclaimed,  “We will worship and then we will come back to you”  to his servants on the mountain which could only be pointing to his great faith in God that God could and would raise his son from the dead even if God allowed him to be sacrificed.

Questions to Ponder

• What is your first reaction to the promises of God?
• How do you respond when you face a life situation that seems beyond what you can wrap your mind around?
• What are the “Isaacs“(those things you treasure dearly but might need to surrender) in your life?
• Do you trust God wholeheartedly?
• Do you see the correlation to Jesus Christ in the Abraham and Isaac story?

Abiding in the Word

I invite you to sit with Abraham and God the Father in any of the Genesis passages and have a heart to heart with them.   Ask them to point you to Jesus …… When you are ready…..thank them for spending this time with you and bid them farewell…..

Let’s help one another by sharing in the comments how this reflection has helped you …….

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Feel Free to “cut and paste” any of these texts for Prayer or Worship Aids and simply add this reference:

“Taken from the The Hopeless Romantic: Falling in Love with God site of Patti Clement. www.patticlement.wordpress.com Used with Permission.”