Sister Joan Noreen had a stroke while praying before the Eucharist...a fitting finale! We attended her funeral Saturday in Birdsboro Pa. It was a warm, lively affair: filled with her large Italian-Irish family and members of Our Lady's Missionaries of the Eucharist, the lay Catholic community she founded. Formerly a religious sister, she left her order to live as a consecrated virgin and give herself over to her charism and community. What she offered was nothing innovative, but a simple synthesis of classic Catholic life as centered in the Eucharist, devotion to Mary, simplicity of life and prayer. For almost a decade, Sister Joan has been our spiritual mentor. (Who will succeed her?) We especially appreciated the practice we learned from her of praying the Liturgy of the Hours as a couple. Recently, during this dreary winter (humid, cloudy, gloomy), not to mention the Covid blues, the ongoing catastrophes of American politics and the Catholic Church under Pope Francis, I find myself bouyed daily, with sober joy, as we pray the psalms and hear the readings with the Church in her ever-refreshing liturgical rythyms. She was a holy woman with a precious gift of distilling the spiritual teachings of the Church (eg. St. Elizabeth of the Trinity) for us. She had very good taste in bringing in male teachers (Fr. Francis Martin, Father Pio) for retreats to balance her own pronouncedly feminine style. She was So inspiring! She was a stong-willed woman. I enjoyed locking horns with her from time to time. She taught always with authority...like the apostles, like Kiko in the Neocatechumenl Way or Ralph Martin in the charismatic renewal. What she said was not to be discussed or disputed, but accepted docilely. But my argumentative nature would break the spell of docility. Early in the pontificate of Francis she insisted sternly on unquestioning reverence; I dissented, advocating loyal, respectful opposition. She gave me a stern penance: to daily read one of his homilies. Complying docilely, I found him to be a creative, gifted homilist; something of a mystic. But I could never adjust to his theological incoherence. I never got a chance to see if her views changed. I questioned why she had us fasting on Thursday when Catholics traditionally fast on Friday and Wednesday; I was skeptical about the 10-minute period after reception of Communion when she insisted Christ remained present sacramentally in the yet undigested host; I did not agree that the Church teaches clearly and always that we are to pray TO the souls in purgatory.
Her brother spoke with striking elegance of her family background: modest ethnics, rich in beauty, taste, faith and love. He stressed: everything she did was done with intensity, attention, diligence and as a welcoming of God's presence. He described the granola she hand-made for him one Christmas: the toasted almonds, crisp cocunut, dry fruit, choise raisins...I could taste it in my mouth as I almost squealed with delight in the glory of all God's creation! I will never again be so cavalier about granola in all its splendour!
"Prepare a place for Love to dwell" was the phrase he spoke that I cannot forget. This was her life: absolutely her prayer life but also her meticulous, detailed work and all her relationships. She "prepared a place for Love to dwell." This short phrase has been resonating in my mind ever since.
It is for us to prepare this place, that it may welcome Love...Love as Person, from above. The "place" must be, of course...serene, beautiful, simple, welcoming, quiet, reverent. The "place" is first of all our own soul, heart, intellect. But it is also everything concrete that we do: our work, relationships, physical place, conversations, reading, demeanor and manner.
And so, when we are so prepared, we welcome this Guest: Love. The very person of Love: Jesus and his Holy Spirit. It is not that we ourselves activate our own powers of love, but that we receive this presence from on high; we allow it to flow in and through us; and touch others.
Sister Joan herself zealously, digilently prepared always a place for Jesus. She has now gone to the "place" prepared for her by Jesus. May we ourselves likewise prepare...in our hearts, decisions, actions, relationships, work, family...a place where Love can dwell!
No comments:
Post a Comment