Winter – Spring Deepening Roots in the Pacific Northwest
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BENEDICTINE SISTERS t. Placid Priory WWW.STPLACID.ORG THE SPRIORY SPIRITUALITY CENTER + THE CONFERENCE CENTER + THE PRIORY STORE Winter Spring Deepening Roots in the Pacific Northwest August 2010 Faith calls me to invite honest dia- this present age faith communities are Are We Listening? logue, trusting that the path through called to cultivate safe, respectful and by Laura Swan, OSB impasse and our new future will authentic encounter between people emerge, albeit in small pieces and in who perceive differences rather than Ours is a polarized society. The public many honest conversations. similarities. The late Joseph Cardinal Bernardin was standing on the pro- realm is violated with vitriolic charac- We at the Priory host many such con- ter assassinations and with plain rude phetic cutting edge when he chal- versations. Most of these conversations lenged us with his Common Ground and nasty behavior. This polarization are informal; some occur within our and ugliness in public discourse is Initiative. We need his vision as never spiritual formation opportunities. We before. tearing at the fiber of our collective seek to provide a safe place of listening cultures. We have been behaving as a and fostering dialogue. We recognize people bitterly angry and self- that the need is urgent for moderate righteous. Our anger is nurtured by fear speech and civil discourse which comes and distrust. Are we hearing intelligent from that inner sacred well of our own honest conversation around possible listening. This listening is a contempla- solutions to our woes? We yearn for tive practice. something better, something more hopeful, a path that honors our We are being called to embrace the humanity. We are in a time of signi- differences among us with respect and ficant change, a new season of healthy curiosity for what the other is reformation. Our diverse faith com- saying. To engage what the other is munities are being challenged to find saying reveals that we are listening. and walk a new path, one that is Dialogue requires that we move beyond authentically good news . stereotypes and labels that excuse us I have often pondered the radical and from hearing and knowing the other. comfort-disrupting early Christian We live in a liminal time. The what The greatest gift we can offer is to has been that no longer works is being creedthere is neither Greek nor Jew, authentically listen, especially when we slave nor free, male nor femalewhich shed but the yet to be has not been are stretched in that dialogue. made evident. This is impasse. We was a command and invitation to wait. We wait on the Holy One, always And where might this sacred conver- inclusion, respect and mutuality. Much present in our midst, to reveal the path sation lead us? The sensus fidelium , the of the chaos and disruption that I that faith tells us is before us. This sense of the faithful, is a long observe, especially within our faith waiting during liminal time demands tradition which acknowledges that the communities, may well be a calleven an inner strengthto wait in the Holy Spirit shares her wisdom among a a divine commandto take this early unknown and resist trying to fix what large and diverse peoplea consen- creed seriously. Are we listening? we do not yet understand. sus of people. Is our present call the May we choose prayerful attentiveness asceticism of strong patience? Of The inner strength demanded of us moment by moment...over and over listening to others when it disturbs our again throughout the day. May we during impasse calls us to cultivate a world view? rich silence and a strong yet quiet bring our whole self attentive to this spirit. From this silence we are called Faith community is not about being moment, with the strength of our comfortable, rather we exist to foster chosen inner peace (no matter how to listen to others, especially the other who seems so different from our- the spiritual journey into new terrain imperfect this may be), breathe a selves. Faith during impasse impels me and new depths. A holy risk-taking. In peaceful breath and sing a gentle to hear many sides and to discover the song of new life and hope. good intent of the other person. St. Placid Priory 360-438-1771 The Priory Spirituality Center 360-438-2595 The Priory Store 360-438-1771 The Priory Knitters & Spinners took on November 21 included music, their fiber art creations to the annual poetry, teachings on unity from the Schafer Meadows Fiber Festival perspective of various faith traditions, October 8-10. The 2010 Festival was and the debut of the Olympia Peace held at the Grays Harbor Fairgrounds at Choir. Elma. The Lacey Holiday Bazaar, November Prioress Sister Maureen O'Larey 26-27, found the Priory Knitters & Our end of summer picnic fell on attended the regional meeting of the Spinners staffing a holiday booth August 15 this year. We also blessed Leadership Conference of Women again, selling a variety of fiber crea- our cemetery that day following the Religious October 15-17, and the tions to benefit the Priory. Small Santa extensive improvements made by annual meeting of the Northwest ornaments were a big hit this year. Volunteers Jerry Haupt and Norm Association of Bishops and Religious Sister Maureen O'Larey represented Bomkamp . Superiors October 17-18. Both were our Sisters at the installation of our held at the Palisades Retreat Center in new Archbishop Peter Sartain at St. Federal Way. James Cathedral in Seattle on On October 23, Sisters Maureen December 1. O'Larey , Lucy Wynkoop and Therese On December 4, Pacific Winds played Gonneville were present for a Holiday Bazaar fund raising event for the installation of Father Pat held by POWER (Parents Organizing McDermott as Pastor of Sacred Heart for Welfare and Economic Rights) at Church in Lacey. The church and hall their new offices in downtown were packed with those who came to Olympia. Pacific Winds is a recorder rejoice with Father Pat. group in which Sister Monika Ellis Sisters attended a concert by the blue- plays alto recorder. grass group Deadwood Revival at An Advent Discernment Retreat , Urban Grace Baptist Church in Tacoma We hosted the meeting of the Serra sponsored by the Religious Sisters and November 5, a fundraiser for Father Club August 18. After lunch, the Priory Brothers of the Seattle Archdiocese, Bill Bichsel and others involved in acts DVD Ways of Being with St. Placid was held on December 11 at the Uni- of civil disobedience protesting nuclear Priory was shown to members. We versity of Washington Newman weapons. appreciate all Serra does to encourage Center. Sister Monika Ellis , a mem- religious vocations. On November 13, ber of the planning team, presented On September 1, we joyfully wel- Sister Laura and her stories of people throughout history comed Volunteer Megan Sinner of the fiction writing group, who answered a call from God, Benedictine Women's Volunteer Puget Sound Writers including Hildegard of Bingen, Arch- Corps . Megan, a new graduate of the Guild, hosted profes- bishop Raymond Hunthausen and College of St. Benedict in St. Joseph, sional editor Elizabeth Molly Hightower (who served the poor MN, has committed to being a live-in Lyon for a day of in- in Haiti and died January, 2010 in an volunteer at our monastery for nine tense training. There earthquake there). The day was months. were tired smiles all Elizabeth Lyon interspersed with times of silence, around at the end of sharing, prayer and reflection. Sisters Laura Swan , Monika Ellis and a stimulating day. Redempta Ndunguru , as well as Megan Sinner and Sherry Bupp , were Sisters Redempta participants in a prayer vigil on the Ndunguru and Capitol steps, September 9, concerning Maureen O'Larey the death penalty. attended the Mass of Our Associates retreat on September 12 Thanksgiving for was led by Sister Laura Swan , who Archbishop Alex facilitated reflections on who we are as Brunett , who is Benedictine persons. retiring, at St. James Cathedral in Seattle Sister Monika Ellis and other vocation on November 19. directors staffed a Religious Sisters The 27 th Annual and Brothers of the Seattle Arch- diocese table with vocation information Interfaith Thanks- at the Archdiocesan Schools' Teacher giving Celebration Excellence Day on September 17. 2 December 11 Advent Discernment Retreat St. Placid Priory 360-438-1771 The Priory Spirituality Center 360-438-2595 The Priory Store 360-438-1771 Sister Jarlath's niece Karla Graham and nephew Neil Rademacher were able to be with us, representing her family, during our celebration of her life December 17 and 18. All the Sis- ters were grateful for their presence. St. Placid Priory is happy to be hosting the first Viva! Discernment Sr. Jarlath Rademacher, OSB Retreat , July 9-10 , 2011 . Viva! is November 22, 1922 a vocation discernment retreat for Mary Joan Jan McKenzie women interested in religious life, December 10, 2010 sponsored by the Religious Sisters At our Epiphany party on January 2, we of the Seattle Archdiocese. Please tell Sister Jarlath (Martina) Rademacher, celebrated another year of companion- all the women you know about this born in Rosen, Minnesota, died at age ship with our employees, volunteers retreat; and ask them to tell others. 88 at Providence Mother Joseph Care and friends. We also celebrated Jan Center, Olympia on December 10, McKenzie's 90 th birthday which was 2010. Sister Jarlath made her Monastic coming up later that week. Jan, a mem- Profession on July 11, 1942. She taught ber of the Priory Knitters & Spinners, in Fairfax, Minnesota, then was sent to was serenaded by the whole group On January 15, Pacific Winds recorder Washington State where she completed Sister Monika, with input from many, ensemble opened for Cecilia, the head- her Bachelor of Arts and teacher had written a psalm for Jan's birthday.