feminine-genius

Life and liturgy

I've put a couple articles on other sites that I'd like to share with you. Concerning the domestic church and how we bring the liturgy home, I have this piece on Catholic Lane. And perhaps this Advent we can add a prayer intention to our list, one which concerns the lives of women around the world. This piece highlights two particularly grievous practices that affect thousands of women, and which impede their ability to live as loving icons of the bride, which is the heart of every woman's vocation.

Finally, I'd like you to consider this article on Patheos, which is an unfortunate response to an unfortunate action on the part of an Egyptian "feminist." (She protested the oppression of women in Egypt by stripping naked <*sigh*>) I've responded, trying to clarify the situation, but we must understand how difficult it will always be to convince Muslims of the beauty of Christianity as long as its so marginalised in the West. We should all be scandalised by the immodesty and vulgarity which are corrupting our culture, but responding in equally perverse ways is certainly unhelpful. There is so much to be done, but essential to the whole process will be a restoration of chastity and dignity among Christian women.

Courageous Sister Murdered

On November 15th, Sister Valsa John of the Sisters of Charity of Jesus and Mary was shot to death in an Indian coal mining town in the state of Jharkhand. The 53-year-old nun was buried from the cathedral in Dumka, where she was remembered for her fidelity to her mission, despite intense pressure from moneyed interests in the region:

Among the crowd that filled the cathedral, the brother, sister and two nephews of the nun, who for 20 years dedicated her life to the Santal tribal region. Bishop Julius Marandi of Dumka, told AsiaNews: "Her violent death was a terrible shock and a great loss to the Church. We seek justice, but while we mourn this loss, our mission for the poor, the weak and voiceless will continue, strengthened and renewed by the blood of Sister Valsa, who now intercedes for human rights, justice, dignity and hope of these people. "

Fr. Tom Kavala, SJ, who has worked for over 15 years with the nun, told AsiaNews: "Sister Valsa created a tribal organization to stop the expropriation of land sought by the powerful coal lobbies, including helping them to obtain compensation from companies. Six years ago, one of these lobbies e tried to buy out nine villages and Sister Valsa mobilized the local poor people. These coal barons lodged 33 complaints against her and her supporters, and many of them ended up in prison".

"Sister Valsa - said Mgr. Marandi - paid for her struggle for the poor and defenseless, against the interests of the powerful coal mafia with her life. The Church of Dumka and all Jharkhand pray that her martyrdom will renew the mission of the Church to be a witness of faith. "

Bless her for her courage and dedication to the people she loved. May she rest in peace and intercede for all who call upon her.

Women's conference in Maine

I'll be taking part in Portland's Diocesan Women's Conference on Saturday, December 3rd. (Aren't they bold, planning a big event in December? Evidently Maine is not for the fainthearted!) I just saw the brochure, which looks lovely, and all the details show that they've planned a marvelous day. Registration begins at 9am, and they wrap up with the 4pm Vigil Mass with Bishop Malone. Details here (where you'll see they're also audacious enough to put a beautiful hot-house flower on the brochure, just to tantalise the women!)

Jack the Ripper

I confess, I've never followed the story of Jack the Ripper closely, but like most, I knew that it involved a mystery killer and dead prostitutes. Even so, I never expected this:

A British newspaper features a new story that has the head of a UK pro-life group suggesting that the infamous Jack the Ripper may have been a prominent abortion practitioner in London.

“New evidence has emerged which may identify an abortionist as Jack the Ripper, the notorious serial killer of women in Victorian London,” says John Smeaton of SPUC. “A knife and samples of uterine tissue belonging to Sir John Williams, a famous surgeon who performed abortions, have been discovered by one of his relatives. Sir John was recorded to have had performed an abortion on one of the Ripper’s victims.”

Well, it's no surprise that those who traffic in prostitution and abortion will have other skewed ideas about the dignity of women and the value of human life. There may also be the twist of envy, which may have resulted from the fact that "Jack's" wife was barren. We'll see where this theory leads, but it all makes sense. I'm impressed that the man's descendant had no trouble being honest about these leads, as despicable as they are. One cannot take responsibility for one's ancestors, and knowing the dark side of the family tree should only intensify our prayers for the dead.

[There is an added wrinkle in that the doctor was Queen Victoria's surgeon. I have repeatedly expressed my antipathy for that woman, but must stress that this does not have a bearing on her. It's just an unfortunate coincidence. That said, I've discovered an excellent profile of her son, Edward VII, which seems to lay out her maternal deficiencies rather well. Not her fault, entirely, but toxic nonetheless.]

Lamps and Love

This weekend, Benedict offered a beautiful Angelus message concerning Sunday's Gospel:

The Pope referred to the reading from the Gospel of St. Matthew, "the famous parable of the ten bridesmaids invited to a wedding banquet, symbol of the kingdom of heaven, of eternal life", he said. "Of the ten, five entered the banquet because, when the bridegroom arrived, they had oil to light their lamps, while the other five could not enter because they had foolishly failed to bring oil with them. What does this 'oil' represent?" the Holy Father asked. "St. Augustine and other ancient writers saw it as a symbol of love: a love which we cannot buy but receive as a gift, which we keep in our hearts and practise in good works. True wisdom is to take advantage of mortal life to do works of mercy, because this will not be possible after death. When we reawaken for the final judgement, we will be assessed on the basis of the love we have shown during our earthly lives. This love is a gift of Christ, poured upon us by the Holy Spirit. Those who believe in God-Love carry an invincible hope, like a lamp with which to cross the night after death and to reach the great feast of life."

In conclusion, the Pope invited the faithful to learn from the Virgin Mary "to live and die in the hope that does not disappoint."

This message was also--providentially--the culmination of the retreat I offered over the weekend. If you would like me to visit and share this message with the women you know, feel free to contact me. It is also found in the book, The Authentic Catholic Woman. (Study guide available upon request.) As the world dims and cultures deteriorate, our lamps are more important than ever!

UPDATE: A friend has pointed me to this marvelous explanation of Jewish wedding rituals, that makes even more sense of the Gospel references to the Bridegroom. For instance, after the dowry had been paid, there was a waiting period:

During the betrothal year the boy would build a place for him and his bride to live--this was usually a room which was an addition to his father's house. Then after about a year he would come with his groomsmen at night in a torchlight process to the bride's house. She would be waiting there with her bridesmaids, not knowing when exactly he was to come. Then the cry would go up, "The bridegroom is coming!" and the bride and her maids would go out to meet him and process back to his house with her family and the whole village in order for the wedding to take place. After the wedding the marriage was consummated in the new home he had built for his bride and the wedding supper lasted for a whole week.

There's much more -- don't miss his wonderful details!