Edith Stein Novena Day 7

Day 7 ­ Friday, August 7th, 1942
Departure from Westerbork to Auschwitz

The transport had been due to leave on Thursday, August 6th, but the departure was postponed for one reason or another, On Thursday afternoon, a woman arrived at the camp carrying civilian clothes for the Sisters. It was supposed, therefore, that they would be obliged to change on their arrival at the frontier, though it does not appear that a change of habit actually took place.

During Thursday afternoon, the Jewish Council drew up lists of those persons due to be transported on the next convoy for Auschwitz, the lists being read out to them Thursday night, so that the people concerned could make what preparation they thought necessary. The Gestapo had given the Council stern instructions to make no exemptions from their particular transport. As a matter of fact, the Bromberg family and Sister Judith were left behind on some technical ground. The family was fortunate enough to survive the persecution; but Sister Judith was to die at Auschwitz later, in 1944 .

On Friday morning, August 7th, at half-past three, a long row of prisoners, men, women and children, lined the road running through the camp. It included our Saint Edith, Rosa, and a thousand other Hebrew Catholics. The entire barracks had been cleared. S.S. men now took over from the Dutch gendarmes and gruffly ordered the line to start moving. They crowded them into goods-trains, filled to suffocation. Saint Edith and the other Sisters, still dressed in their habits, were in the middle section of the train. The other prisoners were in prison-uniform, though the fact is disputed. It is touching to learn that the train passed through Breslau, only 50 to 60 kilometers from Auschwitz, on its way to the Polish frontier. Breslau, was our Saint’s birthplace, though the wagons were so well sealed that she might well have been unconscious of the fact. At Scifferstadt, however, a door might have been opened for a few moments, during which time, our Edith managed to recognize an ex-pupil standing on the platform and to convey to her greetings for her Sisters. "Tell them" she said "I am on my way to the East." Perhaps she was unaware that she was on her way to Auschwitz.

Many died en route, though permission was not granted to remove the corpses. The thirst, hunger and suffering, both mental and physical, of the passengers in those "death-trains" can be imagined.

Gospel Reading

"And taking the Twelve, he said to them, ‘Behold we are going up to Jerusalem, and everything that is written of the Son of Man by the prophets will be accomplished. For he will be delivered to the Gentiles and will be mocked and shamefully treated and spat upon; they will scourge him and kill him and on the third day he will rise.’ But they understood nothing of these things; this saying was hid from them and they did not grasp what was said." Luke 18:31-34

Our Father, Hail Mary, Glory be
(Any suitable prayer may be said here)
Saint Edith, Pray For Us!

Source: Association of Hebrew Catholics

Edith Stein Novena Day 6

Day 6 ­ Wednesday, August 5th to August 6th, 1942
At the Westerbork assembly camp

The camp consisted of thousands and thousands of huts surrounded by a high barbed-wire fence, with many watchtowers manned by gendarmes with machine-guns and searchlights, to thwart any attempt at escape. In it were assembled at the time one thousand two hundred Hebrew Catholics, amongst whom were a dozen or so religious. These were still dressed in their religious habits, on which was sewn a yellow star-shaped patch, sign of their infamy in the eyes of the Nazis. Saint Edith encountered acquaintances and even members of her family in the camp.

The prisoners were looked after by a Jewish Council which showed particular kindness to the Hebrew Catholics, of which assistance the latter were quickly deprived when the Camp Commandant ordered them to be isolated from the others.

The morning began with a quick medical examination, after which a woman orderly led the religious to their barracks, a dirty hut full of mud. The Sisters washed at a little basin. They recited their morning prayers, followed by meditation, while their guards marched up and down outside their enclosure. The two Carmelites recited the full Office, while the others recited the Little Office of Our Lady, as they were accustomed to do.

At 7 a.m. there was a break, during which they were allowed to perambulate inside their enclosure for a while. After breakfast, they could obtain coffee in the kitchen. They were then instructed to clean their quarters.

At midday, the prisoners were stripped of their valuables, gold, silver, money, down to the smallest change, and were led to a huge wooden building to have their particulars registered. For the next four hours they filed through the building from table to table filling in forms about their personal effects and circumstances. Incidentally, there was in the same building a kitchen, used on occasion for concerts. After the registration was completed, each was photographed seated on a stool holding a slate in one hand on which his or her prison-number had been chalked. The sentiment of being in prison became overpowering at that moment.

Meals consisted of potatoes and carrots, invariably. The Sisters were allowed to distribute their ration from a tureen brought into their barracks; the others had to line up at the kitchen.

The men were then finally separated from the women. Sister Judith Mendez da Costa, a Dominican, whose family, of Portuguese origin, had settled in Holland centuries before, was calm enough to remark, in a letter she wrote to her Superior from the camp, that the weather was beautiful.

August 5th - August 7th
In the Westerbork Assembly Camp

We are fortunate to have several testimonies to the bearing of Saint Edith during her sojourn at the Westerbork camp.

Before leaving Westerbork, Saint Edith managed to send off two notes to her Prioress, written with a pencil on two sheets of paper torn out of a writing pad. In the first note, there is a sentence which reflects her inner attitude during the ordeal:

"One can only learn a Scientia Crucis, if one feels the Cross in one’s own person. I was convinced of this from the first and have said with all my heart: Ave Crux, spes unica" (Hail, O Cross, our only hope).

Mrs. Bromberg, who together with her family, all Hebrew Catholics, accompanied Edith from Amersfoort to Westerbork, where she was in close contact with the Carmelite nun. As we noted, the family survived the war and Mrs. Bromberg gave the following testimony, which was written down by her son, Fr. Ignatius Bromberg, O.P.:

"The great difference between Edith Stein and the other Sisters lay in her silence. My personal impression is that she was deeply sorrowful, but without anxiety. I cannot express myself better than by saying that she gave the impression of bearing such an enormous load of sorrow that even when she did smile, it only made her look more sorrowful. She hardly ever spoke, but she often looked at her sister, Rosa, with indescribable sorrow. She was thinking of the suffering she foresaw awaited others, not of her own. Her whole appearance, as I picture her in my memory sitting in that hut, suggested only one thought to me, a Pietà without Christ, a Rachel weeping for her children."

The next equally striking testimony comes from a Jewish businessman from Cologne, Julius Markan, who had been put in charge of the prisoners at Westerbork Camp and, along with his wife, was spared deportation. He wrote:

"Amongst the prisoners who were brought in on the 5th of August, Sister Benedicta stood out on account of her calmness and composure. The distress in the barracks and the stir caused by the new arrivals were indescribable. Sister Benedicta was just like an angel, going around amongst the women, comforting them, helping them and calming them. Many of the mothers were near to distraction; they had not bothered about their children the whole day long, but just sat brooding in dumb despair. Sister Benedicta took care of the little children, washed them and combed them, attending to their feeding and other needs. During the whole of her stay there, she washed and cleaned for people, following one act of charity with another, until everyone wondered at her goodness."

Our Saint spent as much time as she could in prayer, never complaining, neither about the food nor about the behavior of the soldiers. Everyone, Rosa the first, benefited from her uplifting example.

Dr. Wielek, employed in office work at the Westerbork camp when the transport carrying Edith and her sister Rosa arrived there, was questioned in the course of the diocesan canonical process. He rendered the following testimony to her bearing during her stay in the camp:

"She went about, talking, praying, like a saint. In one conversation she said to me: ‘The world is made up of opposites, but in the end nothing remains of these contrasts. What only remains is great love. How is it possible for it to be otherwise?’ She spoke with such security and humility as to conquer all her listeners. A conversation with her was a voyage to another world. In those moments, Westerbork ceased to exist. By now there was no doubt that she and the other baptized (Jews) would be deported elsewhere in a few hours time. I asked her whom she wanted me to inform about what was happening and whether I could do anything to help her. She replied asking why should an exception be made for her or her group? It was only just that the fact of being baptized should not bring her any privilege. Her life would be ruined if she could not participate in the fate of the others."

Gospel Readings

"So also the chief priests, with the scribes and the elders mocked him saying, ‘He saved others, he cannot save himself. He is the King of Israel; let him come down now from the cross and we will believe in him. He trusts in God, let God deliver him now, if he desires him.’" Matthew 27:41-42

"And when the sixth hour had come, there was darkness over the whole land until the ninth hour." Mark 15:33

"Pilate then called together the chief priests and the rulers and the people and said to them, ‘You brought me this man as one who was perverting the people; and after examining him I did not find this man guilty of any of your charges against him, neither did Herod for he sent him back to us. Behold, nothing deserving death has been done by him.’" Luke 23:13-15

Our Father, Hail Mary, Glory be
(Any suitable prayer may be said here)
Saint Edith, Pray For Us!

Source: Association of Hebrew Catholics

A Reminder to Myself: God is Powerful

We all need little reminders about who God is. I got mine a couple of days ago. I have been praying for an understanding as to why God allowed me to waste my emotions and my time on a person who never really loved me and never wanted to marry me. On the very day that I was engaged last year, August 3, the Holy Spirit moved the heart of one of Peter's friends to write me an email. She grew up with Peter since Kindergarten and was supposed to be a bridesmaid in our wedding, or "the phantom wedding" as I now, sort of with a dark smile, refer to it.

Anyway, she wrote me telling me that she wants to become a Catholic and wanted some advice on what to read, what to do, etc. That was a very powerful moment for me, because she wrote to me even though she knows plenty of Catholics in very Catholic South Louisiana. So this is what I told God: "Dear God, if all You give me from this awful experience with Peter was a chance to give his friend one word that will bring her closer to your Church, then I guess I'll have to admit (but can I do so with a huff and maybe an eye roll...) that it was all worth it. Ok, no huff or eye roll. Drawing people to you is what we are all here to do. I accept. But please let the next guy be a good one, and no more devastating heart breaks would really be ideal! But that thanks for answering my prayers! Edith."

Yes, God is powerful. And my dear namesake St. Edith Stein says that "Whoever lives in the strong faith that nothing happens without the knowledge and will of God is not easily disconcerted by astonishing occurrences or upset by the hardest of blows." I guess despite myself or my feelings, God revealed to me what that means. I am sure it was through her prayers. All is in the hands of He who IS, and I just continually need to learn what that means. But it is a long journey indeed! Pray for me and pray for my friend - and also, pray for Peter too.

Finding Meaning in the Mundane

My summer jobs are coming to an end this week as I prepare to take some time to get my curriculum together before the new school year begins. One job was was fun and lighthearted, but the other has been a drag! Don't get me wrong; I'm so very grateful for the supplement to my income during the summer months. I'm keenly aware of that blessing. But...it's clerical work...and it's boring.

However, I was reading a little bit yesterday from Scripture and came across this gentle reminder from Our Lord:

Whatever you do, do from the heart, as for the Lord and not for others, knowing that you will receive from the Lord the due payment of the inheritance; be slaves of the Lord Christ. Colossians 3:23-24

The single life affords many instances to question the meaning of work -- is this a holding pattern? Should I be doing something else? What do my decisions and work say about my life? But as for any vocation, no matter what we do, whether it's changing diapers, working on Wall Street, or spending our day in prayer and community chores with the Lord as a religious sister, we do it all out of love for Jesus Christ. And that can make even the most mundane data entry a gift back to God.

Carry on in your work, no matter what it is!

Edith Stein Novena Day 5

Day 5 ­ Tuesday, August 4th to August 5th, 1942
From Amersfoort to Westerbork

On Tuesday evening, August 4th, the prisoners were loaded on to a railway-coach and taken to the railway-station at Amersfoort, under strict orders not to raise the curtains of their compartments. From the cries of the station-master they gathered that their train was on its way to Westerbork. Passing Apeldoorn, Zwolle, Meppel Hogeven, the train reached Hooghalen, in North Holland, so many fresh names on their way of the cross.

The Westerbork assembly camp may be five kilometers from the Hooghalen railway-station. The train carrying our prisoners came to a stop in an open stretch of country, where they descended from the coaches; it must have been about three o’clock in the morning. A detachment of twenty men wearing armbands was waiting to help them transfer their luggage to two horse-drawn wagons, on to which the sick, the old and the religious also mounted. The others were herded in the dark across fields, through woods and hedges for an hour till they reached the camp. By now, it was the morning of August 5th, Wednesday.

Gospel Reading

"Pilate’s soldiers then took Jesus into the Governor’s headquarters, where they collected the whole company round him. First they stripped him and dressed him in a scarlet mantle; and plaiting a crown of thorns they placed it on his head, with a cane in his right hand. Falling on their knees before him they jeered at him: ‘Hail, King of the Jews!’ They spat on him and used the cane to beat him about the head. Finally, when the mockery was over, they took off the mantle and dressed him in his own clothes." Matthew 27: 27-31

Our Father, Hail Mary, Glory be
(Any suitable prayer may be said here)
Saint Edith, Pray For Us!

Source: Association of Hebrew Catholics

Edith Stein Novena Day 4

Day 4 ­ Monday, August 3rd to August 4th, 1942
At the Amersfoort transit-camp

When the vans reached the camp, they emptied their passengers who were taken over by the S.S. guards. These began to drive them, cursing and swearing, beating them on their backs with their truncheons, into a hut where they were to pass the night without having had a meal.

The hut was divided into two sections, one for men, one for women. It was separated from the main lager by a barbed-wire fence. Altogether, the lager held at that moment, about three hundred men, women and children.

The beds were iron frames arranged in a double tier, without mattresses of any kind. Our prisoners threw themselves on the bare springs trying to snatch a few minutes sleep; but few slept that night, if only because the guards kept switching the lights off and on, from time to time, as a precaution against attempts to escape, which was next to impossible in any case. Their cold harsh voices filled the prisoners with anxiety about the future and, in these circumstances, it is anxiety which can turn a prison into a hell on earth.

The religious grouped themselves spontaneously into a little community which regarded Saint Edith as its Superior, so unquestionable was the ascendancy of her spirit. Arrangements were made to recite the Breviary, the Rosary and to meditate. A copy of the Imitation of Christ which had been smuggled into the camp provided matter for meditation. The Confiteor was sung daily, despite the catcalls of the guards.

The two Trappist priests were unable to celebrate Holy Mass and distribute Holy Communion at Amersfoort; but they heard confessions and did what they could to redress the morale of the internees, shaken by the sudden change in their fortunes. Their presence was a blessing, all the more so, since it was generally felt that the journey was a ‘journey to heaven’ as one Sister put it; for them their would be no return. On one occasion, the guards stood the two Trappist Fathers against a wall and pointed their guns at them, in the presence of the Sisters — all for a joke.

The prisoners were resigned to their fate; no one criticized the Dutch Bishops for the pastoral letter, the publication of which was the immediate cause of their distress, for no one knew whether there were not other causes at work.

Twice a day the prisoners were granted a respite; they were allowed to walk around inside their barbed-wire enclosure for ten to fifteen minutes under the watchful eyes of their German guards. The hygienic facilities in the camp can be left to the imagination. The guards forced them to stand for hours waiting for the roll-call to take place. One starving internee picked up a piece of dry bread that had been thrown away; for the ‘theft’, the entire camp was punished by being made to stand for hours on end in the barracks-square, until they began to drop down from sheer exhaustion. It was the signal for a series of kickings and beatings as the guards tried to force their prisoners onto their feet again.

Gospel Readings

"You will then be handed over for punishment and execution and men of all nations will hate you for your allegiance to me." Matthew 24:9

"Jesus was led off under arrest to the house of Caiaphas the High Priest, where the lawyers and elders were assembled ... The chief priests and the whole Council tried to find some allegation against Jesus on which a death-sentence could be based, but they failed to find one ... The High Priest tore his robes and exclaimed, ‘Blasphemy! Need we call further witnesses? You have heard the blasphemy. What is your opinion?’ ‘He is guilty,’ they answered; ‘he should die.’ Then they spat in his face and beat him with their fists." Matthew 26:57

"The men who were guarding Jesus mocked him. They beat him, they blindfolded him and they kept asking him, ‘Now, prophet, who hit you? Tell us that.’ And so they went on, heaping insults upon him." Luke 22: 63-65

"Herod and his troops treated him with contempt and ridicule." Luke 23:11

Our Father, Hail Mary, Glory be
(Any suitable prayer may be said here)
Saint Edith, Pray For Us!

Source: Association of Hebrew Catholics

Prayer Request: for those seeking jobs

St. Joseph at Work by Georges de la Tour

I hope our dear sister Edith, won't mind that we're posting this: Edith needs a job. And she's just applied for a really wonderful opportunity, that perfectly suits her abilities and wishes for the future. So, as she is leading us through this amazing Edith Stein novena (we're only on day three so you have time to catch up!), I ask that you keep her intentions in your prayers, as well.

In a similar vein, I came across this remarkable Rosary Meditation for those seeking jobs. The Anchoress' thoughtful meditation on the Sorrowful Mysteries remind us of both the agony and the peace of seeking God's will, and finally, accepting it. As she says:

"Prayer has power. When everything is falling apart, prayer holds. Any one of us can suddenly find ourselves out of work, and looking at the job opportunities with failing hope and a growing sense of powerlessness that can truly affect both ego and spirit. Once again, we find that the Mysteries of the Rosary help us to identify with Christ, and join our sufferings to His, that all may be One."

I hope they will be helpful to all of you as you are searching for God's will in your life, and especially in your work. Rest assured of our prayers for you--and please keep this special intention in your hearts as well!

St. Theresa Benedicta of the Cross, pray for us!
St. Joseph, patron of workers, pray for us!

Edith Stein Novena Day 3

Day 3 ­ Sunday, August 2nd to August 3rd, 1942
From Echt to Amersfoort

The police van drove our Saint Edith and her sister, Rosa, from the Carmel of Echt to the police headquarters in Roermond, first station on their way of the cross. Late the same day, they were transported to the Amersfoort transit camp.

That Sunday, August 2nd, the Nazis raffled about three hundred Hebrew Catholics throughout Holland, bringing them to Amersfoort, from the north and the south of the country. The transport from Roermond in the south was composed of two police vans, one packed with thirteen, the other with seventeen persons. The one in which our Edith travelled, was taking, apart from Rosa, six other female religious, all Hebrew Catholics. These included Sister Judith Mendez da Costa, a Dominican nun, and two Trappistines, sisters germain, from the remarkable family, Löb; of their three brothers, arrested with them, two were Trappists priests and one, a lay brother of the same Order. The wife and children of the writer Herman de Man travelled in the same transport.

The journey from Roermond to Amersfoort was usually a matter of three to four hours; but, on this occasion, the driver lost his way on account of the blackout and brought the prisoners to Amersfoort only at three o’clock the next morning, Monday August 3rd.

Gospel Reading

"And Jesus said to them: ‘The cup that I drink you will drink; and with the baptism with which I am baptized, you will be baptized.’" Mark 10:39

Our Father, Hail Mary, Glory be
(Any suitable prayer may be said here)
Saint Edith, Pray For Us!

Source: Association of Hebrew Catholics

Dating - Yikes!

Julian's past week of romance:

1. Dealing with with incredibly real, strong feelings for someone though timing is possibly way off. Discernment and prayer is daily in this regard. Any prayers are appreciated!

2. My Mormon landlord is trying to set me up with his very Mormon son.

3. A male acquaintance said, "Hey, would you like to grab a drink on Monday?" last week. Naturally, I think this is just a chance to catch up. He shows up with a RED ROSE and proceeds to go on and on at the restaurant about the importance of conquering fears and how it was huge for him to conquer the fear of buying me a rose, but fears are not from God and on and on he went. He kept telling me how guarded I was, and I should open up to him and tell him what's on my heart, etc. Hello, I only sort of know you.

All of this is to say I need to take my heart to the Lord (and all of these laughs) and beg for laughter, too. :)

From all the toil and anxiety of heart...

For what profit comes to man from all the toil and anxiety of heart with which he has labored under the sun?
--Ecclesiastes, 2:21

I felt, yesterday morning as I listened to the readings and gospel, that these were especially powerful selections for me this week. Little did I know that, 10 minutes after I came into the office, a certain project would blow up in my face, and I would be in big trouble.

The hardest part about working for a non-profit is that there are no little mistakes, there are only big ones. Everything costs us money, and money is the one thing we can't waste. On top of which there is too much work, and too little help, and no possible way to get everything done. Being late on a project--no matter the reason--is negligence. The only real analogy I have is that most of the time I am a juggler, and all I care about is keeping the balls in the air--I don't care if I do it with grace, or flourish, or manage any fancy tricks: I just don't want to drop anything. But when I do drop something--I find that the thing is the pearl without price, and it doesn't just fall to the soft grass, it falls off a cliff, and shatters into a million pieces.

That, my friends, is a tremendous amount of pressure, and a helluva a guilt trip. I've never learned how to cope with it. Sometimes I find St. Maximilian a help: "Let us prepare to suffer and work, we will rest after death." But let's face it, I'm not so good at the suffering thing, and to work I need rest. Edith Stein's words, quoted here before, only help when I know I have accomplished something--and have to step away leaving it unfinished.

But what do you do when the expectations of those around you are too high for you not to fail? And, worse, when the inevitable happens and you do fail, you fail colossally? When your job is at stake? When the livelihood of your institution is at stake?

My situation is not so dire as all that, but it is true that I made a big mistake first thing this morning. And that, though I have been doing this for a long time I still feel like I am treading water, because I haven't learned to swim. And that one more wave will sink me.

Edith Stein Novena Day 2

Day 2 ­ Sunday, August 2nd, 1942
Carmel of Echt, Holland

What happened that day in the Carmel of Echt, is now known the world over; but the circumstances need to be recalled.

The Catholic Bishops of Holland had issued a joint protest against the deportation of Dutch Jews by the Nazis, which they instructed was to be read out at every Mass in all churches on Sunday, July 26th. Prior to that, the Bishops had procured an exemption from deportation for Catholics of Jewish origin, from the Nazi authorities, who accorded the privilege on condition that the persons concerned had belonged to a Christian organization before January 1941.

The pastoral letter of the Bishops created apprehension about the possibility of a Nazi reaction; it was soon forthcoming. On August 2nd, Christians of Jewish origin of every religious community in the country were arrested and carried off by the Gestapo. The General-Commissar Schmidt announced publicly, that he was taking reprisals for the pastoral letter of the 26th July. He specified, saying:

"We are compelled to regard the Catholic Jews as our worst enemies and consequently see to their deportation to the East with all possible speed."

The savage reaction of the Nazis to the pastoral letter of the Dutch Bishops is what motivated His Holiness, Pius XII, to withhold and destroy his own protest which he had already composed. If such be the reaction to the protest of the Dutch Bishops, he argued, what might not be the reaction to a protest of the Pope. On his orders, the monasteries and convents throughout Italy had taken in Jewish refugees fleeing the persecution of the Germans. The Vatican itself was fill to overflowing with Jews who had come to its doors seeking refuge.

In execution of the decision of General-Commissar Schmidt, two S.S. men turned up at the Carmel of Echt to carry off our Saint Edith and her sister, Rosa, in a police-van.

The deportation of our Martyr and her sister was an act, undertaken in hatred of the faith, as a reprisal for the condemnation of the Nazi persecution of the Jews by the Catholic Hierarchy of Holland; that our Martyr was of Jewish origin, would not in itself, have furnished a sufficient cause for her deportation and death.

Gospel Reading

"Turning to the Chief Priests, the officers of the temple police and the elders who had come to seize him, he said: ‘Do you take me for a bandit that you have come out with swords and cudgels to arrest me? Day after day, when I was in the temple with you, you kept your hands off me. But this is your moment - the hour when darkness reigns!’ Then they arrested him and led him away." Luke 22: 52-53

Our Father, Hail Mary, Glory Be
(Any suitable prayer may be said here)
Saint Edith, Pray For Us!

Source: Association of Hebrew Catholics

Edith Stein Novena Day 1

Day 1 ­ Saturday, August 1st, 1942
Carmel of Echt, Holland

It was the last day of freedom for Saint Edith and her sister, Rosa. By then Saint Edith had reached a clear perception of the eschatological nature of the crisis affecting the Jews of Germany and the role she was called upon to play in the drama, as a victim of expiation for her people and for mankind.

As far back as March 26th, 1939, Edith had addressed a petition to her Prioress on a used postcard (for motives of monastic poverty) asking permission to offer herself to Jesus in expiation, that the sway of Antichrist be broken and peace ensue.

"I am asking this, today, because it is already the twelfth hour. I know I am nothing, but Jesus wills it and He will call many more to the same sacrifice in these days."

The manuscript of her book, Science of the Cross, lay on her table; it would never be finished, because the next day, the Gestapo would come to drag her away from the convent. What we read therein is proof of the clarity and courage with which she grasped the call to expiation, key to her earthly destiny.

Around her, the atmosphere was growing heavy with fear and foreboding. A few days earlier (July 28th), her brother, Paul, his wife Eva and their daughter, were sent off to the Theresienstadt Camp. Hede Spiegel, her god-daughter, depressed and distraught, came to the grille of the convent, to pour out her anxieties for the future, anxieties which were shared by Saint Edith’s fellow-Nuns in the Carmel of Echt, where Edith had been sent by her superiors to take refuge from the persecution of the Jews raging in Germany. Edith, in contrast, maintained a rock-like composure and faith in God, which impressed all those in contact with her. The Church has since defined her virtue as heroic.

Gospel Reading

"They were on the road, going up to Jerusalem, Jesus leading the way; the disciples were filled with foreboding, while those following behind were afraid. He took the Twelve aside and began to tell them what was to happen to him. ‘We are now going to Jerusalem,’ he said, ‘and the Son of Man will be given up to the Chief Priests and the doctors of the Law. They will condemn him to death and hand him over to the foreign power. He will be mocked and spat upon, flogged and killed.’" Mark 10: 32-34

Our Father, Hail Mary, Glory Be
(Any suitable prayer may be said here)
Saint Edith, Pray for Us!

Photo: Edith Stein as a Child

Source: Association of Hebrew Catholics

Join Us for the Edith Stein Novena

Dear Readers,

August 9 is the feast of Edith Stein, which means her novena starts today! I'll be posting up her novena prayers, and look out this week for a little biography post on her too! Happy August!

The Trouble with Things

I'm very lucky to have a sizable closet. There is enough space to walk in it and store everything from old notebooks from graduate school to my down blanket for winter to shoes, bags, and clothes in an organized way. However, as I have been walking by my closet recently, and in my room in general, I've been repeatedly struck by the feeling that I have too many things.

Certainly this is all relative. Within a mile radius of my apartment, there are half-million dollar houses as well as government housing. I'm sure to one side of town I have very little, and to another I have a lot. But for me, in my own discernment, I feel I have too much. I have been asking myself recently, "What can you live without?" The answers to that question as I look around my apartment are more numerous than I'd like to admit. With back-to-school ads and flyers taunting me in my mailbox, I want to have my head on straight.

Three years ago I went on a mission trip to a rural village in Guatemala where there was no clean water, no plumbing, and only enough electricity for about two hours a day in the village. I stood firm in the fact that I wanted to live simply in America, and for awhile after I did. But then I took a teaching job at a prestigious school where, though people do not admit it, what you wear and how you look is assessed on a daily basis. I live in a city where women are not only put together, but donning remarkably expensive garb and spending upwards of $100-150 on haircuts (forget color or highlights). Now, I live within my budget, and for good reason, cannot and do not spend outside of my means. But the slippery slope of convincing myself that something I want is really something that I need is a treacherous road I regularly walk down here.

So, I've been wondering. What is it that I can live without? Just because I like a song on the radio doesn't mean I need to purchase it. Just because a book is recommended to me doesn't mean I can't walk one block to the library and check it out. Just because those shoes are so darn cute doesn't mean I need to buy them (although I did...yikes). But I've also been thinking, what is it that I do need? I do need to look professional (and really, I would argue stylish) in my job. I do like to look put together and ladylike equally when I'm going out with friends or going to Mass. But what are "essentials" and what are not? How does cooking, food shopping, and eating out factor into living more simply? How do you discern the difference?

Jesus, teach us that we depend on you.

Jane Austen Fight Club

Feast of St. Martha

Yea, Lord, I have believed that thou art Christ the Son of the living God, who art come into this world.

We Magdalene sisters love our patronesses, and while Mary Magdalene gets most of our attention, today we honor the feast of her sister (and ours), St. Martha. Martha is considered the sister of Mary and Lazarus as depicted in the Gospels. Perhaps we are most familiar with her from Luke 10 when she (perhaps with a little exasperation in her tone?) asks Our Lord to admonish her sister Mary for leaving all the serving to herself. In the end, he chastises her!

From this description, we know her as the exemplar saint of the active life, as opposed to her sister Mary, the contemplative, "the better part." But I've always really identified with Martha, which I know I've mentioned before on this blog. She is the patron saint of housewives, servants of all kinds, cooks, and (Get This!) SINGLE LAYWOMEN. She is indeed our patroness!! But I identify with her more because of her willingness to serve the Lord, to wait upon His physical need for food and comfort. And by this means, she knew Him for who He was, as she proclaims in the Gospel of John (chapter 11) "Yea, Lord, I have believed that thou art Christ the Son of the living God, who art come into this world." She said this just before Our Lord raised her brother, Lazarus from the dead. But she did not utter these words so that Christ would do this; she had faith in the words spoken by Christ to her and in the Word, Christ Himself. She knew that no matter what happens in life, even the death of a loved one, at the end of every day, Christ is.

I think we modern ladies have so much to learn from her. She is, after all, through the wisdom of Holy Mother Church, given to us single laywoman as a particular patroness. But she teaches us to persevere in faith, to trust the Lord, and to serve Him in our daily lives. I know that many of us sit wondering when we'll meet that special man God has ordained for us (if our vocation is marriage) or wait in discernment to see if God is calling us to Himself as a Bride, or perhaps we just wonder what might be next in the chapter of our lives. St. Martha teaches us to have faith, to trust in the Lord and to live our lives joyfully as we listen for answers to all of our questions. And when we do this, He performs miracles for us beyond our own understanding. He will transform our lives to bring about more graces than we can imagine, if only we will allow Him to. So let us ask St. Martha for faith like hers as we await Him.

And dear readers, Happy Feast today.

Image found here.

Yes, Humility IS a Virtue

"Pride goeth before destruction: and the spirit is lifted up before a fall." From Proverbs, chapter 16 verse 18. Pride is a funny little vice. It's one we all struggle with, even when we don't realize it. Just recently, I have realized that I was not realizing how prideful I have been! (Does that make sense...?) Or, to put it simply, I have been praying for an increase in humility, and God has answered by showing to me just how prideful I have been since I have been wallowing in myself pity.

So what can I do to remedy this situation? I think I need to remind myself to love all those who are around, starting with the closest ones. I try to remember just to smile, sincerely smile at people and say hello to them. A girl in high school once said in front of many student that my smile could make anyone's bad day melt. (I say this NOT to be prideful!! All beauty, well everything is a gift from God.) Whenever I have a down moment, I remember those words, because they encourage me to be more loving. I would like to start volunteering with the Missionaries of Charity again. I used to do so when I lived in the South, and I just fell in love with those sisters. I also had the privilege of venerating Mother Teresa's relics a couple weeks ago when they came to a local parish that houses her sisters. While there, I of course didn't feel anything, but I did ask her to pray for me as I touched my rosary made of Job's Tears to the one made of the same material that she used to pray every day. I think her intercession has opened up an avenue of light, peace, and grace to reach me.

So for now, I'll ask her to help me overcome my weaknesses and help me continue to become more humble. In the meantime, I'll reflect on her advice to me and to all of us: "Give yourself fully to God. He will use you to accomplish great things on the condition that you believe much more in His love than in your own weakness." Bl. Mother Teresa

For the Girl With a Guy on Her Mind's iPod: Madeleine Peyroux

I don't know if you love jazz as much as we sisters do, but if you have a man on your mind, whether real, ideal, or nowhere near, cozy up and have a listen:

One of the Best Marriages on TV

Stop what you are doing now and go rent (or watch online) every season of Friday Night Lights that you can get your hands on. I have not watched such a tremendous show in a long time (okay, since Lost finished). I started watching the show this summer after my brother had been recommending it for a few years, and I'm so glad that I did start watching. I love football, and I appreciate (to a certain extent), what it's like to live and breathe the experience of the team as my older brother, who I idolized (and still do) played for four years at our competitive regional high school. The performances of nearly every cast member are convincing and emotionally-charged with subtlety in glances, pauses, and delivery that make you invest in their well-being and good. My heart is tugged by every episode.

Now, in full disclosure, the show chronicles very wounded men, women, and teenagers, who are not always able to live out the Christian morality they hear preached in their southern Texas churches on Sunday. However, I am prepared to stand behind the statement that the marriage of the characters Coach Eric Taylor and his wife Tami is one of the best marriages that I've ever seen portrayed on the small or the large screen. The show films all aspects of a marriage that is (at least) 15 or so years in....what solid, daily communication looks like, what issues are important and not so important, what it's like to put the other person's good ahead of your own in real situations and decision-making, how difficult but vital it is to keep the fires burning, what it looks like to walk with someone in joy and sorrow, what it's like to parent (and to parent well) a teenager, etc. I really can't stress how impressed I am with the writing, acting, and overall portrayal of two people still very much in love and who work with all of their might to stay that way. It's really the most beautiful witness I've seen in awhile, and one that I haven't seen written about in Christian circles.

If you watch it, let me know if you agree. Sometimes it's just nice to have and to celebrate little glimmers of light in the media that model in a realistic fashion the culture of life and the practical application of the theology of the body.

Back to Back Feasts: St. Bridget of Sweden

From my Magnificat today:

Again the same religious appeared on his rung as before and said: "O Judge, I ask you:"...

"Why did you not cause all your words to be heard in a single moment? Then it would not have been necessary for them to be preached through the intervals of time."...

"As to why I did not speak all my words in one hour, I answer you: Just as, materially, it goes against the body for it to take in one hour as much food as might content it for many years, so it is against the divine arrangment that my words, which are the food of the soul, would all have been spoken in one hour. But just as bodily food is taken in little by little, to be chewed and, when chewed, to be carried to the interior, so my words were not to be spoken in one hour, but rather through the intervals of time, in accord with the intelligence of those who were making progress, in order that the hungry might have something by which to be satisfied and that when satisfied, they might be excited to higher things."... -- St. Bridget

I find this comforting this morning, as several matters of the heart weigh on me, and questions about vocation, purposefulness, fulfillment, work, and the nature of God all swirl around my head. I was just discussing with my best friend last night how sitting in the mystery of our lives and in the mystery of God is so very much a part of the human experience, and one that is necessary, frustrating, enlightening, and delightful all at once. Having questions and knowing that all of the answers cannot be given to us in advance or at once and living in the paradox of knowing the Lord but not ever knowing Him fully is just so very much our reality. And there's not a damn thing to do about it. And according to St. Bridget's dialogue with the Lord, that's just as it should be, because it would not be fitting (or part of our good) for it to be any other way. I guess the unfolding of our lives and the often dim way of navigating through them is the way that the Lord can continue to stir up in us a greater desire for Him. Today I pray in thanskgiving for the thirst, and for the reminder from St. Bridget of Sweden for the appropriateness and gentleness of our caring heavenly Father.