Angela and Non Violence

The feast of the Holy Innocents brings  to mind the recent tragic killing of so many young children and  some adults in USA .In contrast, St Angela had a non violent approach to life. This is expressed in her deep respect for each person's uniqueness and value in the eyes of God and the powerful plea in her Last Counsel.

"Live in harmony, united together, all of one heart and one will."

Seen in the context of non-violence, the vows of poverty, chastity and obedience  express a desire to engage fully with what is life giving. Jesus came that we might have life and have it to the full. (John 10.10). Angela tells us:

"LIVE a NEW LIFE."

Happy Christmas

May the Christ Child

 enfold you in His

 LOVE

 fill your heart with His 

PEACE 

and your spirit with his

JOY

Crib at St Thomas More, Lancaster

HAPPY CHRISTMAS and MANY BLESSINGS FOR 2013

Song of Songs

The first reading at Mass this morning (Sg 2:8-14) is taken from the lovely Old Testament love songs known as the Song of Songs. These songs express something of the intimate, longing love God has for each one of us; they portray God as the bridegroom and the people of Israel as the bride. Angela was very at home with this metaphor. In the Prologue to her Rule she  describes herself and her companions as brides of the Son of God.

"We are called  to so glorious a life as to be spouses of the Son of God." 

However, this image is not only true of consecrated persons. Every one is called to intimacy with God. This is what the incarnation is all about. The baby in the cradle at Bethlehem cries out aloud how much God wants to be one with us. 

"My beloved lifts up his voice,he says to me,"Come then ,my love,my lovely one,come." (2.10)

Do read more!

Angela and Faith

Last week I was in Lancaster meeting with various groups, among them the Angelinas. The Angelinas are a number of young mothers who meet in our convent to learn more about the spirituality of St Angela and for mutual support and encouragement in their vocation as wives and mothers. One of the pages above tells you more about them.

As we are now in the Year of Faith I spoke about "Angela and Faith".A way of understanding the foundation of Angela's faith is to place yourself, as she invites us, "at the feet of Jesus Christ".It is there we learn how much we are loved by God and it is from this love relationship that our faith and hope and trust in God flows. So Angela is able to say:

"Be joyful and always full of love, and faith and hope in God."

A group of Angelinas

Chapter Prayer Intentions-Australia

On the 3rd of the month we pray for our sisters in Australia. The first Ursulines that went to Australia came from our community in Greenwich. To read more about their story see here

December Mantra

Our December prayer mantra' in preparation for our General Chapter' comes from the Gospel of St John, Chapter 10 verse 10:

"I have come to bring you life, life to the fullest."

Roman Union of the Order of St Ursula

On 28th November 1900, a group of Ursulines, meeting in Rome, established an international union of sisters  known as the Roman Union of the Order of St Ursula. 28 November - is the 112th Anniversary of the Roman Union, To see more click here.  This was in response to an invitation of Pope Leo XIII..At that time religious, who looked to St Angela as their foundress, lived mainly in autonomous convents.The Pope felt it would be to their mutual benefit to be linked together and it was, indeed, in keeping with Angela's dearest wish.In her Last Counsel she wrote:-

"Live in harmony, united together,all of one heart and one will."

Ursuline communities were free to join or not the Roman union.The first English house to join was Greenwich in 1905; it was attached to the Province of the West of France till the English Province was established in 1923. Next year we will be celebrating our 90th birthday! 

The head quarters of the Union is in Rome where our Mother General resides. The current General is Chinese, our first from the far east.Below is a picture of her.

Mother Cecilia

Foundation Day

Four hundred and seventy seven years ago today Angela Merici and twenty eight companions met for Mass in the church of St Afra in Brescia and then gave over their lives to Jesus by signing their names in a book. Thus was born the Company of St Ursula.

Today, daughters of St Angela are found in every continent of the world and number several thousands. From a small mustard seed, as Jesus tells us, can grow a vast tree.

We give thanks to God who has so blest Angela's YES to him.

Foundation of the Company of St Ursula
by an unknown artist

Notice the centrality of  the Holy Spirit. Angela  tells us in her Rule:

"above all...obey the counsels and inspirations which the Holy Spirit 

unceasingly sends into our hearts."

For information about the Company of St Ursula in Lancaster click  here

Election Of the Delegate

Today, the feast of the Presentation of Mary in the Temple, we ask her to pray with us as we prepare  to elect, tomorrow, the sister who will be the delegate from the English Province to the General Chapter.

The sister elected will be accompanied by by our Provincial, Sr Ann-Marie to Rome.. They go, not so much to represent us, as to contribute, on our behalf, to  the good of the whole international family of the Ursulines of the Roman Union. 

There will be sisters coming from every continent to the General Chapter. They will be happy to meet as Angela asked us to do, remembering her promise:

" I shall always be in your midst, helping your prayers."

Provincial Chapter

Tomorrow, 38 of us, Ursulines of the English Province, will be assembling for a week at the Emmaus Centre in West Wickham for our Provincial Chapter. This event takes place every six years and is a preparation for our General Chapter which is due to meet next year in Rome.

Our task will be to evaluate the past six years and to discern how God is calling us to be for the next six years. As Jesus walked with two disciples on that first Easter Sunday on their way to Emmaus,may He  walk with us. Please pray that we will hear his words burning in our hearts and be eager to rush out and share the Good News with others. Thank you.

Standing Steadfast

Today, the 16th of the month , as part of our preparation for our General Chapter,we pray specially for our sisters in Hungary and Roumania. These sisters have an inspiring history. They had to endure much pain and hardship under the communist regime yet they remained steadfast in their faith and commitment to Christ.

 Angela encourages us us to be courageous in difficult situations as Judith was when faced with the tyranny of Holofernes. I don't think, however, that we have to go round chopping off peoples' heads! 

Peace Maker

Today's news of the renewal of hostility between Israel and Palestine calls for much prayer for reconciliation.

We might turn to Angela for help. In her day she was known for her gift of peace -making. Antonio Romano, a contemporary, testified that Angela never lost an opportunity of making peace between people of all walks of life.He wrote: 

"She gave advice and consolation to each one to the best of her ability,so that her words seemed to have more of the divine about them than the human."

Freedom and Joy

In the Concluding Prayer for Vespers today we pray:

Defend us Lord, against every distress

so that unencumbered in body and soul,

we may devote ourselves to your service in

FREEDOM and JOY.

These qualities of freedom and joy are very characteristic of Angela's approach to life and underline much of what she writes. In the first chapter of her Rule on receiving  a candidate she says:

"she must enter joyfully and of her own will."

Once  a woman has joined the Company of St Ursula Angela expects this spirit of freedom to be maintained .She tells the leaders of the Company:

"be on your guard not to want to get anything done by force,

 because God has given free will to everyone,

 and wants to force no one,

but only proposes, invites and counsels."

3rd Legacy

And Angela expects this freedom  to find expression  in  a spirit of joy. She encourages us to 

"Rejoice together."

8th Legacy

Angela Pilgrim

It is three weeks since I journeyed south from the green hills of Lancashire to the Thames valley. Since the days of Angela, our foundress ,to be on the move runs in Ursuline blood . She was a keen pilgrim, internally and externally seeking God's will for her. Angela's travels took her far and near, including a perilous trip to the Holy Land, facing both pirates and storms at sea. My travels down the M6 were mild in comparison!

In paintings and statues Angela is often depicted  stepping out with her pilgrim staff. She was even buried with it! It  can  be seen  in her glass coffin in her sanctuary in Brescia.

Statue of St Angela in New Rochelle, USA

Lover and the Beloved

"God is the Lover and the Beloved. 

By responding to his love we share in his passion for humankind." 

These words of Andreas Andreopoulos occur in his book on the "Transfiguration of Christ". They echo sentiments dear to the heart of St Angela who calls Jesus:

"my Lover,or rather ours,the Lover of us all."

And in the prayer, given in her Rule, Angela shows her deep concern for the salvation of the world. She prays:

"Lord, in place of those poor creatures who do not know you, and do not care to be partakers  in your most sacred Passion,my hear breaks,and willingly ( if I could) I would shed my own blood to open the blind eyes of their minds."

November Mantra

Our November prayer mantra' in preparation for our General Chapter' comes from the writings of St Angela, it is:

"Have strong FAITH and HOPE"

Angela's faith and hope are grounded in her strong belief in God's loving providence for her and for others.In the Prologue to her Rule she writes:

Angela and Freedom

It has been said that:  "True freedom is found when we recognise and accept our need for unity and for separateness." (Sr Stanislaus Kennedy). In her Rule for the Company of St Ursula, Angela respected the uniqueness of each person and their need to freely make their life choice.  At the same time she provided them with the support of the other members of the Company. She urged the members of the Company to value unity. In her Last counsel she wrote:

"Live in harmony, united together, all of one heart and one will.".

Prayer to St Ursula

At a recent meeting of our English Province we were given a prayer  to St Ursula which had been composed by one of our sisters.I would like to share it with you.

Dear St Ursula

Unite us,

Renew us,

Shine on us.

Urge us away from comfort,

Lead us into the Deep

And to a fresh surrender to Jesus.

Courage to be True

"To know what you prefer,

 instead of humbly saying amen

 to what the world tells you

 you ought to prefer,

is to keep your soul alive."

Angela would certainly say amen to these words of Robert Louis Stevenson. She had the courage to go against the expectations of her day, that a woman should be married or enter a convent, by founding "The Company of St Ursula".This provided the space where a woman, who so wished, could be consecrated for life to Christ yet remain in her secular position and employment. Angela refers to the Old Testament character Judith, as an example of the courage needed to withstand contemporary opposition to this new way of life for women.

Feast of St Ursula

Memling: St Ursula and Companions

Last  Sunday, 21st October, was the feast of St Ursula and her Companions- a special day for Ursulines throughout  the world. St Angela chose Ursula as the patron of the Company she founded in 1535 in Brescia. Ursula was a suitable patron as she embodied the qualities of virginity consecrated to Christ and virginity lived and died for in companionship with others.Ursula was a popular saint in the Middle Ages and venerated as a patroness of youth. She is often depicted in art sheltering a group of young women under her cloak.  

On the move ...

Today I moved to our community in Wimbledon. 

Mansel Road

I will be living in the Jesuit parish of the Sacred Heart and will be continuing with vocations ministry.To see more about my new parish click here

Monthly reflections: Our Lady of Tenderness

Did you know that the website for the English province includes a monthly reflection?  Last month I posted a reflection on Our Lady of Tenderness, which I hope may be helpful to you.  As you contemplate on the picture below what thoughts or inspirations come to you?

Our Lady of Tenderness

For details of my reflection on this icon and other meditations written by the Ursuline community please click here.

Prayer of the Heart: October

Our "Prayer of the heart" for October is a line from Ps 42 "Deep is calling on deep". The whole Psalm is worth a read.It is entitled "Lament of a Levite in exile" but can be read as a personal spiritual journey with which one can identify in places. Have a read.

Angela supports us with her prayer but she expects us to do our part. One of the qualities that she urges us to foster is  unity. The "Ursuline Prayer" shows our desire to do so.It goes like this: 

Preparing for the Provincial Chapter

On Saturday, we held at our convent in Forestgate a day in preparation for our forthcoming Provincial Chapter. We looked at issues that we need to address in order to live our lives more authentically in the service of God's people. Angela promised:

 "I shall always be in your midst, helping your prayers."  

We did indeed experience the support of her prayer during the day.

Angela with the Company

French Ursuline Sister

Sr Elizabeth-Marie

Sr Elizabeth Marie, from our French Province, is presently in our North West Cluster spending some time in primary schools and improving her English and knowledge of English cooking! Next month she will go to our Generalate in Rome for a year of spiritual and professional renewal which we call "Tertianship".It is an opportunity to experience the international aspect of our Ursuline family.

Angela and Faith

The Year of Faith is a time when we can ask ourselves about the quality of our faith.Is faith just  about a list of things to believe or about a dynamic relationship? Angela's faith was deeply rooted in her relationship with Jesus: a relationship of love which expressed itself in trust in God's goodness. She encourages us to have a firm and lively faith.

Year of Faith

On Saturday, the feast of Mary's birthday, Lancaster Cathedral launched its special blog for the Year of Faith. To view this blog for the activities planned for this year click here.

Lancaster Cathedral  YOF blog

Angelinas' session on Spiritual Motherhood

On Thursday, 30th August, Sr Zela and Sr Maureen shared with us the significance of Baptism in the writings of St Angela and how this relates to us as mothers who bring our children for baptism. Sr Zela particularly highlighted that by bringing our children to baptism, we are taking on the role of spiritual motherhood and all this entails. We found guidance in living out this role in St Angela's writings, for example: 'pray God to enlighten you and direct you and teach you what you have to do for love of him in this task'. 

August meeting of Angelinas

Praying for each other - Thailand

In addition to our mantra we have a list of intentions for every month leading to the General Chapter. Last month we prayed for our province of Peru/Chile, during September we will pray for Thailand.  Click here for Province of Thailand website

Province of Thailand Website

Mantra for September

 

"Act, Move, Believe, Strive, Hope."

These words come from the Prologue of Angela's Counsels to the local leaders of the Company of St Ursula.They are our mantra for September as we prepare in prayer for our General Chapter . They encourage us to act as well as pray in the living of our Ursuline vocation of Active Contemplatives.

Prayer of the heart

We are encouraged to pray during the 13 months leading up to our General Chapter with a different text for each month. The mantra for August is

“Spirit, come and transform us.”

Holy Spirit, Stained glass window
St Peter's Cathedral, Lancaster

For information about using a mantra in Christian meditation click here At the bottom of the basic description on meditation is a link to an article entitled "Why do Christian Meditators call the prayer word a ‘mantra’" by Fr Lawrence Freeman OSB