Chapter Talk
# 187,
written to the
Company of Jesus.
July 13, 2008
Niagra Falls, Ontario
Dear Company,
Greetings to all from the banks of the Thundering Waters of Niagra Falls.
When my wife, Cindy, informed me several months ago that she was flying to a Music for Young Children conference in Niagra Falls, I responded “That’s nice. Have a good time…” She quickly added, however, that she wanted me to go with her. With plane fares and the vagaries of flying what they are, I resisted her request but countered that we could drive the trip together in about 8 hours and save many hundreds of dollars. She quickly agreed, and I became the official chauffeur for her trip.
I really did not expect to do much other than hang out, read, and do some sightseeing in between Cindy’s conference sessions. However, I was pleasantly surprised upon arriving here that right next door to the Sheraton hotel, overlooking the Falls, is Mount Carmel Spiritual Centre (http://www.carmelniagara.com/).
On Saturday morning, I walked the half block to the Centre and wandered the grounds in silence and reflection. Then, indulging my bibliophilia, I perused the extensive book offerings and came away with the following titles:
“Grace is everywhere: reflections of an aspiring monk”, by James Stephen Behrens, a Trappist of the Monastery of the Holy Spirit in Conyers Georgia (the site of our CoJ retreat two years ago).
“Merton’s Palace of Nowhere” by James Finley.
“One Foot in Eden: a celtic view of the stages of life” by J. Philip Newell.
“Inside the Psalms: reflections for novices” by Maureen McCabe, OSCO.
And, picking between five or six books about the famous Carmelite,
“The Spiritual Genius of St. Therese of Lisieux” by Jean Guitton.
Finally, “The Carmelite Rule”, with a brief preface by Bruce Baker, O.Carm. of the Mt. Carmel Spiritual Center and Gregory Klien, O.Carm. from Grand Island, NY.
I was also pleased to learn that Saturday was the Feast of Our Lady of Mt. Carmel, and there was to be a Mass at 3pm. Coming back later to the Mass, I encountered four large tour buses that had brought in a group from Toronto. The church was full of people, who seemed to be largely Hispanic, but there also seemed to be folks from every imaginable ethnic group as well: Africans, Koreans, Eastern Europeans, Chinese, Indians and even White Anglo-Saxons. It really did seem like a foretaste of the Marriage Feast of the Lamb. I was doubly pleased when the Celebrant pointedly invited everyone to come up for Communion. So, without the slightest qualms about not being Roman Catholic, I made eucharist with my Roman Catholic brothers and sisters from around the globe.
This morning, my retreat schedule continued with a 7:15 am Sunrise service on an outdoor plaza overlooking the Falls, led by local pastor Martin Goode, from Grace Gospel Church in Niagra Falls. He had very appropriately chosen Psalm 29 for unison reading. Verses 3 and 10 were especially meaningful in this context:
3) The voice of the LORD is over the waters; the God of glory thunders, the LORD thunders over the mighty waters.
10) The LORD sits enthroned over the flood (‘Niagra’ means ‘flood’); the LORD is enthroned as King forever.
What an awesome reminder of God’s sovereign majesty over nature and our lives!
Returning to Carmel, here are some further thoughts:
The Carmelite Rule
The very short Rule of Carmel was written by Patriarch Albert of Jerusalem between 1206 and 1214 in response to a request from a group of hermits who had gathered on Mt. Carmel to serve the Lord in His own land. These monks had their own cells and came together for common worship in a central oratory. According to the Rule, a Prior was to be chosen, and his cell was to be located near the entrance of the property, ‘so that he may be the first to meet those who approach, and whatever has to be done in consequence may all be carried out as he may decide and order” (Ch. 9) – very similar to the role of the porter and the reception of guests in the Rule of Benedict.
The Caremlite hermits were to eschew private property, to fast continually, abstaining from meat, but they were allowed to have as much livestock as needed. They were admonished to put on the full armor of God (Eph. 6) in order to guard them spiritually, and to do manual work to protect them from the dangers of idleness (ch. 19,20). Silence was enjoined on the brethren to ward off the dangers of the tongue’s offences (ch. 21). Finally in chapter 24, Albert concludes with these words:
“Here then are a few points I have written down to provide you with a standard of conduct to live up to, but our Lord, at his second coming, will reward anyone who does more than he is obliged to do. See that the bounds of common sense are not exceeded, however, for common sense is the guide of the virtues.”
May God give us all the grace not to exceed common sense, and to excel in all the virtues.
Andrew+
July 13, 2008
Niagra Falls, Ontario
Dear Company,
Greetings to all from the banks of the Thundering Waters of Niagra Falls.
When my wife, Cindy, informed me several months ago that she was flying to a Music for Young Children conference in Niagra Falls, I responded “That’s nice. Have a good time…” She quickly added, however, that she wanted me to go with her. With plane fares and the vagaries of flying what they are, I resisted her request but countered that we could drive the trip together in about 8 hours and save many hundreds of dollars. She quickly agreed, and I became the official chauffeur for her trip.
I really did not expect to do much other than hang out, read, and do some sightseeing in between Cindy’s conference sessions. However, I was pleasantly surprised upon arriving here that right next door to the Sheraton hotel, overlooking the Falls, is Mount Carmel Spiritual Centre (http://www.carmelniagara.com/).
On Saturday morning, I walked the half block to the Centre and wandered the grounds in silence and reflection. Then, indulging my bibliophilia, I perused the extensive book offerings and came away with the following titles:
“Grace is everywhere: reflections of an aspiring monk”, by James Stephen Behrens, a Trappist of the Monastery of the Holy Spirit in Conyers Georgia (the site of our CoJ retreat two years ago).
“Merton’s Palace of Nowhere” by James Finley.
“One Foot in Eden: a celtic view of the stages of life” by J. Philip Newell.
“Inside the Psalms: reflections for novices” by Maureen McCabe, OSCO.
And, picking between five or six books about the famous Carmelite,
“The Spiritual Genius of St. Therese of Lisieux” by Jean Guitton.
Finally, “The Carmelite Rule”, with a brief preface by Bruce Baker, O.Carm. of the Mt. Carmel Spiritual Center and Gregory Klien, O.Carm. from Grand Island, NY.
I was also pleased to learn that Saturday was the Feast of Our Lady of Mt. Carmel, and there was to be a Mass at 3pm. Coming back later to the Mass, I encountered four large tour buses that had brought in a group from Toronto. The church was full of people, who seemed to be largely Hispanic, but there also seemed to be folks from every imaginable ethnic group as well: Africans, Koreans, Eastern Europeans, Chinese, Indians and even White Anglo-Saxons. It really did seem like a foretaste of the Marriage Feast of the Lamb. I was doubly pleased when the Celebrant pointedly invited everyone to come up for Communion. So, without the slightest qualms about not being Roman Catholic, I made eucharist with my Roman Catholic brothers and sisters from around the globe.
This morning, my retreat schedule continued with a 7:15 am Sunrise service on an outdoor plaza overlooking the Falls, led by local pastor Martin Goode, from Grace Gospel Church in Niagra Falls. He had very appropriately chosen Psalm 29 for unison reading. Verses 3 and 10 were especially meaningful in this context:
3) The voice of the LORD is over the waters; the God of glory thunders, the LORD thunders over the mighty waters.
10) The LORD sits enthroned over the flood (‘Niagra’ means ‘flood’); the LORD is enthroned as King forever.
What an awesome reminder of God’s sovereign majesty over nature and our lives!
Returning to Carmel, here are some further thoughts:
The Carmelite Rule
The very short Rule of Carmel was written by Patriarch Albert of Jerusalem between 1206 and 1214 in response to a request from a group of hermits who had gathered on Mt. Carmel to serve the Lord in His own land. These monks had their own cells and came together for common worship in a central oratory. According to the Rule, a Prior was to be chosen, and his cell was to be located near the entrance of the property, ‘so that he may be the first to meet those who approach, and whatever has to be done in consequence may all be carried out as he may decide and order” (Ch. 9) – very similar to the role of the porter and the reception of guests in the Rule of Benedict.
The Caremlite hermits were to eschew private property, to fast continually, abstaining from meat, but they were allowed to have as much livestock as needed. They were admonished to put on the full armor of God (Eph. 6) in order to guard them spiritually, and to do manual work to protect them from the dangers of idleness (ch. 19,20). Silence was enjoined on the brethren to ward off the dangers of the tongue’s offences (ch. 21). Finally in chapter 24, Albert concludes with these words:
“Here then are a few points I have written down to provide you with a standard of conduct to live up to, but our Lord, at his second coming, will reward anyone who does more than he is obliged to do. See that the bounds of common sense are not exceeded, however, for common sense is the guide of the virtues.”
May God give us all the grace not to exceed common sense, and to excel in all the virtues.
Andrew+
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