LENT IS HERE

 

(Chapel here at Prayer Fraternity)

 

From your brothers here at the Ava Prayer Fraternity, we wish you a most BLESSED LENTEN SEASON!

 

Let's pray for one another that God will draw each of us more closely to himself during this wonderful season of our Church year.  If we can say it:  HAPPY LENT!

Prayer Reflection from your Prayer Fraternity

 

(Abbey guest at Bryant Creek)

 

PRAY AS YOU CAN, NOT AS YOU CAN'T !

 

 

"How should I pray?"  is a question often asked.   Jesus' disciples asked him that question in the Gospel of Luke 11:1 "Lord, teach us to pray."    What followed was the Lord's Prayer as we know it.

 

One of the ways to answer the question of 'how to pray' might be to say:   "Pray as you can, not as you can't !"    The Catechism of the Church (art. 2559) tells us that "prayer is the raising of one's mind and heart to God."    Thus, we might say that prayer is a very personal expression for each individual of how he or she lifts, opens, speaks, brings themselves to God or nurtures one's relationship with God.

 

There's a wonderful quote that speaks to this from the great spiritual director, St. Francis de Sales;   as you read the quote a second time, substitute the word 'prayer' for 'devotion':

 

         "In creation, God commanded the plants to bring forth fruit each according to its kind.   Similarly, God commands Christians to bring forth the fruits of devotion (prayer) according to each one's calling and vocation.   It would not do for a bishop to adopt a Carthusian solitude,  or the father or mother of a family to refuse to save money like a Franciscan,   for a workman to spend his whole time in church like a professional religious,   or for a religious to be always exposed to interruptions on his neighbor's behalf as a bishop must be.   Such devotion (prayer) would be inconsistent and ridiculous.   The practice of devotion (prayer) must be adapted to the capabilities, the engagements and the duties of each individual."

 

An important realization of our own time, helped greatly by some of the current personality indicators like Myers/Briggs, the Enneagram, etc., is that the human community is comprised of many different personalities, temperaments, life stories, needs, etc.   These life experiences we bring to prayer and they do help to determine what kind of personal prayer is effective for us. Communal prayer in church worship or religious community, of course, necessitates something different.

 

Pray as you can, not as you can't!    Learn the method(s) of prayer that genuinely work for you and incorporate them into your life.   As a retreat director said recently about the material he was sharing with the retreatants:  "If it helps, wonderful, use it; if it doesn't, set it aside."

 

There are many varieties of prayer forms in the world; for your personal prayer, find what works for you and utilize it.    Let go, or set aside, for now those that don't work for you.   "Pray as you can, not as you can't !"

SOMETHING TO PRAY OVER

 

REFLECTION ON    'CHOOSING THINGS OF LIFE'   over    'things of death'

 

 

To prepare for this reflection by Sr. Melannie,  read Deuteronomy 30: 15 - 20:

 

 

CHOOSE LIFE!  At first, this seems like a no-brainer.  Given the option between life and death, wouldn't we naturally opt for life?  Not necessarily, for keeping God's commandments and following Jesus are not easy.  In fact, they often involve a kind of death -- death to sin and selfishness.  Choosing life can take a variety of forms in our lives.

 

It can mean choosing: 

 

                          integrity over duplicity,

                          forgiveness over retaliation,

                          gratitude over whining,

                          non-violence over brute force,

                          words that nurture over words that belittle,

                          care for our planet over personal convenience, and

                          what's best for the common good over what's best for only me or my country.

 

How can we face the demands of making such difficult choices?   The responsorial psalm (psalm # 1)  tells us how through the use of a beautiful image.  It says we must be "like a tree planted near running water."   What is the running water that enables us to choose life?   Four examples are:   Scripture,   prayer,   Eucharist, and community.

 

Let us pray that we may choose life in our everyday circumstances, relying not on our own power, but on the running water of God's grace.

 

(This reflection is by Sr. Melannie Svoboda, SND, and appears in the daily missalette GIVE US THIS DAY published by Liturgical Press, Collegeville, MN,   Feb. 2012,  p. 245.)

 

 

PRAYER FOR PEACE - Muslim, Jewish, Christian

 

PRAYER FOR PEACE

(this can be a good Lenten Prayer; anytime of year)

 

 

O God, you are the source of life and peace.

Praised be your name forever.

We know it is you who turn our minds to thoughts of peace.

Hear our prayer in this time of war.

 

Your power changes hearts.

Muslims, Christians, and Jews remember, and profoundly affirm,

that they are followers of the One God,

children of Abraham, brothers and sisters;

enemies begin to speak to one another;

those who were estranged join hands in friendship;

nations seek the way of peace together.

 

Strengthen our resolve to give witness to these truths by the way we live.

 

Give to us:

 

      UNDERSTANDING that puts an end to strife;

      MERCY that quenches hatred, and

      FORGIVENESS that overcomes vengeance.

 

Empower all people to live in your law of love.   AMEN!

 

 

(Prayer above was put out by PAX CHRISTI / USA;  copies of the card can be ordered from  Pax Christi, USA / 532 W. 8th St. / Erie, PA,  16502-1343   or  www.paxchristiusa.org)

 

 

 

SOMETHING TO PRAY OVER

 

 

to prepare for this reflection,  it is very helpful to first read James 3: 1-12

 

 

"The subject of this Letter of James is the grandeur and power of words.  Words have force.   They can whip a crowd into a frenzy or turn a mob into a congregation.  They can win elections and destroy careers.   Words can comfort, heal, disturb, incite and wound.  Words can be seeds of discontent, suspicion and ill-will.   Words, or the "tongue" as James describes it, are the seed we scatter in our world.   Inevitably, they bring forward a harvest.  A person can do more financial harm and personal injury to another by words strategically placed than by any physical assault.  No idle piece of gossip is really harmless; no lie is completely white; kind words are not totally forgotten.  Once uttered, words cannot be retrieved.  Our language and conversation are ways we express what we are and what we love to others.  Words can crucify Christ or transport His love to others."

 

Take some time to pray over how responsible, how careful you are with the words that you use in life!   Do they bring life to others, build up another, edify people or individuals; or do they cause ill-will or unrest or harm? 

 

(The reflection above is by Fr. S. Joseph Krempa, in Daily Homilies for Ordinary Time, Year II, p. 46)

 

 

Changes to the Landscape here at Ava

 

VOLCHOK GARDEN AREA CLEARED

 

The family who had lived here before the friars took over, Mr/Mrs Volchok, owners of a business called BLESSED HERBS, had a large garden area across the front lawn where they grew Golden Seal and other herbs.  Golden Seal required some protection from the sun and heat, so posts and cable and a screen was spread over one entire garden area.

 

For the past 15 plus years the area has gradually returned to a 'wilder' state with native grasses, cedars, scrub oaks, etc. taking over the area.  Over the past month or so the friars have been diligently removing the posts and cable and some of the smaller trees and bushes that have taken over the area.

 

The second picture above shows the transformation that is taking place.  It is a view that is quite visible from the chapel and to any of our guests walking on the premises.   Our Stations of the Cross are erected behind this garden area.  Come and check out the transformation yourself.

 

 

SOMETHING TO PRAY OVER: SIN / VIRTUE

 

A REFLECTION TO LEAD YOU TO PRAYER:

 

Begin this reflection by reading The Letter to James  1: 12-18

 

Follow it up with this reflection and let it all lead you to pray about how sin and virtue impacts your life:

 

"In this reading, James discusses events and feelings within us over which we have no immediate control.  We are not complete masters in our own house.  James locates the source of sin in a primal disorder we all carry around.  The stab of jealousy, the crease of hatred or the darker passions that surge from some dark center within us can be triggered by almost anything.   Left unguarded, such isolated sentiments have their own momentum.  Dark emotions coalesce into a frame of mind;   a disposition expresses itself in actions;  actions merge into habits;   habits lead to spiritual death.   But the Word is also implanted within us with its own life-cycle.   Emotions of forgiveness or concern also form a frame of mind that can concretize itself into good habits and spiritual vitality.  We are not helpless and passive bystanders in a cosmic struggle between good and evil.  The arena of conflict is within ourselves."

 

(reflection is by Fr. S. Joseph Krempa, as found in Alba Houses'  Daily Homilies for Ordinary Time - Year 2)

 

WINTER ARRIVES IN AVA

 

(photo of Mary's statue and the front lawn after 2/13/12 snowfall)

 

Winter has chosen to finally visit the Midwest and our prayer fraternity on the eve of Valentine's Day here in 2012.   Somewhere between 2 to 4 inches of snow fell on the 13th to provide a lovely blanket of snow over the Ozark landscape.  The snow is not expected to stay long as temperatures are predicted to reach the 50's later in the week here.  

Prayer Reflection -- Sr. Joyce Rupp, OSM

(this triptych, shown in old sacristy here, is now in Br. Joe's soap house)

PRAYER REFLECTION

I know how easy it is to slip into ego-motivation and self-absorption. I decided some time ago to begin each day with this prayer as I wake up:

I touch my forehead, mouth, heart and hands as I say:

"MAY ALL I THINK, SPEAK, FEEL AND DO

BE FOR YOUR HONOR AND DONE WITH LOVE."

This usually keeps me on the right track and leads me back when I fall off of it.

(quote is by Sr. Joyce Rupp, OSM -- appeared in LIVING FAITH as Feb. 12th daily reflection entitled: 'For the Glory of God')

Prayer Quote

Prayer Quote

 

 

"Until you are convinced that PRAYER is the best use of your time,

you will not find time for PRAYER."

 

 

(Quote by Fr. Hilary Ottensmeyer, OSB --  1923 - 2000  --  St. Meinrad Abbey Benedictine)