How Much Less to Dwell in Me

Yesterday in our Diocese, the faithful were invited to receive Communion for the first time since St. Patrick's Day, when the last Mass took place and churches were closed in accordance with Government guidelines to prevent the spread of Covid 19.  I was surprised by the mix of emotions I had as we received Him in this unusual way.

Snow in April

"Mom, it's snowing!" the kids announced shortly after lunch.  Today was a heavy day.  For no real reason, I just felt the weight of everything.  I was easily distracted, unmotivated, had difficulty focussing.  Daily tasks piled up, homeschooling was way behind schedule, and I felt everything.  My husband, knowing how good it is for me to get out and clear my head, suggested I go out for a run.  But I didn't want to.  It was snowing in April.

What the Sign Indicates Really Happens

"This is the height which Christ reached as Lord of history. In His Resurrection, He has set the terms of assimilation to Himself, of His glory, of His making explicit that in Him all things consist, everything belongs to Him.  The assimilation of Christ brought about by Baptism is the Resurrection of Christ that penetrates history; it is the Body of the risen Christ that grows ever more according to the times of the Mystery of the Father.  And the gesture that makes the new creature possible, the one re-made by the power of God and therefore capable of new things, is the Eucharist, viaticum, food for the journey, true nourishment for the person and for his hope.  In this gesture, in giving Himself, Christ continues to bring man to perfection in Himself.  Under the sign of matter, what the sign indicates really happens - Christ becomes one with me.  An unimaginably profound ontological relationship is truly communicated to our life in a sign."  (Msgr. Luigi Giussani).

Do Not Spare Us

I have been reflecting over this Easter Triduum what a grace it has been that I still have a domestic church to live my faith with.  It has been a real comfort to still gather the kids, and even the small annoyances of trying to plan meaningful gestures with kids become a comfort, because they make them more real and true to what we would have been living if churches had not been closed.  We have been almost as busy during this last week as we normally are, and in many ways this has been a blessing, because it connects us to the universal church.  In many ways, we have not missed too much.

Prepared in Haste

In his homily for Holy Thursday, our Bishop spoke of the first Last Supper being prepared in haste.  The apostles thought they were preparing the usual Passover meal, but then Jesus transformed it into something new that they could not have expected. He gave them His very Body when He instituted the Eucharist, established the priesthood, and gave us the possibility of sharing in this meal with Him every day since that day.

A Different Kind of Easter

This morning while I was out for a run, I thought: next Easter is going to be amazing. We are so fortunate in our diocese that our Triduum Masses will be livestreamed, but of course, it's not the same.  Many like us look forward to attending and participating in the Easter liturgies, and not being able to be there in person to receive the Blessed Sacrament and be united with our fellow parishioners and our pastors is sure to leave a big hole in our celebrations this year. If we pretend that it will not, we are fooling ourselves.

Finding Jesus in the Temple

After a crazy day at home, I snuck away for a quick run just before supper. I pray the rosary when I run, because the Blessed Mother is the perfect running companion, and today being Monday, I prayed with the joyful mysteries. 

One Week Down

And what a week it's been!  This time last week, I was preparing to take my son to his piano lesson and go to Mass at a nearby parish, when Jeff advised I should probably call to make sure Mass wasn't cancelled (it was). I made the decision then to do piano by video call instead (which we did the following day - it was such an infusion of normalcy and beauty in an otherwise chaotic time!) And I cried when I tried to update our calendar, ultimately choosing not to erase all the events we were certain to miss for the foreseeable future.  My friends, a lot has changed since then.

Day Two - Sorrow and Hope

We are on our second day of social distancing, following the recommendations of our local government (like most of the people in our province, thank goodness).  Yesterday went much like it usually does.  To be honest, not much will change in our day to day, except that we can't see any of our friends or family.  As we homeschool, that remains the same. Our oldest two, who were homeschooled right up until two years ago, easily reverted to the old routine of working alongside their siblings (and only put up a minor fuss when, apparently talking to some classmates through the day, they discovered that not every student had to keep up with school work this week!  Sorry boys, that's what happens when you're the child of a homeschooler 😉). Today however, is when things began to sink in.

Salvator Mundi

In our diocese, the Bishop has announced that after this week, much like the rest of the country, there will be no weekend Masses to help limit the spread of the Covid-19 virus. So this morning we all arrived in silence.  The usual comradery and social pleasantries were eerily absent from our typically social country parish.  At the end of Mass, the plates of sweets laid out for our customary after-Mass social remained covered in plastic, as people who normally congregate in the lobby quietly walked to their cars, emptying the church almost immediately.  Going to Mass this morning felt very much like Good Friday, which I remarked to my husband. His reponse was that we are almost more solemn than Good Friday.

Christ, the only Certainty

It has been a crazy week.  The developments as Covid 19 spreads, and we continue to learn and adjust, certainly carry the possibility to induce fear. In fact I find, it takes effort not to succumb to it.  Just one week ago what seemed so far off is now imminent, causing us to cancel gatherings and watch as grocery shelves go empty and people prepare.  What is one to make of all of this?

(Imperfect) Rules for Running - And for Life

I have been a runner for a little over a year now, and it is always remarkable to me the lessons I learn about running, that are also applicable to life in general.  Here, in no particular order, are a few of the things that generally strike me while I’m out on the roads.

In Secret

Today is Ash Wednesday, the beginning of Lent.  And of course, the familiar reading about how we are to enter this season of fasting:

"Do not be like the hypocrites,
who love to stand and pray in the synagogues and on street corners
so that others may see them.
Amen, I say to you,
they have received their reward.
But when you pray, go to your inner room,
close the door, and pray to your Father in secret.
And your Father who sees in secret will repay you."