ordinary life, extraordinary love

Today is the feast day of Saint Gianna Beretta Molla. There are so many reasons to love her, but one that I love so much is how she was said to harmonize the demands of the different aspects of her life and vocation (wife, mother, doctor) with simplicity and equilibrium. She has been a great role model to me and to so many, and will only continue to be so as her life story is told!

In his homily for her canonization on May 16th, 2004 (which her husband and three living children attended!), Pope John Paul II said,

Gianna Beretta Molla was a simple, but more than ever, significant messenger of divine love. In a letter to her future husband a few days before their marriage, she wrote: "Love is the most beautiful sentiment the Lord has put into the soul of men and women".

Following the example of Christ, who "having loved his own... loved them to the end" (Jn 13: 1), this holy mother of a family remained heroically faithful to the commitment she made on the day of her marriage. The extreme sacrifice she sealed with her life testifies that only those who have the courage to give of themselves totally to God and to others are able to fulfil themselves.

Through the example of Gianna Beretta Molla, may our age rediscover the pure, chaste and fruitful beauty of conjugal love, lived as a response to the divine call!

On Saint Gianna's feast day, I want to share congratulations (and encouraging words from Saint Gianna) to Amy on her recent wedding to Bryan, and to Candace on the recent birth and baptism of her newest daughter, Cecilia Josephine. Like Saint Gianna, may your committed love in marriage and motherhood always be a sign to the world of the love of God. I love you both!

Amy and Bryan April 12, 2008

"Lord, keep Your grace in my heart. Live in me so that Your grace be mine. Make it that I may bear every day some flowers and new fruit". -Saint Gianna

Me with Candace's beautiful daughters, Gemma, Cecilia and Grace

"Look at the mothers who truly love their children: how many sacrifices they make for them. They are ready for everything, even to give their own blood so that their babies grow up good, healthy and strong." -Saint Gianna

saint luke passionist mission, haiti

It seems almost impossible to try to fully describe what we experienced in our time with Fr. Rick. I think the best I can do is to say that the closest I have ever felt to knowing Christ was walking in this man's footsteps.

"Saint Luke Passionist Haiti Mission" is the mission for the poor that he leads in Port au Prince (in addition to St. Damian's Children's Hospital and St. Helene's orphanage, which are funded separately).

At this website you can read all about this mission. The section titled "Investing in Humanity" gives a description of all of his team's works and projects, and is helpful in seeing the full range of what they are working to do.

"Rainbows at Midnight" is a collection of Fr. Rick's own personal reflections over the past several years. These are a gift from a man on the front lines of the work for human dignity.

As he says in the introduction:

These reflections are not properly about Haiti, though they are about real life incidents that happened there.

They reflect a reality about any place, and any time, where people of any race and any class live out an assault on their human dignity. Wherever and whenever the dignity of human beings is marred, the human spirit finds itself in hostile conditions and seeks desperately to preserve what is human about it. It is amazing how the human spirit finds light and hope in the most despairing darkness. This is the unfailing light of God's grace, ever present and faithful, fiercely persistent in trying to renew the face of the earth and the human heart.

In these reflections, the ancient human scourges of poverty, ignorance, illness and violence desecrate humanity and pulverize the spirit. And from these ashes many people, with the help of God, fight valiantly to rise.


Thank you for reading, and God bless you!

with love,
nicole


ps. Today begins a novena to Saint Gianna that would end on her feast day, April 28th. Here's a little about Saint Gianna from last year's blog-- more to come about her soon!

the passionist sign

This entry begins a series of entries dedicated to Fr. Rick Frechette-- the humble, strong and dedicated Passionist priest and physician we were so blessed to spend time with in Haiti. This first entry is about the sign of his order and the meaning of his life.

The Passionist Sign

The special insignia of every Passionist is the "Sign", the heart-shaped emblem you see on this page. It catches, in an image, the meaning of Passionist life.

In the middle of the emblem are the Words, JESU XPI PASSIO. Written in Greek and Latin, the languages of the early Church, those words mean: "the Passion of Jesus Christ," (The three nails at the bottom and the cross at the top remind us symbolically of his suffering and death.)

Every Passionist takes a special vow, a solemn promise, to spend his energies in promoting remembrance of the sufferings of Jesus. This vow defines the purpose of the Passionist community. We pledge to keep deep in our hearts the memory of the cross and to do what is in our power to remind others of it.

Why promise to do something like this? The answer lies with the meaning of the cross and death of Jesus Christ for the world.

First, the death of Jesus was no mere brutal execution of an extraordinary Jewish teacher and prophet long ago. His death was an event that changed human history. Jesus died that others might live. God so loved the world that he allowed his only Son to give his very life for us. The cross becomes the symbol telling us God's love is stronger than death. Passionists want to tell the world about that love.

But there are other reasons for the Passionist vow. Jesus' death on the cross was a death in the cause of justice. He was executed because he challenged accepted values. He sided with the poor and the outcasts. He condemned oppressive structures. Jesus was a prophet and prophets meet strong opposition.

His cross reminds us that Christians must listen to the cries of the poor. We are in solidarity with those whom society may forget or even exploit. The cross is a sign of justice. To remind the world about the cross is to challenge the world for its injustice and neglect. Passionists are pledged to that challenge.

Finally, remembering the cross means remembering those in the world who bear the cross today: the disabled, the sick, the dying, the grieving, those isolated and alone -- all who bear the burden of pain. Jesus identified himself with the "least". He shared their burdens and brought them hope. He, too, bore the cross.

Christians who believe in Jesus find strength in the memory of his Passion. Jesus knew pain and death. He also tasted the victory of everlasting life. Death is not the final word for those who believe. This , too, is part of the Resurrection message Passionists proclaim to the world.

The special sign we wear is meant to symbolize a solemn commitment to proclaim God's great love made known through the cross of Jesus. We nourish that memory in our hearts through prayer. We share that good news with all the world. We proclaim it through preaching, in our parishes and retreat centers, through radio and television, and by our presence in hospitals, classrooms, campuses, missions and those ministries of service to the community.

(From "St. Paul of the Cross Retreat Center" website)