“Come and See” Religious Life Vocation Weekend for WomenJune 8-10, 2012 / Baltimore, Maryland area
Sisters of Bon Secours Provincial House

For information, call Sr. Pat toll-free 877-742-0277
Email:  CBSVocations@bshsi.org
Website:  http://www.BonSecoursVocations.org
Next scheduled weekend: October 19-21, 2012

Leaders in Transition Certificate Program
July 29–August 3, 2012

View information on the 2012 Leaders in Transition Certificate Program.

APPLY ONLINE

The following activity is designed to help you as individuals and as a community of volunteers consider your priorities and reflect on your hopes for the future.


Directions: Gather as a community, and first reflect individually on the following thoughts.

“…you will see that there is one thing and only one thing that causes unhappiness. The name of that thing is Attachment. What is an attachment? An emotional state of clinging caused by the belief that without some particular thing or some person you cannot be happy… an attachment by its very nature makes you vulnerable to emotional turmoil and is always threatening to shatter your peace.”

- Anthony de Mello, SJ, The Way to Love


De Mello goes on to describe the way to drop attachments and the benefits of not being attached to things or people. He says,

“If you just enjoy things, refusing to let yourself be attached to them, that is, refusing to hold the false belief that you will not be happy without them, you are spared all the struggle and emotional strain of protecting them and guarding them for yourself.”

De Mello encourages us to simply enjoy people and things, rather than forming co-dependencies with them. He also suggests that by limiting ourselves through attachments to a few things, we are prevented “from developing a wider and more varied taste for things and people.”


Ask yourself:

Since beginning your volunteer service, have there been any attachments (people or things) that you’ve given up, or that now have diminished importance? If so, what are they? Why do these attachments now have less significance in your life?

With Easter comes new life in Christ. What are some of the newer priorities in your life?

What hopes do you have for the remainder of your volunteer service?

If you feel comfortable sharing your insights, do so, and then move on to examining your priorities as a community.


As a community, ask:

Since beginning your time as a community, have there been attachments that you have collectively given up? If so, what are they? Consider household arrangements, food preferences, and other common concerns. What has your community gained from losing some of these attachments?

http://www.pallotticenter.org/index.php?m=ca

As a volunteer in a Catholic program, you have a special opportunity to take these three tasks to a deeper level because you are in a position to examine praying, fasting and giving alms through the lens of your experience as a volunteer who is living simply for this year or more of service. Most people do not have the opportunity to accompany those most in need, create structural change, work for the Church, live in an intentional community, and develop their spirituality like you have the opportunity to do during this year or more of service.

These six weeks of Lent are an ideal time to refocus your energy around simple living.

- Don’t eat meat for the entire forty days not just on Fridays.
- Limit your use of technology.
- Spend time with a community member or neighbor you do not know that well.
- Pray the rosary or spend a part of every day in prayer or in reflection on your life and relationship with God.
- Take part in any Lenten reflection opportunities the church in your community offers.
- Start spiritual direction, if you have not done so already.
- Save $5 from your living stipend every week and donate that money to the organization where you work or some other cause that is dear to your heart.
- Learn about a new social justice issue.
- Raise money or resources for a local soup kitchen, domestic violence center, or homeless shelter.

No matter what you decide to do this Lent, be sure to take the time to reflect on what you are doing, why you are doing it and how this can make you a better person. If you live in community, work together with your community members to support and encourage each other’s work during Lent. Cherish these forty days of growth and challenge and look forward to the Resurrection and how much you will develop as a volunteer, an employee, a community member and a Christian.



http://www.pallotticenter.org/newsletters/sharedvision/Shared%20Visions%20Vol%2022%20No%203%20%20red.pdf

Catholic Volunteer Network Service Event
You’re invited to join Catholic Volunteer Network for a morning of service at the Downtown Women’s Center. We will prepare and serve a meal to the Center’s guests and organize donations. After serving, the volunteers will enjoy a simple lunch and participate in a time of reflection.

Date: Saturday, March 17, 2012
Time: 9:30 a.m. – 2:00 p.m. PDT
Location: Downtown Women's Center, 442 S. San Pedro Street, Los Angeles, CA 90013
Registration: Please click here to register. (https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet/viewform?formkey=dFJMc2RTbVR2RXh5VW12N3JfSjhQS2c6MQ)


AmeriCorps Week Reception and Dinner
AmeriCorps week is March 10-18, 2012 and Catholic Volunteer Network is getting ready to show our AmeriCorps spirit! We are hosting a reception in Los Angeles on March 16 to honor our current and former AmeriCorps members. We want to thank you for your commitment to volunteer service! Volunteer program staff, site supervisors, and prospective volunteers are also welcome. Dinner will be provided.

Date: Friday, March 16, 2012
Time: 6:00 – 8:00 p.m., PDT
Location: Basement of Sacred Heart Chapel at Loyola Marymount University, Los Angeles, CA
Who’s invited: Current and former AmeriCorps members, program staff, prospective volunteers – and anyone interested in learning more about AmeriCorps!
Special guest speaker: Rey Barrera, former AmeriCorps member and volunteer with Catholic Volunteer Network member program Good Shepherd Volunteers. Rey currently works for the Coalition for Humane Immigrant Rights of Los Angeles as a Campaign Coordinator.

RSVP by Wednesday, March 14: Please click here to RSVP. (https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet/viewform?pli=1&formkey=dFBGaGRWWjJqQkYyU21ERVlqcGVkTWc6MQ#gid=0)



Questions about any of these events? Please contact Alyssa Sickle at asickle@catholicvolunteernetwork.org.

From Catholics on Call:


Introduction:
In our reflection for Ash Wednesday, we talked about the fact that Lent is "the new beginning," a chance to re-imagine our relationship to God, ourselves, and our world. To go back to the beginning, according to a long-standing tradition in the church, also means that we are invited to revisit the meaning of our Baptism, that sacrament that made us children of God, gave us the gift of God's abundant love, and called us to be Jesus' presence in our world. As we reflect on our Baptism in these six weeks of Lent, we recall some thoughts that Bishop Morneau shared in his talk at the Young Adult Conference about the various ways we are called by our Baptism (1).

(1) see The Art of Discernment, In: Catholics on Call - Discerning a Life of Service in the Church, pg. 64


Reading: Mt 20:25-28
You know that the rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them and the great ones make their authority over them felt. But it shall not be so among you. Rather, whoever wishes to be great among you shall be your servant; whoever wishes to be first among you shall be your slave. Just so, the Son of Man did not come to be served but to serve and to give his life as a ransom for many. (Gospel of Wednesday of the Second Week of Lent)


Reflection:
Through Baptism we are called to "maturity." Many times we think a mature person is someone who has "grown up" and "figured it all out." Most of us won't identify with this description. The truth is that we are "growing up," we are growing into who we are called to be, during our entire life. Bishop Morneau describes the call to maturity as "developing an ever deeper sense of our identity and destiny; ... nurturing our ability to care and love; and [being] good stewards of God's gifts." In the Scripture passage from the Gospel of Matthew, Jesus describes what it means to be a mature disciple: To be "grown up" in a Christian sense, means to remain "small" and imitate Jesus in his mission of radical service to others. As we discern God's call for us, the important questions to ask when we make our decisions are: "Does this help me to grow in my identity as a disciple of Jesus? Does it give me the opportunity to love? Can I use the gifts God has given me in service for others?"


Questions for Reflection:
What decisions have you made lately? Do they help you to grow and become a mature disciple of Jesus?


Prayer:
Lord Jesus, sometimes I don't make the best decisions. Many times I choose things because they give me an immediate satisfaction or make me live more comfortably. In this season of Lent help me to focus again on my baptismal call and to strive for spiritual growth. Thank you for your radical love for me and all of us, and give me the strength to serve you in my brothers and sisters. Amen.

From Busted Halo:




By Elizabeth A. Elliott


Pretzels come in many flavors, shapes, and sizes — not unlike us. These treats are great with cheese or other dips or just by themselves. But have you stopped to consider they actually have an historical place in Lent?

If you take a moment to look at the typical twist pretzel, you can see that it is a model of the common prayer position from the early 600s of folding your arms over each other on your chest and putting your hands on your shoulders.


Pretzels were developed as an option to satisfy abstinence and fasting laws of the time. Eggs, fat, and milk were forbidden during Lent. So, the remaining ingredients that one could use included water, flour, and salt. A young monk baked the first pretzel — making a Lenten bread of water, flour, and salt, forming the dough into the prayer position of the day, and baking it as soft bread. These first pretzels would have been much like the soft pretzels we have today.

Greg Dues, in his book Catholic Customs and Traditions, explains more of the pretzel history:

“These little breads were shaped in the form of arms crossed in prayer and were called bracellae (Latin, ‘little arms’). Among the Germans the word became ‘bretzel’. These pretzels were a common Lenten food throughout the Middle Ages in Europe, and became an all year round snack, in its original shape only in the last (19th) century.

The suggestion of arms crossed in the form of prayer may have led to pretzels being given as a reward to young children when they could recite their prayers. Pretiola means little reward, which could also be a derivative of the term pretzel. The three holes in a pretzel are also said to represent the Holy Trinity.

After their invention, pretzels became a symbol of good luck, long life, and prosperity. They were commonly given to the poor and hungry. The legend of the hard pretzels that we snack on today tells of an apprentice baker who fell asleep while preparing pretzels and let the fire begin to die out. When he noticed, he restarted the fire, but the result was overcooked pretzels. The surprise was a tasty treat that was less perishable than the soft pretzels and easy to have available to give to those in need.


Food has long played a role in our faith, especially during Lent. We abstain from certain foods, such as meat, and spend time fasting. This practice can provide us with a deeper religious experience by joining us with people throughout the world who struggle to survive. Fasting is an opportunity to be in solidarity with those who experience physical and spiritual hunger.


Pretzel twist

When the monk first baked pretzels so long ago, I don’t think he could have imagined all of the different types and flavors that we have today. There are roasted garlic, Italian herb, parmesan, and butter pretzels. Beerzels are made from the favorite beverage that sometimes accompany the treat. Auntie Anne’s makes a seaweed-flavored pretzel in Singapore and a banana-flavored pretzel in the UK. Even a new flavor of M&M’s includes pretzels inside their candy-coated exteriors. The food even inspired furniture maker George Nelson to create a pretzel chair in 1952.

I had no idea that pretzels were a Lenten food. Through the years, I’ve spent time trying to understand the importance of Lent and trying to remember not to eat meat on Fridays. I admit, some years I’m more successful than others. Yet I can see how pretzels tie into Lent in a spiritual way. In the life of a faithful person, there are many times you may feel twisted up inside, struggling with your beliefs or dealing with frustrations. But if you take a look at a typical twist pretzel, remember its origins in Lent, and move into a position of prayer (spiritually or physically), you are exactly in the position you need to be in when you feel twisted up inside.


Make pretzels part of your Lenten tradition this year. Here’s a pretzel recipe to try. Bake them (or buy your favorite kind), grab a beer, and remember the faith-pretzel connection this Lent.


http://bustedhalo.com/blogs/pretzels-and-lent


Elizabeth A. Elliott is a freelance writer from Omaha, Nebraska. She has degrees in journalism and music from Creighton University and a certificate in paralegal studies from the College of Saint Mary. Elizabeth has written for several publications including America, B2B magazine, Catholic Voice and Omaha World-Herald. Elizabeth is also a flutist and has played for more than 20 years.

WHAT: From Mission to Mission Re-entry Workshop
WHO: DOMESTIC and international volunteers and missioners
WHEN: April 12-15, 2012
WHERE: South Orange, New Jersey
WHAT WILL WE DO: Together with others who "get it" we will focus on...

• Telling the story of your experience

• Honoring the gifts of the experience

• Recognizing what needs healing from the experience

• Understanding and dealing with transition

• Integrating the experience

From Mission to Mission does not want finances to keep anyone from participating in our workshop. We are willing to work with each person to make it affordable.

Please see our website for more information: http://www.missiontomission.org/.