by Sister Arlene McGowan, SFP Frances is young and happy with her life and her ministry among the poor and sick. Her spiritual life is blossoming and all is going well. Now here in her living room is her eccentric friend Gertrud, a disruption to the beginning of a family dinner party, uninvited and insisting on staying even after her brother arrives to take her home. Then she doesn't like the sleeping arrangements and insists on sleeping with Frances . What else could possibly go wrong well, she gets awakened from a sound sleep and then is given an incredible message that she dare not ignore.
Well, at least Frances has some excuses for not doing what is requested of her – she is not worthy of such a task: “There is no way the Lord meant for you to give this message to me, I am awkward and unfit for such a task. If you really knew me you would have said this – you tell the Lord this the next time you talk to Him.” “Well,” exclaims Gertrud, “I already gave these excuses of yours to the Lord.” I would guess that Gertrud knew Frances quite well! The Lord wants you to know that this is His work and not the works of humans – he decided on the instrument He wants to use. I wonder what the thoughts were that were racing through the mind of Frances after this exchange. What were the questions we would have: How can I do this? How will I do it? Where would we live? Where will we get the money for this enterprise? What about my family? What about the ministry I am involved in? Where do I start? What kind of approval do I need? Do I need permission from the Bishop? I will need members -- Gertrud is odd and rather eccentric; Clara started her own congregation; Anna joined the Sisters of St. Charles; Pauline has other plans; Catherine is very contemplative; Mary is easily swayed; Johanna is perhaps a possibility. This points out a big difference between ourselves and Frances – Frances knew what Pentecost was all about. A group of weak, frightened men hiding behind locked doors were empowered by the Holy Spirit and left their secure place and wandered into a large city to share their faith and their story with anyone and everyone. She could do no less – and through the agony and pain and sufferings of the days that were to come she remained absorbed in prayer, listening to the Spirit within her and doing all she could to implement God’s request of her even as she sought to discern the authenticity of the call. She talked with her closest friends and discerned with them. By the time she was firmly convinced that this was what God wanted of her, Frances had four companions who had also discerned that this was their call as well. And that was all she had – and that was all she needed – and look what happened!
Found a congregation ‘to heal my wounds’.” It never occurred to Frances to ask what this meant. She was painfully aware of the deep chasm that existed between what she heard in the scriptures and what she saw in the streets of her hometown. Frances knew what God was asking of her. Deep in her heart she knew she was being asked to bridge the terrible gap that was continually growing larger between the scriptures and the reality that existed all around her. What does this have to say to us 162 years later on Pentecost Sunday 2007? Called to be prophetic witnesses of the Word, Healing a wounded world- how are we responding? How should we respond? Frances gives a very realistic way to respond – listen to the scriptures, look at the reality around you, and respond to the Lord. As members of the U.S. Area we have recently received four opportunities for our response. Please recall what these are:
The four tasks are not to be taken lightly; they require our prayerful reflection and honest input. We are being asked for input on the refounding of our congregation, to find new ways to implement our charism in our present reality. We have many excuses just like Frances did 162 years ago – I am too old, I can’t see, I can’t hear, I am retired, I am too busy in my present ministry, I don’t have time for something else, my knees hurt, my back is bad, and the list could go on!! And like it happened 162 years ago, we hear the same response in the center of our being this is my work, not the work of humans. The questions are: “Do we respond the same way that Frances did? If not, why not? How are we going to respond to the four opportunities given to us? |
1 Commit to a local community goal based upon the presentation of Sr. Tiziana on “The Spirituality of Communion and the Charism of Mother Frances. 