Taize Prayer at Constance Street

Forty or so people came to Taize prayer at our home last Wednesday, October 19th.  Taize is the name of a town in France and an ecumenical community that has developed a prayer form using quiet reflective music that is repeated like a mantra and is accompanied by periods of silence, Scripture reading and prayer.  It is a contrast to the noisy and busy world we live in and an opportunity to gather with others for silence and contemplation.  The setting is candle lit and focuses on an icon of Our Lord like the  one that accompanies this message.

Sr. Jackie Schmitz, CSJ prepares the music and Sr. Monica Gundler, SC prepares the readings and prayers.  Our community prepares a large, unused meeting room on the first floor of our building with an altar, candles and chairs.  The community here also invites those who particpate in the prayer for refreshments afterward upstairs in the residence.  Our location provides room for prayer and fellowship afterwards.  The by-products are several.  We have the opportunity to share our wonderful facility here.  We are not invisible--our guests can't say they  never met a Brother.  Then there is also the benefit that comes from inviting people to bring something for the refreshments.  We supply iced tea, [the house wine of the South], some cookies, plates and napkins, ice and glasses.  We are left with really good homemade cookies and lots of chocolate cake which we conscientiously eat so nothing will be wasted. 



Our guests included Fr. Doug Brougher, who is a great friend and supporter of our mission here, religious women from a number of communities including, [but not limited to], Notre Dames, Dominicans, Charities, St. Joseph and others.  We also had long-term volunteers who are with the Dominicans here in New Orleans this year, and a dozen or so young persons from Creighton University who were with the Charities and were down for a week of service.

Jennifer McKeown who coordinates Americorps efforts in New Orleans and has office space at OHH was here, and Molly Sherry and Allison Maraldo came and had dinner with us beforehand, which was a real treat.  We will continue with Taize each month and have them scheduled through January. 

Sr. Jackie, Sr. Monica and a Creighton University student

Adam, a volunteer with the Dominicans, Sr. Mary Daniel, OP and Allison, back to camera.

Molly Sherry, Jessica McKeown and Sr. Regina Marie Fronmuller, OSU

REFLECTIONS ON NAIROBI, #1

"The Way to the Future" was the theme of the recent gathering [October 2 - 8] in East Africa of 35 Brothers and  Associates who spent a week of intense consideration and reflection on the future.  The group included men and women from the Americas, Africa, Europe, India and Oceania.  Pictured below is our group portrait with both "John Caseys" in the back row!

Group portrait in the meeting room of the Little Sisters of St. Joseph Retreat House in Karen, a suburb of Nairobi, Kenya.  "Juan" Casey, Regional Leader for Latin America is fourth from the right, back row with the beard.

 

 

 

 We arrived on a Sunday evening and met through the next Friday.  Our schedule included prayer, reflection time, and many meetings in small group and large group.  We began meeting after prayer and meditation time, at 9 AM and went to lunch at 12:30 PM.  We reconvened at 3 and went until 6 or 6:30 with dinner at 7.  There were tea breaks at 10:30 AM and 4:30 PM.  The conversations were based on reflection on our readings, prayer and lived experiences.

I was in the "Mission and Ministry" group.   Our viewpoints are diverse, profoundly shaped by the historical, political, economic, social and educational systems that shaped the worlds that shaped our generations, families, communities and ourselves.  Our group includes  Brothers from Ireland, Australia, India and Zambia as well as myself.    All but one of us are "baby boomers" or older--only Stephen Chewe from Zambia is not. 

More on Nairobi and "The Way to the Future" later on this week.  After East Africa I visited the Ursuline Sisters in Forest Gate, in East London.  I returned to NOLA this past Friday and am still working on jet lag.  Leave for meetings in Bay St. Louis, Mississippi tomorrow!  Until then, below is a picture of the "Mission and Ministry" group in our small meeting room.  Declan kept us focused!

Stephen Chewe-Zambia, Martin Byrne-Europe, Declan Power-Europe[Chair], Jude Butcher-Oceania, John Casey, Graeme Leach-Oceania and Philip Pinto-India [Congregation Leader]