The Second Vatican Council was headed by Pope John XXlll which started in 1962. It was also called the Ecumenical Council meaning that Christian churches were uniting in their common love of God and the teachings of the Bible.There was a group of ecumenical monks in Taizé, France who were invited to all the sessions of the Council. Pope John XXIII called their community a "springtime of the church "since they already had the experience of trying to find a common thread in the Christian religions and uniting them as a family. Their voice then was  valuable during the sessions of the Council.

The Taizé Community had a very iinteresting beginning back in the 1940's. It was started by Brother Roger who was spiritually enlightened and interested in uniting Christian religions in their common worship of Christ. He was brought up as a Protestant but had a gandmother who would secretly attend the Catholic Eucharist.during the dark days of World War 11.This family connection of Catholics and Protestants made Brother Roger want to move toward unity.

Brother Roger had a tough beginning, always thinking about helping others, he found a  deserted place in Taizé, France to start his work. There he took in World War II victims who needed physical and psychological care and with the help of his sister, managed to give his dream a foundation. Gradually, he became interested in reaching out to young people and giving them a reason for hope. Men of all Christian faith traditions from many countries began to join him in his ecumenical efforts. In Taizé, these monks developed a campground for young people to come to , learn to pray and build up their leadership skills to bring back to thier countiies a spirit of faith and understanding of the truths they were taught.

Today, thousands of young people come to Taizé every summer. They return to their countries ready to spead their faith and be of service to others.

During one of the gatherings in Taizé in 2006, with about a thousand young people present during a beautiful Taizé Prayer service, Brother Roger was stabbed and died a martyr's death. He was killed by a disturbed woman iwho was in attendace at the service. Certinally, God was most pleased with Brother Roger and received him with open arms into the special place prepared for him from the beginning of time.

In our local area, Taizé Prayer is scheduled in four places that I know of:

    Ascension Church
    815 S. East Avenue
    Oak Park, IL 60304
Phone:708-524-1540
www.ascensionchurch.com/contact.html
First Friday of the month- 7:30 p.m.

    St. Barnabas Episcopal Church
    22W415 Butterfield Road    
    Glen Ellyn, IL 60137
www.stbarnabas-episcopal,com/
Third Friday of the month- 7:30 p.m.

    First Presbyterian Church
    715 N. Carlton Avenue
    Wheaton, IL 60187
www.firstpreswheaton.org/news/taizeprayerservice.shtml
Second Friday of the month- 7:30 p.m.

    Life on the Vine Christian Community
    5105 RFD Arlington Heights Road
    Long Grove, IL 60047
email:matt@lifeonthevine.org
www.lifeonthevine.org

    Oak Park IL60304
    phone:708-524-1540
    http:// www.ascensionchurch.com/contact.htlm

On the second Friday of the month @ 7:30 p.m.
    First Prsbyterian Church
    715 N. Carlton Avenue
    Wheaton, IL 60187
    Phone: 630-668-5147
    http: // www.firstpreswheaton.org/news/taizeprayerservice.shtml

On the third Friday of the month @ 7:30 p.m.
    St. Barnabas Episcopal Church
    22W415 Butterfield Road
    Glen Ellyn, IL 60137
    hrrp://www.stbarnabas-episcopal.com/

All of these places are welcoming communities for people of all ages and faith traditions..

In John 20:15, we find Mary of Magdala looking for Jesus to annoint his dead body. However, Jesus
surprises her with his living presence. "How could this be?" she thinks. I was at the foot of the cross when
Jesus died. Out of respect for his body, I came to annoint Him. Now He is standing before me and
questioning me why I am looking for Him among the dead. Is this some kind of an illusion I am having? Isn't
 it true that when someone dies, one remains dead?

What Jesus is asking of Mary is for her to change her way of thinking. He is in essence telling her that He is
God and with God, all things are possible. He is reminding her that she has to love in a new way. She is not to dwell on His destroyed body but to appreciate Him as alive, full of love, compassion and forgiveness.  As a
living God, she can turn to Him for help, whereas a dead God could do nothing. It takes a while for Mary to comprehend this but she does.

In discerning how we can best find Jesus, we have to learn to live by faith not by sight. If Jesus is alive among
us through the gift of His Holy Spirit, then we become taken up by His presence. He is reminding us that we are His own, that He loves us like no one else ever will and will never back down in loving us no matter what happens
to us. We are precious to Him. After all who would have the courage to suffer so willingly and die an excruciating death for us who are His little, created creatures.

Knowing Jesus gives us the excitement and energy to treat Him as our very best friend. Like Mary of Magdala
who was transformed by hearing the words of Jesus, so we too can be transformed by the words Jesus speaks to us in the scriptures, by appreciating His total gift of Himself in the Eucharist and through the inspiration we receive in prayer. How can we not be full of His joy and spread it around to everyone we meet.

I have just returned from my hometown, Hillsboro, Wisconsin. Every year Hillsboro celebrates its Czech
heritage during a two day festival. There is. of course, Czech food of pork, dumplings, sour kraut and
kolachke. There is entertainment for all ages. Three  bands alternate in playing polka and waltz music
with an open dance floor, there are special featured groups, this year the Swiss Yodlers performed from
New Glarus, Wisconsin and the Clausen Family of exceptionally, talented musicians from Coleman,
Wisconsin. Local children of all age groups perform dances in Czech costumes, arts and crafts vendors are
present selling everything from jewlry to hand made items for outdoors or indoors. The 4-H club of young
people serve banana splits and there are soft ball teams that compete with each other. At the end of the
first day, there is a Polka Mass which is a reverent and joyful celebration of the Eucharist

On the second day there is an ecumenical service that has a patriotic theme and honors the local veterans
with a special focus of prayer for those serving our country in the military services. There is an audition and selection of a Czech Day Queen who will be an ambassador for Hillsboro at other local, state or even
national events for the coming year. Entertainment as on the first day continues. It is interesting to note
that you don't have to be of Czech descent to be a part of the gala affair.

 This  festival is a wonderful way to meet family and friends but also to recall who we are as descendants of ancestors who struggled to make life better for us. We are also made aware of how God worked through
the generations to keep us rooted in our faith.

As a large farming community, it is obvious that people need to be dependent on God for good weather in
order to have prosperous crops. City people take for granted, no matter if there are floods or dry weather,
that they can always buy food in the store. Farm people are always praying for God's intervention to
produce a good harvest to be able to feed the world.

                                               The Eucharist: A Holy Gift for Holy People

It is awesome to hear stories of people who were completely changed because of the Eucharist. I have a friend who was raised without a religion. When he was getting ready to go to high school, he and his parents decided to send him to a Catholic school. The Catholic school had an excellent baseball team and he wanted to be a star baseball player. Since all the students went to Mass on designated days, whether you were Catholic or not, he was exposed to the Eucharist. One day the priest asked the students to come to the altar and at communion time, the priest went around giving Holy Communion. Without being able to tell the priest he wasn't Catholic, the priest offered him the sacred host. Up until that moment he did not believe in the real presence of Jesus but now as he ate the sacred host, he suddenly was overtaken by the presence of Jesus. He was so immersed with God's presence that he felt  grace flowing through his entire body. It was a life-changing experience. He knew then that he wanted not only to be a Catholic but he hungered for that unexplainable experience of receiving the body and blood of Christ.

This young man was offered a baseball scholarship to Mississippi State University but pusuing his studies there, did not fulfill his dream. He could hear God calling him to the priesthood. This would enable him to bring the Eucharist to others which was his only dream now. Today he is a  priest who focuses his love on Jesus knowing that it was the Eucharist that brought him to this holy and life giving state.

                                                Why we are Proud of St. Benedict

Benedict was born in 480 in Nursia, Italy. As a young lad his father sent him to Rome to study liberal arts. This would have been an exciting time for most young men but Benedict was different. He was disappointed with the way some students and people in general were acting. He looked at the crumbling society around him and dreamed of a new one. So, what did he do? He ran away from Rome to be alone with God. He knew that God was all powerful and with God's help things could change for the better. He spent three years in a cave where he prayed to do God's will and to know how he could turn people's selfish pleasures and power seeking around. He began to preach the simple message of the Gospel to the children who lived near him. His dream was soon realized and people began to follow him. Those who gathered around around him, put away their weapons and learned to live in love. Slaves and free, Romans and foreigners- all prayed and worked as equals.

In fields ravaged by war, Benedict's followers planted wheat fields and vineyards. They soon had good bread and rich wine for themselves and the poor. The honest work of their hands was matched by their honest search for truth. Benedict's followers spent many hours praying, and studying Holy Scripture. They shared their knowledge of God and the importance of work with their guests and neighbors. The Benedictine lifestyle caught on quickly as people stopped destroying each other and their surroundings. Civilization in Europe was preserved. Benedict's prayer was heard.

This week we will talk to you about a special kind of prayer that we Sisters use to be in touch with God. Many people that are not Benedictines are also beginning to use this form of prayer. This prayer form is called “Lectio Divina” which is a Latin word meaning “Holy Reading”. The wonderful thing about Lectio Divina, is that when we read God’s word from Holy Scripture it is like God is using a wireless cell phone to communicate with us and we let God do the talking at first.

As in messages from our friends or family, there are always words, phrases or sentences that impress us very much. We keep those words in our mind as we read and listen to God’s message again. Then we dwell on the same impressive words that were meaningful to us from our first reading to think about what God meant by those words.

In reading the message a third time we are now ready to do the talking. We respond by making an action plan for the day that is doable and that will remind us to be mindful of others.

Then, in our fourth reading, we just sit with God’s message and with our own response knowing that God’s word is changing our self will to be more ready to help others by striving for peace among those we work with and think of the poor and disabled. WE become stronger and happier in carrying our cross as we follow Jesus.

This prayer form is  really a wireless, friendly connection with God that inspires us to stay in touch every day.

Spring is here and Sister Mary Bratrsovsky is working around Our Lady of Lourdes Grotto. There are a variety of flowers that she wants to revive or plant, clear away debris and make the area presentable for devotional visits.
The grotto is graced with a statue of the Blessed Virgin Mary under the title of the Immaculate Conception. It is a replica of her image as she appeared to Benadette Soubirous in Lourdes, France. Bernadette's statue is also there in a kneeling position below the Virgin's. She is holding a candle and appears to be looking up at the virgin, listening to the message our Lady has for her. This apparition took place in 1858. That makes this year the 150th anniversary year. With this grotto on our premises, we are reminded of the miracles of faith that occured and are still occuring at Lourdes in France.

It was in 1963 that Pope Paul VI designated Good Shepherd Sunday, which fell on April 13th this year, as the World Day of Prayer for Vocations.
The Church has made it clear that all vocations are honorable, namely marriage, priesthood, the single life and religious life and should be celebrated. To rejoice in their own vocations and pray for those in discernment, a group of invited guests and the Sisters gathered in Sacred Heart's beautifully, renovated chapel at 2:00 p.m. to reflect and pray. The prayer service focused on the Good Shepherd calling all baptized Christians by name, a voice made audible only when listening  with the ear of the heart making it possible to respond to God's specific plan for each discerning person.
The prayer experience was followed by a tour of the renovated monastery and then celebrated with fellowship and light refreshments in the monastic dining room.

Some people have been asking about our Morning (Lauds) and Evening (Vespers) prayers and wondering if they are open to the public. 
Daily Morning prayer is at 7:00 a.m. and Evening Prayer is at 4:45 p.m. You are welcome to join us any time!

We welcome your questions about our Benedictine prayer life or about our life and ministries in general! We hope to hear from you!

Peace & Blessings,
Sister Christine, OSB

"Listen with the ear of your Heart."  Rule of St. Benedict