May 25, 2013
This year, we celebrate St. Madeleine Sophie Barat while we are also celebrating Pentecost. In the midst of the Ascension and Pentecost, I am struck by the idea of significant turning points, moments when the whole world seems to be on the brink of something entirely new. In this part of the liturgical year, we celebrate a time when Jesus’ followers were on the edge of a new world, as Jesus ascended to heaven and the Holy Spirit was sent to fortify their efforts on earth. I'm sure they were rather anxious—anxious about change, about losing Jesus once again, about going on without him.
I wonder if they also felt the anticipation of new things. Perhaps they felt more prepared to face their mission to bring the Gospel to the ends of the earth than they had when Jesus was crucified. The readings for the feast of the Ascension reveal that they felt the nervous/excited anticipation of the Second Coming and the Kingdom of God.
For the disciples, the anticipation of future times, of what’s coming, is mixed with the here-and-now. They have a mission in this word, one that has hope of bringing about a new world. St. Madeleine Sophie had an awareness of this as well. She felt a great call to help address the needs of her world, with the hope of making a better future in France, Europe, and eventually the whole world. As it is in every generation, the needs of her time were fairly unique: French society had fallen apart, and people were frightened, feeling the threat of chaotic forces beyond their control. Sophie saw the need to care for and educate children, especially girls, who had few opportunities, as a means to change the world. We all know her to say “for the sake of one child….” Certainly she and the generations of educators following her have changed the lives of many.
It feels as if our time is experiencing its own wind of change as well. In the church, after many years of seeming stagnation, we have a pope who seems rather different from the popes of the last 35 years. The simple symbolism of a Jesuit choosing to be named for St. Francis of Assisi marks an attitude of simplicity and poverty together with a well-rounded formation and deep connection with the ordinary people of the world.
Perhaps cautious hopefulness regarding the church is not the only wind of change in our world. We have also seen great violence, on the part of people in Connecticut, Boston, New Orleans, Guantanamo, Syria, Bangladesh, and around the world. We have seen violence in our environment, both our human acts of violence against it, and violent weather as our planet feels changes – droughts and floods, tornados and hurricanes.
St. Madeleine Sophie saw so much trouble in her world, but in hope and in love she offered an alternative vision of what the future could hold. She was a woman of great integrity, one who challenged without threatening or becoming disrespectful, especially when she dealt with popes, prelates, and politicians. She offered leadership based on loving relationships, modeled on God’s love for our world and hoping for the kingdom of God. She showed us patience, as she waited for years to resolve issues of governance at the beginning of the Society. In our world of immediate answers, perhaps her example of patience is one of her biggest challenges to us
Sophie also saw the beauty and humanity of each person. By upholding that unique beauty, she allowed each of her sisters, and each of the children, to grow into the women God created them to be. By seeing the goodness and love in each individual, we can keep hope that the trouble in our world cannot overcome us.
May the Holy Spirit empower and guide us to follow Sophie in responding to the needs of our world.
May our tongues find the words to speak God’s love in language our world can hear.
May our hearts be inflamed to share Christ’s love with one another.
May we see the transformative power of the Holy Spirit alive in our Society and in our world, this day and every day.
Amen! Alleluia!
Juliet Mousseau, RSCJ
* Sister Mousseau recently published a translation of the poetry of Adam of Saint-VIctor.
