World AIDS Day Ursuline Sisters Mission is sponsoring a Red Ribbon Display in downtown Youngstown, Ohio to honor the roughly 800 people in Mahoning, Trumbull and Columbiana counties living with HIV as part of local commemorations for World AIDS Day. Each of the 80 ribbons on Federal Square represents 10 people. Thurs., Dec. 1, 2022, World AIDS Day, the public is invited to an event at that location beginning at 4:15 p.m. Rev. Joseph Boyd of the First Unitarian Universalist Church of Youngstown will lead the group in prayer, followed by remarks from Mayor Jamael Tito Brown on the work to end HIV and overcome the stigma experienced by those touched by the epidemic. Also speaking will be Laura McCulty Stepp, Ursuline Sisters HIV/AIDS Ministry director, Erin Bishop, Youngstown Health commissioner, and Tim Bortner, founder and president of Full Spectrum Community Outreach. Shelley Turner of Equitas Health and Bortner will lead “A Walk of Remembrance” to Wean Park, where Full Spectrum Community Outreach will host a candlelight vigil to remember those who we have lost to the disease. Equitas Health also will provide warm drinks and snacks from Mocha House. The Premier Bank Tower Clock, Market Street Bridge and the walkway from Wean Park to the Youngstown Foundation Amphitheater will be lit in red that day in support of World AIDS Day. World AIDS Day was established in 1988 to reflect on the lives lost to HIV/AIDS, and to honor the more than 38 million people worldwide living with HIV.
Feast of Christ The King of the Universe When we were young, we had the time to indulge our imagination. We pretended to be famous, wealthy, powerful. Of course we grew up, but sometimes not out of those fantasies. In fact, multi-billion dollar industries are dedicated to making those dreams come true. But only for a while. And always for a price. Let’s take the ultimate indulgence. cccc a few moments and step into the shoes of Jesus. How would you answer the charge you were a king of all? What does it mean to be a king? Is it the old model of absolute power? Or is it Christ’s leadership of service? These questions are the essence of Pilate’s and Jesus’ dialogue. Jesus responds with a speech about his arena (i.e., “his kingdom”). Jesus’ arena is not that of popular culture or politics; if it was there would be a bloody revolution. Pilate still presses the point: “You are a king, aren’t you?” Jesus gives in on a semantic point (“You’re the one who says so, Pilate”) but finally gives Pilate a direct witness: Jesus speaks the truth. [Living Liturgy 2018] How does the truth Jesus speaks and the truth the “world” speaks different? The truth of the world is transient in nature; it changes with the season and the political landscape. It speaks to ambition and power, to possessions and pleasure. The truth of the world is, at best, shallow. But the truth Jesus speaks is one of the heart. The truth of Jesus is more than facts; it is one of fidelity. God is “true” to us; that means, he is faithful. He shows us his fidelity through his Son and the power of his Spirit. When we are true to God in return, we “live in truth” (that is, in relationship). Since God is eternally faithful, God’s truth goes beyond the transient nature of politics, fad, and fashion. How does your relationship with God touch you in ways the world cannot match? How has the truth of world failed you? How has God’s faithfulness sustained you? A theologian once said that all revelation is invitation. In other words, all that God reveals to us invites us to live with him. This is the reality of Jesus’ kingship. Jesus is Lord, so we might live near him in love. He is King of the World, not over us but for us and with us. Adapted from Larry Broding
Living Mission A Follow-Up To Our Oct. 17th Reflection Here’s an intriguing take on a familiar commission: Thankful people become missionaries. “To be ‘in a state of mission’ is a reflection of gratitude,” Pope Francis declares on this World Mission Sunday. Yet this “state of mission” belongs to the whole church, not just to those brave souls who pack up and go off to foreign lands. Jesus commissions his friends to take the Good News wherever we go. Grateful folks do this cheerfully. How can we keep from singing, when a song’s been placed in our hearts? Live the mission of gratitude. We gathered as a community for our Fall meeting. As we do each time we gather, our meetings begin with communal prayer and faith-sharing. The reflection for our faith-sharing centered on our call to our mission. This short video expresses our call to mission living. Anthony J. Gittins, C.S.Sp., taught theology and anthropology at the Catholic Theological Union in Chicago from 1984 until 2011 and is now emeritus professor of theology and culture. He continues to do consultancy work and offer workshops, seminars, short courses, and retreats in more than thirty-five countries from Africa to the Pacific. He is the author of fourteen books on theological and anthropological topics, on mission, and on spirituality. Whenever Father Gittens speaks of Spiritan living, think Ursuline missional living.
In My Name Read the Gospel: Mark 9:38-43, 45, 47-48 Gospel Summary The struggles in our Gospel today is about power. Bishop Barron says, if you want power be holy .. The real power is in its holiness. Bishop Barron cites Saint Mother Teresa of Calcutta and Saint Therese as examples. They were powerful women. ,Jesus taught his disciples two different things in today’s gospel. First, when John came to him saying that someone, not one of them, was exorcizing demons in Jesus’ name, Jesus explained that anyone who was not against them was with them. If the person acted in Jesus’ name, he would not be capable of speaking out against him. The second teaching involved the way a person should respond to temptation. Not that Jesus proposed that people inflict wounds on themselves, but to make his point clearly, he suggested ridding ourselves of the parts of our bodies that lead us to sinfulness. Rather than commit sinful acts using our hands, eyes, feet, or ears, it would be better to enter heaven without those body parts than to use them sinfully and live in eternal damnation. Discussion Love is one of those things that grows in itself. The more you give, the more it grows. There probably is no scientific way to measure why love works that way, but we just know it does. The same is true with acts of kindness—which in a way are the same thing as love. Like the person exorcizing demons in Jesus’ name, the more the better. That’s how Jesus saw it, even though the disciples in their human jealousy and desire for ownership thought the person was an intruder. Parents see this in their own lives and try to pass it on to our children. It’s hard to be mean to someone who just said, “I love you,” or gave you a hug, or climbed up on your lap. As we try to get along with each other and teach each other to get along with siblings, friends, and classmates, we will make significant progress by acting and reacting in kindness and love. Bringing the Gospel into Your Family Share your ideas with one another about who some of the people are in our society that give of themselves and their resources to further God’s Kingdom. It will probably be easy to come up with wealthy people who give large sums of money to charities, but what about the people who give other resources like time, energy, talent? Ask yourselves if there is more you can do as a family to bring kindness into someone else’s life.
Second Sunday In Ordinary Time When members of my family introduce someone, they always give that person an automatic promotion. If she’s a doctor, they will exaggerate, introducing her as a brilliant surgeon. A teacher’s aide becomes a full professor. I am told that I do the same thing. I still turn an ordinary singer into a brilliant musician, a plain-looking person into a great beauty. When I’m talking about a dog, a mutt becomes a golden retriever who can juggle. In my family, we see life as a series of grand stories that simply must be populated with larger-than-life characters. The problem is that we can get it wrong, and lose the essence of who a person is. For instance, when a labor union organizer is introduced as the head of a corporation’s labor relations department, he has switched sides. If someone is called the perfect mother, she loses the right to tear her hair out when the baby throws raspberry yogurt across the room. In our grand descriptions, however generously offered, we may strip our characters of the right to be who they really are. We are told that when John the Baptist saw Jesus coming, he declared, “Here is the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world.” Talk about a grand introduction! What could Jesus have felt in that moment? Did he want to say, “Stop. I’m not all that”? Or was he comfortable with the introduction? What John recognized about Jesus was surely something exciting and new. This One is the Lamb of God and the Son of God who will take away sin and baptize with the Holy Spirit. We can recognize him if we actively watch for him. We are able to see Jesus when we put on the mind of Christ. Our active watching is really living as Jesus did: when we see the face of Jesus in the poor and needy; when we reach out a helping hand to those overburdened, when we encourage the discouraged. This is how we remain faithful to the mission God gave us. All this is possible because the Spirit descends upon us too.
Golden Jubilee – 50 Years an Ursuline – Sr. Darla Our Sister Darla Vogelsang is celebrating 50 years as a nun in the Ursulines of Youngstsown. Sr. Darla entered the Ursulines in September 1960 after having graduated from Ursuline High School. She entered the novitiate in August 1961, which is the date for which we mark Jubilee. Sister Darla has had a variety of ministries during her 50 years as an Ursuline: as a teacher at St. Patrick, Youngstown and teacher and principal at Immaculate Conception elementary schools in Youngstown, as a parish minister at Immaculate Conception and Sacred Heart in Youngstown, St. Paul, Canton, and St. Patrick, Hubbard, in service to the Ursulines of Youngstown as a member of the Leadership Team, on the Liturgy Committee and the Retreat Committee. Most recently Sr. Darla was certified as a Catholic Chaplain. It is a kind of “encore career.” She now serves as chaplain for HMHP at St. Elizabeth, Boardman and St.Joseph, Warren. Sister Darla says that “a 50th anniversary for anyone is a hallmark year. It is also an opportunity in prayer, gratitude and celebration to look back at the people and the opportunities that have formed me in religious life. And it’s a celebration of the Ursuline Sisters as well, an opportunity for the community to celebrate the gift of Religious Life in the church.” Congratulations Sister Darla! Ad multos annos.
Be Holy as God is Holy Living with perfectionists can drive us crazy! Not only are they hard on themselves, they are also hard on everyone around them! We tend to avoid perfectionists and perfectionism. When I read our Gospel today and heard Jesus say, “Be perfect just as your heavenly Father is perfect”, I immediately changed perfect from an adjective to a verb! That is, I see “perfect” as a journey to be “holy as God is holy”. The Gospel challenges us to go about living with a greater purpose! Jesus offers us a model for going the extra mile. Jesus looked at the Romans and saw not enemies, but children of God. He saw lepers not as outcasts but as deserving compassion and care. He handed over not his cloak but his very life! In all of these and other ways, Jesus made visible the holiness of God. If we live by the Gospel, we are called to radically readjust how we live. We are called not to be limited in our loving, in our responding to the needs of those around us. The poor, the sick, the needy, the disenfranchised, family members, coworkers, all cry out to us for our love and care. This is how we respond to Jesus’ command to “be perfect”.
An Annual Celebration of Community Ursuline Sisters, Members of the Company of St. Ursula and Associates throughout the world remember their “Mother” and Founder, St. Angela Merici on January 27th each year. In Youngstown, Ohio, the Spirit was alive and well as the entire Community of Sisters and Associates gathered for Mass and Dinner. After Sister Nancy Dawson’s challenging words to us, seven men and women came forward to enthusiastically announce their decision to be associated with the Ursuline Community. The Sisters proudly responded by expressing their intent to share their lives, their prayer and their ministries with the Associates. Angela was among us as we enjoyed each other with hospitality,encouragement and renewed energy.
Beatitude House Twentieth Anniversary Beatitude House began its 20th Anniversary Celebration with a Mass with the Ursuline Sisters and members of its Board of Directors – current and past – on Sunday January 23, 2011 at the Ursuline Motherhouse. Fr. Richard Brobst presided at liturgy while Sister Patricia McNicholas recalled the origins of Beatitude House in her reflection. The story of the beginning of Beatitude House is a lesson in communal discernment for ministry in the lives of Ursuline Sisters today. Sister Margaret Scheetz – Peg, who died in January 2001, was pursuing an advanced degree in computer education at Kent State University in the late 1980s. One day she watched a TV show about a homeless woman and her struggles to keep her family together. That show sparked an idea – could the Ursulines do something for homeless women in Youngstown? Sr. Margaret shared her idea with Sr. Nancy Dawson, General Superior and Sr. Mary O’Leary. Both responded enthusiastically and Peg began immediately: looking for a house and a neighborhood, seeking donations, and seeking workers who could help turn an old house into new apartments for homeless women and their dependent children. Throughout the of the process of bringing an idea into reality, Peg consulted with the community and counted on their prayers for success. Lots of the sisters helped with things like cleaning or gathering donations from friends and family. What began as an idea of a single sister turned into 4 apartments for homeless families, and then 8. Check out the video to get all the details of the numbers of women and children whose lives have been changed by their time at Beatitude House. This is an example of how nuns get things done. First, a sister has an idea to work for the people of God. Second, she shares it with her friends and the leadership of the community. With their approval and support the sister can work to bring that idea into reality.
Behold the Lamb of God When members of my family introduce someone, they always give that person an automatic promotion. If she’s a doctor, they will exaggerate, introducing her as a brilliant surgeon. A teacher’s aide becomes a full professor. I am told that I do the same thing. I still turn an ordinary singer into a brilliant musician, a plain-looking person into a great beauty. When I’m talking about a dog, a mutt becomes a golden retriever who can juggle. In my family, we see life as a series of grand stories that simply must be populated with larger-than-life characters. The problem is that we can get it wrong, and lose the essence of who a person is. For instance, when a labor union organizer is introduced as the head of a corporation’s labor relations department, he has switched sides. If someone is called the perfect mother, she loses the right to tear her hair out when the baby throws raspberry yogurt across the room. In our grand descriptions, however generously offered, we may strip our characters of the right to be who they really are. We are told that when John the Baptist saw Jesus coming, he declared, “Here is the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world.” Talk about a grand introduction! What could Jesus have felt in that moment? Did he want to say, “Stop. I’m not all that”? Or was he comfortable with the introduction? What John recognized about Jesus was surely something exciting and new. This One is the Lamb of God and the Son of God who will take away sin and baptize with the Holy Spirit. We can recognize him if we actively watch for him. We are able to see Jesus when we put on the mind of Christ. Our active watching is really living as Jesus did: when we see the face of Jesus in the poor and needy; when we reach out a helping hand to those overburdened, when we encourage the discouraged. This is how we remain faithful to the mission God gave us. All this is possible because the Spirit descends upon us too.
Pentecost Pentecost! The celebration of… what? Flames on heads? Speaking in tongues? The blessing of the Spirit on individuals? Although Pentecost was originally a festival celebration of the wheat harvest in ancient Israel, and of the giving of the law which defined Israel as a nation, for Christians it is known as the time when the power of the Holy Spirit came upon the disciples, and is sometimes called the birthday of the church. In that sense, Pentecost, which can also refer to the entire 50 days between the resurrection and the coming of the Spirit, is the celebration of the formation of the church as corporate body. Jesus’ promise to send the Holy Spirit to guide his disciples, just before he ascends to heaven, is sealed with the arrival of the Spirit on Pentecost. The Spirit of God has, of course, been present since the beginning of creation, but the event of Pentecost marks the moment when the Spirit works to mediate the presence of the Risen Christ to the church community. Pentecost, then, is more about the corporate body of the church than about the spiritual presence of God to individual believers. The Spirit is now available to guide the church in its mission to bring the Gospel to the world. The effect on the disciples as they receive the Spirit is interesting in this respect. They begin to speak in languages other than their own, with the crowd who gathers hearing the disciples speak in their own language. This is the reversal of what happened with the curse of Babel, which resulted in confusion and lack of understanding between peoples. Rather, at Pentecost, all are made able to understand the message of the Gospel, and are drawn into the church through the power and understanding given by the Spirit. What should this mean for us today, as a people of the Spirit? By this indwelling of the Spirit, we ourselves become advocates of God’s presence for others. It maybe as simple as a reassuring touch or a helping hand. It might be a sacrifice of time in volunteering for a task that needs to be done for the good of all. In all, we are called to die to ourselves in order to be the true presence of Christ for others.
How I Proclaim the Gospel Each year the Ursuline Sisters commit themselves to ministry, the Youngstown Ursuline’s do this around the feast of St. Angela in January of each year. The following is a reflection written about the importance of ministry as it is connected to Jesus’ teaching. “Home,” the poet Robert Frost wrote “‘is where when you go there, they have to take you in.” As Ursulines, we would say that our home is in the “heart of God.” When we live there, we are unconditionally embraced by love and acceptance. However, God’s home is within each of us and among us. So there is ongoing communication between our home and God’s home; our heart and God’s heart. I have always thought of ministry as a call from the heart of God, a call to share what I have received from God’s heart. For me, ministry is always, where God is asking me to create a “home,” a space where others can recognize and continue to be attracted to God. However, I also firmly believe that ministry, is God’s work. God is asking for my heart to be so open, so transparent, like a clear pane of glass, that God’s light can shine through me and reflect God’s love. So how then, do I, as a minister, proclaim this “Good News of God’s Love in Canfield Ohio in 2010 ? I also believe that in the New Testament Jesus teaches us how to minister – we are asked to watch Jesus and imitate him: 1. Jesus was first and foremost a presence to others, so I need to be with “the other” as a presence, as a companion on the journey. 2. I find when others were with Jesus, they felt “at home.” So in ministry I need to be attentive to creating community so that others can also be “at home.” 3. Jesus nourished others, he taught the importance of being fed. So I am called to provide nourishment for others, in a vast variety of ways. 4. Any reading of the gospel uncovers the generosity of Jesus, always the abundance, whether in the story of the loaves and fishes, or the wedding feast at Cana. So I too am called to reflect this sense of abundance, always the more in ministry. 5. Finally, Jesus gave his life for the people; he gave of himself in Eucharist. So I am called too, to empty myself, to give, and give some more, to go the extra mile and not count the cost. Obviously, all of this is done in very human situations, in the simple here and now. The poster that was created for the 400th anniversary of the Ursulines entitled “Angela: A Woman For All Times” hangs several places in the Motherhouse and is a reminder when I read the two lines of writing on it that it is always the wedding of contemplation and action – prayer and apostolic ministry that results in proclaiming the good news of God’s love in this contemporary church. Another poet, this time an anonymous one, uses different images and metaphors to express how to proclaim the gospel. The poet writes:. “The most visible creators I know of are those artists whose medium is life itself.They neither paint nor sculpt- their medium is being. Whatever their presence touches has increased life. They are the artists of being alive.” We Ursulines know how to make others “feel at home” we are the “artists of being alive” and we have learned all this at the feet of the master.
Happy 15th Anniversary of the Cafe The Ursuline Sisters Ministry to people with HIV/AIDS began in 1993 with a monthly support group. The following year we started to distribute pantry bags on the 3rd Saturday of the month, and in 1995 we decided we needed to bring people together for a longer period of time to have an opportunity to talk and share and visit in a safe environment. At that same time, one of our volunteers suggested that we feed people since not many of them were cooking on a regular basis. That was the impetus for launching the monthly Café which soon became a monthly community. In February of 1995 we held our first Café where the volunteers served dinner to our 25 guests! In November of 1995 we provided each of our Café guests with a complete Thanksgiving dinner, and have done holiday basket food distribution for Thanksgiving, Christmas and Easter from then on. The Café has served 180 meals since 1995; we have never missed a month and the number of guests continues to grow. We now provide bags to an average of 65 households, and a sit-down meal to 130 men, women and children. In the last fifteen years we have been blessed with wonderful volunteers who work hard to provide the food, cook it and get the auditorium and the bags ready, as well as many groups, churches and individuals who have gifted us with food and a variety of donations that we distribute each month.
Blessed Are You My nephew was about to “graduate” from kindergarten. He put on his paper mortarboard and marched with his class to the stage. As he received his “diploma”, Jason shook hands with his teacher. After the ceremony, we each said “Congratulations.” Jason looked at us and asked, “What does that mean?” His mom and dad answered, “Good job!” That answer worked for a five year old! While this may be sufficient for a five year old, sometimes something deeper is intended. If we look at the Latin – “congratulations” means “to be pleased with” or “graced with.” When we offer our congratulations, we are saying we rejoice with the other and it expresses a relationship. The Beatitudes in our Gospel today announce God’s pleasure in and relationship to the poor, to those who are excluded and hated. With the Beatitudes, Luke highlights God’s generosity. Luke seems to be exalting the downtrodden simply because they are downtrodden, and “cursing” the comfortable simply because they are comfortable. What really is at the heart of this Gospel is the manner of life that makes present God’s reign of love. Jesus asks of us today to become people willing to feel our needs and to depend on God. Then we will also be open to our neighbor, to receive and to give. It is our relationship with God that motivates us to live the blessings that are given to us. And it is our relationship with God that motivates us to reach out to others. The model for this type of relationship is Jesus himself.
Encountering God’s Word In January, when we celebrate Martin Luther King Jr.’s birthday, we always see a clip of his famous “I Have a Dream” speech. Each time I see that clip, I am moved and challenged by what he said. The power of his words comes from the integrity of what he said, how he lived, and what he called us to. Martin Luther King, Jr. is a model for us of a response by word and deed to the challenge Jesus gives us in today’s Gospel. Jesus proclaims a reading from the prophet Isaiah to the people in the Nazareth synagogue. The hearers must have heard, for after Jesus’ proclamation, they looked intently at him. What were they expecting? An explanation of what they heard? Yes, but Jesus moves them beyond the mere words to an encounter of him as the Word of God made flesh. The people of Nazareth, heard God’s word and encountered God’s word in the very person of Jesus. In Jesus, the Word is action fulfilled, for in him God’s plan of love is enfleshed in his care and compassion for the poor, the captives, the blind, the oppressed – anyone who came to him. Now we – our own lives- announce the meaning of the word proclaimed and enfleshed. The poor we encounter today include not only those who lack material necessities but also those without inner satisfaction. The imprisoned are not only those in cells but also those imprisoned by their fears. The blind are not only those who cannot physically see but are those who fail to see their human dignity. Like Jesus, we are sent to bring glad tidings to all we encounter, not simply by uttering words but by actions that change the world around us.
Baptized by the Holy Spirit and Fire In preparing adults to be received into the Catholic Church, we spend a great deal of time talking about the Holy Spirit in our lives. Several years ago, one of our catechumens asked, “What, really, is the Holy Spirit’s fire?” I answered, ” We have several expressions that might give us a hint: a coach works with a team to get them all fired up, your boss tries to light a fire under your staff to undertake a new project; someone intent on a mission has a fire in the belly.” “All these expressions,” I said, “point to commitment, intensity, energy, a drive toward a goal. Our baptism is meant to instill in us all this commitment, this energy as well.” Our Gospel today tells us who we are and how we have been gifted. Our Baptism transforms us and confers on us a mission. By Baptism, we are The Body of Christ entrusted with cooperating with the Holy Spirit in making present God’s love by which the world is saved and renewed. We are missioned to a Gospel way of life. Taking our Baptism seriously means that the ritual is just the beginning of a lifetime of living for God and for God’s people.
Emmanuel-God With Us Several years ago, I was leading the Children’s Liturgy of the Word on this feast of Christmas. As we were reflecting on this feast, one of the children asked me, “Sister, were the shepherds any different after they visited Jesus?” For years, that question has stayed with me. It didn’t take much for the shepherds to abandon their sheep and follow up on a strange message of angels! They saw the infant for themselves and then “they returned glorifying and praising God.” To whom or to what did they return? And were they changed because of their encounter with Christ? Did they return to their sheep? To their former way of a shepherding life? Maybe to some shepherds who didn’t go with them? In trying to answer that child’s question, I said they returned with a difference. Their encounter with this infant stirred in their hearts and changed their lives forever. We,too, are changed by our encounters with this Savior born to us. We are changed when we recognize and respond to this divine encounter. We encounter the Savior in the sick and suffering to whom we extend a healing hand, in the child who needs moral guidance, in a parent who needs an encouraging word, in a lonesome youth who needs a friend. And their presence changes our lives. Emmanuel not only came at a specific moment in history; Emmanuel is among us at all time. Even more, we are to make Emmanuel present.
Sister Kathleen Minchin was awarded the 5th Annual Ohio Department of Health 2009 Consortium Leadership Award ”] Sister Kathleen Minchin was awarded the 5th Annual Ohio Department of Health 2009 Consortium Leadership Award for her dedication to HIV community planning. In the words of the award presenter, “She offers hope and healing to all those she serves and does so with compassion, grace and humble commitment. Simply put, the gifts she has shared with those in the Youngstown area are immeasurable.” Congratulations Kathleen.
What should we do? Being cooped up in the house as a child was more challenging to my mother than to my brother, sister and me. We kept chanting, “What should we do?” and my mother had to stop her work and be an activities director! Sometimes, my dad would pull a tube out of our TV and we cried, “What should we do?” He forced us to find something to do inside that was as interesting and as wide open as the outdoors. “What should we do?” has a set of expectations – if what we do is to be satisfying, it must fulfill our expectations and involve more than what we are doing right now. In our Gospel today, the same question is asked. And John’s answer doesn’t focus on accomplishments, rather, on relationships. The good news preached by John is that our relationship with others makes visible our relationship with Jesus. Just like John, our lives are about others. John turns the question into “How shall we be?” We are called to be the presence of Christ in the world. We are called to be just and loving toward each other. Or still yet, the question is replaced by “Who shall we be?” We are called to be Christ for each other.
Home For The Holidays Shelia Triplett, Director of Transitional Housing at Beatitude House, welcomed six families to the new apartments in Warren, House of Blessing. The new addition at 1370 Tod Ave. includes 6 apartments, a computer/classroom, a children’s playroom and offices for staff. Beatitude House is committed to serving disadvantaged women and children in the Mahoning Valley. By creating homes, providing educational opportunities and fostering healthy families, they provide women with the opportunity to transform their lives. Shelia has been on the staff of Beatitude House since 2007 and most recently she has the responsibility of working with 29 families who are residents at one of three Beatitude House locations. Shelia works with staff in overseeing the multi-faceted program which includes case work, counseling, parenting, budgeting, and studying. Shelia brings such a positive but firm support to the women as they strive to build better lives. Her sense of humor and warm presence is just what the mothers need. Shelia says “Working at Beatitude House is the most fulfilling professional experience I’ve ever had. I am blessed to work in a place that gives women and children roots and wings: roots that provide safe housing and a positive environment and wings to reach higher than they ever dreamed possible, creating a better life for themselves and their children” In addition to serving on the staff with four Ursuline Sisters, the Ursuline Community is privileged to have Shelia’s presence among them as an Ursuline Associate. She is so positive and open and affirming. As an Associate she participates in community gatherings throughout the year and joins with all Sisters and Associates for special days and events.
“Don’t Ever Loose Your Sense of Humor” Ursuline Sister, Sister Lois Walter, has been serving among the people of Youngstown for the past 14 years as a chaplain at Forum Health Northside Medical Center. She visits the patients in their rooms, spends time with them and prays with them. She is makes her patients laugh. You can often hear her say ” Don’t ever loose your sense of humor”. Lois also prepares the communion list and communicates with the parishes. Sister Lois is a strong presence of among the medical staff where she offers support and hope. As noted recently in the Vindicator she accompanied fifty nurses in their rally at the Nathaniel R. Jones Federal Building. The nurses wanted to give a message to the Board to go forward with the reorganization of the Medical Center. Sister Lois was asked to deliver the prayer on this occasion. Sister Lois was part of the staff at St. Edward Paris for several years as a pastoral minister and she is still a friendly face as she welcomes people and participates in the roles of lector and Eucharistic Minister. Among the Ladies of Charity, Sister Lois attends quarterly meetings where she offers a reflection. This group of Catholic women raises money and gives to charity. Their annual fundraisers are the Christmas Party which will be Dec. 14 and “Green Tea” in the Spring. A native of Massilion, Ohio, Sister Lois served at St. Joan of Arc Parish in Canton for 33 years before moving to Youngstown. She was a teacher and Religious Education Coordinator. At home among theSisters at the Ursuline Motherhouse or wherever her day takes her, Sister Lois is a positive witness of what it means to live a consecrated life as an Ursuline Sister today. Her smile reflects her inner spirit of peace and joy.
My Kingdom Does Not Belong to This World Since most of us have never lived in a kingdom and have no experience of relating to a king, our notion of kings and kingdoms tends to be along the lines of Camelot. A grand dream for a kingdom of this world. This feast we celebrate today, and its readings, hardly take us to this kind of kingdom. The Gospel is part of a dialogue between Jesus and Pilate at Jesus’ trial. Hardly Camelot! On this last Sunday of the liturgical year, we see that Jesus’ kingdom is not of this world. Nor is his kingdom a special place, but an interior identity defined by our relationship with Christ the King. This Sunday we celebrate a King whose presence and power we have experienced. Jesus’ kingdom exists wherever we embody Jesus’ manner of acting and relating, whenever the Spirit of Jesus is the rule of life. Our lives are totally about the good of the other. We enter into Jesus’ Kingdom when we proclaim, by word and service that Jesus is Lord of all. This kingdom does not belong to this world but it is meant to transform this world.
Sister Mary Lee Nalley’s Contribution to “The Immaculate” Sister Mary Lee Nalley has served Immaculate Conception Parish since 1972. She started teaching in the grade school and eventually became the pastoral minister. As pastoral minister, Sister Mary Lee coordinates the schedules for Lectors, Extraordinary Ministers of the Eucharist and servers. Her ministry also includes being an Extraordinary Minister of the Eucharist to the homebound and issuing vouchers for the Saint Vincent de Paul Food Pantry. As Sister Mary Lee reflects on her ministry at “The Immaculate”, she recalls: “I have a long history with “The Immaculate”, first as a parishioner and now as a pastoral minister. As I sit in the church pew, I am reminded of how my time here matches my journey of faith. I think of Paul’s letter to the Corinthians: ‘When I was a child, I used to talk as a child, think as a child, reason as a child; when I became an adult, I put aside childish things.’ The parish represents my ever growing relationship with God and the people of God. I serve here as a servant of God, living out the love God has shown me.” “I have witnessed the baptisms, marriages and funerals of many from “The Immaculate”. My role, as I see it, is to accompany them on their journey of faith, not as a leader but as a fellow traverler.” As an Ursuline Sister and daughter of Saint Angela Merici, all that Sister Mary Lee is and all that she does is for the Glory of God alone.
Being the Face of Christ There is a legend which recounts the return of Jesus to glory after his time on earth. He bore the marks of his cruel cross and shameful death. The angel Gabriel approached him and asked, “Master, do they know all about how you loved them and what you did for them?” “No,” replied Jesus, “not yet. Right now only a handful of people in Palestine know.” Gabriel was perplexed. “Then what have you done to let everyone know about your love for them?” Jesus said, “I’ve asked Peter, James, John, Mary, Martha and a few others to tell people about me. Those who are told will tell others, and my story will be spread throughout the earth. Ultimately, all humankind will know about my love.” Gabriel frowned and looked rather skeptical. He well knew what poor stuff humans were made of. He said, “But what if Peter denies you again? What if they all run away again in the face of opposition? What if Peter and James and John grow weary? What if the people who come after them forget? What if way down in the twenty-first century people just don’t tell others about you? Do you have another plan?” Jesus answered, “No. I’m counting on them.” It is centuries later and God still has no other plan. In our gospel, Jesus describes for us an intimate and inexplicable relationship which calls us to be in communion with one another. As members of a community, we are called to attend to those beyond ourselves. We are called to be the face of Christ for each other.