The
Community
at
Prayer
Reflection
by
Father
Paul
M.
Baca
October
11,
2009,
28th
Sunday
in
Ordinary
Time
For
as
long
as
I
can
remember
the
gospel
for
today
from
St.
Mark
has
provided
me
with
a
challenge
to
reflect
on
my
faith
and
what
it
really
means
to
me.
It
is
so
easy
to
get
caught
up
in
the
rules
and
externals
of
the
faith
that
you
do
not
take
advantage
of
the
wonderful
challenges
provided
for
us
in
the
Word
of
God.
The
question
directed
to
Jesus,
"Good
teacher,
what
must
I
do
to
inherit
eternal
life?"
provides
for
us
that
point
of
reference
as
to
what
it
means
to
be
a
Christian
and
a
Catholic.
The
answer
that
Jesus
gives,
"Why
do
you
call
me
good?
No
one
is
good
but
God
alone.
You
know
the
commandments
...
"
He
replied
and
said
to
him,
"All
of
these
I
have
observed
from
my
youth."
Jesus
looking
at
him
loved
him
and
said
to
him,
"You
are
lacking
on
one
thing.
Go
sell
what
you
have
and
give
to
the
poor
...
then
come
back
and
follow
me."
This gospel reminds me of Mother Theresa and her life's story, how she went from the former Yugoslavia to Calcutta as a teaching nun serving mostly the middle class. Some say that it was from that school through a window that she was made aware of the many who lived and died in the street with no one to care for them. She quickly decided to leave the comfortable life of a teacher and go directly out into the streets to minister to the dying. I have always found it surprising that she founded her ministry providing for the dying clean places to dig with dignity. From there she went on to extend her ministry in serving the poor throughout the world and surprisingly it seemed she always found many vocations ready to help her. Of course by the time of her death she was well known throughout the world, not only by people of faith but even many who did not profess any faith.
On October 11 the pope will be canonizing another nun who dedicated her life in serving the poor and never in life did she attain any notoriety. I would like to quote from an article in NCR, "The once banished and forgotten foundress of the Little Sisters of the Poor, Jeanne Jugan, will be canonized by Pope Benedict XV October 11, receiving the fullness of recognition she was denied in life. Instead of carrying the pain that could fittingly be associated with the isolation that she suffered for the last quarter century of her life, the Little Sisters see it as an example of humility and hiddenness which they now embrace as the charisms of their order. Meanwhile more than 2,700 Little Sisters who care for some 13,000 needy elderly in 202 residences worldwide, 31 in the United States, are ecstatic. A delegation of some 4,000 persons admirers, staffers and others touched by the work of these women are expected in St. Peter's Square in Rome for the celebration. They will be standing shoulder to veil with the 200 sisters chosen to be at hand for the festivities by chance, one from each of the needy elderly homes. While undeniably pleased, they will be harboring quiet hope that Benedict will name their foundress a patron of the elderly.
When
I
read
such
a
story
right
away
I
wonder,
How
did
it
all
start?
I
continue
from
the
article,
"As
the
Little
Sisters
tell
the
story,
Jugan
was
born
in
a
small
town
in
France
in
1792
and
grew
up
poor.
As
a
young
girl
she
earned
money
knitting
and
working
as
a
kitchen
maid,
and
later
as
a
servant.
Later
in
life
at
age
47,
Jugan
took
a
blind
and
infirm
elderly
woman,
Ann
Chauvin,
into
the
modest
apartment
she
shared
with
another
woman.
Jugan
gave
up
her
bed,
moving
into
the
attic.
The
act
of
kindness
lead
to
others
and
soon
other
women
were
sharing
similar
kindnesses
helping
the
elderly
poor.
Generous
young
women
came
to
help.
Like
Jeanne,
they
wanted
to
make
a
difference.
Like
her,
they
believed
that
the
poor
are
the
Lord."
I was reminded of the Vatican inquisition of U.S. women religious as I continued reading the article, "A priest, Father Auguste Pailleur, had been spiritual adviser for two of the sisters and through them, gained a foothold in the community. Then on December 23, 1843, just weeks after the women had reelected Jugan, Fr. Pailleur on his own authority declared the election void, designating a 23-yr.-old Sister Marie Jamet as a new mother general. Still not satisfied with his authority in the order, he declared himself father general and took total control. Pailleur assigned Jugan to begging for aid. Additionally, Pailleur began falsifying documents to state that he had founded the Little Sisters ... so relegated did Jugan eventually become, that younger sisters entering the order had no idea the woman living in the shadows of the mother house for the last 27 years of her life, was the founder. She died in oblivion and the canonization has given a sense that she is finally gaining a rightful place and the elderly are getting the honor they deserve.
The story of Sister Jeanne Jugan brought to mind the many, many unsung heroines who to such a great extent gave strength to the church by making possible our many parochial schools, our hospitals, and so much more. I keep wondering how many of them were ever acknowledged for he wonderful service they rendered to our church and to our country.