Abbey-Roads2

Pictured, Blessed Charles De Foucauld, Archetypal-founder of the Little Brothers of Jesus.

Little Brother Charles of Jesus was a Trappist in France and longed for a poorer life lived with the poorest of the poor. He left the security of monastic life and ended up in the Sahara as a hermit, living amongst the Tuareg people as a silent presence in imitation of Jesus of Nazareth, the same Jesus of the Eucharist. He was murdered by Islamic extremists of his day, around 1906 I believe, leaving only a rule of life as a legacy, but no religious brothers. They would come later.

Blessed Mother Teresa of Calcutta did a similar thing, leaving the Loretto Sisters, only she saw the phenomenal growth of her order in her own lifetime. Yet she too was called to the poorest of the poor, to live like them, sharing their poverty and circumstances; her Sisters still do.

In the past 25 years or so, many others seem to have been called to found their own religious orders or hermitages. Many seem to have similar ‘calls’ - and many seem to have been called to found Carmelite hermitages specifically. There is a proliferation of so-called ‘new orders’ following the primitive rule of Carmel, the Rule of St. Albert, or something similar. In Minnesota alone I know of at least 5 or 6 different groups - all independent of one another, all claiming to be Carmelite. I assume they may do that canonically, with the local Ordinary’s permission. At various times in the history of the Church this has happened, the emergence of numerous and varied religious orders, the Church supressed some, forced others to join established orders, but they eventually reigned them in. Yet now in the United States we witnes hermitages scattered all over the country, in addition to new orders. What is going on?

I know of three hermitages of nuns - or is it nun? - one hermitage only has 1 nun but she sends out her newsletters and fund appeals using the plural - ’sisters’ - as in “The Sisters are grateful for your support.” I know of another woman who lives on her parent’s property. (Catherine of Sienna did that.) The ones I know of are women that tried their vocation in established monasteries and left them for reasons only they are privy to. They wanted their own order and so they started one - or took over for someone else who started it up but moved on. They usually earn their living by some art work, like painting icons, and then of course, retreats. They call themselves hermits - but the enclosure thing doesn’t work very well when you’re alone. You have to go out. In fact, they usually worry a lot about how they are going to earn a living - kind of a distraction for a contemplative.

In Lake Elmo one group of male hermits has survived the test of time - at least 20 years or so. They are half finished building a beautiful monastery enclosure and they live a truly monastic-eremetic life. I tried to download pictures from their website but everything is encrypted to prevent copying. Fr. John Mary, the Prior is a sharp businessman. (His Dad, amazingly, also started a Carmelite group and has a retreat place somewhere outside the Twin Cities!) Fr. John Mary has vocations at his Carmel of the Blessed Virgin Mary. He was also recently affiliated to the Carmelites of the Primitive Observance becoming an official part of their Congregation. This may have resultd in one of the other priests moving back to his home State of Colorado to begin his own hermitage, based more upon the Teresian reform…he is now building a monstery and it looks like he’s getting vocations.

In Minneapolis there is a priest who has another group of Carmelites, they explain that theirs is a contemplative life. There are two priests who do diocesan work, albeit at two different parishes, while the 3 or 4 other ‘lay’ brothers work regular jobs by day and live in community by night and weekend. But they are just contemplatives, no external apostolate to speak of.

In St. Paul there are Franciscans whose founder took inspiration from another Franciscan group in Boston. Again, the foundations were loosely based on the Little Brothers of Jesus and the Missionaries of Charity, yet adopting the St. Francis Rule for Hermitages to their own circumstances. The Boston group has never been successful, although Br. Jim has hung on. He also advertizes in a similar fashion to the hermitess I spoke about. However, our local group seems to have a successful apostolate while maintaining a fervent religious life.

So what is the deal? Are the established orders so decadent or so out of touch that they cannot attract vocations? Or, when there clearly are very good communities of Religious from established Orders, and people leave them to found their own - based upon the rule of the Order they left - is it just idiosyncratic spirituality at work? Are these people perhaps seeking themselves in God instead of God’s will in themselves? I mean how do you know these are authentic vocations? I just wonder sometimes. I guess only time will tell, as an old monk once told me, “the only true monk is a dead monk.” It’s kind of like saying, “Blessed are they who die in the Lord.”

It is Joseph Poole!
He is the next Coadjutor!
He’s been kissed by
two Popes you know.
He is coming back
in July!

The new Coadjutor?

What was your reaction when you discovered that the Church was calling you to serve as a bishop?
On May 31, 2001, Archbishop Chaput called me from Las Vegas. He was there for the ordination of Bishop Joseph Pepe. “I need to talk with you,” he said. When we later sat down together, we began by talking about the seminary. When we finished, he looked at me and said, “Now for the real reason I called you over here. The Holy Father has called you to become the coadjutor bishop of Fargo, North Dakota.” I am not usually at a loss for words, but my response was one of total silence. He looked at me and said, “You’re not responding.” And I said, “No.” He said, “I’m serious; I’m not joking.” And I said, “I realize that. That’s why I’m not responding.” The first thing that ran through my mind was that my life has changed forever. The reality of giving my life totally to the Church became even more real. I was going to be taken somewhere I really didn’t know. I sensed a strong call to obedience in a way that I never experienced it before. After prayer, I could see the providence of God in it. In the fall of 2000, I had been the speaker for the clergy days up in Fargo. So at least I had visited North Dakota once prior to being assigned there as bishop! This was God’s way of preparing the way for me.

How would you describe your goals in North Dakota?
My primary goal is getting to know the people of the diocese I am called to serve. I am very impressed with the depth of their faith and their commitment to the dignity of human life and the family. One can sense in them a great love for the Church.My priorities include evangelization and encouraging participation in the sacraments – especially the Eucharist and Penance. These two sacraments instill within us a deep sense, that no matter what vocation we are living, each of us is called to holiness and to bring the presence of Christ into the world. (taken from: The Weight of Glory)

Sittin’ around waitin’ for the name.

So - I saw nothing in the Vatican Press release today - no nominations for Minnesota. Many people are saying they know who it is but they aren’t sharing the information. A very reputable priest told me that when letters are sent out about nominees for a post, the person filling out the questionaire is bound to secrecy under pain of excommunication. So it is not likely someone is going to divulge who it is before the Archdiocese anounces it. I also believe the local Archdiocese announces it before the Vatican does. It may be likened to the third secret of Fatima - before it was revealed everyone speculated about it’s contents and many were dissapointed it did not fit in with their own predictions - it will be the same way in this case. (But if anyone knows - will you tell me first so I can get the scoop? Thanks!)