Assisi in October, 2018

Basilica of St. Francis of Assisi

We arrived in Assisi about 3:30 pm  at the train station with the sun shining and our hearts set on spending some time in peace and quiet in the beautiful basilica of St. Francis. Our cab driver had very efficiently brought us to the Istituto Beata Angelina  directly across from the basilica. It is a convent run by the Sisters of the Third Order of Blessed Angelina. Our room looks directly onto the church and the beautiful sweeping landscape to the right and the left of it. The sight fills the soul with beauty and great hope.

A short while after resting we walked to the basilica to take in the sights. We were there with hundreds of others who wish to see this magnificent church and pray to St. Francis. For us it was too busy, too distracting. Somewhere I had read that between 9 and 10 in the evening, there would be silent prayer in the chapel of St. Francis' tomb in the crypt church. It sounded almost too good to be true. I confirmed it with one of the information friars who staff the basilica.

Chapel and tomb of St. Francis

Later that evening, we descended the steep walkway to the lower church and then to St. Francis' tomb. There were, perhaps 40 pilgrims like ourselves who were looking for peace and quiet, to pray in silence at this most magnificent and spiritually significant location. A location which honors a disciple of the Lord's who at His request began repairing His Church which had all too sadly fallen into disrepair. It was a grace-filled time of quiet prayer. All the large groups of pilgrims had left the basilica, only a handful of us were there in the silence. One beautiful family with six children from about a few months old to 14 years prayed quietly - except the baby who gurgled and giggled a bit. The rest of us represented young, middle age and old - couples, religious sisters, priests, and singles - praying quietly, experiencing the gift of being in the presence of the Eucharistic Lord and honoring his faithful disciple, St. Francis.

St. Faustina and 7 Secrets of Divine Mercy

October 5 is the feast day of St. Faustina, the Polish religious sister who Jesus appeared to with the message of Divine Mercy. These private revelations were made over a number of years in the 1920s and 30s and are recorded in the Diary of Sister Faustina. The revelations are approved by the Church. They are powerful words by Jesus of His great and merciful love of the human race and His desire to offer each and every soul the means to save their souls. St. Faustina was the Lord's messenger of the Divine Mercy message. She is called the Apostle of Divine Mercy.

Vinny Flynn is the author of the 7 Secrets of Divine Mercy. Flynn is a writer, teacher, and musician who has given many talks and written numerous books as he traveled throughout the U.S. and Ireland sharing the message of Divine Mercy.  His book, 7 Secrets of Divine Mercy, is a reflection on the divine mercy message which draws on Flynn's many years of teaching and sharing the message with others. I have written a review of this book which you can find here, https://www.hprweb.com/2018/06/early-summer-book-reviews/

The message given to St. Faustina is one which Our Lord said would bring the world peace when we learn to trust in His Divine Mercy. St. Faustina was given to us as a messenger and now as an intercessor. Let us pray to her that we may trust in the Divine Mercy of Jesus and bring our sad and chaotic world the peace it needs. "Jesus I trust in you."

Mardi Gras Gumbo 2018

CAJUN CHICKEN AND ANDOUILLE GUMBO

This is the Gumbo when it is ready to eat!

Below are pictures of the Gumbo in process. The 

recipe follows at the end.

Place whole chicken in pot.

This is the Tony Chacherie seasoning. I ordered it on Amazon.

The Andouille sausage browning. I purchased them at Harris Teeter.

This is my roux from 2017. The roux I made this year was darker. You can see the pictures of it on Facebook.

The onions, peppers and celery added to 2017 roux.

The Gumbo simmering on the stove!

RECIPE FOR CAJUN CHICKEN AND ANDOUILLE GUMBO

INGREDIENTS

1 large onion (chopped)

1 large green bell pepper (chopped)

1 rib of celery (chopped)

4 stalks green onion (chopped)

Tony Chackerie seasoning 1 1/2 tablespoons, or salt, red pepper and garlic powder to taste

1 whole chicken

1 pound Andouille sausage (smoked beef also works)

Roux

3/4 cup of flour

1 cup vegetable oil or butter - (NO MARGARINE OR OTHER KIND OF OIL)

Chicken Stock

In a pot (at least 5 quart), place whole chicken and heat 2 or 3 quarts of water to a boil and add seasoning - either Tony Chackerie seasoning or salt, red pepper and garlic powder. Boil the chicken until you can remove the meat from the bones. Keep the liquid as your stock. Remove the meat and return the meat into the stock. Discard the skin and bones. Return the stock to a slow boil.

Chop onion, pepper, celery and green onions before you begin making the roux. The roux must be stirred constantly to keep it from burning, so there are no free hands to chop the ingredients then.

While the chicken is on a slow boil, prepare the roux.

In a skillet, heat the oil or butter until a pinch of flour tossed in sizzles.

Gradually add the flour and stir constantly, using a wooden spoon.

Continue to stir until the roux  is a dark caramel color. 

Turn off the heat and add the chopped onion, bell pepper, and celery. Save the green onions for later. Stir thoroughly for a few minutes. This cooks the seasonings and cools the roux. Then set aside.

Slice the Andouille sausage in thin circles and brown in a skillet for a few minutes. Add to the chicken stock.

Add roux mixture and green onions and stir thoroughly and cook for 25 minutes, minimum. I cook mine for hours. The longer you cook the Gumbo, the better it tastes.

Serve over rice and sprinkle with file, if you have it. File is a seasoning made from dried and ground sassafras leaves. You can purchase it online. I have not used it, but I think I will try it next year!

ENJOY

St. Marianne Cope, January 23, Generous Soul in the Lord's Vineyard

Painting in the Cathedral Basilica
of Our Lady of Peace

I love this feast day for many reasons. St. Marianne Cope, OSF, was German-born but came to the United States with her parents when she was just a year old, 1839. The family settled in New York where she was educated to the eighth grade, worked to support the family when her father became an invalid, and then entered religious life at age twenty-four. She was a very capable woman who spent most of her religious life working in the medical field. Eventually, she became the Superior General of the Sisters of St. Francis of Syracuse.

As Superior General of the Congregation, in 1883 she received a request from the King of Hawaii to send religious sisters to help in the work with lepers. Fr. Damien of Molokai was already there and had been devoting himself to the lepers for many years, having arrived in Hawaii in 1864 as a young, not yet ordained, Roman Catholic seminarian.

Sister Marianne Cope's affirmative response was the first to over fifty requests the King had sent out. All the other Orders declined to send sisters to help with the mission to the lepers. Later that year, she and five other sisters traveled by boat to Honolulu. They were greeted with open arms and set to work immediately in helping with the medical needs of lepers on the island of Oahu. Later, Mother Marianne Cope was sent to the island of Maui to set-up a hospital there. She returned to Oahu a year later only to find the administrator in charge of the hospital for the lepers abusing them. She insisted either he be fired, or she and the sisters would return to New York. The administrator was fired, and the sisters continued to serve the lepers.

Sister Marianne Cope responded to the needs of the lepers and their families in many ways. She established schools and orphanages for the children. The need on Molokai was great. Father Damien was dying. He had contracted leprosy. He was assisted in his work by a lay volunteer, Joseph Dutton, a devout and tireless worker for the lepers, but more help was needed. Sister Marianne was asked to set-up a home for women and girls on Molokai. She had always intended to return to New York, the home of her religious order and the home of her family. With grace and good will she responded as she always had to God's every invitation to give of herself generously and unselfishly. "We will cheerfully accept the work."

She cared for St. Damien in his dying months and then was asked by the government to take charge of Molokai.  Under her direction,  her religious sisters, Joseph Dutton, and the religious community of the Sacred Heart brothers continued the work so faithfully and unselfishly established by Fr. Damien.

In 1918, Mother Marianne Cope died of natural causes. Blessedly none of her sisters ever contracted leprosy. She was canonized in October 2012 by Pope Benedict XVI. Her remains are interred in the Basilica of the Cathedral of Our Lady of Peace, where Fr. Damien was ordained, in Honolulu, Hawaii.

She remains in my mind an outstanding example of feminine generosity. Mother Marianne Cope was not able to finish her own education but went to work to support her family. She worked until her siblings were old enough to support themselves. She then entered religious life, a calling she had put off for many years. A capable and experienced worker, she proved herself worthy of the office of Superior General of her order. Administering her order well in New York, she generously responded to the needs of the leper mission in Hawaii. Again, she administered the work that she was given to do in Hawaii and was invited to take on more responsibility. Not thinking of herself, she remained in Hawaii until her death. Why? Because she was needed. She gave her all for the mission, for the love of Christ in the lepers, an amazing woman in my estimation.

St. Marianne Cope, pray for us!