NUNS TO THE STARS

 

It never ceases to amaze me how many women of the past were great contributors to science, the arts and other fields, but only now are receiving recognition.  Of late we find four nuns who were recruited by the Vatican to measure and map stars from plate-glass photographs. They cataloged the brightness and locations of almost half a million stars during their years of hard work.

SISTER EMILIA PONZONI (1883-1950) was born in Milan and entered the Sisters of the Child Mary in 1905. SISTER REGINA COLOMBO (1885-1953) born in Bergamo, entered the order in 1907, SISTER CONCETTA FINARDI (1896-1975), also born in Bergamo, entered in 1916, and SISTER LUIGIA PANCERI, born in Milan, (1893-1982) entered in 1915.

All four sisters were originally expected to work as nurses. However, at the request of Jesuit Father John Hagen, who had previously headed the observatory at Georgetown University, USA, they joined the Vatican Observatory's star mapping project in the early 1900s.  The nuns worked between 1909 and 1929, and their discoveries were published in a 10-volume catalog. 

In 1909, Father Hagen approached the Superior General of the Suore di Maria Bambini, as he needed "two sisters with normal eyesight, patience and an aptitude for methodical and mechanical work". With reservations on the part of the General Council of the order, which specialized in nursing and education, two and later four sisters were sent.

And while the sisters were received and honored by Popes Benedict XV (1914-1922) and Pius XI (1922 to 1939), their work fell into oblivion.

Father Sabino Maffeo, a Jesuit priest who works at the Vatican Observatory, found their names while organizing papers for the archives. Today, the project to which the nuns contributed is as obscure as the nuns themselves, but at the time it was one of the largest scientific undertakings in history.

In honor of their accomplishments, Vatican Observatory astronomers suggested asteroids be named after them.  All were approved and now have stars named for them.

The asteroids are named: (627981) Ponzoni, (634659) Colombo, (709193) Concettafinardi, and (714305) Panceri.

HEART OF JESUS

 

Tomorrow, October 24, Pope Francis will release his fourth encyclical.“DILEXIT NOS” - Encyclical Letter on the Human and Divine Love of the Heart of Jesus Christ,” centers around the SACRED HEART of JESUS.  Its release coincides with the 350th anniversary of the apparitions of St. Margaret Mary Alacoque (1673)  that led to devotions  to the Sacred Heart of Jesus. These apparitions, which took place at the convent of Paray-le-Monial in Burgundy, continued for 17 years.

During these apparitions, Jesus revealed His heart, which was crowned with thorns and surrounded by flames. He gave St Margaret Marythe mission  to share His love, especially, His love for sinners. 

In 1956 Pope Pius XII, wrote his own encyclical on the devotion, Haurietis aquas, which emphasized the devotion's importance for the Church's needs and its potential as a “banner of salvation” for the modern world. 

Pope Benedict XVI, in a letter commemorating the 50th anniversary of Haurietis Aquas, reinforced this sentiment, saying, “This mystery of God's love for us is not only the content of devotion to the Heart of Jesus; it is also at the heart of all true Christian spirituality.”

In a past Blog (June 2019), I wrote of my Jesuit spiritual director, Father Alban J. Dachauer at Creighton University, who wrote The Sacred Heart: A Commentary on Haurietis Aquas (1959).

 This new encyclical could not come at a better time, in our world torn apart by war, bigotry, lack of morality, and loss of faith. In the words of the Holy Father, “a world that seems to have lost its heart."

A REMINDER

 

“Mother of Christ,
help me to be willing
to accept the suffering
that is the condition of love. 

Help me accept
the grief
of seeing those whom I love suffer,
and when they die
let me share in their death
by compassion. 

Give me the faith
that knows Christ
in them,
and knows that His love
is the key
to the mystery of suffering.

                                                        

Help me,
Blessed Mother,
to see with your eyes,
to think with your mind,
to accept with your will.

Help me to believe
that it is Christ
who suffers in innocent children,
in those who die in the flower of life,
in those whose death is an act
of reparation,
in those who are sacrificed
for others.

Remind me
that their suffering
is Christ’s love
healing the world,
and when I suffer for them
and with them,
I too am given the power
of His redeeming love.”

Caryll Houselander

A HOLY MAN FROM BROOKLYN

 

SERVANT OF GOD FATHER BERNARD J. QUINN, was born in 1888 in Newark, New Jersey, to Irish immigrant parents, one of seven children.  The father, (also Bernard) supported his family as a longshoreman. They were poor but deeply religious and happy

Father Bernard  was the founding pastor of St. Peter Claver Church, the first parish established for Black Catholics in the Diocese of Brooklyn in 1922. Ten years later, in 1932, he opened the Church of St. Benedict the Moor in Jamaica, New York. Father Quinn was also the founder of Little Flower House of Providence Orphanage in Wading River, New York, the precursor of Little Flower Children’s Services. This was an enormous undertaking at the time, in an era when racism and prejudice were facts of life. In his first pastoral letter to his parishioners’ on June 1, 1922, Father Quinn pledged to”…willingly shed to the last drop, my life’s blood for the least among you.”

Bernard attended St. Michael’s school where his elementary school teacher, Sr. Modesta, D.C. had an enduring influence on him by teaching him how greatly Jesus loved him.  Bernard would feel the love of the Lord as an intimate friend for all his life. 

Inspired by the example of his parish priest, Fr. William Richmond, Bernard showed a strong interest in the priesthood and entered St. Charles College, a high school and college preparatory seminary in Ellicott City, Maryland.

Upon his graduation he was not lucky to be provided a place in a seminary to continue his studies for the priesthood in his diocese and was recommended to the Brooklyn Diocese where he entered St. John’s Seminary in 1906, directed by  the Vincentian priests.  While Bernard was very sociable and athletic, his love for Jesus grew deeper..  

 After his ordination to the priesthood on June 1, 1912, Father Quinn was temporarily assigned to several churches and received a permanent position in 1914 at St. Gregory the Great Church in Brooklyn as curate.  He zealously fulfilled his priestly duties and wrote several pamphlets encouraging others.

In the course of preparing two Black women for Baptism in the Church, Father Quinn was inspired to begin an apostolate to Blacks, who he lamented, were neglected by the diocese.  He expressed his interest to Bishop Charles McDonnell, but he could not give Father Quinn an attentive ear, since he was very pre-occupied in recruiting chaplains to serve the American forces fighting overseas in the First World War. 

Father Quinn volunteered for military service and was assigned to France. Shortly after arriving there, the war ended (November 11, 1918), but Father Quinn remained in the country to minister to the sick and wounded soldiers in army hospitals.  After reading "The Story of a Soul", the life of St. Therese of Lisieux, which he found by chance in the library of his army barracks, he was overwhelmed with fascination about the saint.  After discovering that he was stationed in the vicinity of Alencon where St. Therese had lived as a child, he obtained permission to visit her home.  He was the first priest to celebrate Mass there before it became a popular shrine. 

Returning to the diocese in 1919, Father Quinn received permission the following year from Bishop McDonnell to begin his mission to the Black people of Brooklyn, and he took to the streets in search of his flock.   The Colored Catholic Club joined forces with him in raising funds to start their church.  A former Protestant church that had been converted into a warehouse depot was bought by Father Quinn and restored.The building was blessed and dedicated to St. Peter Claver, February 26, 1922. 

With the growing state of homelessness among Black children in the late 1920’s prior to the 1929 Depression, Father Quinn responded by buying land in Wading River, Long Island and setting up an orphanage there for them in 1928.  The local Wading River residents were however enraged by his opening a home for Black children in their community.  The KKK led the residents in a firestorm of opposition against the orphanage and burnt it down to the ground.  Father Quinn was not intimidated by his hate-filled opponents and quickly built a second structure but that too was totally incinerated.  He did not buckle under the forces of hate and courageously stood up to the KKK and their followers, in his unflinching determination to keep the orphanage where it was.  

Through the heavenly intervention of St. Therese, Father Quinn’s life was spared and this third attempt to build an orphanage was successful.  It was dedicated as the Little Flower House of Providence, October 26, 1930.  Father Quinn received from his good friend,  (St.) Mother Katherine Drexel  the generous services of her Congregation, the Sisters of the Blessed Sacrament, to staff his orphanage and parish school.  They were succeeded in 1937 by the Sisters of the Holy Family of Nazareth.

Soon after the dedication of the new orphanage, Father Quinn completed his new Parish Institute, a multi-purpose building encompassing the parish school, convent and parish center.  The latter contained a gymnasium with a stage for performances.  There was also an indoor running track, basement bowling lanes, doctor’s clinic, and meeting and storage rooms.  The Beaux-Arts citadel type building was not only prized by the parish but it was the pride of all Brooklyn, receiving a bronze plaque in 1932 from the Brooklyn Chamber of Commerce for being "the most distinguished building of matchless proportions to be erected in the borough" in 1931.

 Father Quinn succeeded in achieving high academic standards for his parish school, comparable to the best schools of the diocese.  The sports program at the parish center also excelled in city-wide championships, particularly baseball.  With is open door policy in admitting people to the parish, irrespective of their race or religion, Blacks flocked to the parish center from all parts of Brooklyn and Manhattan to play basketball and other sports. White youths played there as well.  The parish institute became a Mecca for entertainment for the Black community of the area. 

A man of prayer, Father Quinn spent free moments during the day before the Blessed Sacrament.  He found fulfillment in his daily celebration of the Eucharist, which nourished him spiritually and provided the stamina which he bore valiantly for his work.  The rosary was very much a daily prayer and he had a most profound devotion to the Sacred Heart of Jesus.  Father’s own heart, like the heart of Christ, flowed over with endless outpouring of God’s love for those who were down-and-out, the hapless sinner and all who needed his services. 

Father Quinn died at 52 years of age on April 7, 1940. Thousands of people at the funeral mourned his death but celebrated his passing into everlasting life. 

SUNRISE OVER BAY

 

SUNRISE OVER  SHAW ISAND

WITH MONASTERY SHEEP

 

Photo by Sarah Hui

'LONG BEARD" FUTURE SAINT OF MINNESOTA?

 

In 1971, Sisters Bernard Coleman and Verona La Bud from St. Scholastica's Benedictine Abbey in Duluth,  published a comprehensive 368-page biography of the missionary titled Masinaigans, meaning “little book.” This nickname, given by the Chippewa, referred to the priest’s constant companion, his diary. They also called him Meshidong, meaning “Long Beard.” Who is this pioneer missionary?

 MONSIGNOR JOSEPH BUH (pronounced Boo) was a pioneering missionary whose remarkable life and enduring legacy continues to inspire many. He was born on the feast of St. Patrick in 1833, in present-day Slovenia. He dedicated his life to serving Native American communities and immigrant populations in Minnesota, leaving a mark on the region’s spiritual and cultural landscape. Even the secular paper calls him a “patriarch of the Diocese of Duluth.

Coming to the United States in 1864, his extraordinary ministry was characterized by a profound commitment to the spiritual and physical well-being of those he served. He was instrumental in establishing 57 parishes and played a pivotal role as the vicar general of the Diocese of Duluth.     

Msgr. Buh’s life showed great humility, zeal, and unwavering faith. His dedication to the sacraments of the Church was profound, but equally inspiring was his dedication to the communities he served. In the 1880s, the iron ore mining boom brought a flood of new immigrants to the area.

In addition to being familiar with various Native dialects, Msgr. Buh could preach fluently in German, Polish, French and English, making him a very effective missionary to the various European immigrants settling in northern Minnesota mining towns.

He also became an advocate for the immigrant workers, who were often being subjected to unfair wages and dangerous working conditions. He tirelessly worked to meet their spiritual needs as well as advocate for better working conditions and just treatment.

In 1891, he established what would become the first Slovenian newspaper in the United States. From 1892 to 1898, he served as the editor and publisher of Amerikanski Slovenec. Initially, he managed everything for the paper, from creating layout copy to overseeing typesetting and printing. He put in long hours to ensure the newspaper’s success, driven by his goal to “better the Slovenians in America.”

His efforts in founding the American Slovene Catholic Union and his work among the Native American tribes underscore his commitment to fostering communities and supporting those in need.

During Msgr. Buh’s funeral Mass, the second bishop of Duluth, Timothy McNicholas, said that Msgr. Buh’s “love for souls was beyond our power to measure...

The casual observer would not even direct his attention to the extraordinary zeal of this gentle apostle. It is only when one realizes the great harvest that he has reaped that one is forced to take into account the many and deep furrows that he plowed in the harvest fields of Christ.

His zeal for souls was ever a burning fire. No journey on foot, no distance by horseback was too long or too trying provided a soul was to be helped at the journey’s end. He would set out with a trust in God realizing that God’s love of souls was infinite and that he was but the dispenser of the riches of God’s sacramental graces. He was ever willing to make every sacrifice in the performance of duty for the salvation of souls.”

The bishop had instructed the funeral director to make the casket metal-lined, as he considered his vicar general ‘a saint’. Even though he died over 100 years ago, many still come to the Duluth cathedral of Our Lady of the Rosary, laying flowers at his tomb and asking intercession for various needs.  We pray we will soon have another American saint..

PIANIST FOR UKRAINE

 

Another Ukrainian musician who has caught my attention lives in the USA. While I can’t say her music is my favorite, being very modern, I am impressed by her work and dedication to her country. Being from Kharkiv, Ukraine, pianist NADIA SHPACHENKO was shocked to see the destruction of her home and the massacre of her people. Nadia came to the US as a teenager when she received an invitation and a full scholarship to study piano with Victor Rosenbaum at the Longy School of Music in Cambridge in 1994.

 

But she still has many friends in Ukraine, so when invasion took place on her birthday in February 2022, she began  coloring her hair purple with gold streaks, the colors of her country’s flag. Her city was close to Russia hence she grew up speaking Russian.  Only now is she learning Ukrainian.  Her father still lives in the Ukraine, refusing to leave.  He is helping her daily, via internet, to learn the language and she watches Ukrainian TV as well.

Nadia completed her DMA and MM degrees at the University of Southern California, where she was awarded the title of Outstanding Graduate. Her principal teachers included John Perry, Victor Rosenbaum, and Victor Derevianko. She is a Steinway Artist and professor of music at Cal Poly Pomona University. 

Her specialty is premiering, performing, recording, and promoting music by living composers. Much of it was written specifically for her. She has mainly worked with composers in the US, but since the war she is focusing as well on Ukrainian composers. 

“I love sharing my imagination and ideas with composers and hearing their feedback as I learn their pieces, and then bringing their works to life for the first time and sharing them with audiences. I strongly believe that this is a very important task for performers—to promote newly-written music. This helps keep classical music alive, exciting, and relevant, and will leave repertoire for future generations to play.”

In a way to express her feelings of despair and anger, she decided to put together a new album to support Ukraine humanitarian aid with 100% of the proceeds benefitting Ukrainian people affected by the war. She also has been performing fundraising concerts featuring music by Ukrainian composers, which is good for us in the West as so much of this music in unknown here.

On my birthday in February 2022, the war started, Lewis Spratlan began writing Invasion, and the character of our plan for a CD of his works shifted. Positivity, defiance, perseverance, peace, nostalgia, recollections, and hope – all are displayed by the people in Ukraine, and all are reflected in the pieces on this disk. Even as all of us are comforted by timeless beauty, we are periodically reminded of the tragedy of the present. I commissioned Ukrainian artists to create paintings/artworks to use in this booklet and in the accompanying music videos, as their responses to the music. Also featured are drawings/artworks made by children in Kharkiv, as their responses to the war. Proceeds from this album will be donated to Ukraine humanitarian aid organizations. –Nadia Shpachenko

When asked how people can help support those in Ukraine, Nadia said “to promote Ukrainian culture through the arts.”  I certainly have tried through this Blog since the war started, as well as the prayers of all in the monastery on our small Salish Sea island.