When worlds collide, Part 3 (Updated!)

WASTING FOOD gets in our collective, metaphorical craw, so to speak, so it was only a matter of time before our ingrained mission proclivities clashed with the Sodexo practice of throwing away leftovers.

Fr. Paul O'Brien approached this member of the all-important Food Committee and asked if it were true that kitchen staff would be fired if they took home leftover food. I asked head chef Mike McLoughlin and he assured me they would not be fired but would, per Sodexo policy, be written up. While it sounds harsh, a rational mind sees this as the only way to avoid legal, not to mention serious health issues.

Sodexo must follow strict guidelines for the quality, cooking and preparation of foods. This is why they do not allow outside foods to be brought in and cooked in our kitchen nor will they supply uncooked foods (hamburgers, for example) to be cooked outside our kitchen at employee or Maryknoll cook-outs.

The question of leftovers is stickier. Technically speaking they should not even be putting leftovers in our kitchenettes, according to Ms. Margaret Sheehan, Sodexo general manager. We asked, and they complied, with our request to offer leftover entrees one more time in our food line. After that, state law requires whatever remains be thrown out.

"Could not this have been given to the poor?" resonates from the gospel. (OK, so it was spoken by Judas but the sentiment is valid.) The answer is, "No. Not unless you want the poor to get sick from food poisoning."

What is envisioned, I think, is some adaption of the Second Harvest program in NYC and other cities where upscale restaurants donate leftover food at the end of the day to local food pantries. According to Sheehan, City (or Second) Harvest allows food pantries to pick up leftovers at the end of the business day by employing special trucks equipped with "Flash Freeze" technology that keeps the food frozen until needed.

Plus, restaurants cannot re-serve leftovers and such things as bread and rolls are not an issue with us. The solution, Sheehan says, is to plan and cook accordingly, minimizing the amount of overproduction and, subsequently, waste.

Of Brooklyn priests & Anglicans

WELCOME to sixteen priests (ordained within the last five years) here for a two-day retreat as part of their on-going priestly formation program. The buzz at our table centered around yesterday's Vatican bombshell streamlining the way for Anglicans to join the Roman Catholic church.

While this has been in the works for some time, apparently the suddenness of the pronouncement took our Episcopalian brethren by surprise. An added wrinkle was including Episcopalian seminarians in the mix, although their priests would require ordination into the Roman rite. One Brooklyn priest here heard as many as 300,000 Episcopalians are prepared to jump ship. How many of ours have gone over to them was not discussed, although a few years ago NCR published a figure that suggested for every one of them that comes to us, ten Catholics go over to them.

The unspoken elephant in the room (See? I can keep my mouth shut) is why these people are leaving the Anglican communion: dissatisfaction with their church's position on women priests, openly gay priests, and blessing same-sex unions.

There would no doubt also be an influx of married clergy from the Episcopalians which, IMO, would put incredible internal pressure on the Vatican to rethink and relax mandatory disciple for our guys. If not, we face the anomaly of our guys in formation struggling with celibacy and being advised to leave, join the Anglicans, marry, get ordained, then come back. But I guess stranger things have happened in Holy Mother Church.

Pre-emptive Centenary Report

FR. BOB JALBERT was kind enough to pass out to us in advance a three-page outline of the report he is scheduled to give this afternoon at the Monthly House Meeting concerning the Centenary Committee which has yet to meet. And if that isn't enough to run-on your sentences, misplace your modifiers and dangle your participles, I have before me even as I blog a copy of said report and shall attempt, in my own biased way, to separate the wheat from the chaff. (Which one I am giving to you is for you to decide.)

Thus far, the Committee has agreed to hold the Annual Foundation Day Weekend (June 24~26, 2011) at the Center; the second Maryknoll Youth Day in the spring of 2011, and a Benefactors' Appreciation Day in the fall of 2011. Call me a skeptic, but weren't these already planned a long time ago, like, before the Committee was formed?

Also under consideration is an event in 2011 celebrating the Hispanic church, a symposium on mission, and a major Sunday Liturgy at St. Patrick's followed by a catered luncheon (guests, I presume TBA).

Promoting our Jubilee Year is nothing less than a proposed letter from none other than His Holiness Benedict XVI due out early in 2010 as well as a proclamation from the USCCB. I shall file both these in my "Don't Hold Your Breath" drawer. "Early 2010" after all, starts in less than two months.

"Quality not quantity" of events is the goal and there have been several meetings with the Congregation and Lay Missioners for joint celebrations that span both our Centenary Years (2011~2013). Those years also include the 35th anniversary of the MLMs, the 20th anniversary of the Affiliates.

Many committees, subcommittees and groups are planned, in keeping with Maryknoll's true charism: More Meetings.

The Core Planning Committee consists of: Fr. Jalbert as Chair; Fr. Jack Sullivan (Retirement Community); Mr. Greg Darr (MEP Midwest); Ms. Diane Bernadini (MEP/Marketing); Ms. Bernadette Price (MEP Orbis); Fr. Steve Judd (Latin America); Fr. Jim Kroeger (Asia); Fr. Ken Thesing (Africa); Br. John Beeching (MK Brothers) and Fr. Joyalito Tajonera (Overseas at-large member)

There is much more in the outline but you could not bear it now. Trust me. I know I can't.

God in His Goodness has also seen fit to schedule choir practice from every Wednesday from 4:15 ~ 5:00, conflicting nicely with the house meeting. As liaison with the all-important Food Committee, I have already cleared it with Fr. Lukaschek to speak first, leaving my brethren to sit through other reports whilst I sing tenor parts to various Christmas carols.

Hiatus over; H1N1 update

MY BAD. I took Monday off to recuperate from performing a wedding at the Korean church, then hearing confessions, giving a talk and saying Mass at a junior high retreat at St. Josaphat's Byzantine Catholic retreat house in Glen Cove, N.Y. over the weekend. I have to hand it to the teachers. It was certainly a baptism by fire for us all. A special shout-out to Father Jim Gilligan, our canon lawyer in residence, for taking my two Masses at the church in Queens so I could stay at the retreat center and lose sleep. Thanks a lot, Jim. Really.

This week does promise to give me several topics to address, most notably the Monthly House Meeting (Third Wednesday of every month) which will take up, among other things, suggested H1N1 precautions. My report from the all-important Food Committee will go over like a lead balloon because guys don't want to be told they can't go into the food line when the doors are closed, no matter what the lawyers and insurers say. Nor do they want to be discouraged from squirreling food away for later consumption.

But back to the H1N1: all the dioceses of Pennsylvania and now the diocese of Brooklyn strongly recommend no sharing of the cup and a bow in place of the handshake during the exchange of peace. I suspect these will be implemented easily at the Knoll although some may suggest substituting the liturgically suspect practice of dipping the Host in the Precious Blood. (Apparently nowhere in the Aramaic does it say, "Take and dunk...") I for my part have long shied away from sharing the cup (unless I am celebrant and therefore first) because of the unavoidable backwash. Thirty guys drinking from one cup and you are Number 31. You do the math.

Fathers Fern Goselin and John Hudert are on tap with Food For Thought this Thursday and will speak about, what else? The Pachamama Farm.

Thursday evening several of us will go to the Peekskill Theater to see Lily Tomlin's live performance.

Check back in a few hours and I'll tell you what else is new around the salad bar.

Weekend round-Up

ONCE AGAIN the slow pace of activities at Mother Knoll each weekend affords me an opportunity to report a lot of odds and ends that are informational in themselves but way too boring to merit an independent post of their own, even for one with a creative albeit twisted imagination as YHB. (Your Humble[?] Blogger)

• The current crop of nine exciting lay mission candidates is having a one-day retreat at the Center even as we speak. Since I last posted about the MLMs they made the decision to withdraw from East Timor due to budgetary considerations, so those candidates who thought that was their assignment are looking to go elsewhere.

• Br. John Blazo will give a tour and talk (and talk and talk) to local Affiliates before subjecting them to a film in our very own custom-designed and award-winning movie theater located inside the Visitors Center. If you have ever sat on the chairs inside said theater you may have recognized them as being rejected at Guantanamo for violating the Geneva agreement on cruel and unusual torture.

• Gas prices at the Maryknoll pump are stuck at $2.80 a gallon, fully 10~15 cents higher than at local stations. El problema es que we can't get lower prices until we use up the shipment we have and we can't use up the shipment right away because I and almost everyone else fill'er up elsewhere. So we must needs wait till the house cars and loaners and medical vans use up the gas till prices come down.

Westchester's Haute Boutique

Nieman Marcus? Lord & Taylor? Bush league. One of Maryknoll's best kept secrets is our gift shoppe on the first floor M Wing. There you can buy quality gifts not available in Macy's or Target or any other large retailer. Why? Because many of the articles for sale come straight from the missions, courtesy of Maryknollers and our connections.

In addition to an entire line of clothing, hats, Tee shirts, sweatshirts, polo shirts, ski hats, caps, hoodies, tote bags, umbrellas and rain panchos all bearing the ubiquitous MARYKNOLL logo (with the white Chi Rho inside the block capital M) there are some real finds and treasures.

A new shipment of very stylish (IMO) batik "katenge" shirts from a cottage industry back in Tanzania has arrived courtesy of Fr. Ernie Bruenelle. Similarly, Fr. John Barth sends over many beautiful pashmina scarves handwoven by his handicapped people in Cambodia. A co-op in El Salvador sends lovely enameled crosses, rosaries and nativity sets. There is silver jewelry from Bolivia and hand-beaded jewelry by the Maasai in Kenya.

Of course the entire catalogue of Orbis books (including two WONDERFUL books by that most humble of authors J. R. Veneroso) and other Maryknoll products: posters, CDs and greeting cards are also available.

Usually you can find Ms. Aurette DeCuffa at the cashier's post Monday through Friday from 10 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. On Saturday's Ms. Kay Cahill or Ms. Lorena Espinoza help with sales as this is when many visitors drop in.

Stop by and do your Christmas shopping in Westchester's most unique store!

No country for young men

THE OFFICE OF VOCATION MINISTRIES is seriously considering the Central American country of Belize as a venue for future mission exposure trips. Such trips are required of all Maryknoll vocation prospects, according to vocations coordinator Rev. Mr. Steve De Martino, speaking on conditions of anonymity which never stopped me before.

Seriously folks, I asked Steve if this were some big secret and he said no and it was OK to blog about it so all you guys and gals get to know.

Belize is a natural choice to give vocation prospects a taste of mission life for several reasons: it is English speaking, it is relatively close (you could technically drive there), and it is relatively safe.A brother of our late Maryknoll Father Steve Woods is a pastor in Belize and has generously offered his parish as a vocations venue.

Formerly known as British Honduras, Belize gained independence in 1981 although over the years its territory has been claimed by Guatemala with whom it shares a rich Mayan culture. Most Belizeans descend from African heritage.

El Pasa/Juarez had been the venue of choice in recent years and prospects are still required to spend at least a week there prior to acceptance, but Belize may soon replace them. These experiences address the primary question of all applicants to Maryknoll: do you want to be a missioner overseas? If they decide early on that foreign mission is not their thing, everyone can save a lot of time, energy and ágita.

Some vocation prospect guys "in the pipeline" like Glen D'Angelo and Chace Olinger are so gung ho about mission that they have taken it upon themselves to travel to real missions in Bolivia and Japan respectively. They are overseas even as we speak.

And this just in from Br. Tim Raible, our vocations minister in California, our vocation guys are investigating Jamaica as a possible site for a Holy Week vocations retreat, hosted by Fr. Leo Shea.

Now before anyone gets his undies all in a twist, the "No Country for Young Men" subject line was just an attempt to be frightfully clever. It doesn't refer to Belize but rather to the USA as not offering sufficient enough a cross-cultural experience for young men discerning to join our ranks. So there.

Christmas concert rehearsals

AS IF yesterday's first rehearsal for the annual Christmas concert (scheduled for Friday, December 11), wasn't enough to get us into the holiday spirit, today we had our first snowfall at Maryknoll—the opening salvo of a four-day Nor'Easter blowing through till Sunday.

Under the direction of Ms. Judy Abel, the choir will gather together every Wednesday afternoon from 4:15 till 5:30 with special rehearsals for the struggling men's parts every Friday at 1:15. As usual, we sorely need male voices with only three tenors and two basses making it to the first rehearsal.

The men held their own against 20 women's voices. But since it is widely acknowledged that tenors, as a rule, rock, it is only Basses who are in desperate need of reinforcement.

Sixteen songs are planned—a record, I believe—and making the concert fully an hour and a half long. As usual, congregational participation with such standard fair as "O Little Town of Bethlehem" and "Joy to the World" will be interspersed amid old stand-bys such as "O Holy Night" and the de riguer solo by Fr. Mike Duggan, "Mille Cherubini" along with a lot of new stuff.

M.E.T. volunteers

OF LATE TWO MARYKNOLLERS a week are rushed by ambulance to local hospitals, usually Phelps in Tarrytown. When such a medical emergency arises, this traumatic experience is assuaged a bit by being accompanied by a fellow Maryknoller, who remains with the person while in the E.R. and also brings whatever personal items may be required.

OK, so the official name is actually E.A.T. (for Emergency Assistance Team), I for one think this is an unfortunate acronym as the group has nothing whatsoever to do with food. Therefore I am pushing M.E.T. (for Medical Emergency Team) as the new name for this service because

1) it sounds like what is done

2) it doesn't raise any expectations of getting a meal

The concept is simple and straight forward: when the front desk or nursing station calls for an ambulance to aid a Maryknoller in medical distress, a call is also made to a special cell phone carried by the M.E.T. volunteer on duty that day or night. He then usually gets in his own car and follows the ambulance and goes to the E.R. to comfort the missioner and also to see what items may be wanted should hospitalization be necessary: toiletries, books, rosary, breviary, iPhone, stock portfolio etc. He would also bring the man's wallet and clothing back to Maryknoll for safekeeping.

Luckily, many Maryknollers have volunteered for M.E.T. Jack Keegan, Joe La Mar, Dick Smith, Kevin Hanlon, John Blazo, Bob Jalbert, Tim Graff, Wayne Fitzpatrick, Joe McGahren, Tom Hickey and Ernie Luksachek are on-call throughout October.

I can personally attest to the emotional and physical support this affords a Maryknoller at a time of high discomfort and anxiety. Last February I had just completed my uneventful shift as a M.E.T. volunteer and had turned over the emergency phone to Br. Tom Hickey. Little did we know that four hours later he would be accompanying me to the hospital. I cannot express my gratitude enough to Tom as he came and went back and forth between the Phelps E.R. and Maryknoll several times and spent several hours at my bedside well into the night.

It's encouraging to know that if needed we Maryknollers will be well M.E.T.

Healing of Memories

THREE VISITORS from the South African-based Institute for the Healing of Memories will be staying at the Center until the end of November. Fr. Michael Lapsley, the director, describes IHOM as a response to the emotional, psychological and spiritual wounds that are inflicted on nations, communities and individuals by wars, repressive regimes, human rights abuses and other traumatic events or circumstances.

Emotional scars are often carried for very long, hindering the individual’s emotional, psychological and spiritual development, according to Lapsley. Attitudes and prejudices that have developed out of anger and hatred between groups can lead to ongoing conflict and spiraling violence.

He knows of which he speaks. An ardant opponent of Apartheid, Lapsley lost both hands and an eye to a letter bomb. After he healed physically he realized more healing needed to be done. IHOM offers workshops for youth and for adults. Each Healing of Memories workshop is a small but powerful step towards healing the wounds of the past.

Michael continues to work to develop a model that will assist faith communities and others in the process of healing the psychological, emotional and spiritual wounds of violence. His ministry in South Africa addresses the ongoing trauma from the apartheid period. He also travels the world to work with communities seeking to emerge from violence and injustice to nonviolence and just relationships.

Maryknoll Sisters' President Janice McLaughlin contacted Fr. Ed Dougherty to see if we might offer hospitality while Lapsley and his two assistants, Mr. Madoda Gowadi and Mr. Steve Karakashian, present workshops to local communities on how to setup their own programs to promote the healing of memories.

Healing of memories uses guided imagery with a faith component to address the roots of trauma as a result of violence and injustice.

Roy, the renegade

FR. ROY BOURGEOISE is attending the annual retreat here, which re-raises the question, "Is he or isn't he?" Excommunicated, that is.

A recent article from a Georgia newspaper is posted on a bulletin board on the ground floor. In it, Roy expresses confusion and some optimism in that he never received a response to his letter to Rome nor a formal declaration of excommunication. So he claims not to know whether he as been excommunicated.

This is wishful thinking on Roy's part, according to Super G Ed Dougherty, whom the article describes as a close, personal friend of our rogue Maryknoller. Doc says the initial letter was quite clear and unambiguous: recant or be automatically excommunicated in 30 days. So in the mind of the superior general and therefore of both the Society and Rome, Roy is excommunicated.

The article also reveals some frustration in that, according to Doc, Roy asks us to respect his position yet he does not respect ours, that is, the official position of the Church. Fr. Dougherty was explicitly questioned about Roy's status at the promoters' assembly last week as many pastors and benefactors are concerned.

The excommunication was imposed following Roy's active participation in an attempted ordination of a woman as a Catholic priest last year and his continued advocacy of women's ordination. Roy did not present himself for communion at the daily Mass today.

Annual retreat

Happy Hour in the Third Floor Rec Room kicked off our annual combined regional/retirement retreat. Amidst pigs-in-blankets and Swedish meatballs, the community met De La Salle Br. Jim Zullo who will accompany us on our Emmaus Walk.

I attended a retreat by Br. Jim two years ago and he is one of the best. While he has a basic format, he takes great pains to tailor the presentation to the specific composition and situation of the retreatants. This morning's talk reintroduced us to the familiar Emmaus story in Luke's gospel, but it was done in a slow, reflective manner, projected on the screen with accompanying works of art. Then he presented the schema for the rest of the week.

The disciples story gets transformed by the stranger's invitation to go deeper into their situation. They encounter scripture and this intersects their story to reveal THE story (Jesus passion & resurrection). Hospitality leads to a shared meal leads to the breaking of bread. Their eyes are opened as they experience a spiritual awakening, seeing things through new eyes.

This overwhelming experience impels them to rise, despite the

late hour and darkness, and return to Jerusalem, from whence they had fled in fear and disappointment.

Then Jim helped us reflect on where we as Maryknollers are today and how we represent the three very different aspects of Church and theology depending on when we were trained and entered religious

life.

Lawn party

Installation of the emergency access fire lanes UNDER the lawn in the Quad is almost complete. Ground has been dug up, pounded, sanded, gravelled, grated, reburied, seeded and hayed! A few good weeks of wet and cool fall air should have the lawn recovered with no one the wiser (except the OFD) to the hidden roadway beneath.

Sign of Jonah

As I have the honor of being the celebrant at today's "leftover" Mass before our retreat begins, I thought I might as well share my reflections with all y'all on the gospel passage Luke 11:29-32.

Jesus says, "This is an evil generation..." Why? Not because it was corrupt. Not because it was violent. Not because it was greedy. But because it sought a sign. A sign of what? A sign of God's blessing and approval for what Jesus had to say.

In Jesus' words are an implicit accusation of spiritual blindness. He threatens them with the "sign of Jonah." Other gospels redact this to include the story of the big fish as prefiguring Jesus' three days in the tomb. But in Luke's gospel it's more blunt.

The Ninevites, non-Jews, responded enthusiastically to the preaching of Jonah. The Queen of Sheba, a non-Jew, traveled great distances to hear the wisdom of Solomon. Jesus is greater than Jonah and Solomon and, if his people don't recognize God in Jesus' words, the Gentiles will.

By Jesus' standard we ask ourselves: Is Maryknoll an evil Society? Not because we are corrupt. Not because we are violent. Not because we are greedy. But precisely because our spiritual blindness prevents us from recognizing and acknowledging the presence of holiness and goodness in our own country, in our own church, in our own Society and in our own members. Maryknoller are used to looking for, expecting and discovering God in outsiders; we just have difficulties seeing God in ourselves.

So many visitors and guests (i.e. non Maryknollers) comment how peaceful, holy and good it is to visit our Center—the very things we either ignore or take for granted. The sign of Jonah!

May this week's retreat open our eyes to the holiness of the person sitting next to us in chapel, at meetings and at meals.

News from Hong Kong!

AT LONG LAST, we received word from the Young'Uns gathered in Hong Kong. Here is a report by Fr. Ed. Szendrey to which I made one correction: to my knowledge 23 men were invited (see earlier post.) We can all be relieved there is no mention of a visit with Dr. Kervokian.

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This month the Stanley house hosted a meeting of Maryknoll members who have been ordained or taken final oath from 1993 onward. This meeting is part of an ongoing program of renewal for this group of Maryknollers, facilitated by Maryknoll’s Office of Lifelong Formation.

This group first met in Rome in 2007. The Rome meeting was both an opportunity for the participants to share and reflect on their experience as missionary priests/Brothers and Maryknollers (much like the ‘Homecoming’ gatherings of years past). This was paired with a ‘pilgrimage’ to various sacred sites in Rome, giving the group the opportunity to connect their reflection to the place which is in many ways the heart of the Roman Catholic Church.

The Hong Kong meeting is intended to build upon the foundation that was laid in Rome. The group (twenty of the twenty-three invited to attend) spent time discussing concerns and hopes in light of the 2008 Chapter. Days were set aside so that the group could spend a day reflecting on Mission Spirituality (facilitated by Columban Fr. Trevor Trotter) and a day of prayer (facilitated by Fr. Bill Galvin). The theme of pilgrimage was also an important component of this gathering, as Hong Kong is the place where Maryknoll’s first missionaries arrived and laid the groundwork for the missionary work to follow.

Weekend tidbits

Here are a few odds-and-ends:

• Seasonal flu shots will be offered to MKers at the Center beginning this week. This will not include the H1N1 (swine) flu vaccine because, according to Nurse Mary Ellen Jablon, that vaccine is targeted toward younger people who are more adversely effected by the disease. H1N1 vaccinations will be available for us oldsters a little later. So until then remember—sneeze into your sleeve and sanitize with Purelle. (Suppressing the Handshake of Peace at Mass is usually the first sign flu season is upon us.)

• The Centenary Committee has postponed its gathering yet again and will not meet until December, ostensibly because members must fly in from around the Maryknoll world. Yikes. Tick. Tock. Tick. Tock. (Why do I fear we will end up just having a huge cake with 100 candles?)

• Our combined U.S. Region/Retirement retreat begins Monday evening (because all MK events begin with Happy Hour). Br. Jim Zullo will direct our reflections on the Emmaus experience. (Usually "our hearts burning within us" has more to do with eating kimchi.)

• Thanks to Fr. Dennis Moorman's Facebook page (which guys at Maryknoll cannot access unless they have an iPhone) the Young'Uns in Hong Kong had a wonderful visit to Macau, including the St. Francis Xavier church, and the Holy Spirit Seminary in Hong Kong. Sunday off and then two more days to wrap up their meeting.

Bourgeoise & Obama

WHAT DO ROY & PRESIDENT OBAMA have in common? Well, for one, our POTUS winning the 2009 Nobel Peace Prize has deprived our renegade Maryknoller of that honor for yet another year. Although, knowing Roy, I doubt he'll begrudge BHO the distinction. For many years now at those insufferable "brainstorming" sessions about branding the name Marknoll and getting some good press, having Roy nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize seemed a good and attainable idea for his work to close the School of the Americas (SOA).

All that is required to be nominated is three previous winners putting a name forward, so Roy seems like a shoe-in. Rigoberta Menchu (1992) knows Maryknoll in Guatemala and even stayed at our 39th Street House; Wangari Mathai (2004) is from Tanzania and a personal friend of many Maryknollers; Aung San Suu Kyi (Myanmar) knows Burmese monks, all of whom were taught English by Br. John Beeching; Oscar Arias Sanchez, former president of Costa Rica, certainly saw firsthand the havoc wrought on Central America by the SOA; Bishop Desmond Tutu (1984) once said, "Maryknoll?! You are troublemakers! Thank God!" and the late Kim Dae Jung who stayed at the Seoul House but, now, being dead, can't really nominate anymore.

That being said, for all Roy's tireless efforts, his Peace Prize time may have past. His recent involvement in women's ordination may have complicated the issue, unless the Nobel Committee wants to stick it to the Vatican like they stuck it to the Bush Administration by giving it to Obama.

In local news, at yesterday's national assembly of Maryknoll Promoters one Gift Planner (Planned Giver?) asked Fr. Dougherty about Roy's status in Maryknoll. It seems more than one benefactor was off-put by Roy's involvement in the women's ordination movement. Doc stated how, despite being excommunicated, Roy remains a Maryknoller and there is no overt pressure from Rome to act further. Doc went on to talk about how prophets are pains in the butt by definition (my words, not his) but Maryknoll also gained fans, if not supporters, by Roy's actions. It is a price we have to pay if we are to believe our 2002 Chapter documents that encourage Maryknoll to maintain a prophetic stance.

And FYI, since the election for president predated this blog, let me tell my loyal readers that last November here at the polling place in Maryknoll, Obama got 103 votes and McCain 21. Bear in mind that several outsiders (some former MKers) keep their voting registration here as do some men at St. T's. Of course, the dining room game after that was trying to figure out who those 21 votes were. I think I got 15.

Deconstruction begins!

AT LONG LAST work has begun on installing the bocce ball court and curling lanes in what used to be our Quad lawn. Seriously folks, this is in fact the emergency access lanes the fire department convinced us were needed against—God forbid—some future necessity. All other sides of the building are accessible by firetrucks, but this south side (Quad) becomes a very swampy marsh after heavy rains.

The FD recommendation came following a real fire last year when a resident forgot about a pot on the burner in the fourth floor rec room and smoke billowed out of the library roof. Scarey.

Will the newly constructed then buried access road really be porous enough to drain under the re-seeded lawn? If not, will future generations (?) of Maryknollers look out at the rice paddy and say, "I remember when this was a seminary!"?

Picture Perfect?

IF A PICTURE'S WORTH A THOUSAND WORDS the halls of Maryknoll have become extremely garrulous indeed. Oh, it started out innocently enough and even seemed like a good idea at the time: a pictorial display of photo portraits of Maryknollers and staff on the wall on the basement next to the mailroom. Soon, however, the project expanded and it spread around the corner. Then pictures appeared outside the library. But it was outside the Health Services Office in 2C wing that Fr. John King's avocation truly reached epic proportions.

His goal is simple enough: take and post an 18 x 24 glossy of every Maryknoller who lives in, visits or passes through the Center. To be sure all pix are posed but some are quite memorable and clever, such as Fr. Alfonso Kim reading a magazine with "Sex, Lies and Videotape" on the cover. Yours Truly feeding Hopi is truly charming. Our Friend from L.A., not so much. Still, it's a great way to relearn the names and faces of fellow Maryknollers while awaiting a prostate exam.

John is doing all this out of the goodness of his heart and largesse of his P.A. as he buys all the photo supplies and paper himself. His camera seems permanently attached like an extra appendage as he prowls the hallways and dining room, looking for new subjects to capture. And the display is kept up-to-date. When Fr. Houle left our ranks earlier this year, his picture was unceremoniously removed, along with much of the underlying wall paint.

In addition, Jack occasionally graces the walls with photos from his world-wide travels including stunning pictures of his trip to Ephesus. Lately, carpenter Brian Daniels and other members of Physical Plant have erected a barn to house equipment for the Pachamama Farm. It's all been chronicled by Father King and is now on display in King's Corner outside Joe La Mar's basement office. If you know of a bare patch of wall (such as in the picture above!) that needs covering, give Jack a buzz.

Michelangelo's got nothing on Jack.

Blessing OLOM

THE FEAST OF OUR LADY OF THE ROSARY was marked by the dedication of the statue of Our Lady of Maryknoll in the Spellman Room following the 11:30 Mass. Because of the MEP National Assembly, more people attended Mass than usual and about 50 people participated in the prayer service.

Pastoral Coordinator Fr. Ernie Lukaschek led the five-minute service that included recitation of the Memorare, a litany to Our Lady of Maryknoll and singing the Salve Regina.

Once again many thanks to Fr. Jim Huvane for donating this beautiful statue. It was gratifying that many people agreed it looks 100 X better here than tucked in the corner of the rotunda behind a pillar and a Ladies Room sign. Plus, the dedication ceremony underscored that this isn't just another piece of furniture.

In other news, here in the east strong winds today knocked down trees and powerlines leaving some people in southern Westchester without power for a few hours. This brings up yesterday's Food Committee meeting where we took up a recommendation by the Crisis Committee that we store one month's worth of canned, nonperishable food in a safe location. Look around the dining room and imagine being closed in with these guys along with unlimited cans of Spam for 30 days. Suddenly, a nuclear meltdown at Indian Point doesn't sound so bad.

Laicization of MEP and Youth in Asia

EVEN A CURSORY GLANCE around the dining room these days during the National Meeting of Maryknoll Promoters reveals an astonishing reality. Most of our Promoters are hired employees. A majority are lay people but we also have a growing number of permanent deacons (five, by my count) entrusted with the awesome task of promoting Maryknoll and its mission and works to the Church in the United States.

Not too long ago we had 40 some-odd (how true) Developers/Promoters in 16 houses around the States. Yet our fast disappearing real estate can hardly keep up with our even faster declining membership. We now have just 11 Society members working on promotion and three retirees helping out. Thank God for the deacons and laity willing to take up the slack.

It has long been my observation nigh these many years that our employees, especially in MEP, have more enthusiasm, energy and the ever-elucive Maryknoll Spirit than we permanent members do. They certainly bring vitality to our dining room. Would be nice if before they leave we could meet them all, mayhaps at a final Happy Hour. (To date they have been happy separately in the Founders' Room whilst the members gather to be happy in the Third Floor Rec Room.)

Meanwhile, meetings being our second forte after mission, the Young'uns' gathering in Hong Kong continues apace although they have taken an oath of secrecy about just what is on their Hidden Agenda and where exactly they are going to hide it. We do know that all are having a good time, that the liturgies are upbeat and full of energy with strong singing (now we know why they didn't have this meeting here) and that it is still warm enough to swim in Hong Kong.

Aside from that, we can only speculate as to what they are discussing, although having Maryknoll youth in Asia may give us a hint.

Of Food Committees and Cannibalism

THE ALL-IMPORTANT FOOD COMMITTEE met today for the first time since the great Shoot Out at the O-K Corral (i.e. when Mike the Chef quit and Sal the manager was fired). In attendance were Ms. DeAnna Alfonso, new Chef Mike McLoughlin and new Manager Margie Sheehan for Sodexo, with Ms. Nancy Kleppel representing employees, Br. Tom Hickey representing the Assisted Living community and Yours Truly, representing the Maryknoll community but most likely just because I like food.

The results of the July 09 Food Survey were discussed and most of the recommendations have already been implemented. Cheese Croquettes and Chicken Portuguese Style have been dropped from the menu but Tempura Shrimp got a resounding thumbs up. No-caffeine herbal teas are now available. Low sodium foods are being offered. Luncheon meats in the different kitchenettes will be discarded in a timely manner. (Note to Maryknollers: If the sliced turkey in the fridge looks slimy, greyish and smells, that's a pretty good indication it is no longer tasty.)

Believe it or not, several people requested kimchi be a permanent offering in the condiments bar and no, it wasn't my idea. That particular Korean side dish went over amazingly well at the Chu Seok festival sponsored by our Wellness Initiative two weeks ago.

ONE COMMUNAL ADMONITION: The kitchen staff asks that no one enter the food line when the doors are closed. That is when the staff is busiest setting out pans of boiling water to keep the entrees warm. They are bustling about and we get in their way. The floor is also newly mopped and slippery. So please, guys, when you see the kitchen door closed, do not enter the buffet line, especially from the back where there is no door to close. Violators would do well to heed the following story:

Nancy Kleppel, our Center Coordinator, revealed she is related to one Owen Coffin, a 17-year-old whaler from Nantucket whose boat was rammed by a whale in 1820. The survivors were adrift at sea off the coast of South America for three months. To survive, the mariners resorted to cannibalism, first eating those who had died but when that food source ran out, deciding to draw straws to choose whom to sacrifice and eat. Owen drew the short straw. Only five men survived to tell their tale. Their story is retold in the book In The Heart of the Sea, The Tragedy of the Whaleship Essex, by Nathanial Philbrick (Vicking Press) and is thought to have inspired Herman Melville's Moby Dick. Check out a synopsis at http://www.ralphmag.org/AF/whale.html

How Nancy is related to Owen Coffin she did not say. Perhaps a distant cousin on her father's side, once removed and twice sautéed?

And why exactly this came up at a Food Committee Meeting, I do not know. I doubt we will be serving whale meat, let alone human jerky, anytime soon. Too much sodium and preservatives. Still, in future men would do well to think twice before entering the buffet line when the door is closed.

Postini

TIRED OF SPAM? (Junk email, not the delectable gourmet confection popular with residents of Hong Kong and trailer parks around the U.S. of A.) Maryknoll provides the Postini spam filter service free of charge to those with maryknoll.org addresses. Just log on to Postini.com to register and get started. It will quarantine virus-infected emails and keep other spam out of your regular maryknoll.org mailbox.

Now for the bad news. You'll have to log on to Postini.com every so often to sort through your junk and delete the real spam but be careful not to also delete a legit email from someone whose address the system inadvertently found suspicious. These good emails you can then forward to your regular mailbox and the system will accept them in the future. The other good news is you can always use this as an excuse for not responding to someone in a more timely manner: "I'm sorry. Your email must have gotten deleted with junk mail." (Be advised, however, this only works once per person.)

Now for worse news. For all our machinations and policies and restrictions to protect our system from hackers and viruses, if you haven't noticed by now, something obviously gained access to our email address lists or phone book and has been spewing out bogus promotions and messages in our names all bearing a legitimate Maryknoller's email address!

Read the subject line carefully and you'll know that Fr. Bill Grimm in Japan clearly does not want to enhance any part of anyone's anatomy and Br. Joe Bruenner in Chicago is no relation whatsoever to some woman named Tiffany who wants to get to know you better. I know things have run amok when I get spam on a regular basis from myself, bearing my own email address!

So far this is just a nuisance. Who knows what mischief these hackers are capable of? Spoke with Fr. John Eybel, rector of our formation program, who is anxious to save our sems from forfeiting their online freedom. By being connected to our system, their web access is very slow. Since they have TV from Comcast, I suggested they investigate if they can get Wi Fi and a router and declare independence from the Maryknoll system altogether. Anyone have better suggestions?

Bless the beasts

THE BLESSING OF ANIMALS takes place around the area today on what normally is the feast of St. Francis of Assisi. In the R.C. Church liturgical purists rule, so the 27th Sunday in Ordinary time trumps the PETA & Peace Patron. Thank God Episcopalians have their priorities straight. From our neighbor St. Paul's On The Hill to St. Bart's on Park Avenue, our four-legged, scaley and feathered friends will process up the main aisles at services today.

In years past on this day Hopi attended the Mass in the chapel of the Walsh building, when we used to have a chapel and when we used to have a Walsh Building.

We could have had a mini-procession here with Hopi, Agatha (Fr. Dan Jenson's, Fr. Joe LaMar & Mr. Sean Gould rotating custodians—cats don't have owners), Br. Kevin Dargan's cat, my turtle and Fr. George Ratterman's tarantula. Outdoors, of course on any given day we can see Canada Geese, deer, rabbits and the occasional skunk and wild turkeys.

The feral cats have gone, for now, but whether this is due to the successful "Catch, Neuter & Release" program of our grounds crew or Hopi's fierce vigilance remains to be seen. IMHO, feeding feral cats is misplaced Franciscan sentiment, as they then multiply, kill not only rats but rabbits, and run the risk of contracting rabies. (I mean the cats, not the Franciscans.)

In a future post, I shall explain the Peace Pole on our property. Till then, let us pray and work for peace.

Festivus Redux

REMEMBER THE SEINFELD EPISODE where Frank Costanza introduced the uncommercialized answer to Christmas known as "Festivus for the Rest of Us"? The three parts of this nonholiday are the Festivus Pole (an unadorned aluminum rod) the "airing of grievances" around a meal of comfort food, and the feats of strength where you try to pin an opponent to the ground till one or both tire out.

Frank may have gotten his inspiration from visiting Maryknoll. You want airing of grievances? Why wait for a phony holiday once a year when you can go to any meal in our dining room on any given day and you'll hear plenty. Feats of strength? Ever try to get volunteers to help at liturgies? There's a feat of strength! As for the Festivus Pole, check this picture out.

This pole with mission countries and their distances from Maryknoll has been dragged out for various occasions since it first made an appearance at a Sponsor Day many moons ago. It was last seen at the successful Maryknoll Youth Day in 2008. Now it has once again made an appearance, I presume for the talk by Sr. Helen Prejean tomorrow.

The concept may have been clever at one time: underscore Maryknoll's charism by pointing out how far it is to our mission sites. Only one problem: if the distances are "as the crow flies" you got yourself one monster crow if it thinks it can fly in the same direction and get to both Tanzania and Brazil. (Congrats to Rio for landing the 2016 Olympics, btw.) I guess geography has never been an American strong suit. All the more reason to be more accurate? Then again, that's why God created Mapquest and the GPS.

But besides displaying dubious distances in random directions, the Pole clearly has seen better days, albeit none in this decade. It's markers are dragging and drooping. Instead of being a source of inspiration, it begs the question: what is that and what's it doing here? (OK, we've also said that about the infamous Ambo back in the day.) There. I've aired my grevances. I've mocked the Pole. Now who wants to get pinned?

Dead Men (Still) Walking

SISTER HELEN PREJEAN, C.S.J., will once again speak before a Maryknoll gathering about her on-going crusade to abolish the death penalty in the United States. Expected to draw a larger than normal crowd, the talk will be held in the Fathers & Brothers main chapel on Sunday, October 4, from 2:30 to 4:00 p.m.

Prejean first spoke at Maryknoll back in 1996. While much has changed in the United States since then, she points out the U.S. remains the only western democracy that still has capital punishment and one of only six countries in the world that executes prisoners for crimes committed before the age of 18. To date, 23 innocent persons have been put to death.

Her story was made into an Academy award-winning moving movie in 1995 starring Susan Sarandon and Sean Penn.

More than statistics and appeals to morality, what gives Prejean's words authority is the time she has spent ministering to the families of victims as well as to those of prisoners.

Part of the Maryknoll Speaker Series, the event is open to the public and free of charge.

Revenge of the Pachamama, Part 2

BOTH OVERLORDS of the Pachamama Farm, just north of St. Teresa's, have been knocked offline, as it were, this week for serious, but God willing, not life-threatening conditions. We wish speedy recoveries to Fr. Fern Goselin and Fr. John Hudert. Thus, at the height of the harvest, the volunteer gardeners, mostly Maryknoll Affiliates and some neighbors, must fend for themselves.

The September 25 issue of NCR ran a wonderful spread on the farm, which has for many years been a source of fresh, home-grown produce for local food pantries. Maryknollers being Maryknollers, that particular issue of NCR disappeared from the periodicals room within minutes.

It has not been a good year for gardening in the east, as above average rainfall at at the wrong time decimated the tomato crop and spread fungi (not the edible kind) among surviving plants. We will have zucchini and squash, however, up the old Wazoo (which is a popular though largely unexplored river in Australia.)

Young'uns (?) Gather in Hong Kong

STARTING TODAY THE MEDIAN AGE of Maryknollers living here at the Knoll will spike upwards dramatically as members who took final oath after 1993 join their fellow "young'uns" from around the Maryknoll world and migrate to Hong Kong for a special reunion, of sorts. Not so much age-related as it is aimed at uniting newer members, the group includes late-bloomers to the Society like Br. Ed Redmund (China), Fr. Tom Goekler (China/Honduras), Fr. Rick Bauer (Namibia) and Fr. Mike Bassano (Thailand/Tanzania). Among other things, the gathering affords guys who have few if any classmates an opportunity to meet and bond with other 'singular' guys such as themselves.

From the Knoll, Fr. Dennis Moorman (Vocations) slipped away Tuesday, joined by Fr. Ed Szendrey (Internal Auditor) and Fr. Romane St. Vil (MEP) today. Br. Wayne Fitzpatrick (Lifelong Formation) is attending as facilitator. Fr. Ed McGovern is also in that group and will head to Hong Kong after the quarterly meeting ends in Rome. Fr. Paul Masson will attend on behalf of the general council. Newly ordained Fr. Stephen Taluja will interrupt his studies in Chicago for a week to attend. The meeting begins this Monday and goes till Oct. 13.

Of the 23 men eligible to attend, 20 are making the trek to Hong Kong, although, due to H1N1 concerns and quarantine threats, the guys will not visit mainland China as had been originally planned. Absenting themselves are Fr. Jim Lynch, Fr. Lo Dam and Fr. Joe Everson.

This is the second such gathering of newer members. The first was held in Rome in 2007 and was lauded by all participants as a great success. While not privy to their agenda, I suspect Marykoll's future and their part in it will be a large part of their discussion. Let's just pray the vitriolic health-care debate doesn't put any ideas of euthanasia into their heads!