Fumbling towards Beatitude

Today I popped into the Andy Warhol exhibit (no pun intended) on Bloor Street. There was a very large stack of Campbell's vegetable soup cans (which were very real). Then I caught Vladimir Lenin scowling at me, both in black and red. Although separate pieces, the Gotti and Lenin I put side by side for comparison. They represent criminal minds who get popular appeal: Despite his many complex struggles , Warhol was practicing Catholic, of the Ruthenian rite, who would slip into church in Manhattan. This was the only religious work at the exhibit, labelled as St. Apollonia, a 3rd century martyr.   In the documentary film, I overhear Warhol being asked if he is original or not. He says "no." Confounded, the interviewer asks: "Don't you want to do something original?" He replies: "No. This is easier." The well-known dollar sign print: Warhol, famously shy and ...

Ignatian spirituality for women? As many know, there is no female branch of the Society of Jesus or Jesuits. St. Ignatius considered it, but in the end did not found any such branch. Instead, several groups spontaneously sprung up independently of the Jesuits, but who share with us a spiritual kinship. One such group is the congregation of women known as Les Xavieres - or Xaviere sisters. Their life is based on Ignatian spirituality, and they take their name from the great missionary Jesuit of the Far East. Similar to their namesake, the Xaviere sisters are outgoing and apostolic, spread out in nineteen communities in France, Africa and now Canada (where they have two houses: Montreal and Toronto), evangelizing in the name of God. Founded in France in 1921, and officially approved in 1963, there are presently 112 Xavieres, many of them young vocations.

There's a retreat coming up on the weekend of April 20-22 in the Toronto area, for young men who wish to discern a possible vocation to some form of consecrated life. To be lead by Fr. Anthony Wieck, a Jesuit from the United States, this silent retreat will be based on the Spiritual Exercises of St. Ignatius of Loyola. It is not a vocations retreat for any particular order or group, but an encounter with Christ to help clarify his Word in the life of the retreatant. There are only a small number of spots available, so if you think you or someone you know might profit from this, please contact me directly. My email address is on the bottom of the following poster. Thanks and God bless. -John