Celebrating Mother Cabrini

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follow God's spirit, missionary, Mother Cabrini, serve God, The Sophia Center for Spirituality

Born in Italy in 1850, Maria Francesca Cabrini was the youngest of thirteen children in a family where only four of the thirteen survived to adulthood. Although prepared with a teaching certificate (cum laude) she was considered too frail for the religious life by the Sisters who had been her teachers. Had someone been privy to her inner strength and to her wish to serve God in China and India, she might have become famous for missionary work in the East. The story goes that during her childhood on visits to her priest uncle “she made little boats of paper, dropped violets in them, called the flowers ‘missionaries,’ and launched them in the waters of a nearby swiftly flowing canal to sail off to India and China.” (see http://www.saintoftheday.org) That was not to be for her, however, as her life unfolded.

Having been rejected by the Daughters of the Sacred Heart in Arluno, Italy, as too frail, she eventually became headmistress of an orphanage where she taught and drew a small community of women to live in the manner of a religious community. This group became the Missionary Sisters of the Sacred Heart of Jesus, led by “Mother Cabrini” who wrote the Rule and Constitutions of the community and remained the superior general until her death.

Her desire to be a missionary to China had never waned. At the age of 37 years, she went to seek the approval of Pope Leo XIII to establish missions in China. The Pope urged her instead in a different direction. “Not to the East but to the West” was his advice and so Mother Cabrini went with her Sisters to New York City where life was not easy and the work was overwhelming, serving the Italian immigrants by establishing catechism and education classes as well as providing for the many orphans who had recently arrived in the City.

By the end of her life Mother Cabrini had established institutions across the United States, and in countries throughout Latin America and Europe. After her death, the Sisters achieved her goal of sending missionaries to China but that was not to be as she had dreamed. Because of social and religious upheaval, the Sisters withdrew. Her worldwide influence is a testament to her willingness to follow God’s Spirit wherever she was led, even if she needed a little help with her geography!

Mother Cabrini

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give thanks, Mother Cabrini, optimism, perseverance, saint, St. Paul, The Sophia Center for Spirituality, Thessalonians, trust in God, willingness

If we need a model of perseverance so that we’ll never give up on life, we would do well to consider St. Frances Xavier Cabrini. I learned about the woman called “Mother” Cabrini (a great designation for the first U.S. citizen to be canonized by the Roman Catholic Church) in elementary school. She lived until 1917 – when my parents were already three years old – so seemed more real to us than most of the holy people we learned about who had died and been declared “official” saints centuries ago. If anyone ever had reason to sit back and say, “Enough! I give up,” she did! Here are a few of the facts.

She was refused entrance to the religious community that had educated her to be a teacher. She began work at a House of Providence doing charitable work; the bishop closed it three years later. She wanted to be a missionary to China but the Pope (Leo XIII) told her to go to the United States instead to work with Italian immigrants and she went. She had a fear of drowning but crossed the Atlantic Ocean more than 30 times before she died in one of her own hospitals in Chicago, Illinois. Perseverance? Oh, yes…and a willingness to hear the voice of God in those she trusted to guide her.

It is not enough to list her challenges; I advise reading even a short biography. My point today, however, is to note her willingness and the optimism that must have accompanied her throughout her life. Today’s verse before the gospel in the lectionary readings seems a perfect example of how she must have moved through her days. In Paul’s first Letter to the Thessalonians we read, “In all circumstances, give thanks!”

Praised be, Mother Cabrini!

Never Give Up

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fear, immigrants, Mother Cabrini, perseverance, St. Francis Xavier Cabrini, stamina, teacher, The Sophia Center for Spirituality, vision

Note: This post was created for November 13, 2018.

Today is the feast of St. Frances Xavier Cabrini, a woman born in Italy who became the first United States citizen to be canonized in the Catholic Church. Her life sounds to me today like that of “The Unsinkable Molly Brown” whose motto was “I ain’t down yet!” Here are a few of the reasons that I found at www.franciscanmedia.org why such a designation seems to fit her for sainthood.

1. When she was refused entrance to the religious community that had educated her to be a teacher, she began charitable work at an orphanage in Cadogno, Italy and subsequently made religious vows there.

2. When the bishop closed the orphanage, she became prioress of The Missionary Sisters of the Sacred Heart, joined by seven young women who became her community.

3. When her childhood dream of being a missionary to China was put aside at the urging of Pope Leo XIII, she obediently went to the United States to care for the Italian immigrants in New York City, having been promised an orphanage in which to serve.

4. Upon her arrival, she found the house was not available and the archbishop advising her to return to Italy. Undeterred, she spent the next 35 years founding 67 institutions dedicated to caring for the poor, the abandoned, the uneducated and the sick as well as establishing schools and adult education classes for Italian immigrants.

5. Since childhood, she was frightened of water and feared drowning, yet she traveled by ship from New York to Italy over 30 times in her life to do God’s work.

Thanks be to God for the vision, the stamina and the perseverance of this woman we honor today as Mother Cabrini.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Mother Cabrini

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courage, education, faith, Frances Xavier Cabrini, Mother Cabrini, needy, New York City, poor, The Sophia Center for Spirituality, women religious

Although Frances Xavier Cabrini was born in Italy in 1850, she is still considered the first American canonized saint of the Catholic Church because she became a citizen in 1909. Her story mirrors that of a number of valiant women religious who came to this country in the 19th century to serve the poor and the needy at the request of Church officials. Mother Cabrini was a “stand-out” in this group, however. Having worked tirelessly at a House of Providence orphanage in Italy, the bishop who closed that institution in 1880 named her prioress of the Missionary Sisters of the Sacred Heart. Following on that, Pope Leo XIII himself (whose encyclical on the condition of workers inaugurated the social teaching of the Church) called her personally to go to New York City to work with Italian immigrants. Although in her youth she desired to work in China, she obeyed the call to the USA and spent the rest of her life in New York City in spite of constant difficulties to her efforts for the poor, the sick, the abandoned and under-educated. In 35 years she founded 67 institutions for the aforementioned groups as well as schools and adult education classes for adults who, far away from the world they knew, seemed to be losing their faith.

The stories of women like Mother Cabrini always make me grateful for those pioneers who have shown us courage and faith in adversity as well as the possibility of accomplishing what many see as impossible. It reminds me of a quote that is on our desk at the Sophia Center that says, Those who see the impossible should get out of the way of those who are doing it. Let that be our lesson for today.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Of Imperatives and Prepositions

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among, behold, Jesus, Luke, Mother Cabrini, Pharisees, Pope Leo XIII, The Sophia Center for Spirituality

The Pharisees asked Jesus a lot of questions and he had some stunning answers to some of them. Today’s gospel text is a good example. “When will the Kingdom of God come?” was the question. (LK 17:20) No one could have expected the comeback: “The Kingdom of God cannot be observed and no one will announce, ‘Look, here it is’ or ‘There it is.’ For behold, the Kingdom of God is among you.”

The two words that interested me as clues about this answer were behold and among. In addition to seeing, the verb behold has intimations of watching and witnessing. It’s used most often as an imperative, a command, especially to call attention to something. The preposition among means in the company of, amid, in the middle of, surrounded by, in or through the middle of. (You get the idea.) So it seems that with these two words, Jesus is trying to say that unless we pay attention to what’s already going on around us, we may miss the manifestation of the Kingdom of God.

Today, Catholics (especially Italian – and other – Americans) are celebrating the feast of Frances Xavier Cabrini, an Italian immigrant who became a US citizen in 1909 and was declared, therefore, the first American saint in 1946. Mother Cabrini was definitely all about beholding the Kingdom of God. Since her early childhood in Italy she wanted to be a missionary to China (even though she had a great fear of drowning that never left her!) but Pope Leo XIII urged her to go west instead of east, landing her and six of her Sisters in New York City to work with Italian immigrants. In 35 years she founded 67 institutions dedicated to serving the poor, the abandoned, the uneducated and the sick. She worked among the people and was a clear manifestation of the Kingdom of God to the People of God who needed hope to sustain their faith in new and daunting surroundings.

So today, everywhere I go, I hope to pay attention to beholding the Kingdom of God because I do believe it is truly among us, surrounding me at every step.