And Hay Became Holy: Advent 2021

 I still haven't been as active as I'd like on this little corner of the internet. August and September were incredibly full in many ways - some good, some bad. Posts I had been planning involved home projects that did not get done and the time and headspace to think of and create others evaporated. The gears are starting to turn again though, so we'll see what's in store before baby Rose arrives in Dec. . .

Something exciting I did want to share here is an Advent Devotional I had the privilege of writing for. It's a project I've been keeping secret for almost a year and I cannot wait to see how it blesses the women who pray with it in the coming season.  

For those who aren't familiar, Blessed is She is an online, Catholic women's ministry centered in prayer and community. I've been a devotional writer with the team since 2017 and have been blessed by so many friendships made within the team and with women I've met through the ministry.

Each year BIS releases an Advent and Lenten Devotional to help women enter more deeply into the liturgical seasons. The themes and writers change each time and this year's book is called "And Hay Became Holy" and invites readers to enter into the manger and pray with each "character" in the nativity. 

I wrote reflections for the first week and was assigned the ox and donkey, who have come to be two very important figures in my personal prayer since first encountering them last November. (I've been wanting to write about that experience for a year now and am excited to finally flesh it out now that the devotional has been released.)

This year's devotional includes gorgeous images to pray with using "visio divina" along with the typical scripture and writer reflections. 

You can learn more about the devotional and other Advent products like the fun bundle options (that always sell out) HERE.

Thank you so much for using my affiliate links and sharing it with others as it helps to support our sweet, growing family. 

I can't wait to pray with you! 

Peace,
Sarah

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Here, Too - The 2020 BIS Lenten Devotional

Launch Day is here and I am SO excited to share this year’s Blessed is She Lenten Devotional with you! 🎉⠀⠀
“Here, Too: Where We Meet God” accompanies readers through Psalms, Gospels and personal stories from 8 of our beautiful writers who illuminate those unexpected times and places where we meet God. Together, we will move through the desert, the storm, the tomb and much more. ⠀

Thousands of women will be journeying together with this devotional for Lent 2020 and we would LOVE for you to join us! (✨There’s also Lent Bundle which includes the bracelet I wear almost daily! FYI, the Advent one sold out in two days, so if you’re interested, be sure to act fast!)⠀

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Feel free to contact me with any questions. I cannot wait to walk through Lent 2020 with you ♥️⠀

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Peace,

Sarah

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Blessed Conversations - Misericordia

Blessed is She just released their newest Blessed Conversation Study, Misericordia, on the Spiritual and Corporal Works of Mercy (more of my favorite things!). The study follows the examples of 12 Catholic saints - 11 lay women (meaning not nuns or sisters) and 1 religious (a sister whose name you can probably guess even if you aren't Catholic 😉). It was written by 4 of our amazing writers and designed by the incredible Erica Campbell of Be A Heart Design! There are 12 sessions (one for each amazing woman) in this beautifully bound book which is different from the individual studies we have released in the past. 

My copy arrived this weekend and It 👏🏼 Is 👏🏼 Gorgeous! ⠀
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Y'all, I LOVE learning about the saints. I know that sounds sales-pitchy (and I am using affiliate links), but in all seriousness, next to Scripture, reading about the lives of the saints is my favorite way to grow deeper in my faith. Hearing about their unique experiences and devotion to God inspires me to learn and be more - to seek the magis for any of you Ignatian friends out there 😉 ⠀
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I cannot wait to dive in and learn about women of God I have never heard of and deepen my love for those I already hold dear - oh hey, Dorothy Day! 🙌🏼⠀
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The studies can be completed alone, but are so much more fun with a friend or small group whether in person or virtually. I've done one with a group of friends spread throughout the country and it was such a joy! If you have any questions or are in the Cleveland area and want to take a look in person, let me know! You know I love spreading the #BISsisterhood ♥️⠀

Get your own copy of Misericordia HERE ♥️
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(Photos by the lovely Katie Waldow)


Peace,
Sarah

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St. Anne

I love the beautiful examples of faith we are given via the Communion of Saints. These holy men and women help me to remember that I am loved beyond measure by a Creator who isn't interested in perfection so much as genuine effort. A God who can create saints out of some of the more unlikely cases (I'm looking at you Ignatius.)

Saint Anne, whose feast day is today, is a saint near and dear to my heart. Maybe it's because of a close relationship with my own grandmother, but Jesus' grandma has always been a source of inspiration and consolation in my life. She helped young Mary grow to be a strong, holy woman who proclaimed "Yes!" to God trusting unconditionally.

While most Catholic girls I knew growing up were striving to be like Mary, I often felt her perfection to be distancing - to be honest, sometimes I still do. I mean, the woman was immaculately conceved and chosen by God to bring us the Prince of Peace - that's crazing intimidating. And while I have since begun developing a closer relationship with Mama Mary, I still feel drawn to her mom, Anne.

In those moments where I find Mary to be out of reach, I pray for the grace to be like Anne - a gracious mother that leads her child in holiness by a beautiful example of love and sacrifice.

So, today I am thankful for the gift of St. Anne, for the gift of grandparents, and for the gift of holy women that teach me how to fall more deeply in love with Christ and lead me closer to God.

St. Anne, pray for us.

Who is your favorite saint?

Peace,
Sarah

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And So, We Hope.

I worry that I'm becoming jaded.

Okay, I worry about a lot of things, but lately this one has been at the front of my mind.

There's so much injustice in our world. So much violence. So much poverty. So much hatred. There's just so much. And sometimes it feels like it's too much. Too much to handle. Too much to fix. Too much to ever actually change.

Oh how I miss the days when I was bright-eyed,  and overly optimistic - ready and willing to go out into the world and make a difference. But as I grow older and witness more tragedy, more pain, more injustice, I sometimes feel that optimism shrinking...

And yet (thankfully) every time I think I've reached that point of no return, there is always something or someone who shines a light of hope - who inspires me with their optimism, with their care, with their talent - and lets me know that there is still good in the world. And that there is enough of it to make a change.

I work with students to address social justice issues and cultivate a deeper empathy and understanding of how we all fit together in our world. Learning about and witnessing heavy issues of hardship day in and day out certainly takes its toll on positivity and yet my students are constantly filled with a fire to be the change.

I often tease my them that they are the only reason I haven't given up on the world and retreated into a cave somewhere. They're still young. They still have that optimism. They are filled with passion and great ideas.

They give me hope.

And with that hope, I can feel my own optimism and passion begin to rejuvenate.

Hope and the rejuvenation that comes with it are key parts of this season of Advent. As Christians, we wait in hope for the coming of our Savior - in the celebration of his birth on Christmas, but also in anticipation for the coming of his Kingdom - on earth as it is in heaven.

We live in this tension of the already, but not yet. We know Christ has come and we faithfully hope and wait for the next arrival. In that tension, hope inspires action.

Advent is a time of active preparation. Yes, we wait, but we also work. We are called to prepare the way for the Lord. And so, we must ask ourselves: how can I help to bring about the Kingdom of God? How can I prepare our world to enter into Christ's peace? How can I show others the presence of God among us?

During this blessed season of Advent, let us not only prepare ourselves for the coming of Jesus, but let us also focus on preparing our world. The troubles may seem endless and overwhelming, but I have hope and faith that with open hearts and the help of our Creator, we can create the way.

We can make a difference.

And so, we prepare and we hope.

Peace,
Sarah

***Linking up with Blessed is She and #BISsisterhood and Faith and Fellowship

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Let the Advent-ures Begin!

Happy first day of Advent, friends! I hope you all had a restful Thanksgiving weekend filled with joy!

For those of you who haven't heard of Advent, in the Catholic Church it marks a season of waiting - waiting for Christ to come. (It is also celebrated in other Christian traditions, but I am not sure if all of the symbolism matches across the board, so I will only directly be speaking to the Catholic tradition. I'd love to learn more if any of y'all care to share!)

Advent begins on the Sunday closest to the Feast of St. Andrew (Nov. 30) and lasts for four Sundays. During Advent, we prepare ourselves for the arrival of our Savior on Christmas.  

As I mentioned in my recent post about Thankfulness, I am hoping to be more intentional about my personal preparation during this liturgical season this year. And in case any of you are interested in different ways to embrace a more intentional Advent this time around, I wanted to share some of the methods I am partaking in.

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The Grace of Remembrance

I have a brief activity for you. I invite you to close your eyes and think of a specific moment from your past that you remember feeling very happy and very loved. As you're thinking of this moment, try to remember what you were sensing at that time...

What do you see?

What noises do you hear?

What do you smell?

Try to soak in the environment around you...

What is the space like?

Who is there with you?

What are you doing?

How do you feel?

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"With Great Power, Comes Great Responsibility."

"God created mankind in his image; in the image of God he created them..." Genesis 1:27

You are created in the "image and likeness of God." How special is that? You are made to emulate the great Creator. In you, others may encounter the Divine. You are the Crown of Creation.

What a beautiful grace! What a powerful gift!

And yet, we must always remember that "with great power, comes great responsibility." It is not enough to simply be created in the image of God. Humanity has been endowed with the responsibility to care for all of Creation.

This is what Pope Francis is insisting upon in his latest encyclical, Laudato Si. We share in a deep responsibility to take care of creation and allow it to flourish.

The first creation story in Genesis illustrates, in spectacular poetry, the love and care poured out by God in each moment of creation. Where other creation stories during that time contained gods of violence and vengeance, the god of the Hebrew Bible, our God, invited the universe into being. "Let there be," and it was good.

This creation story ends with the formation of a new being. Different from those before, this one was made to be an "image" of God.

In ancient times, specifically those during which the Bible was written, while a king was away from his people, a plaster cast was placed at the head of the town. This replica of the king signified that the people of the place were to be governed and cared for in the same manner that would be done had the ruler been present. In a way, it demonstrated continued care for those the ruler had dominion over. They were not forgotten.

The Book of Genesis, written in Hebrew, has the word for plaster cast found where in English we read image.

Wow.

Not only were we created to resemble God, but according to the Hebrew, we were made to be replicas of the Divine and share in dominion over the rest of creation. But we must remember that this dominion must also replicate the Divine. We are to care for creation with the same compassion and love poured out for us by Christ.

If we are to truly be the Crown of Creation, we must be willing to pour out our love and compassion as well. Not only to our neighbor, but to all of God's magnificent and holy creation.

Peace,
Sarah

*** Linking up with Blessed Is She and #BISsisterhood and Faith and Fellowship

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My Summer with the Saints

November 1st marks the Feast of All Saints in the Catholic Church. Each year around this time, I try to choose a saint to learn more about and try to pray with as a guide to holiness through the year. Saints Bernadette, Ignatius of Loyola, John Paul II and Joan of Arc are some of those whose devotion to God I have come to admire through this practice.

After my adventures in Europe this summer, I find myself reflecting and praying with the many beautiful holy men and women whose lives I was fortunate enough to learn about and experience on another level.

So rather than just choosing one saint this year, I'm feeling connected to and comforted by many.

 (above: Basilica of Loyola, below: view of Montserrat on the way to Manresa)

By walking the footsteps of Ignatius of Loyola, I felt myself draw nearer to Christ in prayer and reflection along the camino. I wanted to walk those 200 km to learn more about and grow closer to the saint, but instead found myself diving deeper into my relationship with Christ, which is exactly what Iggy would have wanted. He calls all of us to live our lives so that everything is for the greater glory of God. AMDG.

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Happy Feast Day St. John Paul II

“Do not be afraid. Do not be satisfied with mediocrity. Put out into the deep and let down your nets for a catch.”

Pope John Paul II is one of my favorite examples of holiness in the Catholic Church. He was far from perfect, but this saint has done a lot for the Church and a lot for my faith and arguably, a lot for the world as a whole. 

 He was the first pope to set foot in a mosque and the first pope to visit the synagogue in Rome even though it was only a short distance from the Vatican. By doing so, he profoundly demonstrated the need for the recognition and respect of religions beyond Catholicism. 

When Poland was under communist control and practicing Catholicism was difficult, the young priest would take groups on "camping trips" away from the cities so that they could safely participate in mass and share in their faith. His undying commitment to the formation and recognition of the faith of our youth is inspiring.

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