Awooo!

Dear Family and Prioress (wink),

Upon request of one of our dear lovely sisters, (Sister Judith Miryam, my BIG sister) it is my great honor to bring to you 1002 miles away, the truth, the way, and the life. An event that occurred on your communities Amata feast day; October 7th, 2005, feast of Our Lady of the Rosary, and isn’t our Lady the Lady of everything? And a beautiful Lady she is.

I have waited months for this once in a lifetime opportunity – of course its occurrence is more then once in a lifetime, an event so suitable for the Year of the Eucharist that the only words that should have been heard from the worlds lips should have been……, “Jesus Christ.”

This event we call, “The Eucharistic Congress” and a congress most certainly it is, with Christ truly present in everyone, and everything. Upon the thousands, of millions, of million thousand people there, the name itself was more then enough to unite ALL people of different races, countries, languages, and some even different religions. I know, for I am one of those different religions, a convert, who will be receiving the three most wonderful sacraments at Easter Vigil this year.

The Eucharistic Congress is that of the most beautiful thing that could ever happen, it is like that of our Holy Father’s World Youth Days. Once, even our Holy Father John Paul the Great was present via satellite at this event a few years ago.

The Eucharistic Congress itself is composed of minor events of the holiest things, that not your everyday average teenager would experience. Here, now, let my voice tell you from beginning to end this most sacred event.

It began in the evening of October 7th, at around 6 PM, my newly “dad” brother Brandon dropped me off at the wrong place. He dropped me off at the Cathedral of Saint Paul, in Saint Paul, Minnesota, a very cold Minnesota at this time, with two chocolate chip granola bars, and a video camera. I was supposed to be dropped off at the State Capitol which was over 10 miles from where I was. I was lost, discouraged, not wanting to miss Dana’s Concert, a wonderful Irish singing woman. I only noticed this when I saw the SIGN in big gold letters with a green background, CATHEDRAL OF SAINT PAUL I saw over 15 long black robed priests heading towards me, as matter of fact I don’t know what I was thinking when I almost ran into one, I decided best to follow them, whilst doing so me and MariaTheresa (A friend I made later on) Almost got ran over be Saint Paul’s “Holy” Drivers.

MariaTheresa and I finally arrived at the Capitol after praying the rest of the way, she was a previous religious sister, until she realized that wasn’t her calling. I got introduced to Father John a priest of John Vianny’s Seminarian. And it continues from there. It was most interesting, (like Amata Means Beloved, “After 35 years of modeling my smile has arthritis, with Vioxx I can continue smiling all day long!”) [No offence Sister Mary Catharine! J] The humor that filled the air with the Irish singers voice, it was so wonderful, so funny, so Christ fulfilled. Particularly the toes song, about how you must recognize your toes, your little toes. After the concert Sister Mary Samuel of the Sisters of Mary Mother of the Eucharist, proceeded with the announcement of the lyric contest winner, who was from California.

Then a great blessing, most Reverend Archbishop Harry J. Flynn of Saint Paul/Minneapolis spoke. His words flowed as if it was the River of God carrying them into the light, he glowed with the Holy Spirit working through him, thanking his people that they came, and how God was so good to us, and spoke of Our Lady like she was the idol of the world, which she most certainly was, after all it was the feast of Our Lady of the Rosary.

We progressed onto the rosary, as we lit our candles for the candle light procession, from the Capitol of Saint Paul to the Cathedral of Saint Paul, about 10 miles long worth of called people to celebrate this marvelous event, we ended up saying the rosary twice as the speakers were stationed all around Saint Paul, and the roads blocked off at night be our beloved police. I ended up walking behind a group of Dominican Sisters from Hawthorne, New York, whilst trying to find my many other sisters who I knew would be here at this miraculous celebration. I tell you…wearing black shoes during the nighttime isn’t the greatest idea, you can’t see! So I found myself literally praying that I wouldn’t trip the sisters in front of me. Thank gosh I didn’t, but it wasn’t easy, it was hard, having to look down for over an hour and half.

We lined around the Cathedral, as if cast to throw our lives before God in the burning fires of the candles, and the candles of our souls. The Archbishop spoke and blessed us. And of all of a sudden the angles declared unto Mary! The bells rang, ding, dong, I felt myself being pulled to Christ, growing closer to Him, growing in love, this continued for about 15 minutes. At this time it was about 9 PM, we all marched into the Cathedral led by the Knights of Columbus, I ended up standing, and with an arrow striking my heart, I knew for over three hours we were going to be in “Eucharistic Adoration.” And so we were this opportunity able my soul to fully cast myself before the most Blessed Sacrament. But of course there were distractions, I found myself moving around called to sit by the sisters their presence ached in my heart. So I shifted, first the Dominicans! By one who looked exactly like Sister Mary Catharine!!! Though she was slightly um…serious looking, our Sister Mary Catharine here is the patron of laughter.

They left an hour later at around 10 PM, so I shifted on towards a community I would have never thought I’d get to sit by or meet in my whole life, “Missionaries of Charity.” The same ones that just only a few years ago were under charge of Mother Theresa and there were 16 (My lucky age) of them, one leaned towards me and asked for the time, which was greater then sitting by them.

Adoration concluded with a final heaven sounding him and a blessing. My brother came and picked me up, I had an overnight burning flame in my heart while I crawled into bed at my brothers house, I said my prayers as usual, and slept until 6:00 AM to when I would awake and the Eucharistic Congress would continue…
PART II

7 AM still trying to wake up, we arrived at the Saint Paul River Center home of the Minnesota Wild (Hockey) I registered and received my name tag, sitting down first row, first seat, I had a prayer well up within me, I found myself praying for the salvation of souls, and evangelization, while looking up at our beloved Lord on the stage that would be the highlight of the Native Minnesotan band, (((Sonar.

Gah, sorry, I can tell some of you are sleeping right now or signing boring sign language. Let me fast forward a little bit, after the rocking Christ concert their consisted an hour of talks, one on Chastity by Jason Evert, most interesting…and very funny, we then headed down to the exhibit hall where our mass was going to be held via tv, it was painful, kneeling on a cement floor, but it was beautiful. Lunch/Exhibits/Vendors came after that. I of course didn’t eat and went darting around to true and find my Nashville Dominicans. I found them by following three white habits and three black veils, recording them.

I darted behind their beautiful display, and started to record a sister who I haven’t seen since 2004. Sister Mary Angelica, she told me, “Are you running that thing right now?” I laughed hard, shaking the camera in a nodding position (saying, apparently sisters don’t like to be recorded in public), she grabbed a miniature statue of Saint Dominic, and presented it, it came from an English Nun from England, that’s all that was said. A few moments later when Sister Mary Angelica and Sister Veronica Anne were apparently being entertained by a priest friend, another new addition to the group came back with coffee. Sister Anastasia. She walked around the corner of the display and I jumping like a director spoke, “Sister Anastasia of the Nashville Dominicans!” She appeared enthusiastically by my shoulders in a high-pitched not her own voice said, “Can you turn that thing off!” Me of course, wanting to do anything for the sisters, did so.

The evening continued with my game of “Running With The Nashville Dominicans” continued to amuse myself by appearing to every religious community talking to all the sisters, that were there for their community displays, unaware of the talks that were present upstairs. For the rest of the time, while missing the probably most useful talks, I recorded around until the end…we had a very special speaker who played Jesus in the Passion of Christ, Jim Caviezel, a very suffering man who wasn’t even close to experiencing the cross, but was literally hung on it while in the making.

My dear sisters, I can’t even begin to tell you the joy I had, the unity of Christ tied tightly in my heart, and the wish - you could have all experienced this phenomenal Trinity 24/2 event of the Year of the Eucharist, during this time I had said many prayers for you, each of you, each of you individuals there , and the rosary as well, I made sure to carry you in my heart so you 1002 miles away could experience the joy the laughter, the tiredness after effects of the 2005 Year of the Eucharist, Eucharistic Congress.

Prioress, Sister Mary Martin on behalf of myself and our Holy Father Saint Dominic I give you this “Spiritual Award” as a return for what your beloved community has shown and given me, I have seen the Holy Spirit work through your sisters in such ways I couldn’t even confess it to an confessor, please…prioress, know that my love and prayers are with you.

Sisters, I thank you for your all ears as I am thankful and grateful I got share with you this amazing event, I hope this gave you a glimpse of the effectiveness God has on our youth, elderly, and adult groups here in the Midwest.

I would like to end with a prayer for you, please join me by words;

In the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, Amen.
Oh God, our heavenly Father almighty I see deep down in the souls your Son has won for You, your daughters who have given up everything, and have given themselves totally to Christ, who is the center of their lives, and who should be the center of the world, I ask that in the days that come, in the hours, and minutes, months and years, Your bestowed blessing upon your children. May their example and un-known hidden presence be a fruit of life to all people of the world, although hidden, the power of prayer is what punctures the hardened souls, and converts the soul, and speaks to the souls.

I ask that may their hidden life, be the activeness to which the human, and the human soul that follows, may step into the presence of your daughters. Upon Your sacred hand, may the fruit of vocations grow for the hidden that is truly un-hidden by their power of prayer, for without prayer life would be impossible to live, without prayer it would be impossible to know what the Will of God is, without prayer it would impossible to know that such a loving, merciful, forgiving God exists, without prayer we would never be helped to know the right from the wrong.

“Do not be afraid.” May the words be stamped to the heart of your children and stamped to the heart of the world.

I ask this through your most Sacred Heart, and the Immaculate Conception! With our Holy Father Saint Dominic!
Amen,
In the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, Amen.

A quote from Amata Means Beloved the relation how I felt with our Lord, “It was bright, austere and welcoming. It was peaceful; a place of prayer. It was home.”