J M J T

 

The Carmelite Novitiate

OUTLOOK

 

Published Monthly by the Discalced Carmelite Fathers, Our Lady’s Hill, Waverly, New York

Volume II, No. 10                                                                                                        September 1963

 

Dear Friends of Carmel,

 

            Forgive me for bringing up a gruesome subject, but if you will recall, in the last issue of OUTLOOK (the gruesome subject) we began with a reference to a man who made national headlines when he became the father of quadruplets.  We said we could well appreciate, in view of our own problems, how he must have felt in the face of his housing crisis.  Imagine then, how terrified we became when we read subsequently of the TWO cases of quintuple births, thinking that perhaps some problem similar to the ones that now confront those happy fathers might suddenly loom up on our horizon.  Well, I am not going to read a word of what the papers have to say about them.  What I don’t know will not make me panic.

 

            *                      *                      *                      *                      *                      *                      *

 

            Actually, our housing crisis has eased.  It is, in fact, over.  What with the departure of the five recently professed Clerics, and the two lay brother candidates who decided they are not called to Carmel, we have regained enough room in which to turn around.  (We didn’t even have room to turn the other cheek).  I was sorry to see the second of the two depart, because he seemed like a well balanced, sensible young man.  But we didn’t lament when the first one went.  Father Master said that in all the time that young man was here, which was about six weeks, he hadn’t seen him laugh once, nor even smile.  We’ve discovered that the religious life is impossible to that person who is not able to see the ludicrous aspects of life.  If for no other reason it is because God loves a cheerful giver.

 

            *                      *                      *                      *                      *                      *                      *

 

            Speaking of cheerfulness, I have the feeling that all my attempts at humor in this issue are going to go over like a lead balloon.  It’s a funny feeling that isn’t funny.  (See what I mean).

 

            *                      *                      *                      *                      *                      *                      *

 

            We’re not superstitious, understand, but neither can we conquer completely our irrational fear of those things that are suppose to bring ‘bad luck’.  So when it was called to our attention that the 13th of September was going to be a Friday, we couldn’t help feel the tiniest twinge of apprehension.  Under ordinary circumstances, we would have so judged it, because on that day it was so cold we had to turn on our boiler.  The bad luck about that is that our boiler consumes about 1,000 gallons of No. 2 fuel oil a week during the winter.  This year, though, the circumstances were extraordinary.  On that day we had another Profession, Brother David’s.  To us, a religious profession is so signal a cause for rejoicing, that no hurricane, or earthquake, or flood (we had one two days later, by the way) would have dissipated, shaken, or dampened the spirit of joy that pervaded that Friday the 13th.  Not even having to hear me preach another sermon for the occasion was able to dispel the happiness of that day.

 

            We don’t usually have separate profession dates for the cleric novices, but this year Brother David’s profession had to be held up for reasons of health.  About the middle of his Novitiate year, he began to lose the use of his right hand, and the muscles of both hand and wrist began to atrophy.  This was cause for serious concern, for were he deprived of the use of his hand; he would not be able to continue on as a candidate for the Priesthood nor for membership in the Order.

 

            Imagine our distress when doctors hereabouts, after extensive tests, told us that they could not find the cause of the disorder, and that they could not, therefore, hold out any hope for a cure.  And so it seemed that the good Lord was being very cruel, not only because we had come to esteem Brother David as a most worthy candidate, but also because his parents, Mr. and Mrs. Robert McNamara of Columbus, Ohio, have been outstanding benefactors of the Order ever since their son had entered our Minor Seminary at Peterborough, N.H., six years ago.  Then, while we all betook ourselves to prayer, Mrs. McNamara betook herself to a specialist in Columbus who was attached, I think, to Ohio State University.  After he examined the findings of the tests he did think he could pinpoint the origin of the disorder and did think there was a very good chance to correct it.  Well, to make a long story short, he operated on the boy’s neck, exposed the cervical spine, and sure enough, just as he suspected, he found there the reason for Brother David’s condition.  A virus infection had set in there, and was eating away the nerve endings that governed the use of his right hand and wrist.  The Doctor proceeded to destroy the virus and was able to assure us that in time the lad would regain almost full use of those muscles that had atrophied.  In the meantime, what with the tests and operation and recuperation period, Brother David was out of the monastery for 29 days, and was obliged by Canon Law to make up every one in order to be eligible for profession of Vows.  Now you know why, in spite of its being Friday, September the 13th was a day we’ll always remember with special delight.

 

            *                      *                      *                      *                      *                      *                      *

 

            Now that they are over, we can almost laugh at the two episodes that occurred since the last issue and which at the time scared us nearly out of our wits.  The first of these took place at about the end of August.  One day, just before the noon meal had been concluded, Brother Guy discovered and called my attention to huge billows of steam issuing out of the basement from the air vent that opens up onto the loading dock.  Enlisting the aid of Brother Maurice we dashed downstairs only to be met by a cloud of steam floating three feet off the floor and extending up to the 12-foot ceiling.  It was coming from the hot water boiler.  There was an ominous hissing noise coming from the boiler, too.  As we approached the entrance to the boiler room the hissing became suddenly much louder and assumed a higher pitch.  Brother Maurice dashed in with the intention of getting to the switch that shuts off the burner, but was unable to see because of the steam and had to come out.  Then we thought of turning off the electricity at the control panel, which was in the next room and which we could easily reach.  This we did and soon the hissing stopped.  We then called the boiler serviceman, and by the time he came a couple of hours later, all the steam had dissipated and the boiler cooled down enough so that he could examine it quite closely.  The boiler itself and all the plumbing were in perfect condition.  What had happened was, the temperature control switch, which is suppose to shut off the burner when the steam in the firebox attains a stated temperature had stuck in the “on” position.  So the boiler kept on running till it had engendered a head of steam powerful enough to force open the safety valve and escape.

 

            I was a bit fearful when the serviceman decided that the switch was still good enough to be used, but decided not to contradict him.   Sure enough, he was right, for we haven’t had any trouble since, and it is almost four weeks now since it happened.

 

            *                      *                      *                      *                      *                      *                      *

 

            Our next mishap was also a plumbing mishap.  This occurred on September 15.  Upon returning home late that evening from a meeting of our Third Order Chapter, affiliated with the Carmel of Elysburg, Pa., I discovered a whole crew of Brothers in the garage, (the doors wide open), playing hoses over the floor of the garage and squeegee-ing the water into the drain outside the garage.  At the same time I became aware of a noisome stench.  It turned out that the sewer was ‘backing up.’  Some brown paper toweling which we keep in the washroom by the main entrance had been thrown into the sewage system, and had gotten clogged in the line leading to the cesspool.  When I got there they had already been busy a couple of hours unclogging the pipe, and did not finish for a couple of hours more.  What heroes, they did this without the help of hip boots and gas masks.  As a well-earned reward, we let them sleep an hour and a half extra in the morning.  As I have said before, never a dull moment in Carmel.

 

            *                      *                      *                      *                      *                      *                      *

 

            On the credit side, though, we were treated to a visit of His Reverence the Very Rev. Father Albert, O.C.D., our Fourth General Definitor.  You ‘old’ readers of OUTLOOK should remember him; we featured him in the September issue of last year.  He is the one who inaugurated the series of events that led to our coming here to Our Lady’s Hill.  Naturally, he takes a great interest in us and gives us some very welcome encouragement.  It is a comfortable feeling, to have the moral support of such an influential member of the Order.

 

            Accompanying him was the Very Rev. Father Christopher, O.C.D., our Provincial Superior.  Father Christopher is always most heartily welcomed here “too”, since, in the goodness of his heart, he feels compassion for us plugging away at the manifold tasks that still face us, and enduring the inconveniences of an uncompleted monastery.  Thus he favors us at every opportunity and never misses a chance to do something nice for us.  Actually, it is not as bad living here as he thinks, but we don’t like to disabuse him of his false impression.  Aside from that, we welcome him because he has always been a father and a brother to us all.

 

            *                      *                      *                      *                      *                      *                      *

 

            With the end of the profession and clothing retreats, we have been able to resume some of the work projects, though at a more leisurely pace.  I am happy to say that we haven’t had to declare any workdays.  First of all the house was subject to a thorough cleaning.  Then some of the new men were assigned to continue painting the stairwells and one or two other rooms, the laundry, in particular.  Others finished putting down the tile in the Fathers’ section of the second floor, and the rest were turned loose in the cloister garden.  What engages our attention most is the bridge over the fishponds and the construction of forms for the pouring of the huge concrete discs that will provide a waterfall effect in conjunction with the fountain and shrine, the center of interest in the proposed garden.  With a little bit of luck, all the construction out there will be completed before the snow flies.

 

            *                      *                      *                      *                      *                      *                      *

 

            We usually censor all the notes that the Novices ask permission to post on our bulletin board, but every year, before we get a chance to tell the new ones they should submit them to us for inspection, one or two finds its way onto that nerve center of the entire community.  I don’t know whether one young man was subtly accusing us of giving them rags to wear, or not, but this is what we found on the bulletin board one day:  “Today is Laundry Day.  Bring down your dirty cloths and take away your clean cloths.”  (The emphasis is mine).  How can anyone get angry at anything as enjoyable as that?

 

            *                      *                      *                      *                      *                      *                      *

 

            Just recently we’ve been notified of a change in personnel.  Our chief breadwinner, Father Thomas, has been reassigned.  He is now a member of the community at Brookline, Mass.  Although we regret losing him (and the ‘alimony’ checks he used to send us each month), we must admit that it was a wise move.  We are so far off the beaten track here at Waverly, that Father found it almost impossible to return here between his commitments.  Also, since we are so new a foundation, we don’t have much to speak of in the way of library facilities, which Father Thomas finds so helpful in his work.  We’re not sure yet who will replace him.

 

            With such a large new class, Father Master has started looking around for some new sports for the Novices to engage in during the afternoon recreation.  There are too many for volleyball, and the majority of them are no good at softball.  So he’s introduced them to a new sports “kick”.  They now play soccer after dinner.

 

            *                      *                      *                      *                      *                      *                      *

 

            By the time you get this issue of OUTLOOK, our Triduum of honor of St. Therese will undoubtedly be over.  Father Justin will preach it this year, on September 30, October 1 and 2.  On October 2, the day of the Feast, we had a solemn high evening mass, followed by blessing and distribution of roses.  We remembered and recommended to her the intentions of all the readers of OUTLOOK.  There was no need for us to know what they are.  After all, God sees your hearts, and He knows what your intentions are, even when you do not.  So if you discover that some favor you desired was granted you, chances are it was obtained by the intercession of the great Carmelite Saint, our Sister in the Order, St. Therese of the Child Jesus, the Little Flower.

 

            *                      *                      *                      *                      *                      *                      *

 

            There isn’t much else to tell except that we are now in the “Fast” period.  From September 14 to the following Easter, these changes are made in our schedule:  Every day except Sunday and certain solemn feasts is a fast day (we abstain from meat all year round); and we have only one hour of recreation daily.  That means that after supper, which is at six, we go directly to the Choir for examination of conscience and Compline, and then retire to our rooms, for the Grand Silence begins after
Compline.

 

            These are trying days for the Novices, because they don’t find it easy to relinquish the ‘3 squares’ a day, and they sorely miss that extra hour of diversion, such welcome relief from the rigor of the daily routine.  At times like these we like to take advantage of every excuse to throw in an extra recreation in the evening, as when we have a guest for supper or when other reasons for celebrating crop up.  On such occasions the Novices can’t restrain themselves but whoop and holler for joy.  You’d think we had just promised them a trip through Disneyland or something.

 

            *                      *                      *                      *                      *                      *                      *

 

            I’d like to tell you how lovely some of the landscapes are around here, now that the fall colors are approaching their peak of beauty, but since words wouldn’t do justice to them, I’ll forego it.  Neither do words do justice to our awesome dread of winter, and the ‘fun’ we will have getting up and down our hill each day.  Now that fall is here, winter can’t be far away.

 

            *                      *                      *                      *                      *                      *                      *

 

            Several months ago, in the April-May issue of OUTLOOK, when I listed the results of the triennial elections of Superiors of the Province, I said I hoped to be able to introduce them to you by featuring them in turn in these pages.  You ‘old’ readers of OUTLOOK will remember that you had already ‘met’ Very Rev. Father Christopher Latimer, our Provincial, and Very Rev. Martin Herman, 1st Provincial Definitor and our Master of Novices.  Having put the ‘spot’ on them once already (don’t ask me how many times I have ‘them’ on the spot), I’ll go to the man next in line, Very Rev. Father Peter of the Immaculate Conception, the 2nd Provincial Definitor.  He graciously consented to be ‘used’ as the September OUTLOOK’S Carmelite of the Month.  (There’s real heroism to be found in Carmel).

 

            Father Peter was born Martin L. Duggan in Boston, Massachusetts, on March 25, 1931.  (Which means he is still a young man).  He attended Blessed Sacrament Grammar School in Jamaica Plain (part of greater Boston), 1936-1944, and thence went to Mission Church High School in Roxbury (also part of greater Boston), from which he was graduated in 1948.  Two months later he entered our Novitiate at Brookline, (again, a part of greater Boston), and on August 15 of the following year (1949), made Profession of Simple Vows.

 

            Before being sent on to Holy Hill, Father Peter and two of his Novitiate classmates took their first year of liberal arts education at Boston College and during this time remained on at the Novitiate.  Then in 1950 he went on to Holy Hill for the course of philosophical studies, which he completed in 1953.  In the fall of that same year, he proceeded to Washington, D.C., to our college of Theology, and there, in the middle of his fourth year, on December 22, 1956, he was ordained to the Sacred Priesthood.

 

            Just a few weeks before the end of Father Peter’s course of Theology, the triennial elections of 1957 were held.  In the ‘re-shuffling’ of personnel that followed, Father Peter found himself ‘dealt’ two important offices (I’m saying all this with a ‘poker’ face):  Teacher of History in our Minor Seminary at Peterborough, N.H., and Vice-Rector of that same hallowed institution.  And to prepare him for his task of History professor, he began, in that same year, to attend summer sessions at Catholic University.  To date he has completed six summers of study in History, and will finish up and obtain his degree next summer.

 

            In the triennial elections of 1960, Father Peter was made the Rector of the Minor Seminary and or course, continued on as History teacher.  Lest the terminology mislead you, I must explain that the Rector is the Principal of the Minor Seminary.  He is in charge of the running of the School, and is charged with the care of the students there.  The local superior of the community at the Minor Seminary is called the ‘Vicar’. It seems inevitable that Father Peter will one day be Vicar there, too, but that is getting off the subject.  Then in the elections of this year, Father Peter was elected the 2nd Provincial Definitor (2nd Councilor and Counselor to Father Provincial), and reinstated in the office of Rector.

 

            It has been my good fortune to have been a classmate of Father Peter at Washington.  We both began our studies in Theology at the same time.  He came on from Holy Hill and I came on from Brookline, where I had just finished my Novitiate.  We were, therefore, ordained on the same day.   And my good fortune continued for we were both assigned to teach at Peterborough following completion of Theology, and attended summer sessions at Catholic University for three summers running.  My good luck ended (his was just beginning) when we were separated after the elections of 1960.  He stayed on at Peterborough, as I have said, and I was assigned to the Novitiate at Brookline.

 

            I tell you all this because it will lend greater authority to my words when I tell you what an exemplary Carmelite he is.  Father Peter is one of the best liked and highly regarded of all the religious of the Province.  His capacity for work is phenomenal, all of which he does very well.  More phenomenal still: he never complains.  It seems certain that he has made the admonition of St. John of the Cross his own:  “Never refuse work, even though it seems that you will not be able to do it.  Let all find compassion in you”.

 

            Father Peter made his Novitiate and took his studies at the same time a large number of GI’s, veterans of World War II, were going through.  He was, therefore, quite a bit younger than most.  But for all his youth he was wise beyond his years, levelheaded, and very mature.  In these things he was certainly on a par with the older, more experienced ‘vets’.

 

            I remember Father Peter as being an avid student of current events, and remembered how impressed I always was when he spoke on world and national affairs, as would happen when occasionally they became the subject of conversation at recreations.  I also found it a treat to hear and see him laugh.  There are two or three of our Fathers who can get him laughing so hard that the tears just come pouring out of his eyes.  In his own right, he is very quick of mind and very witty.  Most important of all, he has always been an inspiration as a religious to the other members of the community in which he lives.

 

            *                      *                      *                      *                      *                      *                      *

 

            The Constitutions of our Order prescribe that we make a renewal of vows twice each year, on the Feasts of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross and the Epiphany (September 14 and January 6 respectively).  I don’t know whether these Feasts were selected for their symbolism, or because they are days of which we resume a more strict form of life after periods of relaxation, namely, after the summertime and after the Christmas festivities.  Renewing our vows on these days reminds us that we have to buckle down.  (We often have to ‘buckle down’ literally, since we may well have added an inch or two to the waistline during the summer and during the Christmas season).  But if those dates were chosen because of the significance of the Feasts, it would be because the Vows, ‘exalt’ the Cross of Christ, and ‘show forth’ the power of the Cross.  (An epiphany is a ‘manifestation’).  Taking Vows is one way of ‘crucifying’ the flesh, so that we may be able to say with St. Paul:  “I am affixed, with Christ, to the Cross”.  The Vows make known the power of the Cross to all the nations, since it is utterly impossible to live under the Vows of Religion without the grace, which proceeds from the Passion and death of Christ.

 

            We often speak of renewing a lapsed subscription or renewing a depleted supply.  In our case our vows do not elapse, so we cannot speak of renewal in that sense.   We have to admit that our ‘supply’ of fervor may be depleted, but it was not pronouncing of vows that gave rise to our fervor, it was the fervor, which led to the vows.  Fervor is renewed at other sources.  Thus it seems better to speak of a ‘renovation’ of vows in the sense that we have to ‘renovate’ those things that fall into a state of disrepair.  This is possible if we think of the vows as creating a wall of fortification, which protects our souls from its enemies.  Walls of fortification do weaken and sustain damage both from weather and from the assaults of the enemy.  In other words, infractions of the vows no matter how slight, would lessen the effectiveness of the protection they afford, and in due time, if left unrepaired, would lead to a complete breakdown of the entire wall.

 

            I think it is well for the laity to know that we religious have to renew our vows twice a year.  (It is a shame that married people do not do the same).  Oftentimes the laity misjudge us.  They think we are better than we really are.  At times they give the impression they think we are beyond temptation, beyond the possibility of failing against the vows.  It is true that religious deserve the esteem and respect of the faithful for making such a noble and generous effort to conform themselves to Jesus Christ, but to say to them, “You don’t need any prayers,” when they are solicited, is to do them an injustice.

 

            To get back to the notion of ‘renovation’, we can speak of the vows as making our souls a dwelling place of extraordinary richness and beauty.  Certainly, every Christian soul is a Temple of the Holy Trinity, but God does not take delight equally in every soul.  A rich man, who has several houses in various parts of the country, does not enjoy each one in the same degree.  He has his favorites.  Well, the vows, by their very nature transform the soul of the religious into a Mansion of special charm and attractiveness.  It is the dwelling in which the Bridegroom of the soul loves to find refreshment and rest and consolation.  It is the dwelling in which He has every right to expect the maximum in endearing affection and comfortable repose.  The Vow of Obedience is like the exterior of the Mansion, its walls and its roof.  It is supposed to make the dwelling impervious to adverse ‘weather’:  cold, strong winds, rain, and storms.  We might liken the cold to self-will.  If there is the slightest failure in the vow of obedience, self-will gains entrance and drives away charity, just as a leak in the walls and roof of a house let in the cold, which dissipates the heat within.  If the vow of obedience is kept ‘air-tight’, by perfect adherence to the will of Jesus Christ, then charity is preserved, nay, is increased measurably.

 

            But there are other things besides self-will, which do violence to the walls and roof of the lovely Mansion, which is a soul in Vows. There are whim and caprice (winds), discouragement, disappointment, failure, fatigue, anything that can dampen our spirits (rain), sensitiveness, feelings, emotions (storms).  All of these influence our response to the situations, which crop up in daily life.  Because of them, it is not always easy to discern, much less cling to the unerring will of God.  Because of thoughtlessness, surprise, weakness, infractions against the virtue of obedience due to these things will not be serious, but will lead to serious infractions if not constantly guarded against and repaired.

 

            We can think of the Vow of Poverty as creating the ‘décor’ of the interior of this mansion.  When we are attached to material goods, then the interior of our souls are cluttered up with junk.  While on earth, Our Lord lived a poor life; all He permitted Himself were the bare necessities; His was a hard, uncomfortable lot.  He said of Himself, “The Son of Man has not a stone whereon to lay His head”.  Our Divine Saviour now expects to find in the souls of His religious the comfort, rest and relaxation He chose to forego upon earth.  What He loves in a soul is utter simplicity.  The vow of poverty is designed to strip the interior of the mansion (which is a consecrated soul) of everything that destroys its innate loveliness.  It pains Our Lord Jesus to look at the interior of a soul when it is all cluttered up.  He finds it impossible to find comfort and to feel at ease there.  Setting the heart upon creature comforts, namely, desiring the best and most gratifying to sense in food, clothing, living quarters, diversion, recreation, etc., does violence to the Vow of Poverty and makes what was all neatness and orderliness an ugly shambles.

 

            Finally, briefly, Chastity is the ‘doorman’ of the Mansion.  When Chastity is alerted to duty it keeps out all undesirable characters.  Not that Religious would fail against Chastity by admitting persons, the love of whom is incompatible with love of the Lord of the Mansion, Jesus Christ.  Rather, it is by letting in persons who steal for themselves a share of the affection and attention that is due to God alone.  As, for example, when we look for consolation and sympathy from a human being; when we seek out the company of those who will flatter us, show us marks of esteem, make a fuss over us, take our side against those who inflict upon us alleged indignities.  These infractions of the vow of chastity, though slight, would be like admitting rowdies and ruffians into the Mansion of our Soul; who would drag in dirty feet, scratch and mar the furniture, show no respect for the Lord and Lady of the Mansion, namely Jesus and the soul consecrated to Him.

 

            And it is eminently in keeping with the vow of chastity when we not only keep out undesirables, but also make a special study of pouring out upon Our Lord all the affection of our hearts, of preferring His company to anyone else’s, of seeking to be esteemed and regarded by Him above all, of going to Him with our humiliations and affronts to offer them to Him as means of allaying His own sufferings, of desiring to be without consolation so as to console Him.

 

            Well, dear friend of Carmel, I hope I have made it clear that we do have to bolster and strengthen our vows frequently.  Not only are Religious NOT exempt from battle, they are placed instead in the thick of the fight.  They are, after all, surrounded by such powerful fortifications: the vows, and they live in monasteries and convents, spiritual arsenals.  These are the best safeguards, but we do want you to know that we need and appreciate the further safeguards of your prayers.

 

            *                      *                      *                      *                      *                      *                      *

 

            Be assured of our prayers for you.  God bless and reward you all.

 

                                                                                    Cordially yours in Our Lady,

                                                                        Father Bruno, OCD, Prior

                                                                                    [With permission of Religious]

                                                                                    [and Ecclesiastical Superiors   ]

 

 

Note to Readers:  The Novitiate at Waverly no longer exists, however the Carmelites are still in need of your support.  If you would like to make a donation, please send “In appreciation of Fr. Bruno’s Works”, The Mission Procurator, P.O. Box 270136, Hartford, WI 53027.