Living Without School: A Visit.

Wednesday, January 28, 2009

A Visit.

A visit ~ on the Feast of St Thomas Aquinas. Doctor of the Church.

We had a mini debate over St Thomas - there are those of us in the family who like his writings and those of us ambivalent about some of the saint's thoughts. Hey, St Thomas made a great contribution but his writings were not infallible, right?

Our visit today was to Mary Mackillop Place. Wow, the museum was interesting - for me, as I recently finishe

d reading a biography of Blessed Mary Mackillop. And for all of us, since we have lived in South

Australia and many of the places portrayed were familiar to us.
We even used to live in Walkerville, where the early Sisters of St Joseph had the Girls' Orphanage. Used to go to a Latin Mass on Saturday mornings at St Lawrence's in North Adelaide, a church dedicated to Fr Julian Woods, Mary's friend and spiritual director.

Those little rabbit trails and connections and swirls of learning....

I prayed at the Chapel at Mary Mackillop Place. I had a lot of prayer intentions and my very patient family waited outside, in the courtyard and coffee shop.

Woo hoo! I left the Chapel very, very excited ( I know, I am weird!) ~ and also at peace. Excited because I had finally visited the Chapel, something I have wanted to do since we moved to Sydney in 2005. Yet something that I never had managed to do - up to now. Different things always thwarted my plans.

But not today.

We are going, I had announced to everyone last week. And go we did.

Sometimes I am a didactic forceful mother. ( Cringes.)

But I felt at peace, after the quiet and prayers. A peace that probably lasted all of ten minutes, until I started texting and talking. Again.

Blessed Mary Mackillop was a strong woman and a woman of strong faith. I admire such strength and such faith, especially in the face of adversity and in perplexing times.

Recently, I have blogged on gratitude. Recently I have had a penchant for blogging quotes from saints.

So, let me post ~ Gratitude is the memory of the heart...Bl. Mary Mackillop

3 comments:

Anonymous said...: A sprinkle of maternal discipline hardly makes you a didactic forceful mother! try living with an Italian mother! lol BLV; 11:45 pm
Leonie said...: lol! But I was pretty bossy - you should've see their faces when we arrived. SO not happy - but they did end up enjoying the trip. Or so I'm told...; 11:53 pm
Julie said...: I remember you mentioning how you really wanted to visit here...I'm so glad you got to go!; 12:15 am

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Prayer of Consecration of St. Maximilian Kolbe

O Immaculata, Queen of Heaven and earth, refuge of sinners and our most loving Mother, God has willed to entrust the entire order of mercy to thee. I, N___, a repentant sinner, cast myself at thy feet humbly imploring thee to take me with all that I am and have, wholly to thyself as thy possession and property. Please make of me, of all my powers of soul and body, of my whole life, death and eternity, whatever most pleases thee. If it pleases thee, use all that I am and have without reserve, wholly to accomplish what was said of thee: "She will crush your head," and, "Thou alone have destroyed all heresies in the whole world."

Let me be a fit instrument in thine Immaculate and merciful hands for introducing and increasing the maximum in all the many strayed and indifferent souls, and thus help extend as far as possible the blessed Kingdom of the most Sacred Heart of Jesus. For wherever thou enters, one obtains the grace of conversion and growth in holiness, since it is through thy hands that all graces come to us from the most Sacred Heart of Jesus.

V. Allow me to praise thee O Sacred Virgin.
R. Give me strength against thy enemies.

Prayer of St Bonaventure

Pierce, O most Sweet Lord Jesus, my inmost soul with the most joyous and healthful wound of Thy love, with true, serene, and most holy apostolic charity, that my soul may ever languish and melt with love and longing for Thee, that it may yearn for Thee and faint for Thy courts, and long to be dissolved and to be with Thee.Grant that my soul may hunger after Thee, the bread of angels, the refreshment of holy souls, our daily and supersubstantial bread, having all sweetness and savor and every delight of taste; let my heart ever hunger after and feed upon Thee, upon whom the angels desire to look, and may my inmost soul be filled with the sweetness of Thy savor; may it ever thirst after Thee, the fountain of life, the fountain of wisdom and knowledge, the fountain of eternal light, the torrent of pleasure, the richness of the house of God.May it ever compass Thee, seek Thee, find Thee, run to Thee, attain Thee, meditate upon Thee, speak of Thee, and do all things to the praise and glory of Thy name, with humility and discretion, with love and delight, with ease and affection, and with perseverance unto the end.May Thou alone be ever my hope, my entire assurance, my riches, my delight, my pleasure, my joy, my rest and tranquility, my peace, my sweetness, my fragrance, my sweet savor, my food, my refreshment, my refuge, my help, my wisdom, my portion, my possession and my treasure, in whom may my mind and my heart be fixed and firmly rooted immovably henceforth and for ever. Amen.