Please enjoy the music while we transfer you to charisministries.org...

For right now, we're putting the blog on hold as we experiment with posting news, resources, and reflections on our new website! Visit charisministries.org to check out the fresh new look and find content that once landed on this blog.

Blog junkies, don't fret. We are considering continuing with the blog later on once we rethink it's mission and goals. But for now, enjoy charisministries.org!

Peace,
Mary Ellen

12 Ways to Pray on the Go: Apps for Your Smartphone

U.S. Catholic has compiled a list of smartphone apps that can foster your spiritual life on the go. From iConfess, an app that has a list of prayers and tips for examining your conscience, to Loyola Press's 3-minute daily retreat, you can carve time out of your day to pray! Check it out.

The Spiritual Life is About Making Connections

An excerpt from the new book for young adults in their 20s and 30s, Already There: Letting God Find You, by Mark Mossa, S.J.

“My spiritual life has never come in neat little packages. No, the packages usually come somewhat damaged, despite the handle-with-care warning labels. And the contents are often not what I expected, maybe a chipped, algae green colored ceramic frog instead of that colorful tapestry of the Madonna and child I had ordered. Or some other sort of cosmic mishap that forces me to think, as cliché as it sounds, “outside the box.” Thus, the need to make connections. It takes some work to figure out why I’ve received the frog with the yellow underbelly instead of that intricately woven Blessed Mother and child. There is some spiritual lesson in this awkward amphibian that I’m meant to discover!

But to do so I need to see things in a different way.

This book will help you discover this new way of seeing. It’s not meant to instruct you how to see the way that I see. You have your own unique way of making spiritual connections and it is my hope that something, perhaps many things in this book will put you in touch with that. Therefore, what you will not find here is a step-by-step formula for spiritual success. That’s not to say my book has no structure. It’s just that instead of steps you’ll find that the book is organized around one key recognition: Whether we like it or not, each of us has a past, present and future. And that, as you might have guessed, they’re connected.

Steps don’t work for me because, if anything, my spiritual life has progressed in missteps, and not without stepping on a few toes—unfortunately, not just my own—along the way. Indeed, if I told you my life story, I expect you would say, ‘Boy, that was random,’ or, if you were less kind, you might cringe and say, ‘Boy, that was messy.’ But, perhaps you can relate to life being messy. And, perhaps like me, you are convinced (or want to be) that there is some meaning to all that messiness, some reason why I keep running into frogs instead of the Mother of God . . .”

--from the preface, "Boxes of Frogs, Mother of God."

read the whole preface here.

"First Comes Love"

How do young adults come to marriage? The feature article of this month's U.S. Catholic explores the many ways that young adults today are in relationship and how, if ever, they come to the decision of marriage. A lot of my friends have really enjoyed this article, especially because of the many perspectives that it includes. Click here to read on!

-Mary Ellen

Exercising with St. Ignatius

Parishioners at Old St. Pat's have been working through the Spiritual Exercises of St. Ignatius since last November. You know it's going to be a down to earth retreat when the organizer admits that he used to think: "give me a treadmill or the weight room any day over the exercise program St. Ignatius had laid out."

Check out Al Gustafson's reflections on journeying through the Exercises here.

~Lauren

What will the "What Next?" Transitions Retreat be like?

The Charis Transitions retreat was certainly a memorable one for me. The retreat team was so Spirit-filled, humble, and dedicated to making the retreat be as sincere and effective as possible. And who can argue with an ice cream eating contest? J The friends I made on that retreat – both from the retreat team and the retreatants – are priceless. I encourage anyone who’s seeking an authentic weekend, who wants to put away their “stuff” and cut through the clutter, if even for a couple days, to attend this retreat. It’s both reflective and inspiring, as well as a touchpoint for someone on the spiritual path and wants to journey with others.

-Crystal C.

For more info on the upcoming "What Next?" Transitions Retreat, click here!

Reflections of a What Next? Retreat

A retreat is a time to "retreat" from everyday life (i.e. routines, work, parish life, friends and family). It is a time to retreat to a different place, a place of reflection and renewal. In the end, it turns out to be a "treat" for oneself. I had the opportunity to attend a summer retreat sponsored by Charis Ministries a couple of years ago that turned out to be life-changing.

The retreat was co-led by peers. The environment was set up to be a safe place to share and explore your faith in the company of others, or if one chose, in solitude. Whether it was during small group, or during free time as we gathered to eat together or share in an ice cream social, the opportunities were provided to explore your relationship with God, each other, and the world. There is also time to be challenged, maybe in what you believe or how you behave.

The time spent provided me an opportunity to remember God's unconditional love that is always present to receive. I highly recommend considering a Charis retreat to anyone seeking time to be away and being renewed.

-Brian M.

Click here to find out more about the upcoming What Next? Retreat!

Ignatian Spirituality: A How-To Guide

Per usual, IgnatianSpiritulity.com has some great new resources, particularly on its blog, dotMagis. (Boy do I love when those Jesuits get hip. What's next? Ignatian Aps for my iPad?! Oh wait, Loyola Press already HAS those! Unbelievable.) ANYwho - if you're like yours truly, you always appreciate new perspectives on praying the Examen. Check out dotMagis for new perspectives and tips on this age-old prayer, including an audio guide!

-Mary Ellen

Jesus was a great eater

On Sunday evening, I attended a Theology on Tap talk at Old St. Pat's. Fr. Ed Foley, a Capuchin priest and professor at CTU gave a great talk called Which Jesus Table? Starting Points Make a Difference. In it, he invited us to look at the Eucharist from the perspective of Jesus' table ministry rather than simply by beginning with the Last Supper. In that light, the Last Supper, and the Eucharistic liturgy that we celebrate today, are a continuation of Jesus' building up of community by eating and drinking with all sorts of people.

Jesus ate and drank with sinners and outcasts, with Jews and Gentiles, with men, women and children, with the rich and the poor. Meals for Jesus were a time to welcome people and to bring them together to be with him and one another.

We often go to Mass as a time for personal prayer and to be left alone. We may go in not knowing anyone else, and leave knowing the same number. But if we are to truly embrace Jesus' idea of Eucharist, and the importance of gathering together as a community around the table, what must we do to create and be part of a welcoming community. How are we called to be part of this Body of Christ?

~Lauren

Live the Magis

Tomorrow, July 31, is the feast day of St. Ignatius of Loyola, founder of the Jesuits. There are lots of great resources on Ignatian Spirituality and info on St. Ignatius, but one that you may not have run across is the dotMagis blog. St. Ignatius always strove for the magis in everything he did. Magis literally means "more" and refers to the ways that we can serve and follow Jesus more deeply. Ignatianspirituality.com has a blog inspired by this desire for excellence: dotMagis.

In honor of St. Ignatius, check out the blog, and ask yourself where you can live out the magis in your life.

~Lauren

A Look at Film & TV through a Jesuit Lens

Charis board member, Jake Martin, SJ, is a contributing writer for America Magazine. As a young adult Jesuit, Jake always offers an insightful and relevant opinion informed by Ignatian values. Check out his latest articles reviewing the film "Breathless" and the sitcom "Community"!

-Mary Ellen

31 days of St. Ignatius

Friday is the Feast day of St. Ignatius. Check out Loyola Press' resource: 31 Days of St. Ignatius.
It is full of ideas for prayer, for reading, and for reflection.

Shrimp Boats

Two weekends ago we went to Tybee Island. As we sat on the beach, we were blessed with the gift of watching shrimp boats about 50 yards away from us. The boats would be out there as soon as we woke up, and they would be out there long after we left the beach in the late afternoon. For two days, I sat and watched not only the boats but the crews of these shrimping boats. It is in rare moments like this, where I get a brief glimpse into someone's life, that I cannot help but pause and reflect on what I had the opportunity to witness.

First of all, it made me thankful, for the shrimpers who were out there catching the shrimp. I rarely give a second thought to where the shrimp I eat came from or who caught it. After watching the long hours of shrimpers and after watching them stay put when the rest of us hurried inside during a severe thunderstorm, I have a new appreciation for the shrimp I love to eat. Little do those men and women know that the work of their typical day helps provide for my family an ingredient to meals that are often celebratory--finishing a project, an anniversary meal, a birthday. Finding fresh seafood where we live now is hard, and we relish the seafood from Louisiana in our freezer. I am thankful for their work!

During the severe thunderstorm, I watched these boats get rocked and tossed around from the comfort of my condo. The wind gusts were so strong and lightening so bad that I found my nerves on edge. I could not help but offer a silent prayer to protect them. My mind turned also to the wives, husbands, and children back home, who knew there mom or dad was out on that boat in that storm. I kept thinking...all of that for shrimp? Why? It is the same reason we all do our work...to make a living, to provide for our families. I am thankful for the risk they take to survive.

Finally, my mind continued to turn to the Gulf Coast right now and the oil spill. I know there are so many people that cannot get out on their boats right now and make a living for their families. They posses the same heart, the same drive, and the same perseverance that these shrimpers showed me this weekend. I am saddened for them, for their loss, and for the worry they must be carrying trying to figure out how to provide for their families. We must continue to pray for them and offer them support.

I am left in awe. In awe of the beauty of the surroundings where these men and women work. In awe of the fact that there is no "rain-delay" for their work. In awe of how long it takes for their days work. In awe of how they use their God given talent and their education. In awe of how I can take something as simple as shrimp for granted.

There are men and women all over this world doing jobs where we reap the benefits. Do we ever stop and slow down enough to really see them and acknowledge their hard work?

How many pieces of our days and our lives are affected because of someone's work?

How does stopping to realize that our lives are daily touched by someone we do now know make us feel?

~Becky Eldredge, Everything Is Holy Now

Spiritual Health

The below list of questions comes from Kathy Hendricks's book: A Parent's Guide to Prayer. Kathy suggests that we need to take our pulse on a daily basis by posing questions that test our spiritual health:

1 Am I snapping at those closest to me?
2. Am I growing resentful about all I have to do at home, in the workplace, at church, or with my child's school?
3. When was the last time I was still?
4. Am I letting my spiritual needs go unmet while taking care of other details in my life and my home?
5. What effort have I put into praying?
6. Do I still have the heart for my faith? my family? my life?

I find that these questions are challenging and thought-provoking. When we neglect our spiritual needs, we often find our lives off balance. As we answer and reflect on these questions, we may find that our spiritual health is in need of some attention. It may mean needing some alone time to just be or pray. We may need time to rest and play so that our spirits can be renewed. We may need to engage in a period of discernment to see if our "yeses" need to change. Are we saying "yes" to too many things? Are we not saying "yes" to the things that matter most? Maybe, we just need to spend some daily time in prayer. Perhaps, we may find that we are in need of our own retreat-- a few days of quiet, prayer, and reflection- to feed our spiritual life.

The answers to why our spiritual health may be off are necessary and sometimes challenging questions. All of these questions are questions that we can take to prayer. We can ask the Holy Spirit for guidance in discerning why we feel "off".

What is the current health of our spiritual life? Thriving, barely surviving, non-exisitent?
What are we feeling nudged to pay attention to right now in terms of our spiritual health?
What do we need to feed our spiritual life?

~Becky Eldredge

Oil Spill

Today, I read an article in the newspaper about how the oil spill had affected the owner of BP gas station in my city. The owner said his sales were down 60%. His quote was, "I never thought I would see this day, that after working as hard as I have, that I would be facing an imminent possibility of going out of business." The story went on to tell about how this man owned this gas station to provide for his family. His connection to the oil company was "strictly for the rights to the logo and a contract to buy gas."

I was struck by this man's story. He, like all of us, is trying to provide for his family. This oilspill, which he did not cause is affecting his livelihood. I am from Louisiana, and I am frustrated and saddened at the impact this oilspill is having on the people in my home state. Many, like the owner of the gas station in Georgia, will not be able to remain in business due to the affects of the oil spill. Back home, the impact on wildlife is devastating.

As we all process this devastation, I feel we are left with some daunting questions, "What can we do to help? What is our responsibility in all of this? " As I continue to pray for all of those impacted and I discern the answers to these questions, I pray:

Take, Lord, and receive all my liberty, my memory, my understanding, my entire will.
All that I am and call my own. You have given it all to me.
To you, Lord, I return it. It is yours.
Do with it what you will.
Give me only your love and your grace.
That is enough for me.

Grad at Grad--What makes it Jesuit?

"What makes your Jesuit school Jesuit?"

I have the privilege of spending 48 hours with a group of people working at Jesuit schools in the Chicago-Detroit Province reflecting on this question. Gathered here are more than 50 teachers, administrators, and staff members from Chicago Jesuit Academy, Christ the King, Cristo Rey, St. Ignatius and Loyola Academy (in the Chicago area) and Brebeuf Jesuit (in Indianapolis). These dedicated people have spent at least a year working at their school and have come together to grow in their understanding of St. Ignatius, the Spiritual Exercises, and the mission of Jesuit schools.

They have a variety of reasons for why they chose to work at a Jesuit school. Some were Jesuit educated through high school or college and want to be at a school that upholds those values. Some were looking for a Catholic school where they could integrate their faith into their work lives. Some were simply looking for a job, and this is where they landed. Despite the variety of reasons, they all share a love of, and a dedication to, the mission of the school to form "men and women for others."

At Jesuit schools, there are 5 characteristics of their graduates that they want to see at graduation (known as "Grad at Grad"). Briefly, these graduates should be:

1. Open to growth

2. Intellectually competent

3. Religious

4. Loving

5. Committed to doing justice

For me, as someone who wasn't Jesuit educated, I strive to embody these five criteria now in my life, let alone when I was 17 and graduating from high school. These are the marks of people who are growing in their relationship with God and trying to live their lives as God is calling them to live.

At this point in my life, years after my high school graduation, can I say I am living out these ideals? How am I measuring up to these Grad at Grad goals?

~Lauren

"The Revolution of the Heart Begins in Community"

My friend Jake wrote this thoughtful and challenging reflection that was published in Sojourners last week. He reflects on the oil spill in the Gulf through the lens of Dorothy Day's belief that "what is needed is a revolution of the heart". Day co-founded the Catholic Worker, a movement which strives to create a new society in the shell of the old through non-violent resistance and advocacy along with houses of hospitality. Furthering the movement, Jake is a co-founder and member of the White Rose Catholic Worker community in Chicago. Hope you enjoy the piece!

-Mary Ellen

"Adrift in the Gulf"

"The deep ocean is not merely a difficult site from which to extract resources; it is part of a beautiful, breathtaking gift for all generations to share, preserve and pass on. We have failed in our responsibility as its stewards."

This is a thought-provoking piece on the maddening and dismal situation of the Deepwater Horizon explosion and oil spill. The editors of America Magazine challenge us to move deeper in our criticism of the spill, to look not only to oil executives for accountability, but to ourselves as consumers who are called to be good stewards of our resources, but who, oftentimes, are reckless and unintentional in our consumption. It certainly makes me examine how I must change my own habits to preserve these resources which are meant for all the world, and generations to come, to share responsibly.

-Mary Ellen

Small bumps in the road

My greatest hope is to incorporate my faith in my daily life. I hope for this in my marriage, in my parenting, in my daily interactions with people, and in my work. I feel capable of doing this when all is well-- when there are no disagreements in my marriage, when my children are engaged and playing happily, when there is no tension in relationships, and when work moves along smoothly. The tougher question for me: "How do I live my faith in the small bumps that we daily deal with?"

How am I incorporating my faith in disagreements? in disciplining and teaching my child? in working out problems? How does my faith come into play when my three year old has a melt down because his piece of sausage broke in half at breakfast and my patience is very thin because this melt down has occurred three times during meals this week? What do I do when the same challenging problem arises again with a person I love? What do I do when I am a placed in a situation that requires me making a difficult decision? What do I do when I am tired and cranky because I was up all night with a child, and it is coming out in my interactions with my family?

My hope and prayer is that the roots of my faith will guide me through these small bumpy moments. How often, though, I fall short. With all my strength, I pray the prayer below:

God be in my head

and in my understanding.

God be in my eyes

and in my looking.

God be in my mouth

and in my speaking.

God be in my heart

and in my thinking.

God be at my end

and at my departing.

— Sarum Primer

Thankfully, when I do fall short, I know the same place I turn to for guidance, God, will give me the courage to reconcile, to apologize, and to try again with a heart and head rooted in faith.

How do I live my faith during the small bumpy times in daily life?
~Becky Eldredge, Everything is Holy Now

What a difference a year makes

June 10 last year was my due date for my first child. One year ago, I had no idea who was going to make his/her entrance into the world, nor did I have any idea of when he/she planned to do so. Three days later, I met the little man who has changed the way I look at everything. It's hard to believe that a year ago, I didn't even know the gender of the little guy who now cracks me up when he smiles his six-toothed grin and tries to drink from any cup-shaped object he can get his hands on.

My son turns one this weekend and I can't believe all that has happened in just a year. Birthdays offer the chance to look back at a year and see how we have grown. As I take stock of my own life and habits, I find myself asking how I have grown spiritually? How is my faith stronger this year than it was a year ago? How am I more connected to God now than I was a year ago? What does my prayer life look like now compared to a year ago?

As I reflect on these questions, I am challenged to look at what I can do moving forward so that I will be have a stronger faith, a deeper prayer life, and a closer relationship to God next year than I do now.

~Lauren G