Lent 2013

Again, it's been a while.  I've been busy, going through lots of changes.  I can elaborate more later, when I'm ready.

In the meantime, I'll be engaged in my Lenten Practice.  As you know, I love the season of Lent.  It allows us to slow down, reflect, and work on our spiritual connection with the Divine. 

This Lent I plan to:

• work on the Incredible Life Workbook & Calendar, 2013
• participate in the Incredible Life Facebook group, as advertised on Ask Moxie's blog
• read The Dance of Anger, by Harriet Lerner
• try each item on 40 Ideas for Keeping a Holy Lent
• fast: I plan to only visit Facebook in from my home computer, and try to focus on the group above, not general posting.
• read Proverbs from the Bible
• Lenten reflection: "to see better what is invisible to the eye, to have strength to more actively comfort and aid." - as said by a Facebook Friend
   

Those are ambitious goals!  I won't beat myself up if I can't do them all.  Doing these things will be helpful to me, so I'm going to do my best.  If I'm really on the ball, I'll post updates about how it's going!  I really do love this blog, and I miss it, but life has been so BUSY this past year......  It will be nice to have a chance to slow down and catch up.

I wish you all a good Lent.

Hope Springs Eternal

I just found this amazing art installation photo on BoingBoing.

Amazing, and inspiring.  Here is a quotation from the article:

“I walked through Bloom with a close friend of mine who has spent a great deal of time inside similar hospitals. He was close to tears and repeated said he felt the desire to jump into the flowers, sum bold for the freedom and the celebration of his own growth and healing. We recognized that Bloom brought beauty and wonder to what has always been an inherently taboo subject matter.”

“‘Never worry alone’ was a Dr. Tom Gutheil classic line, but because of the lack of social support, too many patients who came here had to worry alone. Anna saw these corridors as places to be filled with growth. For all the patients who never received flowers, these flowers are for you.”

You can see the original article here, with more beautiful photos.

Shrines of Hope

This blog post is based on a recent talk I attended called which is part of a series at the University of Pennsylvania Health System, Department of Pastoral Care, Spirituality, Religion & Health Interest Group:

FAMILY SHRINES OF HOPE ON THE MEDICAL INTENSIVE CARE UNIT (MICU)
with John Hansen-Flaschen, MD, Professor of Medicine and Chief of the Division of Pulmonary, Allergy, and Critical Care at the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania



ICU Family Shrines of Hope from John Hansen-Flaschen on Vimeo.


After playing the above video for us, Dr Hansen-Flaschen talked about his concept of working at the MICU as being on a tour of duty in a submarine.  He completely immerses himself in the world of the MICU during his two-week rotation.  The patients, family and staff of the MICU are all he thinks about.  Then he talked about the welcome appearance of the shrines that he shows in the video.  First, his definition.

Shrine: an assembly of specifically chosen items assembled for devotional or reverential purposes. There are both secular and religious shrines - that determination is best left to the viewer.

Shrines of Hope

These are not a commemoration of something that WAS, but hope for recovery or a peaceful passage to a better place.  Shrines in the ICU spring up on their own.  Not memorials but visual prayers of hope and redemption.

We experience life in MICU completely and profoundly specter of death brings focus and solemnity.  Families come and talk, think about the future, they're not "crying all the time."  They are up against the clock.  It's a time for reconciliation, healing old wounds, wrapping things up.

ICU = temple and submarine, rooms are chapels, nurses' station is the altar, MD's are high priests (? the speaker wonders) How do we reconcile the images of submarine and temple?

What makes a place sacred?  There are secular shrines.  MICU is a separate place, it's about the human condition: intensity and profundity.  It's not easy to be distracted in the MICU.

"I ask, 'Tell me about him/her'  - up to that point all the medical interactions have been about 'rescue.'  After this question, Tell me about her, then what comes out is a first draft of an obituary." - Dr.
H-F

From here, the talk became a discussion about what experiences of the MICU and/or shrines the audience members had, and how they reconcile the concepts of submarine and temple in the MICU.  The audience was diverse, made up of a lot of Chaplains. 




"MICU not always a sacred space, but sacred space is created by the people in it. "  - Chaplain
"The blessing of tasks to cope with the intensity." - Chaplain
"Nurses making shrines for patients without families that visit. That reduces "ICU Psychosis." - Chaplain
"Help with passing celebration of person.  Power of our attention to the person in the bed at the time of death." - Dr H-F
"MICU affirmation of life, love of family, stories of life, grieving has meaning because of richness of life." Chaplain
"Pieces of home make hospital room feel like home.  Hope for life, place  of home." - Chaplain

This talk gave me a LOT to think about.

I just got the link for this beautiful audio essay/interview with my beekeeper. It takes 15 minutes or so to listen to the whole thing, which I encourage you to do.



It's about beekeeping and mysticism and "hearing God" as much as we humans are able to understand all that. I hope you enjoy it as much as I do.

Darkness

Darkness is a topic that has come up a lot recently in my thoughts, and in my conversations with my dear friend Lakshmi. For a long time I have adopted the Quaker saying, "I'll hold you in the Light" as a way to say that I am keeping someone in my prayers, and it feels like a less religious way to say, "I'll pray for you." Part of my theology is that each of has "the Light of G!d" within us. It may not always be easy to see, but it is there.

But what about the Dark? Nighttime is dark, it's when we rest, it's cooler, and sometimes scary. But the Dark can be restorative. I realized when recently watching "Cave of Forgotten Dreams" [which I HIGHLY recommend!!!] that the dark takes getting used to, and ideas emerge from the Dark.

I like the idea of coming to be able to see in the Dark at first, it is scary because our primary sense is "obscured" we can't see properly, but we begin to use and notice our other senses we have to calm down and be still and slowly acclimate to the Dark and often, if we are still long enough, we can see, even if it's just shapes, or we feel our way and we make it through it doesn't have to be terrifying. A lot of times we talk about “being in a dark place” when we are going through a difficult time, full of pain. Pain hurts, but it is not bad in and of itself: it helps us to get somewhere new, or learn something, and change often involves pain.

My friend Lakshmi clarifies by saying,

“there is a difference emotionally, experientially, between the darkness that descends while we are on a path: it is confusing, sometimes painful, disorienting; and the darkness of a restorative place (like a dim cathedral or a cave or the womb or the black soil of the earth), one chooses the cave, one does not choose a hard and obscured path (usually).

me: But there is still something deeply worthwhile about each experience, and the darkness isn't necessarily bad - the light and the dark, the good and the bad all of it makes us who we are today.

Lakshmi: I think our culture regularly confuses the difficult darkness with the restorative darkness and that is problematic. Also, as you are saying, there comes a way to see the difficult times as descents into the cave: challenging, fearful, harrowing even. Yet afterward, you come back with new knowledge, strength, skills. There is a way in which the difficulties can be transformed into restoration. In addition, I believe that the more you consciously, intentionally engage with/seek out/explore the dark, the less shocking and difficult it is when you come into a dark section of your life's path. You've gained skills in "seeing in the dark" as you say, you spend less time fighting the darkness and more quickly transform it to a time of contemplation and reflection, rebirth, gestation. This is why the dark goddesses: Kali, Hecate, Persephone, are so important: because they know how to dance in the dark. They know the path. It's kind of "nothing to fear but fear itself." It's our very fear and dislike of the dark that makes the process so hard.

Advent Mushrooms

The other morning, at breakfast, the girls opened their Advent calendars and found a mushroom-shaped chocolate. La Segunda said, "that's so weird, why a mushroom?!" I agreed, it WAS weird. And La Prima said, "There's always a mushroom on an Advent calendar. I thought about it, and she was right, I remember seeing mushrooms on Advent calendars, as long as I can remember. They are the red ones, with white spots, big caps. I told the girls I would do some internet research and see what I could find.

I asked the question on my FB, and lo and behold, I got a link from a friend to this clip:


And then, I realized, this, as with most spiritual/religious traditions that is bizarre on the surface, really does makes sense. So, sit back, have some fruitcake, and enjoy the clip. This experience will remind me that when there is a strange coincidence, ask some questions!

St Lucia's Day

Today has been filled with quiet beauty and wonderful coincidences, and I am grateful for that!

I hadn't realized that today was St Lucia's Day, until a friend posted the photo (above) from The Old Farmer's Almanac. And then another friend sent me this message, below. Just lovely.

Enjoy:

A friend of mine is posting excerpts from Holy books about Jesus every day until Christmas. I am often inspired by your devotion, and thought of you when I was reading them:

From the Qur'an, the angels describing Jesus: "When the angels said, 'O Mary, ALLAH gives thee glad tidings of a son through a word from HIM; his name shall be the Messiah, Jesus, son of Mary, honoured in this world and in the next, and of those who are granted nearness to God; And he shall speak to the people in the cradle, and when of middle age, and he shall be of the righteous.'"

Jesus in the words of Baha'u'llah: "Know thou that when the Son of Man yielded up His breath to God, the whole creation wept with a great weeping. By sacrificing Himself, however, a fresh capacity was infused into all created things. Its evidences, as witnessed in all the peoples of the earth, are now manifest before thee. The deepest wisdom which the sages have uttered, the profoundest learning which any mind hath unfolded, the arts which the ablest hands have produced, the influence exerted by the most potent of rulers, are but manifestations of the quickening power released by His transcendent, His all-pervasive, and resplendent Spirit.

Advent 2011

I've figured out what I'm going to do for my Advent practice. In addition to buying less STUFF, I'm going to read the Gospels of Mark and Luke to follow the story of Jesus' birth. If I get ambitious, I may even add in some Isaiah, to get some of the literary references that are made in the Gospels. There are some churches that suggest readings for every day, and put out pamphlets and stuff, and so I'm going to follow one of those as a guide.

I also have some ideas for some drawings that have been bubbling up to the surface of my mind, which I need to get on paper. I got the idea for this last Lent - and it was AWESOME!



I blogged about these people before, but the Advent Conspiracy people are at it again. Keep up the great work!!! Love it. I plan to give a number of gifts that are donations this year, instead of Stuff Gifts.

May you enjoy a meaningful Advent!

Thanksgiving

I am thankful and grateful for so much in my life.

With the state of the world today, I am especially glad for images like this one. May Peace Prevail.

Happy Thanksgiving, All!

Day of the Dead

Here I am, wishing you a belated Day of the Dead. I spent some time yesterday on All Souls Day, thinking about my beloved departed friends and family. My grandmothers were in heavy rotation in my memories. As was my friend James.

I have started a tradition of celebrating the Day of the Dead with a big Mexican Feast and invite friends for the fiesta. Here's what I'm thinking of for the menu:

Jicama Salad
Sweet & Smokey Black Beans
Red Chile Pork
Corn off the cob
sweet potato enchiladas or quesadillas (could use a mole sauce on this)


Ask people to bring:
green salad
appetizers


Dessert:
mocha cake
tembleque (coconut pudding)
[might try a cinnamon cake w/Mexican Chocolate frosting]
Or I guess I could make cinnamon sugar skull cookies and decorate them w/icing??

I plan to decorate with apples and pomegranates, and if there are any marigolds still blooming, I'll pick some. I hope to find a bunch of candles and have them lit, since it is "Candletime."

More beautiful photos of Day of the Dead altars in the Mission district of San Francisco can be found here.

Green Pilgrimage!

I just saw this post on the Green Lent blog and I am excited! Great idea!

The Green Pilgrimage Network will help the faiths make their holy cities and sacred sites as environmentally sustainable as possible according to their own theologies and understanding...........

Ten faith traditions have nominated pilgrim cities or sacred sites to become founding members of the Green Pilgrimage Network, ranging as far afield as Louguan in the People's Republic of China for Daoists to St Albans in the UK for Anglicans and Amritsar for the Sikhs (1). The city authorities of Jerusalem, a major pilgrimage destination for three faiths – Judaism, Christianity and Islam – will join the network to green the city for all pilgrims.

Also launched at Sacred Land will be the first Green Hajj Guide aimed at the two million Muslim pilgrims who visit Mecca (Makkah) in Saudi Arabia each year for the Hajj, the biggest annual pilgrimage in the world.

original story found here at Alliance of Religions and Conservation

On my Mind

Last night I watched War Dance, a beautiful documentary about children in Northern Uganda, on a recommendation from a dear friend. I know a little bit about Uganda from a blog I read, "the Journey", but I had no idea how gorgeous the landscape is. Both the movie and the blog start with pretty simple ideas: children from the war zone preparing for a dance competition, a missionary taking in abandoned girls and forming a family through adoption. But the messages of hope, resilience, love and strength that pour out of both are astounding.

I also got my alumnae magazine in the mail over the Thanksgiving holiday. One of the features was on the recent conference that was held there: "Heritage and Hope: Women's Education in a Global Context". Reading the article, the speakers all seemed to have some good things to say. And then I came to the highlights from Nicholas Kristof's Keynote:

Kristof expressed his distress over the political polarization between US Christian evangelicals and secular feminists, particularly in the area of reproductive health that prevents them from joining forces to combat such abuses as human trafficking.
"There are a lot of Christian evangelical groups in Sudan and Congo that have done fabulous work," he said. "At the end of the day, everybody believes passionately that 14-year-old girls should not be kidnapped and locked up in brothels."
Squeamishness over talking about sexuality also concerns him. "One of the impediments to girls' staying in high school that most people have learned about only in the last decade is the difficulty of managing menstruation," he said. "Girls never raised it with school authorities or aid workers before because the subject was taboo. If you can keep a girl in high school by providing her with sanitary pads, that is such a cheap intervention." pg 25, Alumnae Bulletin, November, 2010

That stopped me cold. He is SO RIGHT. I feel that polarization a lot. As a liberal Christian, I can see both sides of each coin. And meanwhile, there is work that all of us could be doing. We can't do everything, perhaps, but we could do something, instead of arguing amongst ourselves. Right? What can I do? What can we do? What do you think?


P.S. There are [of course] a bunch of non-profit organizations that have sprung out of the above-mentioned projects. Half the Sky, out of Nicholas Kristof's work, Shine Global which supported War Dance, and Amazima Ministries which grew out of "the Journey". Go check them out, and see if they appeal to you. Maybe these groups are the way forward for action.

P.S. on Vampire Post

P.S. I had a thought after writing the vampire post that maybe the whole deal with vampires is they are focused on satisfying their own desires, completely independent from others. [In Twilight, one of the things that makes the Cullens so unusual is that they have formed a "family". And also, they do not kill and drink the blood of humans, only animals.] They live in isolation and from gratification.

I think the idea of vampires has taken hold and taken off at the same time that people have pulled back from religion, or a spiritual life that is outward-focused. Instead of trying to work for something greater than themselves, people are fixated with their own needs and wants.

Need time to mull.....

Spirituality news!

So the friend of my friend, Rainn Wilson, has come out with a new book, SoulPancake. The website of the same name is where I got the idea to do my Lenten Spiritual Exercise. Boy was that life-changing! I found an interview with Rainn here. Great stuff!

Happy Halloween, Happy Samhain, Good Day of the Dead to you all!

A Shout-Out

Here's a shout-out to Dr Walt Lowe, Professor of Systmeatic Theology, Emeritus from Emory, who taught a four-week seminar at our church this past month. (See the course description below.)

I had several "aha" moments throughout the course, but Dr Lowe's description of "how we know the Messiah has come" [as the 13th Century Jewish scholar said, "the world will smell different."] just spoke to me loud and clear.

One of the final thoughts Dr Lowe left us with was a quotation from Thomas Merton, whose icon I included here, by my favorite religious artist, Robert Lentz:

MY LORD GOD, I have no idea where I am going. I do not see the road ahead of me. I cannot know for certain where it will end. Nor do I really know myself, and the fact that I think that I am following your will does not mean that I am actually doing so. But I believe that the desire to please you does in fact please you. And I hope I have that desire in all that I am doing. I hope that I will never do anything apart from that desire. And I know that if I do this you will lead me by the right road though I may know nothing about it. Therefore will I trust you always though I may seem to be lost and in the shadow of death. I will not fear, for you are ever with me, and you will never leave me to face my perils alone.
Thomas Merton, "Thoughts in Solitude"

Here's what the course was about:

The first session begins with a brief introduction to two major revolutions in twentieth century theology. These are the confessional theology of Karl Barth, who drafted the church's statement against Nazism, and the liberation theology of Jurgen Moltmann, many feminist theologians and a variety of other champions of the dispossessed. We sketch the present unfortunate situation in which each of these theologies views the other with considerable suspicion. Finally, to better understand this situation, we focus on how the two movements deal with the problem of evil and the good news of redemption.

The second session takes up the natural question, given the relationship above--namely "Where do we go from here?" The instructor's view is that a situation in which Christian theology constantly finds itself with one hand or the other tied behind its back is simply unacceptable. Fortunately, a new perspective currently in the process of opening up may point beyond the impasse. This is the new scholarly discovery of the formative role played by apocalyptic in the message and ministry of Jesus, and the writings of St. Paul. We will consider how many modern assumptions are challenged and transformed by this new development.

There is always a risk of getting carried away by the latest fad. Therefore the last two weeks will ponder some remarkable parallels between the possibilities just described and the greater orthodox tradition. We will do this through close reading and discussion of portions of Thomas Merton's marvelous summation of the tradition, entitled New Seeds of Contemplation. Members of the class are encouraged to obtain a copy from a library, local bookstore, or an understanding friend. Toward the end of the last session we will draw our thoughts together, with special reference to the life of the church and the presence (or absence) of Jesus.

Two Things

For one thing, the oldest images of Jesus' Apostles have apparently been found in Rome during an excavation in Santa Tecla's catacomb [don't you want to know who St Tecla was? I sure do!]

In other news, I just met with the vestry of my church (like a non-profit board of directors) who OK'd my "discernment process" to become a lay chaplain. This is GREAT news! I will meet with a committee (to be named) to work through my "calling". I am very excited to be taking this first step. You all heard it here first!

Thank you, all, for the support and encouragement. I couldn't do it without you!

P.S. I am really going to work hard to blog more, I promise. Hopefully I'll have more news shortly.

My Lenten Art Project.... Finally!

Here it is, finally. This is the final outcome of my Lenten Project that I undertook. I was thinking of it as a "study" for a collage, but I'm not sure the collage will actually get done. I basically envisioned this image a long time before I got it down on paper.

Thanks to Leili for suggesting this project.

Lent 2010

It's almost Lent, and I just started to think about what my practice will be for Lent this year. As you know, Lent is my favorite time in the church calendar. I like the reflective nature of it, and the drama of Palm Sunday just can't be beat - so moving. Anyway, the customs around Lent are described at wikipedia:

There are traditionally forty days in Lent which are marked by fasting, both from foods and festivities, and by other acts of penance. The three traditional practices to be taken up with renewed vigour during Lent are prayer (justice towards God), fasting (justice towards self), and almsgiving (justice towards neighbour). Today, some people give up a vice of theirs, add something that will bring them closer to God, and often give the time or money spent doing that to charitable purposes or organizations.^[8]

I wasn't coming up with anything inspiring, until I took a look at a friend's post on SoulPancake. You should check it out too. It's kind of more of a meme than a Lenten practice, but this is what I'll do:

Now, the opportunity: Draw on your innate creativity and make a collage that represents your soul over the past year.

No one else can tell your story like you can. Here are some guidelines to help you get started:

1. Make a list of your highlights, low points, and learning experiences of 2009.
2. Find some old magazines, bits of paper, small objects or photos and cut out the images/words that resonate with the experiences on your list.
3. Layer the images and words and attach them to a surface (using glue, wire, tape—whatever).
4. Upload your collage here and tell us how it felt to tell your story using art.

Can you muster the courage to share the life of your mind, soul, and emotions?

So, I'm going to do that project. And, I'm going to continue to work on prayer, because I'm starting to feel like it's really effective! I'm not sure yet on the fasting.... I don't think I can handle a Facebook fast, but I will probably focus on eating better. For the "almsgiving" mentioned above, I am still working on raising money for Haiti.


On a similar note, I just got a link from another friend about facing "mid-life" and how to cope with change. That the lived life means facing change, and the fear involved.... it's a thought provoking article, especially coming ahead of my BIG birthday coming up.


Image from religious imagery in culture

Christmas Cookie Update, Happy Yule, All!

Happy Yule, Everybody!! Well, starting today, the days will be getting longer, more sunshine. This really is a magical time of year. We in Philly just had our first (HUGE) snowfall of the year, and it's staying cold, so the snow is still here. Last night, Solstice, the crescent moon hung in the sky and was just beautiful.

We in the Grand Forêt household have started baking our Christmas Cookies. As long-time readers know, this is a long-standing practice for us. I love that the history of cookie baking is based in some good pagan-Christian overlap and continues the "borrowing" theme that I love so much in the seasonal traditions of Christianity.

Anyways, this year, we are baking:

• gingersnaps
• chocolate star cookies with crushed peppermint
• Austrian jam cookies
• cranberry chocolate chip cookies

Yummy. Peace to you All!

Synchronicity

OK, people, bear with me here - I am sort of rocked by the synchronicity of the universe right now.

So this past Sunday at church, we heard readings from James (The Prayer of Faith 5:13-20) and the Gospel of Mark (9:38-50), and our Rector, Jim, spoke about the "main ideas" he took away from the readings and how to incorporate them into our lives. I am going to try to paraphrase. Because I feel like "it all makes sense"and I'm having an "aha" moment. Fr. Jim spends a lot of his sermons talking about how God loves us, and wants us to do God's work in the world to bring us closer to God.

13Is any one of you in trouble? He should pray. Is anyone happy? Let him sing songs of praise. 14Is any one of you sick? He should call the elders of the church to pray over him and anoint him with oil in the name of the Lord. 15And the prayer offered in faith will make the sick person well; the Lord will raise him up. If he has sinned, he will be forgiven. 16Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous man is powerful and effective. [James 5]

Fr Jim talked at length about how important prayer is, and how it really can help the sick and suffering among us. At our church we have a lay person (a massage therapist in the workaday world) who offers unction each week. This is a pretty unique aspect to this church and something I have come to really respect and admire. Many members of the congregation go to her each week and have "laying on of hands" to feel better.

And then he related the reading from James to the Gospel [Mark 9]:

38"Teacher," said John, "we saw a man driving out demons in your name and we told him to stop, because he was not one of us." 39"Do not stop him," Jesus said. "No one who does a miracle in my name can in the next moment say anything bad about me, 40for whoever is not against us is for us. 41I tell you the truth, anyone who gives you a cup of water in my name because you belong to Christ will certainly not lose his reward. 42"And if anyone causes one of these little ones who believe in me to sin, it would be better for him to be thrown into the sea with a large millstone tied around his neck. 43If your hand causes you to sin, cut it off. It is better for you to enter life maimed than with two hands to go into hell, where the fire never goes out.[c] 45And if your foot causes you to sin, cut it off. It is better for you to enter life crippled than to have two feet and be thrown into hell.[d] 47And if your eye causes you to sin, pluck it out. It is better for you to enter the kingdom of God with one eye than to have two eyes and be thrown into hell, 48where their worm does not die, and the fire is not quenched.'[e] 49Everyone will be salted with fire. 50"Salt is good, but if it loses its saltiness, how can you make it salty again? Have salt in yourselves, and be at peace with each other."

He admitted, as will I, that this message in the Gospel is not an easy one for many liberal Christians to hear because many of us do not believe in a hell full of fire and brimstone. We think (or I'll say I) I think hell is when we remove ourselves from God's presence, and engage in destructive (bad) behavior that hurts ourselves and others. That by NOT participating in prayer and by putting oneself away from God's love, that is sin. And that THOSE are the flames that eat at us. He talked about us being salted with fire.

I was sitting next to Josiah, who suffers from arthritis, and as Fr. Jim was speaking, I got a sense of Josiah's "inflammation" in his body, like his body is "salted with fire." And I prayed for him.

[I sometimes feel awkward about prayer - like me "just talking with God" doesn't really cut it. That I need to find someone else's words to "make it count."] So, I went online and I looked up St James the Greater (who is the one who wrote the letter above) and found this prayer:

Prayer to Saint James the Greater*

O Glorious Saint James, because of your fervor and generosity Jesus chose you to witness his glory on the Mount and his agony in the Garden. Obtain for us strength and consolation in the unending struggles of this life. Help us to follow Christ constantly and generously, to be victors over all our difficulties, and to receive the crown of glory in heaven. Amen.

That's beautiful. All of us struggle from time to time.

And then I found out that St James is the "patron saint of rheumatoid sufferers." Holy Synchronicity, Batman!

"Help us to follow Christ constantly and generously, to be victors over all our difficulties, and to receive the crown of glory in heaven. Amen."

* I'm not sure I believe fully in the idea that one should pray to saints as intermediaries. I was raised to believe that Jesus is the sole intermediary for us, that he is the one to pray to. BUT, the idea of the saints is appealing to me, and it "makes sense" to me too. And the idea that in their human lives, these saintly people understood people with similar concerns and could advocate for them, I love that! I still want to make the pilgrimage to Santiago de Compostela, now more than ever.