service

The Prophet Elijah: A Model for Holy Activism

I dreamed about the Prophet Elijah a couple weeks ago. We were sitting on a mountainside talking.The conversation we had is lost to me for the most part. It seemed significant that I dreamed of him. In the time following, I re-read the stories of Elijah’s life in Scripture.

*You can find these in 1 Kings chapters 17-19, and 21,

2 Kings Chapters 1-2, and in Sirach 48:1-11.

The pattern of his life that stood out to me as I read and reflected, is the path of the holy activist.

Elijah embodies the prophetic response to times of upheaval and injustice. He is an icon of a prophet arising in a time of darkness, burning like a torch. He spoke truth to power, confronted corruption, and defended the vulnerable. He drew his strength and inspiration from God as he served the hungry, healed the sick, and returned to a hostile land he had run in fear from. Sometimes he was afraid for his life, frustrated, burned out. Then he charged back into the fray, blazing, lit by God’s transforming love. Elijah’s life is a map lighting the path of the holy activist.

Elijah confronted corrupt leaders

King Ahab and Queen Jezebel were horrible, shameless, lawless people. They were greedy, murderous, corrupt idolaters and false accusers leading the people into apostasy. Elijah confronted them several times over killing the prophets and destroying God’s altars, taking from and murdering the poor, warning of consequences to come.

During one of his confrontations with Ahab, the king called Elijah his enemy, blaming him for causing trouble. This happens a lot to anyone who speaks up against wrongdoing. Elijah doesn’t care what the King says. He contradicts him briefly, undeterred. He doesn’t let himself be drawn into argument. He delivers God’s message with its warning and walks away, leaving the results in God’s hands.

If you have to call out corruption or injustice, remember to detach from what happens after you have spoken. You can do your part and the rest is up to the hearers to choose how to respond.

Elijah spoke truth to power

Baal, a pagan god whose worship included child sacrifice, was popular at the time just as destructive ideologies have so much sway now. Elijah was the only prophet of the God of Israel left and the Queen was trying to kill him as well. Sometimes we have to speak the truth at great risk.

Elijah called the priests of Baal to meet him for a duel between their false god and the true God of Israel. The prophet of God stands alone against 450 priests of Baal and before his own people who had gone over to them. He trusted God to act. Dramatically and miraculously, God came through, sending fire from Heaven to consume Elijah’s sacrifice.

God will give us everything we need to do as he asks; to stand up and speak out even if we are all alone in doing so, he is with us.

Elijah made use of humor

I want to add that Elijah made fun of the prophets of Baal as they called to their false god. He taunted them sarcastically about whether their god was sleeping, or deaf or busy. “Maybe you should yell a little louder.”

Making fun of the powerful can be a good thing at times like these so we aren’t overcome by fear or hopelessness. Those late night comedians keep me going sometimes. I’m all for it. After all, Elijah ends up slaying the false prophets and there are more ways than one to slay.

So if you can, find ways to laugh. Bring the powerful down to size with humor.

Elijah served the needy with faith and compassion

After a time of frustration and even despair, God sends Elijah on a journey to help a poor widow and her son who are on the brink of starvation.

By the prophet’s prayers and the woman’s trust, her oil jug never runs dry and her flour jar never runs out of flour until the famine is over.

Elijah prayed over her son when he fell ill and died while he was there, which brought the child back to life. Elijah shows himself to be a man of profound compassion and faith. His service to the widow renews him and helps him grow.

If you’re freaking out, an act of kindness or service will help your perspective and give you peace.

Defending the poor and oppressed

King Ahab and Queen Jezebel conspired to take the ancestral land of a man named Naboth after he refused to sell. It was already against Jewish law to press someone to sell their family land. Then Jezebel arranged false accusations against Naboth because of which he was executed. Then the King took over the man’s land. Naboth stands for all of the poor who suffer injustice and oppression, from the greed of the rich and powerful, from unjust systems.

Always defend the poor and oppressed and be sure that even if you don’t think you succeed in doing so, God will, either now or in the future.

Being guided by God, motivated by love

One of the times Elijah was in hiding, God asked him, “Elijah, what are you doing?” Elijah pours out his heart to the Lord. He tells him how scared he is with the Queen trying to have him killed. Then he tells God of his burning, intense love for him, which is the spark of his zeal. This is what it means to be a holy activist. Our inspiration, our strength, our courage to confront people in power, our compassion, our hunger and thirst for righteousness, are all from God.

Now and then it’s important for an activist of faith to do some soul searching with God. What are you doing? Why are you doing it? Is God with you on this?

Elijah experienced burnout and renewal

Twice in Elijah’s life story, we see him in hiding, scared and frustrated, overwhelmed to the point he wants to die and asks God to let him. He suffers from exhaustion, fear, frustration and self doubt. Twice God comes to him like a gentle parent, giving him bread, telling him to drink some water and have something to eat. Elijah rests, gets some sleep, and is fed by God until he is ready for a new mission, and sets out restored and reassured.

If you’re overwhelmed or burned out, let God care for you for a while. Rest, get extra sleep, until you’re ready and receive new guidance.

Elijah encounters God profoundly

God calls Elijah to the mouth of the cave he has been staying in, and invites him to experience him passing by. There is a mighty wind, but the wind is not God. There is an earthquake but neither is this God. When Elijah hears a “still, small voice” within himself, in a gesture of reverence as he covers his face with his cloak, recognizing the presence of the Lord.

Draw from the Source of all life, and practice attentiveness to God’s presence at all times. You will grow exponentially in love, strength and compassion, reflecting the Lord you love and listen to.

Elijah mentored the next generation to take on the work

An important part of activism is handing on the spirit of the work to the next generation. Elijah, after training Elisha at his side, grants him a double portion of his spirit before he is taken up to heaven. Elisha takes the mantle of his mentor over his shoulders, going on to do the great work of a prophet.

Whatever form of activism or mission you are involved in, always take time to talk to interested young people and pass on your wisdom and experience.

I’ve been so worried about so many things going on in our country, in our world. Maybe you have been too. Let us look to the Prophet Elijah to light our way, asking him for a double portion of his spirit, praying for the knowledge of his will for us and the power to carry it out. * from the 11th Step of AA

“The lord lives! I am standing in his presence.”

*Antiphon from the Carmelite proper, feast of Elijah the Prophet, July 20

April 3, 2025 0

Remembering Mr. J.D.: A Legacy of Faith

When I used to volunteer for Hospice I would deliver flowers every week or so to an old man who had kidney cancer. He lived way out in the middle of nowhere in a small, very old wooden house with his wife, Priscilla. He was my favorite stop. We used to talk and talk. I prayed with his family, sons and daughters, cousins, brothers and sisters, in the kitchen holding hands. They prayed spontaneous vocal prayer. I was shy so I prayed Come, Holy Spirit but they were delighted and said it was wonderful.

He liked to pray for me about things that came up in my life. He would say he had “pondered” in his heart and reflected on a situation in my life and tell me what he felt he got in prayer about it. He often worried about me being a widow so young, and thought I should marry again. He prayed a “holy Christian man” would come into my life. Years later, this did happen, and I’m sure Mr. J.D. had something to do with it. I was surprised he could worry about anyone else when he was dying. But that’s how he was.

When I came in, he used to tell me how his day was in spiritual terms. He would say, “I been deep in the Lord, deep in the Lord all day today.” Another time, in his last few days, he said, “I’m sorry I just can’t talk about anything else but Jesus Christ anymore.” I said “No need to apologize. That’s what I think about all the time too. “ This was in 2002. I still remember him sometimes and smile. He’s deep in the Lord for sure

March 13, 2025 2

Immigration, our Catholic faith, the present moment

Most of the people about to be deported and rounded up into camps are our fellow Catholics; people who are praying their rosaries scared to death. Our people. When the U.S. invaded Mexico Irish mercenaries were brought in to fight with the U.S.. But when they saw the flag of Our Lady of Guadalupe on the other side they refused to fight their fellow Catholics. They’re known as the San Patricios or The Saint Patrick Brigade, of 1846. I’ve been reflecting on their celebrated legacy in the wake of the protection of our churches as sanctuaries has been taken away.

We all need to think about how we will respond to possible raids during holy mass. What will you do?

Our Holy Father has said the way we treat migrants and refugees is as important as the way we treat the unborn. The Scripture says we must treat the alien as our native born and not persecute or oppress them. (Lv. 19: 33-34) The Catechism teaches us that they are to be treated in such a way as respects their human dignity, and with compassion.

The Church understands we can’t accept everyone who comes to us asking for asylum but that we should always treat them with empathy and understanding regardless. Catholics believe in the unconditional dignity of the human person made in the image and likeness of God. Jesus says whatever we do to the lowly we do to him. (Matt. 25:40)

The following are quotes from the Catechism of the Catholic Church on the topics of migration and immigration.

¶1911: Internal quote is from Gaudium et Spes: “The unity of the human family, embracing people who enjoy equal natural dignity, implies a universal common good. This good calls for an organization of the community of nations able to provide ‘for men’s different needs, both in the fields of social life—such as food supplies, health, education, labor and also in certain special circumstances which can crop up here and there, e.g., the need to promote the general improvement of developing countries, or to alleviate the distressing conditions in which refugees dispersed throughout the world find themselves, or also to assist migrants and their families. to alleviate the distressing conditions in which refugees dispersed throughout the world find themselves, or also to assist migrants and their families.’”

¶2211: “The political community has a duty to honor the family, to assist it, and to ensure especially… the right to private property, to free enterprise, to obtain work and housing, and the right to emigrate.”

¶2241: “The more prosperous nations are obliged, to the extent they are able, to welcome the foreigner in search of the security and means of livelihood which he cannot find in his country of origin. Public authorities should see to it that the natural right is respected that places a guest under the protection of those who receive him.”

¶2433: “Access to employment and to professions must be hope to all without unjust discrimination; men and women, healthy and disabled, natives and immigrants. For its part society should, according to circumstances, help citizens find work and employment.”

We may be having a moment here; a moment when God is asking us to stand up even though it’s scary. Everyone worries about the reputation of the Church. We have made our mistakes, often because of that worry. But we know what is right. I hope we won’t blow this and let this moment pass us by. We haven’t always stood up when we should have. We always worry about the balance between appeasing authority to effect change or avoid interference in our affairs, and being faithful to our mission and our call to radical love and to “speak truth to power” as some say. I hope our leaders won’t just straddle the fence. In some of what’s going on we will have to pick a side. Let it be the side of the lowly, the persecuted and the oppressed, the stranger, the immigrant, the refugee.

A friend asked, “I wonder how many of them are named Jesus’. “

“All of them,” I said.

January 26, 2025 0

Take refuge in prayer and service on Inauguration Day

Photo by RDNE Stock project on Pexels.com

This post is for those of us for whom the 2025 Inauguration of our incoming president will be a day of grief, or at least a difficult day.

I am very very sad for my country too and worried as well as I have said before. I am horrified by the ugliness and hate this administration is already unleashing into society – bringing out the worst in all of us.

Here are my survival plans for January 20.

I am not watching the inauguration, not in any way. In fact I’m not listening to the news at all that day. Spiritual reading or audio book sounds a lot better.

I plan to celebrate MLK whose day it is. I can do this by being grateful for him, by posting about him, by reading some of his writings, by talking about him with my family, especially with my grandchildren. Locally we have an MLK day March that because of weather will be a caravan this year. We plan to join it.

If you’re home for the MLK holiday then you can make this a mini retreat day for yourself to recharge and put on the armor of God

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“Put on the full armor of God, so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes. For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.”

Ephesians 6:11-17

Pray. Because when we pray we are truly putting more love into the world , in whatever way we choose to pray. If we pray with love and attentiveness God will work through us in secret and powerful ways; our soul becomes a door of grace for the movement of divine love into this world. We don’t have to say anything. We only bring ourselves to God with an open heart. He will only do what is right.

So pray in whatever way you can. Pray as much as you can.

I plan to dedicate my actions that day and any suffering I feel or any happiness, all my thoughts words and experiences of the day, to the cause of truth and justice and right. God knows what those truly are so I don’t even have to be specific.

Next, make this a day of service. Do a good deed. Make a connection with someone. You can pick up trash in your neighborhood. Perform a random act of kindness. Volunteer at a local charity. Spend some time really listening to a child and let them lead the conversation or the activity of their choice. Kids remember things like that. Do someone else’s chores. Pay it forward at a drive through. Give someone flowers. Ask a homeless person how they are. You know what to do.

I also think at least for that day Philippians 4:8 has excellent advice for what to keep in mind. I’m going to try to master my thoughts and put that verse into action.

“Finally, brothers, sisters, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things.”

Philippians 4:8

I plan to listen to beautiful music and also to take refuge in poetry. I’ve been reading a lot of poetry lately.

Make good use of that dark day of worry fear and grief. Make it something beautiful for God and for others, for yourself.

It’s like putting flowers in guns I think. Only these flowers are able to bring about the change they represent.

This is it y’all. Let’s prepare ourselves with prayer, with beauty, with acts of service, with peace. That’s our real refuge.

January 17, 2025 0

Accept in order to Resist

I, like many, have been struggling with acceptance since Nov. 5th. Ive been thinking HOW are we, how am I, going to make it through this? I’ve made some plans, thought of some things to do to assist others who will be most affected. But I realized that one thing that could help is acceptance. It sounds obvious but sometimes it takes me a while to realize that I am in non- acceptance – which is the most painful, sticky place to be. If stuck in a glue trap or a spiders web, struggle only impedes escape. I – and we- have a lot of work to do, a lot coming that we will have to deal with. If you are familiar with AA and Al-Anon maybe you will recognize this:

“The level of my Serenity is directly proportional to the level of my acceptance.” – Alcoholics Anonymous, The Big Book

We should not accept what is evil, thats not what I’m saying. But for me it’s been hard to accept that this is where we are. Trump is here along with his clown car of malignant crazies. Yes they are cruel and destructive and authoritarian, racist, “Christian” nationalist, anti planet, sexist -etcetera etcetera, everything horrible. They are. But until I can quit being shocked every day by the awful things they say and do I can’t be very useful and I certainly will be emotionally drained. I’m chuckling a little thinking of how the Twelve Steps of AA would sound applied to Trump but maybe the idea of acceptance and sorting out areas of powerlessness from areas of responsibility and possibility is a pretty good idea.

Sometimes I listen to a spiritual speaker named Tara Brach. She is Buddhist but her talks can apply to anyone. She talks about having a heart ready for anything. To have that you need acceptance of the fact of what’s here. This is here. It “belongs” so to speak. Here we are. Am I going to go into this kicking and screaming? Or can I relax and untangle the web, roll out of the glue trap, and be open to what the Spirit is asking of me in these times ? I suspect there will be many glue trap days. But I can return to the first three steps of the twelve:

That I am powerless over the fact that for the next four years this is our government, yes, of madmen. Here they are. And I admit that my inner life has become unmanageable because of my reaction to this fact.
I believe that a power greater than myself can restore me to sanity.
I become willing to turn my will and my life over to the care of God as I understand him.

I think the 11th step is a big part of this too: I seek “through prayer and meditation to improve my conscious contact with God, praying only for the knowledge of his will for me and the power to carry it out.”

I do think intercessory prayer is going to be extremely important in what we are about to encounter. So I’m adding that of course, to my 11th step plans.

Sometimes the only way out is through. So let’s go through. And let’s do it with love.

And let’s remember this is also the Jubilee Year of Hope and we are Pilgrims of Hope.

Hate did not win. Love has not died. It never will. And we belong to love. Lies cannot become truth. They never will. And we belong to truth. Our country has not been overcome by darkness. Because our country has us.

January 14, 2025 0

Holy Innocents

Today is the Feast of the Holy Innocents, the toddlers and babies killed by Roman soldiers at Herod’s orders after Joseph fled to Egypt with Jesus and Mary.

I have never liked the traditional way of describing these kids as martyrs. A martyr chooses death rather than betraying Christ. Little children suffer and die before the age of consent and from the terrible things adults do.

I also am not sure abortion is exactly the best modern comparison to what happened that day. As far as we know the tiny innocents in their mother’s womb do not have consciousness yet. I imagine them, at least early on, as in a dreamlike bliss, violently but quickly disturbed and ended by abortion. Abortion is violent and tragic in several ways. However, as Pat Benatar sang, “Hell is for children.”

This is a good day to pray for children around the world who suffer the violence and callousness of adults, especially from state sponsored terror and genocide where there is no safety, no relief, where parents cannot protect them, such as in Gaza where parents write their children’s names on their limbs in case they are killed so they can be identified, where children are orphaned, maimed, under the rubble, starving, sometimes being operated on without anesthesia if they are lucky enough to find care at all. Surely their blood cries out to the Lord. We all know the outrageous numbers. Hell is for children.

Ukrainian children suffer war as well, and I am struck by the fact that Russia is taking the children away from their parents and into Russia. It reminds me of our child separation policy during the last Trump administration; something a lot of us lost sleep over, protested but felt powerless to stop. The damage to those little ones is profound and many of them were sexually abused as well, or never reunited with their families. It’s a method of torture I believe, to do this to kids and their parents. Some of those children were nursing babies.

In many countries life is so dangerous or poverty is so great that parents are forced to flee with their children to find safety or go where life is possible only to be rebuffed and unwanted, subjected to detention or camps or sent back to the dangers they fled after an often long and dangerous journey.

In Sudán, famine threatens and children die of malnutrition as parents look on helplessly. This is happening in so many countries.

I haven’t heard what life is like for the children of Haiti as their country descends further into chaos, violence, and gang rule.

We know children are forced to fight and kill in parts of the world. Children are trafficked and live lives of nightmarish abuse.

Children are abused in their churches, schools, and families and too often the abusers are protected instead of the children.

And here in America, the leading cause of death for our children is gun violence. .

These are things adults have done or conditions the world of adults have created that massacre the souls minds and bodies of children who deserve safety and love, freedom to be kids. These are the holy innocents of our time.

This is overwhelming. What are we supposed to do? Jesus was stern about any harm done to little ones.

We need to be a part of lessening their suffering, advocating for them, of challenging the structural sin of our world, and the wrong headedness of the powers that be. Nothing will change if we don’t.

Hell is for children, but we are allied with Heaven and we hold the gift of prayer given to us by God. As we stand up for children and help as we can, God makes our prayers and actions big and far reaching. We can be everywhere he is, holding frightened children, drying tears, giving strength, transforming the world.

Holy Spirit, we pray for the Holy Innocents of our time and we dedicate this day to them. You are the comforter and the giver of life, the one who strengthens, uplifts, transforms, the Spirit of Love and Truth, Father of the Poor. Make your way through this world bringing light and nourishment and peace. Make us repent of the sins of the world and show us what we must do. Guide our prayer for every child everywhere in need of rescue and relief of sorrow and fear. May our leaders prioritize the needs and rights of children to safety and freedom and family life.

Bless every little heart on earth on this day of the Innocents.

December 28, 2024 1

“My arm’s broke, my heart’s broke, my back’s broke;” care giving stories from the nursing home

The first day of “clinicals” for CNA training (Certified Nurse Aide) my class showed up to the nursing home in our white scrubs at 6am. We would do this for three days in a row. We were to shadow the established CNA’s and sometimes follow our teacher around with the class, observe and also try out our skills we had learned in school.

I changed my first few adult diapers that day, with an acute realization of how embarrassing it must be for a patient to have that done until they were used to it. My teacher observed and made suggestions. I tried to make conversation with the people as I served them. It was awkward and weird and I think my face sweated with nervousness but I suppose that’s normal.

One guy I changed was aware and oriented but nonverbal. He graciously let me change him for practice but apparently I made a big mistake. Later in the day I noticed he glared at me whenever he saw me. I found out later that this was because the next time he had peed after I changed him pee went up out of the top of his diaper and got his shirt all wet. With a male patient you have to make sure – er – that there is a downward course for pee. I found him and told him I was sorry about that but he mean mugged me the rest of the time I was there. Oh well.

Later in the break room we had a chance to chat with the CNA’s that worked in the nursing home. To our complete surprise they urged us not to go through with doing this. “She broke her arm,” they said, nudging one of the group, who said, “My arm’s broke, my hearts’ broke, my backs’ broke. It ain’t worth it. It ain’t worth it.” They explained that they loved the patients, and that they each had at least one they were very close to that among themselves they referred to as their baby. “Of course you love them. You have to love them but when they die, it about kills you. “

It was really too late to turn back and we had done too much work and paid our tuition. All of us stayed on and finished our training.

I met some interesting people. There was a married couple who were able to room together. I remember their room had regular furniture in it and looked really cozy. There was a man who had filled his room with books and loved talking to us. There wasn’t time though. There never is. One caregiver has ten patients. By the time you finish getting everyone up and dressed fed changed and cleaned up in the morning it’s time for lunch. I didn’t like how even if one of them was crying there was no time to talk to them and try to help. Someone else in the next room had a physical need to be met. You had to keep going.

i remember one lady liked to play rap on her radio with the volume all the way up. She sat in her wheel chair with her forehead on the speaker with the music blaring all morning until lunch. Sometimes she would really get her head moving. It was impossible not to smile watching her.

Some of the people there were very tragic, very disabled, helpless and alone. It was hard to see that. I wanted to track their families down and yell at them when I heard they seemed to have no one.

Institutions always feel like timeless, placeless places to me, impersonal and eerie in a sense. There’s a lot going on but seemingly little warmth or connectedness. However if you’re there long enough they start to seem more human. Such was the case at the nursing home. I have heard the denizens of nursing homes described as “limp, faceless people in wheel chairs.” It really offended me. It isn’t true. The first time you see someone wheeled into the lobby who seems listless and unaware maybe it seems scary. Maybe they seem practically dead to some people? Lean into the experience, move toward them and not away and like me maybe you’ll find out there is a person there with a lot more going on than you thought. Maybe they are nonverbal or have trouble holding their head up or they’re babbling but that doesn’t mean they can’t receive or even express love. In fact a lot of them had such a need to love that the staff gave them baby dolls to hold. I saw several people carrying baby dolls.

A lady stopped me in the hall and told me how tired she was. “Please I’m so tired. Can you find me a bed?” I didn’t know where her room was and nobody around me knew. So I led her to a vacant room and tucked her into bed. She thanked me. “I worked so hard today,” she said. I said, “I know. You rest now.” I thought to myself that she had probably worked hard all of her life.

One day at lunch I was told to go and hand feed the people at a certain table if they needed it. I sat next to one lady who seemed pretty out of it. I greeted her but I couldn’t get her attention. So I scooped up some food in a spoon and held it up to her mouth. She looked at me and then grabbed a spoon, scooped up some food, and held it up to my mouth. I laughed. “Well you showd ME,” I told her. Apparently she could eat on her own if she wanted to.

I met a saintly man during that few days who became a friend. His name was Jim. I’ve written about him before.

I decided during those days that I was not going to work in a nursing home. The pay was only a couple dollars more an hour than minimum wage. I wanted the opportunity to spend more time with people I helped. I also like a less rushed kind of day.
However, I would go back many times to that nursing home. I took my final exam there. But I also spontaneously went over there to visit because it made me happy. if I was in a sad mood I would stop by and hang out in the lobby and watch a checker game. Or just hug people. Or go pray a rosary and have some coffee with my friend Jim.
Going there always made my day.

October 25, 2024 0

Cookies in spirit

Something Zane loved to do was make cookies. This is something we did nearly every day. I used to hold his hand to help him crack an egg and make sound effects for him. He liked that. He used to try to eat the butter and show his enthusiasm for our baking activity by mouthing the bowl. His very favorite part was pouring the mix into the bowl. I used to say, “Here comes your favorite part!” I bought the same cookie mix today and I’m in my kitchen making cookies in spirit with Zane, smiling and chuckling at the parts of our process that I remember.

Well. my granddaughter will be happy and surprised to see cookies when she gets home from school.

Zane was a young nonverbal autistic guy with cerebral palsy that I took care of for the last four years of his life. He died at 20 years old on August 22.

September 14, 2024 1

St. Dymphna

700 years ago in Ireland a young girl left her home in the middle of the night as swiftly and silently as she could. She left with a priest, two household servants and a court jester who were her friends. She was not fleeing a forced marriage to a foreign prince or running away to a convent. She was running from her own father who seemed to have lost his mind after her mothers’ death and was trying to make his daughter marry him in her place.

Dymphna and her friends were able to make it to a Belgian town called Gheel.

She must have been a hard worker and had a compassionate heart. She and her friends established themselves in the town and Dymphna began caring for the sick and the poor. She had a special sympathy for people suffering from mental illness. She still shows that sympathy now through her intercession.

Eventually her father, who was a minor Irish king, found out where she was. He had her priest executed as soon as he arrived and demanded Dymphna return home. When she refused he beheaded her on the spot. She was 15.

The people of Gheel eventually built a church over where Dymphna was buried. Over the years it began to be noticed that healings happened at her tomb, especially healing from mental illness.

Inspired by St. Dymphna’s special concern for the mentally ill the people of Gheel began to take into their homes the pilgrims who came to visit Dymphna’s tomb. In a time when the mentally ill were chained, beaten and locked away the families of Gheel made these sufferers part of their households with acceptance, freedom, dignity and whatever level of responsibility they could handle. Some stayed for a short time, some for the rest of their lives becoming members of the family.

Gheel became famous for this model of family care that seemed to work so well. This tradition is still ongoing though now combined with a hospital that is only used when absolutely necessary, and with modern medicine as part of overall treatment.

Gheel’s example makes us want to rethink the way we treat the mentally ill, especially those whose conditions are severe. Gheel shows us how it could be.

Among us here the mentally unwell often end up without homes or anyone to assist them. Federal and state agencies set up to help these people are understaffed and overwhelmed. It is a testament to serious failures on our society’s part. To see some poor emaciated sufferer shouting and waving his arms at traffic with toilet paper wrapped around his legs as I did last week breaks the heart. It’s wrong and we know it. Unfortunately our state is last in mental health access in the country.

Gheel and St. Dymphna challenge us. How can we as people of faith contribute in a respectful and merciful way to necessary change, to the well being of people who suffer mental, emotional or neurological difficulties? Our society is not set up for them. How can we help? How can we change that?

Perhaps we can begin by asking for St. Dymphna’s intercession and inspiration.

St. Dymphna, healer of mental and emotional suffering, pray for us. Pray for everyone in mental or emotional pain, especially those left on the outskirts without resources. You inspired a whole town to take people with mental suffering into their homes so that they might live near you and the place you are buried. They still come and stay with you and the people of your town today. Help us build a culture of compassion and acceptance so these children of God can live with dignity among us as the people they are and so that the rest of us don’t miss out on what they can give, on their potential part in building community. Show us the way. Amen.

St. Dymphna’s feast day is May 15th. She is the patron saint of the mentally ill, victims of incest and domestic abuse, and runaways.