VOCATION OFFICE SUMMER E-NEWSLETTER 2019

laudare, benedicere, praedicare TO PRAISE, TO BLESS, TO PREACH

Summer 2019

INSIDE THIS ISSUE:

"Come, Follow Me."

St. James the Greater The Purpose of Pilgrimage Apostolic Adventures Summer Studies

-Matthew 4:19

Vocation of the Apostles, a fresco in the Sistine Chapel by Domenico Ghirlandaio, 1481-82

Saint James the Greater - Feast Day: July 25 This James belongs, together with Peter and John, to the group of the three privileged disciples whom Jesus admitted to impor ant moments in his life. James was able to ake part in Jesus' Agony in the Garden of Gethsemane and in the event of Jesus' Trans iguration. Thus, it is a question of situations very different from each other: in one case, James, together with the other two Apostles, experiences the Lord's glory and sees him alking to Moses and Elijah, he sees the divine splendour shining out in Jesus. On the other occasion, he inds himself ace to ace with suffering and humiliation, he sees with his own eyes how the Son of God humbles himsel , making himself obedient unto death.

The latter experience was cer ainly an opportunity for him to grow in aith... he had to discern that the Messiah, whom the Jewish people were awaiting as a victor, was in act not only surrounded by honour and glory, but also by suffering and weakness. Christ's glory was ful illed precisely on the Cross, in his sharing in our sufferings.

Public Domain: Santiago apóstol con donante c. 1450

This growth in aith was brought to completion by the Holy Spirit at Pentecos , so that James, when the moment of supreme witness came, would not draw back. Early in the irst century, in the 40s, King Herod Agrippa, the grandson of Herod the Grea , as Luke tells us, "laid violent hands upon some who belonged to the Church. He had James, the brother of John, killed by the sword" (Acts 12: 1-2).

A later tradition, dating back at least to Isidore of Seville, speaks of a visit he made to Spain to evangelize that impor ant region of the Roman Empire. According to another tradition, it was his body instead that had been aken to Spain, to the city of Santiago de Compostela. As we all know, that place became the object of great veneration and is still the destination of numerous pilgrimages, not only from Europe but from the whole world. This explains the iconographical represen ation of St James with the pilgrim's s aff and the scroll of the Gospel in hand, typical features of the travelling Apostle dedicated to the proclamation of the "Good News" and characteristics of the pilgrimage of Christian life.

And, in the end, we can say that the journey, not only exterior but above all interior, from the mount of the Trans iguration to the mount of the Agony, symbolizes the entire pilgrimage of Christian life, among the persecutions of the world and the consolations of God. In following Jesus, like St James, we know that even in dif iculties we are on the right path.

Excerpts from Pope Benedict XVI - General Audience - Wednesday, 21 June 2006

The Purpose of Pilgrimage At the threshold of the Great Jubilee of 2000, Pope John Paul II announced his desire to make a pilgrimage to the "places linked to the history of salvation." In his letter on that occasion, he shares with us his insights into the human longing and need to go on pilgrimage. Below are excerpts from that letter:

The mystery of the Incarnation therefore reshapes the universal experience of “sacred space”, on the one hand relativizing it, and on the other hand underlining its importance in new terms. The very “taking of flesh” by the Word (Jn 1:14) is in fact a reference to space. In Jesus of Nazareth, God has assumed the features typical of human nature, including a person's belonging to a particular people and a particular land... The physical particularity of the land and its geographical determination are inseparable from the truth of the human flesh assumed by the Word...

To go in a spirit of prayer from one place to another, from one city to another, in the area marked especially by God's intervention, helps us not only to live our life as a journey, but also gives us a vivid sense of a God who has gone before us and leads us on, who himself set out on man's path, a God who does not look down on us from on high, but who became our travelling companion....

In the Gospel, Jesus seems always to be travelling about. He seems to be in a hurry to move from one place to another in order to proclaim the imminent coming of God's Kingdom. He proclaims and he calls. His “Follow me” prompted the Apostles' ready response (cf. Mk 1:16-20). Let us all feel touched by his voice, his call, his summons to a new life.

I say this especially to young people, before whom life is opening up like a journey full of surprises and promises. I say it to everyone: let us set out in the footsteps of Christ!

Pope John Paul II Letter Concerning Pilgrimage + June 29, 1999

Summer Apostolic Adventures This summer our sisters had the privilege of attending almost 40 Vacation Bible Schools and Camps. It is always a blessing to have the opportunity to share the joy of Christ with others.

FOCUS New Staff Training June 2 - 15 Bismark, ND

Rock Your Faith July 7-10, Jasper, IN

The Pines Catholic Camp June 23-29, Big Sandy, TX Below: Sacred Heart Parish VBS | June 17-21, Wadsworth, OH Above: Ave Maria Parish

Catholic Children for Christ (3C)

June 10-14, Parker, CO

Summer Studies "Contemplare et contemplata aliis tradere"

Each summer our sisters are blessed to further their studies both at the Motherhouse and at various universities across the country.

ROME • TURIN • ROCCASECCA • MONTE CASSINO • NAPLES

The Catholic school is at the heart of the Church’s mission.

AQUINAS COLLEGE PILGRIMAGE FOR EDUCATORS IN CATHOLIC SCHOOLS

June 19-30, 2020* *Optional additional trip to Assisi June 30 - July 2

Teachers and leaders involved in Catholic education are invited to join the Dominican Sisters for a pilgrimage to Italy. Spend time in Rome, Turin, Roccasecca, Monte Cassino, and Naples.

This unique program will include formation opportunities before, during, and after the pilgrimage.

Journey together as a community.

Grow in a deeper love for Jesus and his Church.

Follow in the footsteps of the saints.

Find joy and renewal in living your vocation.

To subscribe to our mailing list for updates and registration, please visit: www.aquinascollege.edu or email journey@aquinascollege.edu. *For planning purposes, but subject to slight revision. Dates to be confirmed Summer 2019.