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Nature's Corner
Nature has a way of showing light and darkness. Our spiritual
journeys are full of light and darkness and we are always reminded
that the darkness will never overcome the light. Be awake and aware
of nature's great teachings.
- Br. Joe Kotula, ofm
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30th Anniversary Gathering - Naples, Fla.
Please join Fr. Dan Riley, ofm, and members of the Mt. Irenaeus community as we celebrate together at the Naples Regional 30th Anniversary Gathering to be held the evening of Tuesday, Feb. 3, at the home of Ray and Maureen Dee in Naples, Fla.
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Going Out to All the Earth
Fr. Dan Riley, ofm, reflects on celebrating the Mountain community's 30th Anniversary on the road and describes areas of Mountain life in need of support this New Year.
Good news - we can miss what we call it and then what it truly is - good news! In the midst of a cold winter and often a sense of a coldhearted world where war and division seem to be the answer and the result, we truly are whole and holy! As we have heard in the past and here now, "how good it is."
One of our teachers who stirs our hearts with this is Thomas Merton, and we often bring his words "on the road" as we travel.
"We discover an older unity. My dear brothers and sisters, we are already one. But we imagine that we are not. And what we have to discover is our original unity. What we have to be is what we are." - Thomas Merton on contemplation
This New Year we here in the Mountain community are once again remembering our call "to go out to all the Earth!" We contemplatively and intimately consider this, this life which is truly cosmic, isn't it? We are one with all creation, one creature at a time. We have lived 30 years of "going deep" here and going out great distances to be with you and others. We continue to feel the depth and expansiveness of this message - the call to be one and ways of finding this practice toward greater unity ... Read more.
 | | Celebrating 30 years of Mt. Irenaeus |
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What is Mine to Do?
Br. Kevin Kriso, ofm, reflects on the working relationships that sustain the Mountain and its ministry.
 | | St. Bonaventure students help tend the Mountain's garden while volunteering at St. Francis workday last fall. |
Recently a group of us reflected on the questions, "Why is Mt. Irenaeus popular, even among people who have never been here?" "What attracts people to the Mountain?"
We came up with a few answers.
The first is our ministry is very basic and uncomplicated; it is really just the cultivation of one-on-one relationships. Community building and hospitality with warmth, love and unconditional acceptance is the main ministry of the Mountain. This approach satisfies a deep need all people have to feel welcomed and accepted. And they respond ... Read more.
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Br. Kevin Kriso, ofm, shares the simple trick to making a student favorite at the Mountain.
Cooking in the Mountain kitchen with students can be a lot of fun and a time of discovery for all. A few years ago I made the "old school" onion soup mix dip of my high school days. Many of the students went wild. A few even demanded the recipe. It is the easiest thing in the world to make of course but in an age when many foods come already prepared, younger people had no idea they could make the dip themselves.
Here is the recipe for "Mountain Dip:"
1 16oz container of sour cream
1 envelope of dry French Onion Soup Mix
Place both ingredients in a bowl and use a whisk to mix together thoroughly. Let sit a few minutes and enjoy with chips or cut vegetables. That's it.
However, as I pointed out, time in the kitchen can be a time of discovery for all. One student told us that in her family they add just a dash of Worchestershire sauce before stirring and it brings it to a whole new level (it does). So the students learn from us and we learn from the students, and enjoy lots of good dip together.
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Picture From Our Past
Friends of the Mountain gather in front of Holy Peace Chapel in 1996.
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A Winter Prayer
 | | Holy Peace Chapel amid the beauty of winter on the Mountain. |
Let us huddle together today, our community a place of warmth in our lives as we share the flame of hope and connection.
Let us allow the frost of isolation and bitterness to melt away as we open ourselves to a sense of peace and spirit.
We extend our thoughts to all those who are cold this morning, lacking shelter or love to keep them warm.
Let us wrap our prayers around them and each other like scarves, and wish each other safe journeys through the storm.
May we be insulated from fear as the earth is insulated by the snow,
And, like bulbs, may we continue to grow and open inside, despite the cold,
Ready for the spring, to stretch and grow towards justice.
Amen.
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