Newsletter: January 2023
Dear Friends of Joseph House:
January is the doorway into a new year. It’s a threshold we cross, and although symbolic (January 1st was just another day), it is still rich in meaning, like many other thresholds.
A literal threshold we cross every day is the one going into our homes. Our front door marks the transition from inside to out, and from public to private life. It’s where people leave and where they come back. Maybe it’s a welcome sight at the end of a long day, or maybe it’s not. Walking through a doorway can be a transition from one state of being to another.
Theologian and author Wendy Wright has called the doorway to our homes “a sacred space of welcome and leavetaking” (Sacred Dwelling). It might seem odd to consider something so ordinary as sacred, but the two often go together. Our door controls who we let inside and who we keep out. The spiritual implications of this are brought to the fore in the perennial wisdom of the Rule of St. Benedict. A key passage has a guiding principle for everyone who wants to build a world of harmony and peace: “All guests who present themselves are to be welcomed as Christ, for He Himself will say: I was a stranger and you welcomed Me (Matt 25:35).”
To welcome someone as Christ means to look beyond our differences. It means to see not just skin color or style of clothing or any other distinction—otherwise we risk seeing only our prejudice. We need to see the whole person, a unique individual. Who is that knocking at our door? A member of the Mystical Body of Christ and a temple of the Holy Spirit, that’s who (cf 1 Cor 12:27; 1 Cor 6:19). As we come to know the mystery within us, we see each other in a new light.
Living with unlocked doors may be a thing of the past, but we can at least be a little less guarded with the door to our hearts, if not our homes. The person we need to welcome may be a stranger, or perhaps a neighbor or family member. Our New Year’s resolution can be to let them in.
We’ll tell you a secret: there have been times when the doorbell rings at our convent and we can see who it is and we have to brace ourselves a little for what we anticipate will be a tense encounter. But those are situations that call for kindness, patience, and a smile. And you know what? God’s grace always wins the day.
We like to think that people who cross the threshold of the Joseph House Crisis Center are beginning a new era of hope. The case of Rosario comes to mind. She is young and single, and when she came to the Joseph House she was several months pregnant. Rosario had been experiencing some pregnancy-related health issues, and upon her doctor’s advice had to quit her food industry job. Rosario applied for state benefits but only qualified for a temporary assistance check of $328 monthly. Who can live on that? She cannot get any child support from her baby’s father because Rosario is the victim of sexual assault; the father is unknown and unprosecuted.
Rosario was behind in paying her rent. The Joseph House sent $300 to her landlord, which was enough to halt eviction proceedings. Rosario still has many challenges to face, but she is no longer alone as she was before.
Shavonne is another victim of violence. She showed us the restraining order she obtained against the father of her baby. To escape his physical abuse, Shavonne fled with her child to a homeless shelter. They stayed as long as they could and then moved into the home of a good friend nearly 100 miles away.
Shavonne’s life has been completely uprooted. She had to leave behind her decent job as a manager. Her bills, however, are following her. An unpaid electric bill was turned over to a collection agency, which tracked her down at her new location. The Joseph House paid $300 toward the amount due to help Shavonne start over in her new life.
Roger is an eighty-seven-year-old veteran. His home is a rundown trailer that is not well insulated. Roger was out of heating oil when the weather turned cold. He could not afford to get the tank filled. We paid the bill of $350.
Gary and Alice are a young married couple with two children, one a newborn. Gary works full-time installing carpet. Alice was working, but she needed to leave her job a month before their baby was born. They live in a nice little house in a new development for low-income residents. Unfortunately, the loss of Alice’s paycheck put them behind in paying the rent and they received an eviction notice. We paid $300 to help this family stay in their home. Affordable housing is a scarce resource that cannot be lost. Furthermore, the birth of a child should never mean that a family becomes homeless. Alice will return to work shortly because even affordable housing requires two incomes.
Stella, 30, is a single mother of three. Her son has behavioral issues that have been a trial for everyone. After numerous visits to a doctor, Stella believes her son is finally on an appropriate medication that will benefit his growth and development. She had to rely on his disability check for a while, but now she is able to return to steady employment. Stella came to our Crisis Center seeking help with a car payment since she will need her car for work. While a volunteer was interviewing her, Stella received a call from the car dealership, informing her that a “kill switch” in her car was going to be remotely activated because she was behind in her payments! We were able to act on the spot and make a payment of $375. The shut-off order was canceled.
Esther, 70, moved to our area with her disabled grandson and found a home in a trailer park. Her trailer needed several things to make it livable, including a refrigerator. Esther could not afford to buy one on her minimal Social Security income. The Joseph House purchased a used one that was in good condition. The cost was $196. Esther was very thankful and sent a note to us: “May you be blessed for the kindness that you showed me.”
And you, dear friends, share in every act of kindness at the Joseph House because of your support. Together we assist people who need a helping hand and let them know they are not alone. Our deepest gratitude goes out to you for your continued generosity.
It’s hard to believe we’re almost a quarter of the way through this new century. The year 2000 feels like it wasn’t that long ago, and yet at the same time it was a different era. So much has happened since then. In the rush of years let us never lose sight of the present moment, the only time we ever possess, and the only time we can drink from the wellspring of grace. We wish you and your loves ones a very Happy New Year, filled with happiness and peace. May we all focus more on what matters in life, and let our love for one another deepen and mature.
And may you yourself be welcomed as Christ wherever you go!
Your Little Sisters of Jesus and Mary
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In chapter 72 on “The Good Zeal of Monks,” which is considered a synthesis of the rule’s teaching, Benedict applies the doctrine of hospitality to life within the monastery by quoting St. Paul to the Romans: “They should each try to be the first to show respect to the other” (Rule of Benedict, 72:4; Romans12:10).
The English word “respect” comes from the Latin and means literally to “look back,” “look again.” Often our first look is dimmed by prejudice and we cannot see the other person clearly. We need to take another look. The stranger looks like an interruption, a bother, a problem, maybe even a criminal. Look again: the stranger is Christ.
The Jewish Hasidim tell of the rabbi who asked his students, “How can you tell that night has ended and the day is coming?” A student answered, “When you can see clearly that an animal in the distance is a lion and not a leopard.” “No,” said the rabbi. “It is when you can recognize the stranger as your sister or brother. Until you are able to do so, it is still night.”
Abbot Jerome Kodell, OSB
Life Lessons from the Monastery