October 25, 2023

My Retreat with St. Teresa: Part 2 Miami Beach

My Retreat with St. Teresa: Part 2 Monasteries & Miami Beach: What could the call to intimacy with Christ have to do with Miami Beach, Florida?

This is part 2 of a series of 6 blogs where Lisa Small, a Consecrated Women of Regnum Christi, shares about her 8-day silent retreat in Avila and what St. Teresa of Avila and the current Carmelites living there had to teach her about her own vocation as a lay consecrated woman called to evangelize and sanctify the world through her Regnum Christi spirituality.

 

To fulfill our mission, we seek to make present the mystery of Christ who goes out to people, reveals the love of his heart to them…” RCF Statute #8 

“St. Teresa – am I called to the same intimacy with Christ that you had?” I whispered to her in prayer during my first Mass in Avila. I had woken early and walked the three minutes to the Monastery of the Incarnation for Mass with the Carmelite nuns. I wasn’t quite sure what to expect but as I entered the small chapel where the nuns were softly chanting their Lauds behind the grill, I was greeted by a small sign hung on the door – “The Chapel of the Transverberation: This house of Teresa receives you with love.”


Transverberation? I tried to recall what that meant but as soon as I saw the beautifully painted image above the altar of St. Teresa being pierced by the arrow of God’s love, I remembered and understood. This was the exact place where she felt pierced by an arrow of Divine Love that transported her into an experience of deep union with God, which had also inspired Bernini’s incredibly crafted statue of “The ecstasy of St. Teresa.” I was here in her personal cell where this happened! I couldn’t quite believe it!


A plaque on the ground read La tierra que pisas es santa – “The ground you tread upon is holy.” As the mass began, I begged to understand the profound significance of this place as I tried to enter the mystery of Teresa’s experience and the incredibly deep love that Jesus had for her as His chosen spouse.


“St. Teresa – I’m a lay consecrated woman. Can I have that same intimacy that you had, a contemplative nun? I long for that. I desire that.” Immediately the passage from John 15 came into my heart and mind, “Remain in Me as I remain in you.” (Jn 15: 4) This was to become the theme of my retreat: Yes, Jesus already dwelt within me – it was up to me to choose to be with him in the intimacy of my soul. I needed that. I yearned for that. I was thirsting to encounter God deeply and just be with him during these days.

The words of Pope Francis, quoted in our General Assembly’s communique also spoke deeply to me, “Are there moments when you place yourself quietly his presence, when you calmly spend time with him, when you bask in his gaze? Do you let his fire inflame your heart? Unless you let him warm you more and more with his love and tenderness, you will not catch fire. How then will you be able to set the hearts of others on fire by your words and witness?” (Gaudete et Exsultate, #151)


As my days of retreat continued, St. Teresa’s own example of spousal love for God deepened an inner conviction: Of course my call to lay consecration demands an incredible intimacy with Christ. What can I bring into this secular world if I am not deeply united to him and filled with his own Spirit? Its not easy to ‘be in the world, but not of it’. To incarnate Christ in a certain way within the world so I can pour my heart out to others and love them in and through Christ. If I remain in him, he safeguards and protects my own heart that could easily be filled with the things of the world and take up the space where God longs to ‘remain with me’.


And each Mass is a key moment where this intimacy takes place – both consecrated, and as a lay person. It becomes the place where, as Lumen Gentium states, “sacrifices are most lovingly offered to the Father along with the Lord’s body. Thus as worshipers whose every deed is holy, the lay faithful consecrate the world itself to God” (Lumen Gentium #34).


This moment of prayer brought be back to an experience I had had in the summer. A place I would typically avoid became a place of deep encounter with God. I found myself in Miami Beach for a few days – a place I realized is probably one of the most decadent party capitals of the country. Everything you can imagine goes on there, even in the midst of a global pandemic. Drugs, blasting music, girls in bikinis atop of convertibles gliding up and down the main street. It was a bit of an overload for my senses and not the typical place you would find a person who had committed their life to live poverty, chastity and obedience.


I was there on my own. My days were filled with emails, zoom meetings and online spiritual directions. But at the beginning and end of my day, I would take the elevator from the 11th floor down to the entrance to the beach so I could spend some time in prayer contemplating the beautiful ocean. In the mornings, I was usually only accompanied by a handful of other people on the beach, whether homeless and asleep on the sidewalk, or a few jogging or taking photos of the sunrise over the ocean. Those were special moments of prayer for me as I met the new day with the first rays of light proclaiming the goodness of our Creator and Father.


But the nights were busier. The beach was usually full of volleyball games, parties, drinking, smoking, drugs, and music. I would meander up and down praying my rosary. And while this wasn’t as quiet and tranquil as my morning prayer, strangely, I felt closer to Christ’s heart.


As I walked up and down the beach, I felt like Jesus was allowing me to see these masses of people as individuals and as he does, with great love. I saw each one of them as his beloved son and daughter and the line from psalm 149 became a looped anthem within me ‘The Lord delights in his people.’ And surprisingly, in this place of revelry, I too delighted in them. My heart seemed to swell with a love for each of them.


A new sense of my lay vocation washed over me as I united myself to God dwelling within me. My consecration, my baptism and the fact that God dwells within me, allows me to bring the world back to him, and consecrate the world to him. My call to ‘incarnate’ God in the world through my consecrated vocation, in a certain way meant Christ himself was walking up and down that beach, delighting in each person, and interceding for their own salvation and holiness.


Cristifidelis Laici #15 speaks beautifully into this call for all lay people, “The ‘world’ thus becomes the place and the means for the lay faithful to fulfill their Christian vocation, because the world itself is destined to glorify God the Father in Christ. (Christifidelis Laici #15). The world is good. God created it, saw it and pronounced that it was good. Yes, it has become fallen, broken and disordered, but Christ’s Incarnation and Redemption has restored it and we are called to share in his same mission and bring it to completion.


So as I continued my retreat in Avila, each Mass became a moment to bring the world and its people to Christ, consecrating them in his loving sacrifice. It also became a moment to beg him for deep union and intimacy so that I could truly make Christ present in the world and love with his heart, living out the morning prayer that many Consecrated Women of Regnum Christi and ECYD members pray around the world:


Lord Jesus,
I give you my hands to do your work.
I give you my feet to follow your path.
I give you my eyes to see as you see.
I give you my tongue to speak your words.
I give you my mind so you can think in me.
I give you my spirit so you can pray in me.
Above all I give you my heart so in me you can love your Father and all people.
I give you my whole self so you can grow in me, till it is you who live and work and pray in me. Amen.

My Retreat with St. Teresa: Part 2 Monasteries & Miami Beach: What could the call to intimacy with Christ have to do with Miami Beach, Florida? Read More »

Regnum Christi Spirituality Center Uncle Eddy

St Crispin and Crispinian

Dear Chris,

Thanks for sending me the rather amusing photo of you and your roommates.  Nice to see your smiles and camaraderie.  I happened to notice that you were quite unshaven, your hair was unkempt, and your clothes appeared not to have been washed in too long.  As your conscientious uncle, I feel that it is my duty to remind you that your body and soul are linked; the way we treat our body and our appearance always affects our soul.  If I am physically sloppy and lazy, chances are my soul will get just as messy as my room – and a messy soul is a seedbed for temptation.  If two months of college have sufficed to strip off your old habits of cleanliness and self-respect, they weren’t habits at all.  But now you have a chance to work on this point, and I would encourage you to do so.  Take today’s saints, for example.

They seem to have been brothers who left Rome in order to spread the gospel in northern Gaul (today’s France).  They took up residence at Soissons, and followed in the footsteps of St Paul, discoursing and instructing the people during the day, and earning a living by making and fixing shoes (St Paul made tents) at night.  It is said that they only accepted payment for their work on a voluntary basis, and in this way won the hearts of many who were astonished by their selflessness and detachment from riches.  They made numerous converts and thereby also made enemies among the pagan leaders, who soon denounced them.  After refusing to sacrifice to the Roman gods, the two saints were brutally tortured and finally beheaded.

Besides their obvious zeal for spreading the faith and courage in professing it, you should emulate their truly Christian spirit of hard work and self-discipline (evangelizing by day and earning their living by night).  There’s no need to go on dramatic fasts and perform extreme penances; you can show your desire to conquer your own selfish tendencies by maintaining simplicity and order among your things and your appearance.  It takes constancy, humility, and self-discipline – three virtues that the Holy Spirit needs your help to develop.  I hope you don’t let him down.

God bless,

Uncle Eddy

St Crispin and Crispinian Read More »

October 25, 2023 – It’s So Hard to Get Good Help

 

 

 

Wednesday of the Twenty-Ninth Week in Ordinary Time

 

Luke 12:39-48

 

Jesus said to his disciples: “Be sure of this: if the master of the house had known the hour when the thief was coming, he would not have let his house be broken into. You also must be prepared, for at an hour you do not expect, the Son of Man will come.” Then Peter said, “Lord, is this parable meant for us or for everyone?” And the Lord replied, “Who, then, is the faithful and prudent steward whom the master will put in charge of his servants to distribute the food allowance at the proper time? Blessed is that servant whom his master on arrival finds doing so. Truly, I say to you, he will put him in charge of all his property. But if that servant says to himself, ‘My master is delayed in coming,’ and begins to beat the menservants and the maidservants, to eat and drink and get drunk, then that servant’s master will come on an unexpected day and at an unknown hour and will punish the servant severely and assign him a place with the unfaithful. That servant who knew his master’s will but did not make preparations nor act in accord with his will shall be beaten severely; and the servant who was ignorant of his master’s will but acted in a way deserving of a severe beating shall be beaten only lightly. Much will be required of the person entrusted with much, and still more will be demanded of the person entrusted with more.”

 

Introductory Prayer: Lord Jesus, my Creator and Redeemer, everything good comes from you. You are the one source of peace and happiness. Thank you for bringing me into existence and ensuring I received the inestimable gift of the faith. Thank you for accompanying me in every moment. I am grateful for your mercy and love and wish to respond more generously to you in my life.

 

Petition: Lord, help me to be a faithful and prudent steward.

 

  1. Wanted: Faithful and Prudent Stewards: Anyone who has had a management position knows that one of the riskiest parts of the job is hiring. Very often, it can seem like rolling dice, especially when there is a conflict between what’s read in the resume and what’s felt in the gut. Nevertheless, to make a good hire, you need to have a clear idea of what you want. The Lord has a simple job description for the stewards he is looking to bring on. They must be faithful and prudent. In being faithful, they don’t seek to impose their own vision or desires over his, but rather serve the Master who has given them their commission. Their will is such that they are confident in assimilating the desires of their master. They are able to perceive how to adjust and adapt to the multitude of circumstances that arise. These stewards are constantly applying the old wristband test, “WWJD,” What Would Jesus Do?

 

  1. Tasting One’s Own Medicine: Having been “hired” by the master, it would be foolish not to expect to be held accountable for the trust that he bestows. Nevertheless, the irresponsible steward indulges his appetites and abuses his authority. The master’s “delay” gives him a false sense of security. Without the natural brake of his master’s watchful eye, his pride gets out of control. Yet the master is bound to return, and the servant eventually experiences the results of his own arrogance: the taste of his own medicine is bitter indeed. The Lord is inviting us to have a greater awareness of his constant presence. His absence and “delay” are only apparent. He is very much present to those who wish to live their God-given charge with integrity and responsibility. His grace is always available to those who live their lives in his presence.

 

  1. Management Styles: The two types of stewards have very different management styles. One beats the servants; the other “distributes the food allowance at the proper time.” We all want to be counted among those faithful and prudent stewards who take good care of those entrusted to us. Yet at times, the responsibility we have seems more burdensome than desirable. While the bad steward indulges his passions, the good steward is in danger of giving into his fatigue and impatience. Frustration is a distinct possibility when it comes to forming others. If the Lord died such a cruel death for our salvation, who can measure the value of a single soul? By contemplating that example, we need to learn to put aside our petty annoyances and instead be faithful in caring for those entrusted to us.

 

Conversation with Christ: Lord Jesus, you have given me such great responsibility. I am sorry for the times I have offended you, and for when I have not lived up to the trust you have bestowed on me. I promise you that I will strive to reflect your love for those whom you have entrusted to my care.

 

Resolution: When my patience is tested, I will pause and ask myself, “How does the Lord want me to handle this situation?”

October 25, 2023 – It’s So Hard to Get Good Help Read More »

Scroll to Top

Looking for another country?

RC Near You

News & Resources

News & Resources

The Regnum Christi Mission

The Regnum Christi Identity

Alex Kucera

Atlanta

Alex Kucera has lived in Atlanta, GA, for the last 46 years. He is one of 9 children, married to his wife Karmen, and has 3 girls, one grandson, and a granddaughter on the way. Alex joined Regnum Christi in 2007. Out of the gate, he joined the Helping Hands Medical Missions apostolate and is still participating today with the Ghana Friendship Mission.

In 2009, Alex was asked to be the Atlanta RC Renewal Coordinator for the Atlanta Locality to help the RC members with the RC renewal process. Alex became a Group Leader in 2012 for four of the Atlanta Men’s Section Teams and continues today. Running in parallel, in 2013, Alex became a Team Leader and shepherded a large team of good men.

Alex was honored to be the Atlanta Mission Coordinator between 2010 to 2022 (12 years), coordinating 5-8 Holy Week Mission teams across Georgia. He also created and coordinated missions at a parish in Athens, GA, for 9 years. Alex continues to coordinate Holy Week Missions, Advent Missions, and Monthly missions at Good Shepherd Catholic Church in Cumming, GA.

From 2016 to 2022, Alex also served as the Men’s Section Assistant in Atlanta. He loved working with the Men’s Section Director, the Legionaries, Consecrated, and Women’s Section leadership teams.

Alex is exceptionally grateful to the Legionaries, Consecrated, and many RC members who he’s journeyed shoulder to shoulder, growing his relationship with Christ and others along the way. He knows that there is only one way, that’s Christ’s Way, with others!