There is no lull in our ordinary and always intense life of prayer, work, and trying to love one another, however. Nor has there been a lull in the number of our visitors. Though some of our summer guests are long gone, others came, and, unlike what happens most years, our numbers have hardly changed.

Among those who came for a short visit were Fr. Roman Hosz and Jacinta, the founders of a new (17 year old) ecclesial community in Poland, called Way of Elijah.

Their spirit is akin to ours, and they are using the writings of the Fathers of the Church and Catherine Doherty for the formation of their members. They came seeking advice from "a community that has succeeded" and asked us to send them someone to give their community a retreat!

Fr. Roman was responsible for getting Catherine’s book, Soul of My Soul, translated and published by the Carmelites in Poland.

This ordinary time did have a number of news items, and looking at them in preparation for writing this column, I was struck with how varied they were.

Just take, for example, what individual staff did in just this one month.

Linda Owen took a painting course. Fr. Paul Burchat attended the regional conference of Priests for Life. Mary Davis attended a diocesan Peace and Justice day. Two people went on pilgrimages in Europe: Helen Hodson to Italy and Joanne DeGidio to Poland and Belgium.

Fr. Bob Wild, postulator for Catherine’s Cause and Kathleen Janet Thompson, his assistant, attended a meeting of the Committee of the Founders of the Canadian Church, a committee which is involved with most of the people who are up for canonization in Canada.

Fr. Tom Zoeller, who is responsible for the spiritual formation program for men discerning priesthood, visited a couple of seminaries in the hopes that he would get a better feel for what the men in our program need.

Fr. Bob Johnson, Cathy Mitchell, and Elizabeth Bassarear gave a weekend retreat in Pembroke, our diocesan seat.

I was also struck by the amount of teaching and learning that is going on here—both on a practical level in the various work departments and in various talks and classes. Truly this is, as the sign in our front yard puts it, a training center.

On Wednesday mornings, guests are taking a class on "The Fundamentals of the Spiritual Life." This class, which we have been giving to guests for many years, was put together by Fr. Sharkey and was based on his long experience as a spiritual director. "People coming in don’t know the basics of the spiritual life," he said when he started it. "They get all upset because they haven’t conquered their anger in a month!"

Besides this class, the men in the spiritual formation program also take classes on Pope John Paul II’s letter to priests: Shepherds After My Own Heart.

Our applicants, too, are of course in the midst of formation. Their classes are mostly about the spirit of Madonna House and Scripture. Friday afternoon is their main study time, and in it they are drawing on the special knowledge of various individuals in the community.

For example, Veronica Dudych, our schola director, gave them a class on the Liturgy of the Hours, which we use for our morning and evening prayer. Miriam Stulberg gave them a talk on the roots of Christian Eastern spirituality at Madonna House, and Rae Stanley one on faith and reason.

A few staff—including Mamie Legris, our oldest member and one of the earliest—also gave them their witness talks, the story of their conversions to God and their vocations.

Then there is the ongoing education we all get. We had a short talk about preventing and taking care of colds and flu, and a workshop—2 evenings and a day—on the Twelve Step Program, given by Madelyn Robins and David Finamore from Camillus Treatment Centre.

As part of the Winter Lecture Series, Fr. Jonathan Robinson gave us a talk about St. Philip Neri, Padre Pio, and the spiritual life. Someone asked him what can be done to change things in today’s world. "The only way to make real, lasting changes," he answered, "is to become a saint."

Then there are our celebrations of the feasts of the liturgical year. On All Saints Day, St. Mary’s put up a display of Catherine Doherty’s scrapbooks of holy cards of the saints, some of which have her short hand-written reflections, and watched a documentary about Mother Teresa of Calcutta.

At the main house, Aliz Trombitas surprised us all by arriving at supper dressed as Catherine Doherty. Susanne Stubbs, director general of women, who sits in Catherine’s old place in the dining room, graciously gave "Catherine" her place.

In the evening, in preparation for the upcoming Eucharistic Congress in Quebec City, we had a presentation of some of the Canadian saints and blesseds.

Staff, guests, and applicants dressed as these saints—most of the women saints were nuns—and told us about "themselves."

It’s amazing how many saints and blessed there are in Canada—such as the Jesuit martyrs, Bishop Laval, Mother Marie of the Incarnation, Mother Catherine of St. Augustine, Marguerite D’Youville, and even one from the 20th century—Dina Belanger.

If you haven’t heard of them, let me assure you that they are well worth getting to know.

Our last item of news is that Frances Rich, the sculptress of Our Lady of Combermere, died at age 97. We have kept in touch with her over the years, and her last visit here was in 1988. What a gift she has given in this statue, not only to Madonna House, but also to the world!

May God grant each of you a grace-filled new year.