St. Norbert's Abbey hosts "A Day For Men" featuring former Packers interim coach Joe Philbin 16-March

Featuring:

• Pete Reinl, CSG | Co-founder, Healing Life’s Losses 
• Fr. Tim Shillcox, O. Praem. | Pastor, Resurrection Parish 
• Deacon Steve Meyer | Deacon, St. Elizabeth Ann Seton Parish 
• Joe Philbin | [Former] Offensive Coordinator, Green Bay Packers 
• Abbot Dane Radecki, O. Praem. | Celebrant, 4 p.m. Mass 

Join men of all ages for this day of inspiration, education, challenge, and prayer. An all-star line-up of presenters is on tap. The day includes presentations by well-known speakers, lunch, opportunities to connect with other men, and Mass. Register early—you don’t want to miss this!

details at Norbertines

Joe Philbin, his wife, Diane, and their children in a family portrait
taken in 2010, their last taken together with all six kids.

I would love to hear Joe speak.  His son Michael tragically and accidentally died several years ago.  On his return to Green Bay last year:

“It’s very, very emotional for all of us,” Philbin said. “But at the end of the day, we care and love a lot of people here, and a lot of people care about and love us. So it’s not easy, but this is what’s so special about Green Bay. The good, Catholic boy that I am, I went to Mass the other day, and some lady, older lady -- of course, I’m getting into that category myself -- tapped me on the back, and says, ‘It’s great to have you back,’ and things like that. So, yeah, it’s very emotional.

Background ESPN: The Philbin journey: All about family, football and sticking together

GBPG: He tried speaking out about priest abuse in Catholic church. Now he's shouting about it.

The problem with Jason Jerry is he makes a lousy victim.

Victims are supposed to be subdued, repressed, sorrowful. It helps if they can look up at us with sad eyes, maybe bite their lower lip a little. Obviously, we don’t want them to be beaten down or crushed, but we’re used to thinking of them as tender and vulnerable, and that’s what we need to get our caring, nurturing instincts kicked into high gear.

Jerry, 44, of Howard, is none of that. He’s an angry victim. He’s mouthy. He can be, let's face it, kind of abrasive when he talks about how a priest molested him years ago and got away with it.

“What are you going to do about the Norbertines?” he shouted at Bishop David Ricken at a listening session in September. “And for you to sit there and nod? Your silence is deafening.”

Well, to be fair, it was supposed to be a listening session, and that’s what Ricken was doing.

continue at GBPG 

De Pere Norbertines elect new abbot, seventh of orders history

The Norbertine Community of St. Norbert Abbey has elected Dane Joseph Radecki, O. Praem., as the seventh abbot in its 125-year history. Abbot Radecki was elected for a term of nine years and begins his term immediately.

Fifty-three priests, brothers and seminarians are attached to the abbey, whose members can be found in houses in De Pere, Chicago, and Raymond, Mississippi. The Norbertines of St. Norbert Abbey sponsor St. Norbert College (SNC), De Pere; Notre Dame de la Baie Academy (NDA), Green Bay; the Norbertine Volunteer Community, and the Norbertine Center for Spirituality. The Norbertine community also staffs several parishes in the Diocese of Green Bay, including St. Norbert College Parish, De Pere; Our Lady of Lourdes Parish, De Pere; St. Willebrord Parish, Green Bay; and Holy Cross Parish Family, Green Bay, Wis. Sacramental assistance also is given to other parishes, hospitals and nursing homes in the diocese.

Abbot Radecki, the son of Richard Radecki and Theresa (Villeneuve) Radecki, is a native of Pulaski, Wisconsin, where his family continues to reside. He has one sister, Lori Hudson (Roger), and two brothers, Rodney Radecki (Cheryl) and the late Jeffrey Radecki.

continue at Norbertines

WisSJ: De Pere Norbertines tight-lipped about plans for Lake Monona property

A Catholic religious order that owns a large tract of undeveloped land on Lake Monona has fallen silent about the parcel’s future.

The historic property in Monona, known as San Damiano, is owned by the Norbertines of Saint Norbert Abbey in De Pere. In January, Norbertine officials said they were having the property assessed for possible sale.

That was six months ago. Abbot Gary Neville, who leads the community of priests, did not respond to repeated calls and emails seeking an update on the property’s status. Communications coordinator Katrina Marshall said she could not comment.

The possibility of a sale has drawn intense interest in Monona. The nearly 10-acre site, 4123 Monona Drive, is one of the largest remaining privately owned undeveloped parcels on the lake.

Some residents want to see the land remain in its pristine state. Others hope it is sold to a for-profit entity so that the land becomes taxable. (It currently is tax-exempt.)

Read more: http://host.madison.com/lifestyles/faith-and-values/religion/in-the-spirit-religious-order-tight-lipped-about-plans-for/article_7f96d358-f252-5667-aeb2-fe2a247b56a4.html#ixzz3fmdTSks0

Wisconsin Norbertine's new hymn "Sound the Bell of Holy Freedom" to be featured at Pope Francis' visit

Next year's World Meeting of Families in Philadelphia, where Pope Francis' planned Mass is expected to draw as many as 1.5 million people from around the world, will showcase an original hymn penned by a Wisconsin priest.

Not bad for a debut effort.

The Rev. Andrew Ciferni, who heads the Center for Norbertine Studies at St. Norbert College in De Pere, co-wrote the event's official hymn, "Sound the Bell of Holy Freedom," with fellow priest and friend the Rev. Normand Gouin of the College of Holy Cross in Worcester, Mass.

The song debuted last Sunday at a Mass at the Cathedral Basilica of Saints Peter and Paul in Philadelphia.

And Ciferni heard it for the first time on YouTube the following morning.

"It was wonderful. I had goose bumps," said Ciferni, a Philly native who penned the text without ever hearing Gouin's music.

continue at JS

The text verses seem nice, the refrain is confusing.  Holy Freedom would be freedom from sin, the freedom to do something good and virtuous, but not "freedom" in the American sense which equates basically to "a license to act in any way I see fit."

St. Norbert statue graces Green Bay cathedral entrance

GREEN BAY — A statue of St. Norbert, made by a 15th-generation wood carver from Oberammergau, in Bavaria, Germany, graces the entrance to St. Francis Xavier Cathedral. The five-foot statue, carved of linden wood, is a gift from St. Norbert Abbey.

About three or four years ago, Norbertine Abbot Gary Neville was at a chrism Mass in the cathedral and looked around at the many statues there.

“There were a lot of statues,” he told The Compass, “but I realized, ‘There’s no statue of St. Norbert here. And since we’ve (the Norbertine community) been here since 1893, almost 120 years. … So I went to Bishop (David) Ricken after the liturgy and asked, ‘What’s the possibility of putting a statue in cathedral?’”About three or four years ago, Norbertine Abbot Gary Neville was at a chrism Mass in the cathedral and looked around at the many statues there.

The bishop agreed and the Norbetines began the search for one. First, they inquired about a used statue at various European abbeys. Then they sought already-made statues. No luck.

continue at The Compass

Brewing beer is part of Norbertine community’s rich history

DE PERE — One of the oldest religious orders in the world is bound to have a rich backstory. For the Norbertines, founded in 1121, that history includes the art of brewing beer and original musical compositions from the Classical era of Mozart. Background information on both was offered on Jan. 30 at the Norbertine Center for Spirituality at St. Norbert Abbey.

Norbertine Fr. Andrew Ciferni, director of the Center for Norbertine Studies at St. Norbert College, and Norbertine Fr. Michael Frisch, who holds a doctorate in music, served as the presenters at “All Things Norbertine! History, Music, Abbey Ale.” The program was divided into three sections: learning about and tasting beer, music in the Abbey and a closing session of tasting and information that included a video on life at the Notre Dame de-Leffe Abbey in Belgium.

Fr. Ciferni explained the importance of monastic beer in general before providing details about the abbey ales. He credited Norbertine Fr. James Neilson for his research on the subject for a previous presentation. Monastic beer was a necessity for good health, said Fr. Ciferni.

“In the Middle Ages, one of the last things you wanted to do was drink the water,” he said. “The well was near the pit where the garbage was dropped. The process of getting water from a spring and boiling it for beer made it safe to drink for all ages. Every monastery had a brewery and sometimes it was the brewery for the village.”

continue at The Compass

Norbertines host lecture series on Vatican II "unleashed"

DE PERE — Marking the 50th anniversary of the beginning of the Second Vatican Council, Dr. Paul Wadell kicked off the lecture series "In Celebration of Vatican II" on Oct. 11 at the Norbertine Center for Spirituality, St. Norbert Abbey. In his presentation, "The Unleashing of Hope: Vatican II and its Aftermath," Wadell, a theologian and professor of religious studies at St. Norbert College[see:St Norbert College faculty & students protest Cdl. George commencement with rainbow ribbons], addressed why Vatican II unleashed[a great word for it, ROFL!] so much hope, why that hope was never fully realized and signs of hope today.

Wadell provided a timeline of events that contributed to Pope John XXIII calling for Vatican II. The book "What Happened at Vatican II" by Jesuit historian John W. O'Malley was referenced throughout his talk.

"The church was not afraid of its past," said Wadell. "It was not afraid of wrestling with what O'Malley calls the 'ghost of the 19th century.' For the Catholic Church, the 19th century continued into the 20th." The encyclicals by Pope Pius X condemning modernism serve as an example of the 19th century continuing into the 20th.[?  Does the author think modernism is not still condemned?  That modernism could have saved us from the oppression of the last two centuries?] Fr. Angelo Roncalli, who later became Pope John XXIII, was investigated on suspicions of modernism after he gave a lecture on faith and science at a seminary in Italy.

Pope John XXIII was elected pope on Oct. 28, 1958. On Jan. 25, 1959, the feast of the conversion of St. Paul, he announced the call for the council.

"I don't think that was accidental that John chose that day to say he was going to call the council," said Wadell. "He compared the church to a house in which the windows had been shut for so long that when you walked in that house, you couldn't breathe. John said that the church needed to throw open those windows to let in the fresh air of the Spirit. The cardinals and bishops who were there that day sat in stunned silence. There wasn't even polite applause. His announcement shocked them."

continue at The Compass

Interesting note, I found out one of the Norbertine priests used to offer the Traditional Latin Mass at the Good Help Shrine some years ago.  As with most of our religious orders in this state, despite bad leadership they are many faithful religious doing God's work. 

National Shrine to St. Joseph and St. Norbert's Abbey, De Pere, WI

On our way back from the Good Help Shrine we stopped at the National Shrine to St. Joseph.  Basically this "Shrine" is the crypt chapel of St. Norbert's Abbey, so we'll do 'em both in one post.  St. Norbert's has a history with the Good Help Shrine which I'll get into on my Anniversary Mass post.  Pretty easy to find even though my GPS did not correctly locate the address.  The grounds are beautiful, the church, not so much.  The "National Shrine" is noteworthy.

The National Shrine of St. Joseph is the headquarters of the Archconfraternity of St. Joseph and home to the Crowned Statue of Joseph and the Child Jesus. It was recognized by Pope Leo XIII as the National Shrine of Saint Joseph in 1892.

The original shrine was located in Saint Joseph Church, De Pere, WI, pastored by Father Joseph Durin. In 1888, Father Durin founded the Association of Saint Joseph and began a perpetual novena conducted every Wednesday, a tradition which continues to this day.

Father Durin’s deep devotion to Saint Joseph also led him to spearhead the campaign for official permission from the Vatican to Crown the State of Saint Joseph and have it declared a National Shrine.

Over thirty bishops and thousands of lay people joined Father Durin in support of this effort. Father Durin made a personal visit to the Vatican to present the petitions and ultimately his request was granted. Bishop Messmer of Green Bay, WI, presided over a ceremony in which two crowns were blessed – a flat or mural crown for Saint Joseph and an imperial crown for Jesus- and the coronation of the statue took place. 

I guess this is a very special privelage to have St. Joseph crowned but I don't know the details.  Are there any pictures of the original church?  I'm told the Norbertine's are basically indifferent to the Shrine by others who visited.  I didn't stop in the office, we just went in for the tour so I can't comment to that.  But you will see it looks like the Norbertine's went off the deep end with the rest of the religious.  If St. Norbert's College is any indication, this order has major problems. 

At any rate, as much as I am happy to have this in the state, but look at Canada's National Shrine to St. Joseph, or the Shrine to St. Joseph in St. Louis.  St. Louis is probably the more appropriate place to have the national shrine and it's renovation is a tragic but beautiful story.

OK, some photos.

Ahem; prior to Vatican II(a running theme in this state is 40-50s is when the deconstruction happened)

 

And if you go to the right hand side after entering you will find a small sign for the Shrine and set of stairs.

A small museum for the order, right before the crypt chapel

Packed away gorgeous vestments

The Norbertines, Ever Ancient - Ever New .... yep

St Norbert College faculty & students protest Cdl. George commencement with rainbow ribbons

Many St. Norbert College faculty members and graduates wore rainbow ribbons on their gowns on Sunday, the only visible acknowledgement of lingering controversy in the school's selection of Chicago archdiocese Cardinal Francis George as its commencement speaker.

George drew national criticism in December by referencing the Ku Klux Klan in an interview with a Chicago TV station about the schedule and route of Chicago’s annual gay Pride Parade.

“You know, you don’t want the gay liberation movement to morph into something like the Ku Klux Klan, demonstrating in the streets against Catholicism,” George said in the interview. [Which is precisely what it is becoming]

The comment prompted a couple thousand St. Norbert students, alumni and supporters to sign an online petition recently to ask the college to drop George as the commencement speaker.

College president Thomas Kunkel declined the request, saying the college welcomes a variety of opinions to its campus.  [Academic freedom is funny when it works in reverse]

[Get this!] About three-quarters of the college’s 123 faculty members and [only] a quarter of its 469 graduates wore rainbow-striped ribbons pinned to their gowns as a sign of solidarity with gays.

continue at GB PG

St. Norbert Abbey series spotlights local haven

The wonder of St. Norbert Abbey can be seen in its stately architecture and colorful stained glass.

The images often evoke awe in people of all ages, including 2-year-old Austin Beauchamp, grandson of Judy Turba, public relations coordinator of the Abbey.

"When he came into the church for the first time," said Turba, "his eyes got bigger and bigger, and all he said was, 'Oh. Oh, oh, oh. Oh!'"

Even in his youth, Austin recognized the magnificence of the Abbey within its 160-acre grounds. This unique setting is the inspiration for the six-part educational "Spotlight Tours" on the Abbey's architecture, symbolism and visionaries led by the Rev. Stephen Rossey, O. Praem., artist and historian.The initial presentation, "Unfinished Symphony: Spotlight on Architecture," will focus on the unique structure and style of the premises.

continue at GBPG

Photo

Cough....

The new abbey dedicated in 1959 (before Vatican II mind you)  We've seen that the 1950s was a decade of devastation in this state for beauty in churches.

An old parish church the Norbertines ran.

De Pere Norbertines: Putting the Age in New Age Spirituality

This is an agenda from a retreat from last year at the Norbertine Spirituality Center:

Wednesday (Full Moon and Lunar Eclipse) – June 15th
1:00 Registration - Check in to your room/Orientation
2:00 Welcome & introductions
2:15 Opening Sacred Space and creating a group alter
2:30 Set your personal intention for the retreat
2:45 Overview of the history of the Mandala/Sacred Circle
3:45 Connecting to your inner light
4:45 Dinner
5:30 Free Time
6:00 Origin of belief - Indigenous – Inspirational Verse
6:30 History and overview of Indigenous belief
7:30 Guided meditation on the healing power of nature as inspiration
7:40 Manifest a Mandala inspired by Nature or experience quiet meditation
9:00 Program ends for the evening
9:15 Moonlight Labyrinth meditation – connecting to circular time (optional)

Thursday – June 16th
7:45 Breakfast
8:30 Morning Labyrinth walking mediation – journey to center
9:00 Taoism – Inspirational Verse
9:30 History and overview of Taoist belief
10:30 Guided meditation on finding balance
10:40 Manifest a Mandala inspired by harmony or experience quiet meditation
11:50 Lunch
12:30 Free Time
1:00 Hinduism – Inspirational verse
1:30 History and overview of Hindu belief
2:30 Guided meditation on multiplicity of self
2:40 Manifest a Mandala inspired by aspects of self or experience quiet meditation
4:00 Free time
4:45 Dinner
5:30 Free Time
6:00 Buddhism – Inspirational Verse
6:30 History and overview of Buddhist belief
7:30 Guided meditation on emptiness of self
7:40 Manifest a Mandala inspired by no-thing and every-thing or experience quiet meditation
9:00 Program ends for the evening
9:15 Moonlight Labyrinth meditation (optional)

Friday – June 17th
7:45 Breakfast
8:30 Morning Labyrinth walking mediation
9:00 Judaism – Inspirational verse
9:30 History and overview of Judaism
10:30 Guided meditation on your source
10:40 Manifest a Mandala inspired by your source or experience quiet meditation
11:50 Lunch
12:30 Free Time
1:00 Christianity – Inspirational verse
1:30 History and overview of Christianity
2:30 Guided meditation on the light within
2:40 Manifest a Mandala inspired by your inner light or experience quiet meditation
3:40 Free time
4:45 Dinner
5:30 Free Time
6:00 Islam – Inspirational verse

One of the programs was facilitated by this individual:

Laural Virtues Wauters: Laural was mentored and certified by the late Dr. Judith Cornell from 2007 - 2010 at the Mount Madonna Institute in Watsonville, California. Laural is also a Master Practitioner of Energy Medicine trained through the Four Winds headed by Alberto Villoldo. She is the author of Tree Oracle: the true story of Carmen Sylvia and several websites on world religions and the tree of life.

Some good stuff here:
f6192

Their 2012 schedule is online so get on out there and get down with your Moonlight Labyrinth self.