Dear Brothers and Sisters in Saint Dominic,
On November 19, I made my perpetual profession as a Lay Dominican, surrounded by my fraternity, family, and friends. After five years of preparation, making the promise for life felt entirely natural, as natural as taking another breath; to echo St. Joan of Arc, as if I was “born for this.” St. Dominic and the Order of Preachers have been in the background of my life in subtle ways, culminating in my first job with the Sisters of Mary in Ann Arbor, where the charism of the order filled a longing in my heart. My thanks to my incredible fraternity for welcoming me into the family and challenging me in all the best ways; and most especially to my mom, who made first profession as a Lay Dominican last year (and is way better at study than I am). Like a good Dominican, I could wax poetic for three more pages, but we’d better get on to the important things in this newsletter.
Here’s to a lifetime of this Dominican vocation alongside all of you. Thank you for the privilege of serving you as editor over this year, and I look forward to continuing to grow Veritas in 2023. Your Lay Dominican editorial team wishes you a blessed and merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!
— Mrs. Rebecca W. Martin, OP
editor@layopcentral.org
Correction to image captions from fall issue: FAR picnic photos were missing a couple of names. The first person on the left in the second row is Mrs. Deb de Vries, OP.
Please reach out to me any time with contributions, ideas, questions, comments, or corrections!
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Third Wednesday Lay Dominican Rosary Call
All Lay Dominicans are invited to attend a monthly Dominican rosary via Zoom, hosted by Queen of the Holy Rosary Fraternity in St. Louis, Missouri. We will be asking for prayer intentions prior to the rosary, and you can also use the chat to share your intentions. We are honored to pray with you and for you. Please contact stldominicanlaity@gmail.com with any questions.
The Zoom Dominican Rosary will be hosted on the third Wednesday of each month at 7:00 PM Central Time.
Zoom link here
Meeting ID: 823 6230 1803
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Committee Updates Due
February 1, 2023
Provincial committee chairs, please submit your updates to the Editor by February 1, 2023.
Sunday Conversations
February 26, 2023
Br. John’s February discussion will be on Sunday, February 26, at 6:30 PM MTN/7:30 PM CST/8:30 PM EST. Details will be sent closer to the event.
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Dominican Rosary Pilgrimage
September 30, 2023
The Dominican Rosary Pilgrimage is a full-day event celebrating the Rosary at the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception in Washington, DC. It will take place on September 30, 2023, the Vigil of Rosary Sunday, hosted by the Dominican Friars of the Province of St. Joseph. This event will include conferences on the Rosary preached by the friars, several hours of Eucharistic Adoration and confessions, recitation of the Rosary and Mass in the Upper Church, and a Eucharistic procession.
The pilgrimage starts (spiritually) with a 9-month novena beginning January 30, 2023. Prayer cards will be distributed to all interested Dominican provinces, including the Rosary Confraternity charters, the Dominican nuns, the Dominican sisters, and Dominican Laity.
The website, rosarypilgrimage.org will include a promotion video, monthly updates, the novena prayer, and individual people or parishes can use the website to request prayer cards to be mailed to them. Social media posts on @DominicanRosary can be easily shared on any social media platform.
Please pray for the evangelical fruitfulness of this event and help promote it to everyone you know for the glory of God and the salvation of souls through increased devotion to the Holy Rosary!
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The Soul of the Apostolate
Jean-Baptiste Chautard, O.C.S.O.
Diana Caponigri (OAK)
My fraternity, Bishop Edward Dominic Fenwick Fraternity from Oak Park, IL, has been reading The Soul of the Apostolate by Jean-Baptiste Chautard, O.C.S.O. After we had finished a section on “The Active Worker Who has No Interior Life,” I thought I would share some of the thoughts Fr. Chautard presented. Not that I think we are busy little bees with no interior life, but, as practicing Lay Dominicans, we have to be very careful not to let our prayer life be usurped by some of the other pressing activities in our life. He identifies four stages which could serve as guidelines for us to avoid.
The very first is rather subtle—much like leaving the door of our souls open just a crack, but that is all the evil one needs to slip in. We gradually question our convictions about the spiritual life and wonder if God is as close as He says He is. Our thoughts about God’s plan in connection with our inner life and our works become fuzzy. Our reputation, glory, and personal interests become more prominent and lead to a forgetfulness of God’s proximity. We become lukewarm or get close to letting God take a backseat in our activities.
The second stage is probably more identifiable. Time for spiritual reading of books is replaced with reading magazines, meditation is shortened or not done as often or just not done. Our schedule is not what it was before. We may be staying up later and not getting up as early to spend time with personal prayer. And, of course, we always have a good reason as to why this happened. Fr. Chautard believes that giving up meditation is almost like an invitation for our enemy to move in. In this stage it is harder to avoid venial sins, and these faults are hardly noticed anyway, as we have begun to lose our clarity of conscience.
The third stage is not praying the Divine Office, the prayer of the Church, or it is done in haste or put off and delayed for many reasons. Possibly it is not done at all if sleep becomes overpowering. Mortal sins may be part of our life now. Distractions and worry are hard to dismiss in the noisy climate of our psyche now.
The last stage is identified with receiving the sacraments with lackluster energy. Even the Mass doesn’t move us as it did before. We have succumbed to our own agenda and have moved away from the great gift of faith and love that Jesus wants us to have. How did this happen? Fr. Chautard states that inexperience, presumption, vanity, carelessness, and cowardice are the answer.
Is this where God will leave us? No. We all know our God will keep knocking at the door of our soul, always hoping for us to return. He didn’t walk away. We did.
My hope in writing this is to make us aware of the dangers in missing meditation or the Breviary. I would guess that every one of us has had some days when the day didn’t go as planned or we had some unexpected illness or a surprise guest showed up. Life has its surprises. Our goal is to always get back on track as soon as we can.
The book, originally written for priests, is loaded with wisdom and insight about the soul searching to find God. I paraphrased about five pages, so there is so much more to read and learn. Pope St. Pius X recommended this book and said that he kept it by his bedside. So do consider it as reading material in your fraternity if you have not done so already.
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Why Preach?
Encountering Christ in God’s Word
Fr. Peter John Cameron, O.P.
Julie Krogmeier, WLF
Fr. Peter John Cameron, O.P., editor of the worship aid Magnificat, as well as editor of the online newsletter Aleteia, wrote Why Preach?: Encountering Christ in God’s Word (c. 2009 by Ignatius Press, San Francisco) with the aim of “deepening the preacher’s appreciation of what preaching is so as to increase his desire to preach.” While the work is intended for priests, there are abundant treasures within to inspire any and all who are called to the holy preaching of Dominican life.
The starting point for the preacher, Fr. Cameron states, is speaking from the experience of knowing one’s belonging to God, and of being “conscious of oneself right to the core…to perceive…an Other,” who is God. With this self-awareness in both the preacher of the Word and those hearing the Word, the preaching becomes a “divine and life-giving experience.”
In answer to the preacher’s question: “What are you looking for?”, preaching offers the gift of presence and an encounter with Christ. The question for the preacher becomes: How does this living Word revive, accentuate, or intensify my present, lived encounter with Jesus Christ? For if what the preacher preaches cannot be verified in his own experience, it is to that extent not “true.” The preacher is a witness to and personification of Christ to the hearers of the Word. The preacher’s experience of Christ brings authority to the preaching, and this opens hearts for more.
Fr. Cameron points the preacher to the power of stories by way of the imagination. A good story often shows people the way to go. He also reminds the preacher of Sacred Scripture’s narrative dimension, ensuring its inexhaustibility. He continues with the three dynamics at work in an inspired Scripture text; Scripture is “objective, in that it reveals facts and events; it is personal, in that it shows us God as personal in the act of revealing himself; and it is dynamic, calling forth and making possible a response on the part of man.” Fr. Cameron goes into more detail on these dynamics in chapter three, “The Soul of Preaching,” which also includes a wonderful method of lectio divina.
One page, with one main point felt deeply by the preacher, no more than eight minutes spoken, with plenty of examples (which get remembered the most), the ending memorized, and if possible, no manuscript in hand: these are the practical elements of good preaching that are encouraged by Fr. Cameron.
In preaching the Word with our lives and with our words and actions, we connect the hearers with the One they are longing to know and love more deeply. Fr. Cameron has painted the art of preaching with a beautiful brush that will encourage all. This read is highly recommended.
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Prison Meditations on Psalms 51 and 31
Girolamo Savonarola, translated by John Patrick Donnelly, SJ
Tom Rohn (CAR)
Servant of God Girolamo Saonarola is a polarizing figure in the Dominican community. Some see him as a tragic figure who ended his life in disobedience to the Church; others see him as the last hope the Church had in preventing the heresy and schism of the Reformation. Among the latter are St. Philip Neri (who kept his picture in his room) and Bl. Pier Giorgio Frassati, who took the name Girolamo at his final promises in Savonarola’s honor. Savonarola left a treasury of writings, but his Prison Meditations on Psalms 51 and 31 stand out for their clarity and brevity.
Many parts are especially moving when seen in light of when the work was composed. Savonarola wrote his commentaries on these psalms in prison, after his torture and confession to crimes centered around his alleged false prophecies. When he comments on the failure of St. Peter to uphold his own faith when pressed by a mere servant girl, one can’t help but think he’s making an apology for his own recantation of his prophecies and teachings, done recently under literal torture.
As Dominican tertiaries whose order started as the “Order of Penance,” we can find much to chew on in Savonarola's words. Particularly relevant are his evergreen comments on living a life of penance in a world (and perhaps Church) that no longer sees self-denial as praiseworthy or necessary.
Fr. Donnelly’s edition is laid out very well, with Latin and English on facing pages, which allows those with some Latin to consider the text in the original. With only around 60 pages of English text, this would be an ideal work for a book study or private devotion.
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How to Review a Book
Editor’s Note: Julie Krogmeier (WLF) shared two informative resources for how to write a book review. Many thanks to those who submitted book recommendations! I encourage you to continue sharing ideas for study, so that we can tell each other about the excellent books we have read, both as individuals and within community.
The first resource may be found at this link: It is a handout from the writing center at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, College of Arts and Sciences. The second may be read below.
Excerpts from John E. Drewry's Book Reviewing (1945)
The review should be an article worth reading in itself, regardless of whether one has read or plans to read the book about which it is written.
In writing the review, keep in mind who reads book reviews and why. There are several groups;
- Those who use reviews as guides to their book choices.
- Those who, having read a book, are interested in seeing what others have to say about it.
- Those who do not have the time to read books and who must therefore rely on reviews for their information about the news of their particular area of interest.
- Those who read a review in the same way that they would read an editorial, a political article, etc. They are reading their journal or magazine and are attracted to anything that looks interesting.
The minimum essentials which a review should accomplish are:
- A description of the book.
- Something about the author.
- A comparison of the book to others by the same author and in the same field.
- An appraisal, preferably indirect, through description and exposition in terms of the aims and purposes of the author.
Additional questions that may be asked and answered in a review are:
- Is the subject matter or the style more important?
- Who is the author, and what right has he or she to be writing on this subject?
- What seems to have been the author's purpose in writing this book?
- What contributions to knowledge and understanding are made by this book?
A common fault of book reviews is that they are all too much alike. Too many reviews all use the same adjectives, and are all constructed by the same architecture, or lack of it. Make your review unusual.
J. Donald Adams, former editor of the New York Times Book Review section, summarized the requirements of that publication in this way: “It seems to me that a good book review, for whatever audience it may be intended, should do three things. It should first of all, make clear what the author of the book attempted to do; it should convey to the book’s potential reader an adequate idea of what the book has to offer him; and it should leave the reader of the review a definite impression concerning the reviewer’s judgment as to the book’s quality. I think these three requirements are the most broadly essential.”
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Blessed John Dominici
Bay City, Michigan
Cynthia Wearn (BAY)
On August 20, 2022, about 7 members of our Blessed John Dominici (BAY) Fraternity, instead of meeting in our normal meeting place, went on an outing to tour the Bible Museum, located at All Saints' Parish on 710 Columbus Ave., Bay City, MI 48708. There, Fr. Jose Marie Cabrera showed us replicas on stone and parchment of various old etchings of the Bible and explained their history, along with a video. It was very informative and inspiring! We were exceedingly blessed by this experience.
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Saint Catherine of Siena
Carmel, Indiana
The Saint Catherine of Siena Lay Dominicans in Carmel, Indiana, requested and received full fraternity status from Fr. James V. Marchionda, OP, Prior Provincial. Congratulations!
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Saint Catherine of Siena
Grand Blanc, MI
Eric Grekowicz (GBL)
Catherine Moore made her perpetual profession in the Lay Fraternities of the Order of Preachers on Sunday, September 11, at St. Mary’s Church in Mt. Morris, Michigan. In attendance were her family and friends, as well as fellow members of the Dominican Community of St. Catherine of Siena.
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Queen of the Vietnamese Martyrs
Denver, Colorado
On October 8, professions were held at the Queen of the Vietnamese Martyrs fraternity in Denver, Colorado:
Reception
Maria Phạm Thùy Trang
Maria Mai Thi Trâm
Têrêsa Lâm Thị Đoan Trang
Madalena Bùi Thị Mầu
Temporary Profession
Maria Tạ Thị Tất
Maria Mai Thị Ánh
Têrêsa Phạm Thị Thu Hằng
Perpetual Profession
Rosa Phạm Kim Yến
Maria Phan Thị Sen
Maria Phan Thị Chúc
Đaminh Thân Văn Nhẫn
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Bishop Edward Dominic Fenwick
Oak Park, Illinois
On September 25, 2022, Marcie Calandra made her first profession and was welcomed into our fraternity. Some of her family came to witness this.
Fraternity members, L to R — John Planek, Marian Alletto, Marcie Calandra, Kim Bartell, Rocky Romano, and Diana Caponigri
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Queen of the Holy Rosary
St. Louis, Missouri
Dawn Casey (OAK)
On Sunday, November 13, at the St. Louis Dominican Priory, Nathan Thompson made his perpetual promise and received his Dominican Cross. Three members, Dave Adams, Haley Eshbacher, and Tara Sill, made their temporary professions and received their white Dominican scapulars and pins. Elizabeth Thompson also renewed her temporary profession. The ceremony was presided by president Ken Wilsker, formation director Mary Ellen Barringer, and Father Durham DePorres, OP. A lovely reception followed in the fellowship room of the Priory.
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Temporary Professions, L to R: Dave Adams, Haley Eschbacher, Tara Sill and President Ken Wilsker | |
L to R: Ken Wilsker, Tara Sill, Haley Eschbacher, Nathan Thompson, Elizabeth Thompson, Fr. Durham DePorres, OP and the Thompson children | |
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Blessed Mary, Mother of Dominic
Cedaredge, CO
Renee Valenzuela (CED)
August Walkowski was received on Saturday, December 3, 2022, in Appleton, WI, after completing Inquiry with the Blessed Mary, Mother of Dominic Fraternity in Cedaredge, CO. She and her husband, Joseph, are trying to form an Associate Fraternity in Appleton, under the patronage of Our Lady of Good Help. We were able to Zoom the ceremony for the rest of our fraternity in Colorado to participate remotely and bear witness. We even had a participant Zooming from El Salvador! Congratulations to August Walkowski!!
Photo: L, Renee Valenzuela; R, August Walkowski
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Blessed Pier Giorgio Frassati
Ann Arbor, Michigan
Professions were held at St. Mary's Cathedral in Lansing, Michigan. Rebecca Martin and Hiromi Konishi made their perpetual profession, and Michelle Nordberg, Gayle & Mark Hornbacher made their temporary professions. Fr. Karl Pung, rector of the cathedral, celebrated Mass.
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A Brief Introduction to the Dominican Propers
Chad Meyer (LOS)
The Dominican order has a rich liturgical history manifested today in the Propers for the Liturgy of the Hours for the Order of Preachers, which we may use in celebrating the Liturgy of the Hours. These are available in a nearly complete form, with propers for all hours, in a volume published through the Western Province, available here (referred to as “the blue book”). This volume also contains the General Introduction (GI) and other juridical documents. There is also a nice and compact edition, which only contains propers for morning and evening prayer, published by the Sisters of Mary, Mother of the Eucharist (“the black book”) available here.
In many cases, the propers found in our books are used in the same way as those found in the propers of saints in the regular books. However, as Dominicans, we have the special privilege to use the proper antiphons for Dominican saints and blesseds, even on memorials with the psalms of the day (GI 24). (Proper antiphons are normally reserved for solemnities or feasts in the Office.) Many of the Dominican feasts have two or three “series” of antiphons; for example, morning prayer for St. Thomas Aquinas has two series of antiphons—antiphons based on Sacred Scripture and antiphons based on the life and virtues of the saint—and an individual or community would choose one of the series to use (GI 32). There are proper concluding prayers for most of the Dominican saints in the books. For some saints, there are two prayers given; in that case, the one for Evening Prayer is the same as in the Roman Missal (third edition) and the other comes from Dominican books and is focused on the celebration of the Dominican Family (GI 44). For solemnities and some feasts, proper blessings are given, which have been taken from the liturgical books of the Order. These are prayed in place of the final blessing and before a dismissal (GI 47).
Both books, additionally, contain proper texts for the Optional Memorial of the Blessed Virgin on Saturdays (which can be used any Saturday that does not have another celebration). There are 5 different sets of texts for this office based upon different titles of Our Lady. Finally, in Dominican usage, the office of Compline has proper antiphons (both for the psalms and the Gospel canticle), readings, and responsories for certain solemnities and for the different liturgical seasons, none of which are present in the Roman office.
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Woman Clothed with the Sun
Evansville, Indiana
Chris VanCleve (EVN)
The Light of the Holy Spirit Dominican Retreat, featuring Retreat Master Father David Gunter, MIC, was recently held in the Upper Room of the Woman Clothed with the Sun Chapter in Evansville, IN.
The three-day event opened with Mass on September 23, the feast day of St. Pius of Pietrelcina. Brother John Seilberg, OP, and Mrs. Gwendolin Weinberger, OP, were among the Dominicans and their guests. Evansville Bishop Joseph M. Seigel attended the Saturday luncheon and presented the Woman Clothed with the Sun chapter with a picture of all the Dominican saints as a token of his support.
The event was well attended and featured inspirational talks by Father Gunter as well as daily confessions, rosary, and Mass. Brother John Steilberg, OP, presented a Central Province update and shared a very informative history/overview of the Dominican Order on Saturday afternoon. The day culminated with evening adoration and a healing service.
The quiet time provided in between activities was conducive to personal reflection and prayer, as well as small group discussions. The focus of the weekend was on the Holy Spirit and the chapter’s special relationship with the Blessed Mother.
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Chapter President Timothy Martin, OP, and Priestly Fraternity President Father James Koressel accepting Bishop Seigal’s gift. | |
Participants listening intently to Father Gunter’s talk on Saturday evening. | |
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St. Mary Magdalene
West Lafayette, Indiana
Julie Krogmeier, OP
Fraternity members from St. Catherine of Siena (CAR) joined St. Mary Magdalene (WLF) for a day of reflection together. The day began with the Dominican Rosary, followed by morning prayer for the feast of St. Teresa of Avila. Fr. Steve Kuhlmann, OP, gave a reflection on St. Luke and the Gospel of Luke, followed by discussion; the day ended with a prayer for vocations, Mass, and lunch. Those present were Fr. Steve Kuhlmann, OP, Julie Krogmeier, Jonathan Stahl, Maria Banda, Kim Padan, Sonya Huyck, Katie Willen, Suzanne Shonkwiler, Lisa Shoemaker, and Tom Rohn.
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Holy Rosary
Grand Rapids, MI
Jamie Gustin (GRP)
On Sunday, November 13, 2022, The Rosary Fraternity met for our monthly meeting. We began our meeting with the Dominican Rosary. Sandy led us with the Glorious Mysteries. After the Rosary, we discussed the next chapter of Transformation in Christ: On the Christian Attitude by Dietrich Von Hildebrand. Our meeting continued with Evening Prayer, the Dominican Litany, and the Family of Dominic Song. Afterward we enjoyed fellowship together. Our group had soup and salad and then worked on our yearly Advent almsgiving apostolate to provide Boxes of Joy to send to developing countries such as Haiti or Guatemala. We filled nine shoe boxes packed with toys, clothing, school supplies, and hygiene items. We included rosaries from our group apostolate in the boxes. Packing these boxes brings our group such joy to help bless children each Christmas.
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Holy Rosary
Minneapolis, Minnesota
Katharina Locke (MPL)
This month we began our discernment process for our group ministry project. We started by reading Ephesians 4:11–16 and 1 Corinthians 12:30, contemplating the verses, as we discussed how we might apply them. Here are some key takeaways:
- Know yourself in the eyes of God
- Process vs. Knowing in regards to spiritual gifts
- Refer to both the Apostolic Mission and General Declarations found in our rules to help guide us
- Consider what the Church needs, and what the world needs, in order to help us discern our direction
- Have a personal encounter with Jesus, who is Lord
- Feel the fire of the Holy Spirit and be revived by it
- Many people are merely lukewarm about their faith, and yet we hopefully can meet them at that point to help spark that fire
- There is a spiritual poverty that would benefit from evangelism and teaching, especially about the Sacraments, while avoiding the prosperity gospel and “TV evangelism”
- Do not focus on the safety aspect of God, but embrace suffering
- Redefine what healing means
- Do not limit Christ to one small checkbox of our daily living
The world is floundering, needing truth. We can dive deeper into this process by understanding the vision, the values (like the Beatitudes), and then applying that to the current state (for example, by taking inventory to see where our help is most needed). We can start this process individually, but our main goal is to come together next month to finish going over a few introspective questions as we continue to discern our group ministry, so we may be in alignment with the Lord, understanding the journey that has led us here together.
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Presidents — Promotional Materials
A trifold brochure and poster describing the Lay Dominican vocation, and holy cards of Saint Dominic and Saint Catherine are available on Sharepoint for you to print for your community’s vocational efforts. Presidents only, please follow this link. If you cannot sign in, please contact Joey Odell, 3opadmin@layopcentral.org.
Help Needed
Webmaster — The Webmaster will be a volunteer position on the Communications Committee reporting to the Editor, with the job of updating, maintaining, and improving the provincial website. The Webmaster will interface with the tech admin and other committees as needed. Wordpress or similar experience required. (Currently, there isn’t too much to do, but we need someone to run point on managing the website because Yours Truly can’t manage that too. — R.W.M.) If you are interested in this position, please email editor@layopcentral.org.
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Veritas Editorial Team
Mrs. Rebecca Martin, OP — Editor
Mrs. Mary E. Giltner, OP — Managing Editor
Ms. Renee Valenzuela, OP
Ms. Mary Reinhardt, OP
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