On the Move: Body and Spirit

Seasoning
by Joellen McCarthy, BVM; Peggy Nolan, BVM and Mary Ann Zollmann, BVM

Dear SALT Readers,

“On the Move”: How fitting it is that this summer issue of SALT brings stories of significant journeys and delightful excursions!

All of us remember as children our excitement at the arrival of summer. That little extra lilt in our heart was due partially to the three months that stretched before us with anticipation of summer trips as far away as across the country or as close to home as the nearest campsite, local playground, or favorite ice cream store.

Even in adulthood, the prospect of an upcoming trip to visit family members, boarding a plane for a place we saved a lifetime to visit, or even getting in a car and stopping at the call of inviting road markers gives a “summer” feel to our anticipation.

There is something in us that loves a journey, that relishes being “on the move,” whether geographically, intellectually or spiritually. In fact it feels as though the lure to travel is knit into the marrow of our bone, the very fiber of our spirit. And perhaps it is.

An ancient spiritual writer, known as Pseudo-Dionysius, describes God—and us in the image of God—as “yearning on the move.” This “yearning” is often reflected in compelling literature which can take us on

revelatory journeys from Egypt to the Promised Land and from Jerusalem to Emmaus;
perilous journeys from the safety of land to encounters with powers as formidable as Moby Dick;
whimsical journeys through looking glasses into Wonderland and through wardrobe closets into the logic-defying world of Narnia;
disturbing journeys through Auschwitz darkness to the dawn of enlightened consciousness;
mystical journeys from a confining spirituality into a divine liberating love of everything.

Journeys refresh, educate and transform us individually and communally. We become who we are on journeys we choose to take and on those that, in a mystery beyond our choosing, take us.

It is no wonder, then, that the spirit of journey is the founding and sustaining energy of BVM life. As described in the BVM Constitutions, “ours is a pioneer heritage moving us into the future responsive to the Spirit” and “calling us to any part of the world where there is promise of furthering the mission of Jesus.” In the following pages you will glimpse what it means for BVMs, BVM Associates, and BVM friends to be “on the move” as you join us in:

An ocean voyage from Dublin to Philadelphia ;
Founding early schools along the banks of the Mississippi;
Humor-filled train escapades across the country;
Relocations across town, short in mileage, but long in distance traveled by the heart;
Moving toward a greener planet;
Adventures in hot air balloons;
Travels on cruise ships and ski slopes;
Companioning children, young adults, and the homebound on journeys of faith;
Walks to help the hungry, the homeless, and the ill;
Pilgrimages to Norway and Ecuador, and home again.

As you embark on these journeys with us, perhaps you will stop occasionally to recall journeys of your own. And, when we have all read the last account in this issue of SALT, may we delight in the realization that the stretch of “summer” that is the rest of our lives lies before us inviting us to be ever “on the move.”