Why We Got Stopped Multiple Times On The Highway

In a recent blog post, I mentioned how I would be visiting a Bendictine monastery on a pilgrimage in reparation for the "Black Mass” that was to be held on September 21 in Oklahoma City.  I finally went on that pilgrimage, and it was absolutely amazing! Rather than bust out a really long blog post recounting my experiences, I decided I'd do a brief series of blog posts highlighting different aspects.

The first half of our pilgrimage was a 4 hour drive to Wagoner, OK. From Holy Cross Catholic Church, we walked all the way to Clear Creek Abbey.

That's about 22 miles. Here's the route:

For safety and to help with keeping fresh legs, we had one of us drive our vehicular device up a few miles and wait for the rest of us to catch up. Once we all caught up, we'd switch out drivers and kept doing this along the way. If you'll look up at the map, you'll notice that we crossed via bridge over the lake. For that, we all hopped in the car and crossed because there is absolutely no pedestrian space and caulking our wagon and fording the lake wasn't an option either. Apart from these times, we walked.

Six guys walking along the side of a highway isn't particularly too interesting.  If anything, we're probably deemed as crazy for walking along the shoulder with vehicular things zooming past at 45-60 MPH! Maybe it's crazy that we were walking in the wind and rain. Maybe people thought we we were hiking. Maybe people got frustrated that they would have to take evasive maneuvers on the highway for our safety.

But a handful of people stopped and talked to us.

Why?

Why would these handful of people stop to talk to a bunch of guys taking up space on the side of the road?

The answer apparently was...

...because of the cross.

Seeing guys walking on the side of the road doesn't really compel anyone to stop and talk to them.

Seeing guys carrying a large wooden with drizzle and rain and a cool breeze causes double-takes and prompts questions and photo requests.

It happened multiple times on our 21 miles of walking. Some highlights, in list form:

[1] We stopped to exchange the cross towards the beginning of our march, and a woman pulled up near us on the side of the highway. She was curious as to what we were doing and thought it was cool. Our DRE explained why. She took a picture. We took her prayer intention and wrote it on our cross (her family has a history of some sort of thyroid disease).

 Morgan approves!

[2] Another time we stopped to exchange the cross in front of a convenience store. The owner runs out, yells for us to put the cross down and come into his store. He wanted to offer us free food (fried chicken and potato wedges!) because he loved the fact that we had a cross out there with us. He must've seen us coming up the road... Inside his store, we met a wife and her husband who are trying to get a minstry started because the nearest churches are still kind of far away. We prayed with her and their ministry. The owner and his family were so incredibly nice and their generosity was very much appreciated.




[3] Half-way through, a woman stopped ahead of us, and waited for us to come up. She was curious as to what we're doing and she wanted a picture. After we explained our purpose, we asked for her prayer request. She works at a local nursery, where that very day they were having to lay off a lot of people. We passed by it on our walk and it is pretty huge so I can't imagine how many people had to lose their jobs that day.

[4] We stopped at the last convenience store before the monastery because...well, they stopped us. Apparently someone passing by on the highway had seen us and called ahead to make sure the convenience store employees stopped us. That someone was from their volunteer fire department. She thought it was pretty cool that we were walking with a cross and so she bought us free drinks at the convenience store.



[5] This was more planned and intentional, but our DRE made contact with a mutual friend who lives near the monastery. They made arrangements to meet us and feed us at the aforementioned volunteer fire department where we were fed a delicious tomato basil soup and tuna sandwich meal. Homemade. Absolutely delicious after 15 miles of walking, and with it raining outside. There's a wonderful community of about 100 people who live just outside of the monastery, and they often help the monks out as well as visitors to the monastery.

[7] On the last stretch towards the monastery, a woman who lived on that road was driving past us and stopped to talk to us for a while. Traffic had to evade. She too was curious as to what we're doing and we explained. She also thought it was cool. Her prayer intention was for the football game that night for no injuries.

Oh, and none of these people were Catholic, except for those we met up with in [5]. But that doesn't matter because the cross unites us as Christians.

I mean, in addition to all of these examples, we had a good handful of appreciative/affirming car honks from strangers and passersby.

These experiences made me realize in a very real and first-hand way that the cross is our sign for victory and hope. Our Christian brothers and sisters know very well of this fact so seeing the cross being carried is enough to give pause and wonder, especially for those we encountered on our long, rainy, cold march towards the monastery.

“We adore You, O Christ, and we bless You, because by Your holy cross, You have redeemed the world.”
- JD

Pictures courtesy of myself and my companions.

The Reason Why Our Country Hasn't Fallen Apart

When I was on pilgrimage for the March for Life in Washington, D.C. earlier this year, I had the opportunity to go to the Holocaust Museum. I mean, how fitting since my group had just prayed in front of one of the most active abortion clinics in the country earlier in the morning. Since it was a holiday, they weren’t performing abortions and thus were closed for the day. Whew. But! What better way to continue reflecting on the injustice of the vulnerable and innocent than by refreshing on or learning more about the Nazi’s Holocaust of the Jewish people, others they deemed unfit, and others who stood in their way.

While standing in line waiting to go into the Museum, I noticed a religious brother had gotten in line just behind me. Talking to him was simply irresistible because religious brothers are just awesome! After talking to him for a little while, I learned the basics: the name he goes by is Ignacio, he’s from Texas, he is of the Benedictine order hence he is a Benedictine monk (but not a priest), and he’s been assigned to their monastery in Washington, D.C.

As we were talking to him, I was surprised to learn about his monastery because I didn’t know there was a Benedictine monastery nearby. I mean, I knew of the Franciscan monastery because that is normally part of our itinerary for this pilgrimage for the March for Life. Not only was it nearby, but the Benedictine monastery is also near the Franciscan one. Huh, I would have never guessed…but…cool!

During the course of our conversation, my buddy asked him how he liked being here in D.C. He said he loves it and that it’s an exciting place to be. I’m a Texas boy too and big city life like Washington, D.C. would surely be full of not dull moments.

He said one thing that sticks to my mind more than anything. Brother Ignacio said that it is really important to have a Catholic presence in our nation’s capital because of all the power and influence that reside along the Potomac River. Just by my knowing of Br. Ignacio’s existence pointed to the reality that there must be a greater Catholic presence in D.C. then I had previously thought about up until that point. And what he said made sense regarding such density of authority in the capital. Of course! It is very important to have a Catholic presence there because of all the crazy things we have to deal with as a nation, and a certain handful of people in our capital can make decisions that affect each and every single American's life.

He jokingly said that the reason why our country hasn’t completely fallen apart is because of the Catholic presence of religious brothers and sisters constantly praying for our country and our country’s leaders at the heart of all the political action. We all laughed, and it’s funny because there’s truth to that. I couldn’t help but wonder what other Catholic friaries, monasteries, convents, etc. exist in and around Washington, D.C. Like I said, I knew of the Franciscan Monastery, and also the Poor Clares of Perpetual Adoration just down the street from them. Also, there’s Catholic University of America with the behemoth of a Catholic church that is the Basilica, which I know many priests and seminarians pass through those halls. And to think…all of them (plus all the others I have yet to find out about) praying for us and for our country...

Sure, the best ways to help our country would definitely come through physical, tangible means. You know, making laws, decisions, etc. meant for the betterment of this country that we love so dear, from sea to shining sea. And then actually following through with those. But as a practicing Catholic, I’ve come to learn and appreciate that just as much as there is a physical reality to things, there is also a spiritual reality. That’s where prayer really helps. Through prayer, we approach God in humility asking for His help because without His help, we wouldn’t get very far. If we carry this interior disposition to truly love and serve others in a genuine way by seeking their ultimate good, that will carry through in our actions and manifest in physical reality.

I'm glad that we've got presence in the capital, and that joining them in prayers for our country is myself and the gray-haired ones who warm the pews on a daily basis when no one else is around during the week. Our prayers will be unceasing. How can I truly help my fellow Americans and serve them?

At the very least, I think it's cool that I randomly had this opportunity to speak to a Benedictine brother for a little bit. Haha! He ended up meeting the rest of my group and pretty much abandoned whatever group he was chaperoning. He hung out with us for a long while after we were done.

Story time with Br. Ignacio.
- JD