2.14.2014

Afternoon of Recollection - Feast of St. Maron



By Natalie Salameh, Postulant 

On Sunday February 9, the Feast of St. Maron, the Maronite Servants of Christ the Light hosted an afternoon of recollection at the Mother of Light Convent for ladies from the New Bedford and Boston Maronite parishes.

The focus was on the life, spirituality and asceticism of the Saint Maron, founder of the Maronite Church.  Mother Marla Marie explained the origins of St. Maron and his legacy, who he was, where he came from, and how he came to have such a large number of followers, today known as Maronites.

Mother Marla Marie explained that St. Maron sought to offer God more than routine acts of piety. He withdrew to a mountain at Kfar Nabo, Syria where he could more rigorously practice prayer, fasting and asceticism. St. Maron would spend long nights standing in prayer, fasting for weeks and lived out in the open, exposed to the elements.

This is the heritage and legacy that St. Maron has passed on today to us as Maronites, one of sacrifice and prayer. Mother Marla Marie encouraged the ladies to reflect on how they could apply the spirituality of St. Maron to their everyday lives. All of these women as wives and mothers understood that the life of St. Maron, the life of sacrifice, was indeed a reflection of their own lives, as they live to support and provide for their families.

But the beautiful thing is that these ladies realized that no sacrifice is too small in God's eyes. He sees each and every one of us, and what we offer to Him. The Lord is never outdone in generosity! He sees the small sacrifices we offer Him and He makes them something great.
 
The afternoon concluded with an hour before the Holy Mysteries in our Chapel of Saint Maron.  A supper followed where our guests received a taste of the Maronite Servants’ hospitality with lots of fellowship, sharing and laughter.