AS231 Ask Sister - Halloween quarantine, Mary Queen of Names, religion and happiness, a vote for prayer

Sister Maxine  
From the studio of A Nun's Life Ministry, this is Ask Sister, a program where we take your questions about prayer, faith, community, ministry and everything in between. I'm Sister Maxine here with Sister Shannon Schrein of the Sisters of St. Francis of Sylvania, Ohio. It's great to see you again, Shannon.

Sister Shannon  
It is always a delight to come here. I really enjoy our time together.

Sister Maxine  
Well, thank you. It's wonderful to have you. And for folks who may be new to the show, Sister Shannon is a theologian and is in leadership for her congregation, the Sisters of St. Francis of Sylvania, Ohio. Today on Ask Sister, a listener asks why Mary, the mother of God, has lots of other names too, and who gets to decide what her names are? Another listener wants a happier life and wonders is that the purpose of religion -- to make us happy? And a listener wonders about the effectiveness of her prayers for the presidential election outcome. We get lots of questions from our listeners. And if you have one, please send it in. It's easy. Just go to the contact page on our website or leave a comment at anunslife.org. We want to give a quick shout out of thanks to our awesome sponsors for supporting the Ask Sister podcast. And you can help too. Just visit anunslife.org and click on the Donate button. So Sister Shannon, here we are already, just past mid-October, end of October, actually. Time flies. Beautiful fall season. What have you been up to lately?

Sister Shannon  
Like everyone else, I think I've been addressing all of the challenges that are a part of our COVID world. I work with many of our elderly sisters. And it's hard for them to be in isolation for all of these months. Finding ways to give them hope. Today, we're bringing in a food truck to our Rosary Care Center, to let the staff members get a free lunch just for fun. Just ways that we try to boost their morale as they face the things that they face in every day.

Sister Maxine  
Will there be like a Halloween celebration?

Sister Shannon  
Oh, of course. Of course. And there is a hallway that our residents have access to, and they all decorate their doors and put little baskets of candy out so that the residents can trick or treat. That's kind of cute.

Sister Maxine  
And I think folks had a lot of motherhouses where there are retired sisters or sisters who are in the health care area -- I know at our motherhouse, people realize that they've been they've been in quarantine, off and on, for a very long stretches of the time. To be able to participate with the sisters in some way is a gift to us as well.

Sister Shannon  
A couple of weeks ago we were in Our Lady of Grace, which is our assisted living. And it's just 17 of our sisters. And we took Blizzards, you know those ice cream things from Dairy Queen. And they were all tickled with the ice cream. But the first words out of one of the sister's mouths was, "This is our 200th day in this building." Who's counting? "Well, I am!" And I'm sure they continue to count the days. It's been a long time, but they find hope in each other and in the activities they engage in, and they trust our good God.

Sister Maxine  
And you mentioned Our Lady of Grace -- relates to our very first question.

Sister Shannon  
It does, doesn't it?

Sister Maxine  
You ready?

Sister Shannon  
Yes.

Sister Maxine  
Okay. Our first question comes in from Laurie in Georgia. And she asks, "Why is Mary the mother of God called by so many different names? Like Queen of Heaven, Our Lady of Sorrows, Our Lady of Guadalupe?" And I would add Our Lady of Grace. Laurie goes on to say, "Who decided that she should have all these names, and which names?" Well, good question, Laurie, thank you so much. You know, Mary does have a considerable number of names. And I think, I think, Sister Shannon, you found a few.

Sister Shannon  
I looked at the Litany to Mary, just listen for a few. Holy Virgin of Virgins, Mother of Christ, Mother of Divine Grace, Singular Vessel of Devotion, Tower of David, House of Gold, Morningstar, Refuge of Sinners, Queen of Angels, Queen of Patriarchs, Queen of Virgins, Queen Assumed into Heaven, Queen of the Most Holy Rosary.

Sister Maxine  
And the list goes on. How many did you find?

Sister Shannon  
I think there are about 80 on these two pages.

Sister Maxine  
That is a lot of names. We should probably talk about the whole idea of Mary. There's a theological field of study called Mariology. Indeed. And I think it probably touches on some of the things about names. For Laurie here, she might want to take a look at Elizabeth Johnson's book, which I think came out in 2003: Truly Our Sister. But back to all these various names.

Sister Shannon  
Let me just put in one little plug. The University of Dayton here in Ohio, which is sponsored by the Marianist Brothers and Priests, has the largest Marion library in the world. And people go there to pursue studies in Mariology.

Sister Maxine  
So probably as soon as COVID is a little more under control, Laurie, that might be a road trip you want to take from Georgia, up to Dayton, Ohio.

Sister Shannon  
Let's talk a little bit about how Mary gets these titles or names. Let me distinguish for a minute. First of all, many of the titles purposely affirm her gifts, the things that God has granted her: her spirituality, her goodness, her kindness, her generosity. Some of the titles relate directly to her actions. And they give tribute to the role that she played in salvation as Mother of the Savior. And others relate to miraculous events that took place, apparitions where Mary herself appears. And so there's a variety of categories for the different titles that are associated with Mary.

Sister Maxine  
When you speak of the apparitions: I have the miraculous medal, which Catherine Laboure had a vision of Mary. So people might look around and see things that Mary is associated with in their everyday Catholic life, too.

Sister Shannon  
Our Lady of Guadalupe is one of those feasts that's celebrated, particularly by our Latino American friends, because Mary appeared to Juan Diego was his name--but her image appeared on his cloak afterwards miraculously, and so there is a kind of painting of her that depicts that apparition.

Sister Maxine  
Popes have also given names for Mary. Benedict, I want to say the 15th, gave her the name Queen of Peace.

Sister Shannon  
Pope Francis came out with the memorial of the Blessed Virgin Mary, Mother of the Church, and that feast is to be celebrated the day after Pentecost. I think that's kind of an interesting name. Because what happens at Pentecost: Mary is present with the apostles, and they all receive the power of the Holy Spirit, the tongues of fire appear over their heads, and they suddenly can speak in a variety of tongues and it's a representation of really the birth of the church. And Mary is then understood to be the mother of the church. So immediately after Pentecost, we celebrate this great feast.

Sister Maxine  
And for recognition of feasts by Popes, it makes it a celebration of the Church year.

Sister Shannon  

Goes on the Roman calendar.

Sister Maxine  

That's it. That's right. And then we all celebrate that role of Mary.

Sister Shannon  
So you know that we celebrate the Immaculate Conception on December the eighth, and that's our national shrine in Washington DC. We celebrate Our Lady of Lourdes on February 11. We celebrate the Annunciation on March the 25th. We celebrate the Purification on January the first. So we have many, many feasts that we attribute to the role that Mary played.

Sister Maxine  
Why do you suppose that Mary, as all of those roles acknowledged -- I know in my own life, and in the life of my congregation, of course, Sisters, Servants of the Immaculate Heart of Mary -- why do you suppose, almost universally, people have this space in their hearts that Mary is filling in so many different ways?

Sister Shannon  
Because she's one of us. I think that's the best answer. She was a simple peasant girl who lived in the small village of Nazareth. Her mind and her heart were open. She was schooled in her Jewish faith. She listened to God. She had this powerful encounter with the Angel Gabriel. And despite all of the challenge that would bring into her life, she said. yes. That's a powerful story.

Sister Maxine  
And she did not have an easy life -- saying yes to God doesn't mean that it's going to be an easy life.

Sister Shannon  
No, I don't think it does.

Sister Maxine  
And, you know, for her to be walking with us when we have the struggles in our own life -- that's always been an important thing to me.

Sister Shannon  
Elizabeth Johnson, as you mentioned, says truly she's our sister. I think others would say, truly, she's our mother. Both titles seemed to work beautifully for her. But she understands. She came to faith in her son. She understood his role, but she had to be led there. If you look at Mark 3, Mary and her children come to find Jesus, because they've heard that he's kind of gone off the deep end, that people are following him, and crowds are gathering, and they don't understand it. And they get there. And they say, "Tell Jesus his mother and his brothers and sisters are here asking for him." And Jesus says to them, the people that are gathered, "Who are my mother, and my brothers and sisters?" Kind of interesting. Those who do the will of God are mother, and brother and sister to me. Mary came, I think, to really embrace the role that her son had in this world. But she didn't just automatically know it. She had to come to understand it. She was like us: she grew in her faith, she grew in her understanding. And she loved her son, no matter what.

Sister Maxine  
That's a good point too, because, like us, she sometimes struggled with her faith. And that is a model for us: that's how you can engage with your faith and keep going. Now, I also want to raise the interesting question -- so we have all of these various names and images for Mary, some of which almost seem to be conflicting. So you have Mary, this faithful Jewish woman who was not a woman of means. And then you've got the Mary standing on the globe, the queen with her foot on the head of the snake.

Sister Shannon  
Yeah.

Sister Maxine  
How do we account for this kind of seemingly conflicting imagery about her?

Sister Shannon  
Well, one of the things that the Church teaches is that God elevated Mary to the fullness of the resurrection, at the moment of her death. And so I think many of the images of her power and authority, of her having her foot on the serpent who represented the devil from the story of Adam and Eve, come because now she serves as one who has fully come into the power of the resurrection already, something we hope for. Interesting, that whole notion of Mary, being assumed body and soul into heaven, isn't it? That it doesn't mean that she didn't die. It means that the moment she died, because she was without sin, there was no need for purgatory or any kind of repentance. She was brought fully into what it means to be resurrected, in her resurrected body. I think that elevated her and elevated her titles.

Sister Maxine  
I would definitely agree with that. And as we talk about all the different facets of Mary, you know, it's also almost like Mary can be, and has been, whatever the world, whatever we individually, may need at the time. How do we reconcile that? Or is it that we have a Mary for all seasons, and all reasons, and she is available to us?

Sister Shannon  
What's the power of the rosary? Why do we pray it? Because Mary is intercessor for us. Mary is one of us. So she understands the challenges of life, what it was like to be poor, what it was like to not know all the answers, to have to pray to seek God's will in her life. I think those are the beautiful things about her. So she in a sense, like any good mother, meets the needs of her children wherever they are.

Sister Maxine  
And it also kind of speaks to human complexity.

Sister Shannon  
Yeah.

Sister Maxine  
You know, any one of us is probably more complex, has more internal expansiveness, than we might even imagine. And I think Mary can show us, "Go ahead and an embrace that and believe it." Sometimes I think we don't even understand how expansive we are.

Sister Shannon  
I read about what Pope Francis has on his desk. And one of the things he has on his desk is a statue of Mary, Untier of Knots. He also has one of Sleeping Joseph and that's for another day. But Mary, Untier of Knots -- think about the image. When I was a little kid, if my shoes got knotted up, and I couldn't untie them so that I could put them on, I would bring them to my mom -- or my dad sometimes -- to help me to get the knot out so I could do it. There is an image of Mary, as someone who helps us through those difficult times. She doesn't have the role of divinity. She has the role of mother and nurturer. So in this statute, you see her with a cord in her hands, and one side of the cord is filled with knots and the other side are the freed-up pieces of the cord as Mary gently and graciously and with grace unties these knots for people. And the Pope has a great devotion to Mary in that role. And I try to imagine him as leader of the church and all of the challenges and all of the images, and how appropriate to think about talking to Mary about what's the knot I'm facing today. Please help me untie this, give me the grace, help me to make some sense of it so that people are freed, and we can move on and receive grace. I love the concept.

Sister Maxine  
What a great statue as well. You know, the other day I was out for a walk. And along my path, there are a few what I would call "bathtub Marys." And there was one the other day that was absolutely gorgeous. And it was not a big statue. But it was totally surrounded by flowers and by decorative stones. And you could tell that whoever lived there had a truly deep love of Mary and was playful. And I thought, you know, that's another aspect of Mary we don't often think of. And so I think for us to remember: Mary as a whole complicated person just like we are, and somebody we can relate to in the communion of saints.

Sister Shannon  
I thought about myself, somebody might think of me as a professor, because that's in fact my career. They might think of me as a sister in my congregation. My brothers and sisters would think of me as their kid sister. We have different titles and things that are associated with us in our different roles and what we've done and things they remember about us and events that have happened. It's the same with Mary, I think. This is a little aside. But just to stretch our imagination: Mary doesn't belong only to us as Catholics. Our Muslim brothers and sisters have great devotion to Mary. And they have, I think, more information in the Koran about Mary, more chapters about Mary, than we do in our Bible. And so I think she is a universal gift to humankind.

Sister Maxine  
Just to touch back on what you were saying a minute ago, that we all have those different titles. I think it would be an interesting exercise, you know how Mary can be associated with a place or an event -- if we took as an exercise, a spiritual exercise in our own life, and wrote down some of those titles for ourselves. I think that would be fascinating.

Sister Shannon  
How do people perceive us? What need did we fill in their lives? Because sometimes we do,

Sister Maxine  
What places did we perform -- perhaps not a miracle, but some good work. I mean, we could perform a miracle.

Sister Shannon  
We are daughters or sons, we are brothers or sisters, we are mothers or fathers. We have lots of titles in our lives.

Sister Maxine  
And maybe when we look at those titles of Mary, and then we start thinking about our own life, there's another gift that Mary can give to us. Look at the richness of your own life. It's there.

Sister Shannon  
Well, obviously there's a lot to say about our dear mother Mary.

Sister Maxine  
Yes. And again, for Laurie, we would encourage you to take a look at some of the theological work that has been done on Mary and maybe try out that that Mary exercise of names. I'm sure going to do that. So Laurie, thank you for that question. It opened us up to such a wonderful conversation.

Sister Shannon  
It did!

Sister Maxine  
It's time for a brief break. This is Ask Sister, a program of A Nun's Life Ministry. We want to thank our sponsors and individual donors like you, whose support makes the Ask Sister program possible. We'll be right back.

Welcome back. You are listening to Sister Maxine and Sister Shannon, here on the Ask Sister podcast. You can find all of our podcasts on our website at anunslife.org. And you can subscribe to our podcasts so you'll automatically get the latest episodes. Our next question comes in from Leslie in Canada. And Leslie asks, "I really feel my life has a lot of unhappiness. Do I need religion to find my way?" And I think another way to look at Leslie's question is: should we expect religion to make us happy? Or at least less unhappy? Thank you for the question, Leslie. And I'm sorry to hear about the unhappiness in your life. You know, we all go through some times where it seems almost inescapable. Many people, especially in the times of COVID, may find themselves in that position more than they're accustomed to. We definitely will keep you in prayer during this time in terms of the role of our religion, and our faith, in regard to happiness.

Sister Shannon  
I think that sometimes people attempt to make a clear distinction between spirituality and religion. "I'm a spiritual person, but I don't attend a church," right? "I'm not religious." I've heard those distinctions made. It's kind of interesting to me, because I think there's so synchronous and important to connect in one's life, that they support us from both angles. It is true that the spark of God is innate in us. And that call to hear God's voice in us is also innate. But I think religion has a deep, deep value in our lives for a variety of reasons. What religion has to offer us -- and I would speak out of my own Catholic faith -- is, first of all, I think the power of community life. That I'm walking with people who are like-minded in their faith tradition. Religion offers us keen ways of expressing our faith. Primarily in Catholicism that happens through the sacraments. The deep connection that we make with Christ who has given us the Sacrament of the Eucharist -- we come together, and we share a meal with one another. We come together and we seek forgiveness not only from God, but seek forgiveness from one another. When we baptize a baby, the whole church is engaged. When we ordain someone to the priesthood, it's the laying on of hands of all of the faithful. So there's this wonder about religion that gives us that kind of community life. And then finally, I think the beliefs that we come to own out of our religious traditions are what give us a graced sense of God's goodness. We trust in the afterlife, we believe, in difficult times that God is there, even when we sometimes don't see God. This comes out of that. And that emerges from the sacred texts that are there at the heart of our religion. And so will it just automatically take away your unhappiness? I don't think that's the answer. What religion provides is a way of surrounding you by God's grace and helping you, along with others, to enter into a deeper relationship with God.

Sister Maxine  
What's beautiful in Leslie's question, and as you describe that deeply relational part, especially in the sacramental part, Leslie is looking toward religion as a possible source of richness and goodness in her life, which is so important because sometimes I think there's a misperception that religion is supposed to be somehow judgmental, or restricting of our freedom, or somehow carves out that narrow path that if we stray off of it, you know, God help us literally. But in Leslie's question, I'm hearing more of a tone of what you're describing: that religion can be very life-giving. And of course, happiness can be associated with fulfillment in life or satisfaction in life. And I think religion and faith, they offer that opportunity. Course, you know, it's going to be up to us to engage with it.

Sister Shannon  
You know, I think sometimes, in looking at a religious tradition, we get a little hung up with the legalism of a religious tradition with the rules and the laws. And when we recognize that we are engaged in a religious tradition, seeking the common good through the grace of God, then there is not literally the need for somebody to say, "Thou shalt not, thou shalt not." I should know intuitively what's the right way to treat another person? What's the right way to live? What's the right way to share, in mercy and justice, the gifts that I've been given with others? It comes out of a lived experience of faith, rather than a simple following of the rules.

Sister Maxine  
And in that lived experience of faith, we are going to step forward with our best intentions. And because we're humans, we may not always succeed with our best intentions, or it may end up going another direction. And sometimes it's our community who can help us get past that when we feel like we fall short or we weren't able to be our best self, even if we were desperately trying to be.

Sister Shannon  
Some of the stories that we're told in the Gospels about Jesus's reaction to a very narrow-minded, legalistic approach to the law, teach us really what religion should be about. When Jesus is asked, "What's the most important of the commandments that I should keep?" And we know there are 10, and we can rattle them off, I'm sure. Jesus doesn't even go to one of those commandments. He says, "Love God with all your mind and your heart and your soul, and love your neighbor as yourself." Both are taken from the Old Testament, by the way. He gets to the heart of why we have the laws. We have them so that we can love God, we can love ourselves, and we can love others. And then the rules of that faith tradition will kind of fall in place.

Sister Maxine  
As you say that, loving ourselves, loving others. And it may be that for Leslie, this appears to be an interest in religion may be within that is a call to happiness. I don't think religion even whether it's the letter of the law or board the Spirit of law, both. It does require our participation in it. It does wholeheartedly. And maybe for Leslie, that call to participation will help with unhappiness. Having said that protracted unhappiness, particularly in these times of COVID, it may help to see somebody who's a professional, you know, I think for many people are turning to psychologists to talk things through in these times of stress.

Sister Shannon  
And I think that's really good advice. We don't know all of Leslie's story, but we certainly hold her in prayer before God. Religion is not just the answer, like taking a pill. I mean, this is really a call. It's a vocational experience. And so if the unhappiness that lies within your heart, Leslie, is deep, then indeed, maybe it's time to get some help, and talk with someone. But religion and a community of faith to listen and to care and to love -- that can help.

Sister Maxine  
As you were talking about that, I remember one of our sisters who had to make a very difficult decision about a ministry once. She chose to leave. And she said, "You know, sometimes we are called to something else by virtue of discomfort with where we are." For Leslie and for others, maybe some of that sense of unhappiness is actually a calling to try something different. Maybe it is a calling to go into deeper relationship with God. Discomfort can be a very powerful motivator, at least in my experience.

Sister Shannon  
Indeed. And if religion is what comes to her mind and heart, as she considers what change she needs, that's a part of the call.

Sister Maxine  
Mm-hmm. And to not discount those areas of discomfort. You know, as I think about my own life, Shannon, I often think probably times of discomfort have done more to get me moving in a direction. [laughs]

Sister Shannon  
That's really true. And we've had a variety of experiences with religion. I was raised up in a Catholic home and with parents who found the faith to be critical and central to their lives, not to the degree of some we know we didn't say the rosary together as a family every night we did a couple of times but yet faith was central. We went to church together and other I have not been introduced to faith at all. I don't know what Leslie story is. But they have nothing to draw upon in terms of the stories, the background or the experience. So an exploration of the beliefs of Christianity as a religious organization could be a really valuable exercise, if that, in fact, is not Leslie's experience.

Sister Maxine  
And so, let's talk just a little bit about where to get started. So for Leslie, if there is a thought, "Well, maybe, maybe religion is where I am being led, religion of some kind" -- where would be a good starting point for her?

Sister Shannon  
Couple places, I think. One, oftentimes people enjoy praying with others. And so to share in a religious worship service might be a really helpful thing. To find a trusted friend and go to church with them, or to go back to a church that Leslie's familiar with. I don't know what the background is there. The other is to take up the scriptures. I think sometimes just reading, especially the New Testament scriptures, starting, perhaps with the Gospel of Luke, where he kind of lays out the whole thing for us to sort of see what is the base foundation of the faith tradition of Christianity, and who is this Jesus and what might he mean in my life -- that might draw her in.

Sister Maxine  
And even though like in these times, it's harder to go to, let's say, a Mass at a parish, there are some, and they practice social distancing. And if that is, Leslie, in your comfort zone, to have -- as you're suggesting -- an experience of it. And to also be aware, at least in the Catholic faith, there is the RCIA program, Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults, that will take you to that next level of understanding in the faith. You would attend that -- I don't know how they're doing it, maybe it's online now.

Sister Shannon  
Could be.

Sister Maxine  
Uh-huh. But it will, it will help you advance in that understanding and be very helpful to the life of faith, if that would be a route you would want to go,

Sister Shannon  
You can certainly watch the liturgy or watch worship services on the computer or on TV, because so many offer them but I'm not sure that's the best starting experience for someone who's exploring religion for the first time. I think it would be valuable to share that with somebody you know, or you feel comfortable with so that you can talk about what you're witnessing and share the experience.

Sister Maxine  
Before we leave the question, I would ask, too, Shannon -- should we expect religion, not to make us unhappy? And I ask that, because some people would say, "Well, I don't expect it to make me feel good. What I want is something that I can follow that helps me make meaning of my life. So I don't expect it to make me feel good. But if it does, yay."

Sister Shannon  
Interesting question. My own experience is that I find it hard to imagine that it wouldn't make you happy. But it doesn't mean it's perfect. Right? There are decisions that are made in in my church, our church tradition, that I question or that I wonder about, but I think that's where the notion of faith comes in: that you trust, that you believe in God, that it's bigger than the externals or the rules that are made. And we've witnessed over the centuries that a religion evolves. It changes it grows. Hopefully the people within it grow. I don't think it's "you put in a nickel's worth of prayers and get back a nickel's worth of blessings. It's not.

Sister Maxine  
Although there are times I kind of wish it was like that. [laughter]

Sister Shannon  
"If I show up, then I'm gonna get what I want." Or "If I go to church on Sunday, and pray, I'm gonna get this blessing I'm looking for." I think it's more about the experience of building the relationship. But I do think there is happiness, there is joy in a faith tradition, there's a joy in a shared experience. I love to sing. So coming together for Mass is just always a pleasure for me. And it's about all of it.

Sister Maxine  
You mentioned the questioning part, because the thing for me, is, I have to own it. And so that means I have to question my faith sometimes. I have to question what I see in my religion, because it's the process by which I can own it more deeply to say, "Yes, you know, I have questions about that. But I am willing to hang in there. I am willing to do this because I see and feel the value in my life."

Sister Shannon  
The wisdom that's a part of our tradition is really key. And we trust that. That's why we go to people we trust when we're discerning an answer in our lives. We seek the wisdom, and it lives within religious traditions, I think.

Sister Maxine  
Like in the tradition of religious life for Catholic Sisters, that centuries long discourse about a relationship with God -- I find a lot of value in my own life for it. I'm gonna I'm gonna look at it very differently than maybe somebody did 200 years ago in religious life. But as you were saying, that wisdom offers me some insight, offers me some encouragement. And for Leslie, who may be looking at a faith tradition, whether it's Catholic or some other tradition, that is one of the great values: that it's part of this huge discourse about God -- and you can enter into that did.

Sister Shannon  
Indeed.

Sister Maxine  
So with that, Leslie, just know we will keep you in prayer, and we hope that as you respond to that calling, that move to explore religion in your life, we pray that you're able to move forward with that.

Sister Shannon  
Many blessings.

Sister Maxine  
It's time for a brief break. This is Ask Sister, a program of A Nun's Life Ministry. We want to thank our sponsors, and individual donors like you, whose support makes the Ask Sister podcast possible. We'll be right back.

Welcome back. You are listening to Sister Maxine and Sister Shannon here on the Ask Sister podcast. If you enjoy listening to the Ask Sister podcast, then we'd ask you, would you please make a donation to help us keep the podcasts rolling? It's easy. Just head over to the Donate page on our website at anunslife.org. We'd be very grateful. We have a question from Marianne in Illinois. And Marianne writes, "With the presidential election just around the corner, my husband says it doesn't matter that I pray for my candidate to win. He says God doesn't work that way. Even if that's true, is it still okay for me to keep praying that my candidate wins -- even if that only makes me feel good, because it's something I can do to help my country?" Marianne, thank you for that very timely question. I do appreciate it. Yeah, the elections are just around the corner. There's been some early voting already here in the Toledo area. So a lot of people have been out and about and I'm sure there's been a lot of praying going on in regard to this.

Sister Shannon  
I think there has been indeed. You ask such an interesting question, Marianne. Sister Max, and I talked about it a little bit even before we began, because of course, politics are a hot topic right now. As we consider that question, should I pray for my candidate to win -- I was reminded of a time years ago, when I was still an elementary school teacher. This would have been back in the 60s and 70s. And I said to some children who were planning a trip to Cedar Point, which is an amusement park near here. They were praying that God would give them a sunny day on Friday. And I said, "Well, what about the farmers who really need rain right now, because there's been a drought? How does God answer you and them at the same time?" It began a very interesting conversation among these 12- and 13-year-old children. But it got me to thinking also about where does God's will fit into the question? What do we really desire as we pray about candidates, or we pray about politics? And I think we start with the common good.

Sister Maxine  
I would agree with that. Because we gotta be careful about the default prayer. So I get one thing, and that means somebody else doesn't get another. And so it assumes that somehow, my good is higher than what good they may have. And I don't know that I am the best judge of that. I would like to think I'm a good judge, but let's face it: I would have to be omniscient to really know. Yeah, that question of the common good is what's the best for everyone. And I would add, especially people who are the most disadvantaged in our world.

Sister Shannon  
So we pray for God's guidance and grace and the power of the Holy Spirit active among all of the people of our country. We pray that they have a balanced point of view when they come to the polls, that they think about all of the issues and what it means to everyone, not just themselves personally. How will it affect the poor? How will it affect those who are truly in need in our society. And if we choose a candidate to support, we hopefully choose that individual because we see that their values match those values of my faith tradition, that their values will maybe not fulfill every need that's out there in the country in the way that I think it should be answered -- but they have a value system that supports life, that supports the common good, that supports care for the poor. I think that's where we look.

Sister Maxine  
And to recognize that not all the candidates may represent exactly where we are. So there's going to be some challenges as we sort through it all through the lens of our faith. And so it's not an easy process.

Sister Shannon  
So back to the question of should I pray for my candidate to win? I think it would have to come deeply out of your sense that this person is indeed the person who will meet those values and care for the common good. Then you pray for that to happen, as opposed to asking God to take sides.

Sister Maxine  
Right. And you pray for that to happen, regardless of which candidate ends up winning.

Sister Shannon  
In addition, it's very important for us as Christian people to also pray that whatever the results of the election, that we find God's action in it, that we trust God is involved, that we pray for whomever is elected, that they might be supported by our God. I think we don't only pray for what we want; we pray in support of the gift that we've been given.

Sister Maxine  
I think that's really important. You know, the prayer isn't going to stop with the election. Our elected leaders need our prayers. In addition to prayer, you know, the faith and action are hand in hand. Yes, good to pray for the candidate in their orientation of the common good -- also good: go out and vote.

Sister Shannon  
I pray for their safety, all of them. I pray that people don't get sick as a result of gathering together because of the pandemic that is in our lives right now. I think there's a bigger sense of the common good, and what we're called to pray for as Christians. Do I lean toward one candidate over the other? Well, indeed I do. And in my heart of hearts, do I hope that that person is successful? Of course I do. But that doesn't stop me from praying for the whole system, for my country, for all of those that are engaged.

Sister Maxine  
And for praying for people whose lives that our elected officials will deeply touch through policies that are made, through decisions that are made. All of these things are occasions for prayer. And, you know, as we're talking Shannon, it's true, I may pray for the candidate I prefer, but we don't know what the future is gonna hold. We don't know how that candidate may perform on either side of the ticket. But we can pray and trust that God's hand will be in this.

Sister Shannon  
I think sometimes that's the hardest thing for us to do, is to recognize that the Holy Spirit is engaged in our lives. And it's our responsibility to cooperate with that grace in our lives and to trust that that it will be as it should be.

Sister Maxine  
I think "cooperate" is the key word there.

Sister Shannon  
Yeah. So do I get a sunny day for Cedar Point? Or does the farmer get the rain that he needs for his crop? That's such a fascinating way of looking at prayer when prayer is only petition. We have to also pray in thanks. We have to pray with praise. We have to pray seeking forgiveness. The Psalms and the Scriptures really give us the ideal for all of the ways that we can bring our lives in prayer and in relationship with our God. So it's not just about praying for the single thing that I want to happen. But it's about petitioning God, praying to God, praising and thanking God, for God's presence in our lives and care for our country and all the good and the blessings that we have.

Sister Maxine  
I hear that very sentiment echoed here in in Marianne's question when she says she's going to keep praying, "because it makes me feel good. It's something I can do to help my country." And indeed, to pray in that bigger sense, I do think that helps not just the country, I think it helps the world.

Sister Shannon  
I think it does, too. And that's our responsibility as Christian people: not to be individualistic, but to pray in community and pray in support. The Scripture says, "Where two or three are gathered in my name, I'm there, and I hear you, and I listen." And so I'm happy to hear that she has a sense of how this contributes to her country.

Sister Maxine  
And the whole idea that, in fact, a prayer can make us feel better. And you were mentioning a number of the different kinds of prayers. There's a lot to be said about articulating what's in our hearts, within our minds, articulating that in some way through prayer to a God who hears us even when our words can't quite come up with what we really want to express. Even when we can't exactly figure out what it is that we want to say. We have a God who can hear all of that.

Sister Shannon  
The Holy Spirit prays on our behalf, deeply groaning for all that the world needs.

Sister Maxine  
Pretty powerful.

Sister Shannon  
It is powerful. So Marianne, don't stop -- but broaden. Expand your prayer. Consider the common good. Consider praying for your country, for peace in our world, for an end to suffering, an end to racism, an end to hunger, an end to poverty, and the lifting up of all our brothers and sisters. And as you do so, pray for both candidates, that they hear God's voice in their lives, and they act on that.

Sister Maxine  
And Marianne, know that we will be praying right along with you. Well, friends, that is our show for today. Thank you so much again, Shannon, for the wonderful conversation. I could talk with you for hours, but we'll have to continue on another time.

Sister Shannon  
I agree with you. I always have a good time. I thank our listeners for the wonderful questions that they send us which gives us the rich material to talk about.

Sister Maxine  
And listeners, if you have more questions, please do send them in. You can send them in using the contact form on our website. Ask Sister is a production of A Nun's Life Ministry, helping people discover and growing their vocation by engaging questions about God, faith and religious life. The songs in our program are Bits and Pieces by Wild Carrot and In the Deep by Jen Eeds. This program is made possible through the grace of God, the support of the sponsors of A Nun's Life Ministry, and you, our listeners. We are so deeply grateful for your prayers, your encouragement and your support. Visit us at anunslife.org. God bless.

This transcript has been lightly edited for readability.