Celebrating Mardi Gras with an eye on Lent

Sister Rejane  
Hello and welcome to A Nun's Life pre-Lenten podcast. I am Sister Rejane Cytacki of A Nun's Life. Did you know that Mardi Gras is not just a day, but a season in certain parts of the world? Today, Sister Maria Victoria Cutaia, a Benedictine Sister of Perpetual Adoration, shares the importance of Mardi Gras in her life and those around her. Together, we talk about the Lenten activities of prayer, almsgiving, and fasting, and share what we personally are doing this Lent. Sister Maria Victoria and I reflect on our charism in the spirit of Lent and agree that whatever practices you choose to add or subtract for Lent, the goal is always deepening your relationship with God. We hope that something in our conversation sparks an insight for your Lenten journey. We wish you a holy and blessed Lent.

Hi, I'm Sister Rejane Cytacki with A Nun's Life, and I'm here with my friend. I'm gonna let her introduce herself.

Sister Maria Victoria  
I'm Sister Maria Victoria with the Benedictine Sisters of Perpetual Adoration.

Sister Rejane  
Yes, yes. And we go back for many years, don't we, Sister Maria Victoria? From our formation days.

Sister Maria Victoria  
Long time ago.

Sister Rejane  
I know, I know it. So Sister Marie Victoria lives about an hour and a half from where my motherhouse is in Leavenworth, Kansas. But she's on the other side. She's on the Missouri side. But we have had lots of fun over the years. And our most recent adventure -- if you followed us on Facebook -- we went down to Giving Voice in San Antonio. Sister Maria Victoria and I took a road trip.

Sister Maria Victoria  
Yes, it was a lot of fun.

Sister Rejane  
Fun adventures, including going in a cave.

Sister Maria Victoria  
First time for me.

Sister Rejane  
I know! That was that was awesome. So today we're wanting to talk about Mardi Gras and Lent. Here we are, preparing already. It's almost upon us. So I'm wearing a little purple and I've got green beads -- I don't know that you guys can hear them -- in honor of today. I don't have the gold, but I've got a couple of colors. I know Mardi Gras is a really big thing for you, Sister Maria Victoria.

Sister Maria Victoria  
It is, it is. For those of you who don't know, I'm originally from Argentina. But I moved to the States with my family when I was about three and we happened to move to Metairie, Louisiana, which is right outside of New Orleans. So yes, Mardi Gras is a big part of my growing up.

Sister Rejane  
Now, did Argentina also celebrate Mardi Gras?

Sister Maria Victoria  
Not as much -- no, no. Not like this.

Sister Rejane  
Not like it is in Louisiana. Okay. I was just curious.

Sister Maria Victoria  
Yeah. So as I began learning about our faith, I did not realize that Mardi Gras was actually part of the Roman Catholic history.

Sister Rejane  
Wow. Can you tell us a little bit how it connects? Because I think a lot of people think of lots of alcohol, partying.

Sister Maria Victoria  
Which is sadly what happens.

Sister Rejane  
Yes.

Sister Maria Victoria  
There's more to it than that. So one of the fun facts about Mardi Gras is that Mardi Gras actually begins on Epiphany

Sister Rejane  

Yeah, and I didn't know that till you sent me some history facts. So that means it's like a season.

Sister Maria Victoria

Yeah, it's a whole season within itself. So it's not just on Mardi Gras day that we start celebrating. It's all the way up from Epiphany. And then another fun fact that people may not know: what the colors stand for. You mentioned purple, green and gold, but they also have a bit of a meaning behind them. The purple stands for justice. Green stands for faith, and gold for power.

Sister Rejane  
And I know you'd like to decorate with those colors.

Sister Maria Victoria  
Absolutely. For me, Mardi Gras is year-round.

Sister Rejane  
That's great. And what were some things that you would do, growing up, celebrating Mardi Gras?

Sister Maria Victoria  
Well, where I lived is more of a family-based area. So the parades were geared towards families, especially those with kids. And it's basically a time to just be with family and friends and hang out and wait for the parades to start.

Sister Rejane  
And was there more than one parade? Or was it just one?

Sister Maria Victoria  
There was. That's why I said it starts in the beginning of Epiphany and ends on Mardi Gras day. So there's parades -- several, several -- but really, the majority of the parade started about two weeks before Mardi Gras. So there would be like maybe one or two every night, depending on where you live.

Sister Rejane  
You have to make a choice, then, which parade you're going to. Wow. Yeah, there is something about parades. You know. With Lent, right, we often do Stations of the Cross. And some of the most memorable ones for me have been Living Stations. The one I remember the most was in Kansas City, Missouri. And we would be downtown and tie it to social justice. So maybe we're standing outside a women's domestic violence center, praying the Station where Jesus meets the women, the weeping women. Just having that connection -- there was something about walking and praying. And you know, of course, it's a little different than a parade. But that's how that kind of connects for me, when you say that. But have you brought Mardi Gras to the convent?

Sister Maria Victoria  
Of course. One has to!

Sister Rejane  
What are you having your sisters do?

Sister Maria Victoria  
What don't I have them do? Well, the fun part was -- you know, during COVID, things changed a little bit for the traditional Mardi Gras season. So what a lot of the locals did, they ended up decorating their houses for the season, and hiring artists who would decorate the floats for the parades. Instead, they decorated their houses. So that was fun. So one of the things that I did was I printed out a whole bunch of different houses, with their decorations and so on, and let the sisters see. And then we always decorate the tables in the refectory -- what you would call the dining room. And so yeah, we have our own little Mardi Gras party, so to speak. It's interesting because a lot of people who don't really celebrate Mardi Gras know it as a more of, "Okay, let's eat everything that we have in the house because Lent is around the corner literally." And you know, there's some truth to that, but in at the same time, it's not just about getting rid of.

Sister Rejane  
Right, right. There's lots with Lent. We talk about prayer, almsgiving, and fasting as our three cornerstones and that yeah, Mardi Gras -- translating to Fat Tuesday --  you're right. One of the convent traditions my community has is to make pancakes and put coins in it. And that's one of the traditions on Fat Tuesday. And I'm not sure why. But I think I think again -- you can eat a lot of pancakes, right? So it kind of fits. And it's sweet. And then, I guess, who doesn't like getting money? [laughter] I'm always like, "Did you sterilize that before you put that in my pancake??" [laughter]. There's just some fun, fun things. And one time, Mardi Gras fell on my birthday. It was it was a late Lent because my birthday is in March. We have this this room at the motherhouse we call the sub-basement and it used to be the novices' and postulants' dining room.

Sister Maria Victoria  
Yes, I remember that.

Sister Rejane  
Oh, you got to come!

Sister Maria Victoria  
Yes, one of our formation meetings.

Sister Rejane  
Were you there when I did the Halloween party, and made people do costumes out of newspaper? [laughter] Yeah. So I love a good party. So I invited probably 20 of my closest friends to this Mardi Gras party, but it was when Minute to Win It was really popular on TV. And so we had lots of games that people had to compete. And of course, we had the green, purple, and gold in streamers all over that room. And yeah, that was one of my best birthday parties.

Sister Maria Victoria  
That was fun.

Sister Rejane  
But with Lent, those three big things -- the almsgiving, prayer, and fasting -- I've been reflecting on what am I going to do. And you're right, it doesn't just have to be "take away," but what do you want to add? And so -- this is gonna sound kind of silly -- but for the fasting, I am going to fast from Star Wars. True confessions. I love Star Wars on Disney Plus. And I've been watching The Clone Wars. And I came across an episode that really wasn't a good episode. And I was in prayer last night. I'm like, okay, I think I better just take a break. Because I'll watch like two or three -- you know, you get into the binge mode.

Sister Maria Victoria  
Oh, yeah.

Sister Rejane  
It's very easy.

Sister Maria Victoria  
You know, I'm a Star Wars fan too.

Sister Rejane  
I know. I know. But at least for Lent, I'm doing this,

Sister Maria Victoria  
Okay. You'll miss the Mandalorian.

Sister Rejane  
I know. I know. I'll catch up later. [laughter] That I am giving up. But I think what I want to add for prayer is this Stations of the Cross that I mentioned earlier. Oftentimes parishes will do them and like so it's community building together, and they might have a meal ahead of time. So I want to add that. And then the last thing for almsgiving -- not so much money, but I'm going to give my time to the Community of Hope here in Leavenworth. Sister Pat, who I live with, works there. And she's going to be doing some programming in March. So I'm going to go and help. I think I did that last Lent. And it was just very meaningful for me to build relationships with people on the margins. So those are some of my things. What do you think you're gonna be doing? Have you thought about it yet?

Sister Maria Victoria  
I have actually, believe it or not. Well, several things. One of the biggest for me is not so much food-wise, but giving up of my time. My personal time. That way, you know, I can either spend time with one of my sisters or call a friend or something like that. Or visiting sisters at the Health Care Center that we have here. To that's one of my plans, so to speak, for Lent.

Sister Rejane  
That's nice.

Sister Maria Victoria  
Yeah, we do things in general in community. We have what we call Lectio Night that we do every Advent and Lent, and it's usually on a Friday night for us. And what that means is after Evening Prayer, the evening is free. So we have extra time to pray or read scripture, that kind of thing. And then we normally do not have desserts during the week. So we will substitute fruit for dessert.

Sister Rejane  
Okay.

Sister Maria Victoria  
So that's why for me, I focus more on my time, personally.

Sister Rejane  
Sure, and you're using that time to build relationships. I think that's beautiful. And with the Lectio, you've got the time built in for that personal time with God.

Sister Maria Victoria  
Right. And that's extra time.

Sister Rejane  
Yes. Right. Because you do two hours of personal prayer, is that correct?

Sister Maria Victoria  
We do. Two and a half. Yeah.

Sister Rejane  
Two and a half.

Sister Maria Victoria  
We try, anyway, because you know, life happens.

Sister Rejane  
Yes. So for our listeners, Sister Maria Victoria is in a contemplative community.

Sister Maria Victoria  
Contemplative Benedictine community,

Sister Rejane  
Mm-hmm, Benedictine community. Whereas I am in an apostolic community. So, I'm lucky if I get an hour of personal prayer with Jesus because I'm in full time ministry outside -- not at my motherhouse. Whereas Maria Victoria, you're in your monastery, right?

Sister Maria Victoria  
Yep.

Sister Rejane  
Okay. And how many times do you pray in a day with your community?

Sister Maria Victoria  
Quite a number, because we start very early in the morning with Lauds at 6:30. And then we have Mass shortly after that, and then we stop at midday for Noon Prayer, and then Evening Prayer, which is at 5:30. And then we close it with Compline, Night Prayer.

Sister Rejane  
Okay. And you do that on top of being the vocation director, correct?

Sister Maria Victoria  
Yes. And a few other things.

Sister Rejane  
Portress. I always love that term.

Sister Maria Victoria  
Yes.

Sister Rejane  
You better tell people what a portress is.

Sister Maria Victoria  
Portress is a Benedictine term. For those who know Benedictine terminology, it's also a receptionist. So one who welcomes people at the door and answers the phone and sends people off to the chapel to pray, if they so wish, or visit  the gift shop. Either or.

Sister Rejane  
Sure. Yeah.

Sister Maria Victoria  
And, you know, as we speak about Lent, I'm always reminded about how St. Benedict -- whose rule that I follow -- Benedict calls us to try to live a life of continuous Lent. But then he also says he realizes that we're human beings. And so we might not always be able to do that. But the point is to be more aware of Christ in our life, in those that we meet, and that we come in contact with. And what we do.

Sister Rejane  
That's beautiful. Yeah. That's interesting you bring that up, because I'm our patron, or founder, is Vincent DePaul. And when I said with my almsgiving, I like to spend it with people on the margins, he is often quoted saying, "Please see the face of Christ in everyone you meet, especially those on the margins." And so, you know, I love how there's always synergy or connections between our charisms, our patron saint. But that's beautiful that he actually said that about Lent -- but you know, you've got to have some fun in there. [laughter] That's where we love seasons like Mardi Gras.

Sister Maria Victoria  
We do, we do. Benedict understood that, you know -- we're human beings too. Even in his day and age.

Sister Rejane  
Right. Absolutely. Well, thank you for taking this time with me.

Sister Maria Victoria  
You're very welcome.

Sister Rejane  
Yeah. And to our audience, we hope that it may spark some insight or conversations for you as to how you would like to either add or take away something from your life during this Lent within those kinds of pillars of Lent: almsgiving, prayer, and fasting. So we say God bless -- and thank you again, Sister Maria Victoria, for being a guest with me today.

Sister Maria Victoria  
Well, thank you very much for asking.

Sister Rejane  
To hear full episodes of A Nun's Life podcasts, visit the podcast page at anunslife.org/podcasts.

This transcript has been lightly edited for readability.