The Complaint Department

For I know that this will result in deliverance for me through your prayers and support from the Spirit of Jesus Christ.

— Phil 1:19 (NABRE)

Can You Believe It …

BULL SWAMP (CR News) — Brothers. Sisters. Monks and nuns too. All those people who live the devout life as “religious people” in communities — they’re still just people.

(Editors’ Notes: They’re not perfect … not yet, anyway. They struggle just like us “almost normal” people do.)

Living in community, either as a family (husband (father), wife (mother), and children too) can be seriously difficult and challenging. The problem is SELF. And the solution is decreasing self (Jn 3:30). Instead of being a “group of ones,” we must grow together in “oneness.”

That’s not easy, but it can happen. All you need to do is to establish a Complaint Department in your home like Sr. Helga recently did in the monastery.

It Is Written …

The Bible says that nothing unclean or unholy will ever enter heaven (Rev 21:27). While it’s true that Jesus died for us and opened the gates of heaven to us, most of us still have a little sanctification that must take place in our lives before we are truly holy. Some of us still sin, and more than a few of us still enjoy our sins.

That’s not going to enter heaven, folks — not ever!

It’s not enough to run away from hell when we’re feeling the heat. We must run towards heaven until we pass through those wonderful gates!

Life Goes One …

So Sr. Helga decided to establish a “Complaint Department” there in her monastery. It would be for all her sisters. Any of her sisters was welcome to stop by the Complaint Department on their way to or from the chapel. All they had to do was quickly tell Sr. Helga what was bothering them — Sr. Helga knew exactly how to take care of it, and she promised to get on it promptly.

Those sisters started stopping by the very first morning the Complaint Department was open for business!

Sr. Albertina said, “It’s Sr. Marie, sister. You know how she can be! I’m not sure how much more of her I can take.”

“I’ve got it,” Sr. Helga said. “Be at peace.”

Sr. Catherine James stopped by too. She was having a real problem with Sr. Elizabeth. “Sometimes I wish I could just poke her in the eye to get her attention,” Sr. Catherine James admitted. “Of course, I would never do such a thing, but I think about it.”

“I’ve got it,” Sr. Helga said. “Be at peace.”

Sr. Nancy Louise admitted she actually thought about retaliation. “I wouldn’t do anything that draws attention to me,” she told Sr. Helga. “But I’ve considered hiding some of Sr. Theresa’s stuff so she would have trouble finding it. I figured that she would be so busy looking for her stuff that she would leave me alone.”

“I’ve got it,” Sr. Helga said. “Be at peace.”

And then, there was Sr. Timothy Joseph. “Sr. Dominica is such a perfectionist! Sometimes I just want to mess her room up so that she realizes how hard it can be for the rest of us.”

“I’ve got it,” Sr. Helga said. “Be at peace.”

It wasn’t long before things quieted down in the monastery. The sisters were all grateful that Sr. Helga had set up the Complaint Department. Being near the chapel, it was convenient to stop by whenever another sister had offended them. It was almost like a miracle had taken place!

That’s Our Story …

Well, that’s our story and we’re sticking to it. Prayer really does work. And more prayer works even better!

It’s cool to be Catholic. COOL2B!

Vivat Jesus!