A reflection offered by Mary Alice Westerlund,
Director, Department of Spiritual Care
October 2010
Rooting Around
"Rooted in the loving ministry
of Jesus as healer, we commit ourselves to serving all persons with
special attention to those who are poor and vulnerable."
I'm sure that all of you
recognize the beginning of our Mission Statement. In September we
all looked more closely at it as we completed associate performance
evaluations and then as we celebrated 10 years as part of Ascension
Health. The past 85 years have changed Lourdes from an old mansion
run by four Daughters of Charity to a multi-site facility with over
1,900 employees that continues to depend on the Daughters to keep
us focused on the goal. The mission, that of following Jesus in
order to care for the sick and poor has not changed.
Reading the mission statement during performance evaluation time
became an exercise in a form of Lectio Divina for me. Every time I
read it another word, another concept, another realization about me
became apparent. The word that became my focus most often was
"rooted." It seemed to express my feelings about why I feel so
right, so comfortable, so good about serving at Lourdes: I feel
rooted. Here at Lourdes, I am no longer afraid to let people
know that I am a spiritually centered person aware of my vocation
to serve as a chaplain.
My desire to serve God and the church dates back to my teens. It
was hard to talk about because I was reared in a family that does
not value worship or religion. In order to appear "normal" I never
told anyone of my desire to become a minister. That habit of hiding
that piece of myself continued through most of my life. I couldn't
trust people with my desire to serve in a way that answered the
call of God as I heard it. I kept it in a "box" in my heart.
Opening that box, holding my dream, and then taking the steps that
finally led me to Lourdes was a joyous and pain filled journey that
goes on today. My feelings of comfort about the ministry I perform
here is because I am "rooted in the living ministry of Jesus."
Read the statement again. Then sit with it for a few minutes.
What is rising in your heart? Notice if something happens soon that
is related to your word, phrase, or feeling after this
exercise.
