Key Themes of Sr. Miriam James Hiedland
The ministry of Sr. Miriam Hiedland greatly blesses the Church in the US. If you are unfamiliar with this ministry look up any of her talks on YouTube and you will likely agree. I have been enamored with her work and have benefited from it. She makes a few key distinctions that form the essence of her pastoral ministry, and I would like to look at that with you. She treats brokenness with reverence and understanding and at the same time recognizes the truth of the context. These key points are not only the basis of her ministry of the Church's understanding of love and mission
First, it is paramount that any brokenness is treated with reverence and revived with tender compassion. Our world shuns suffering, and sometimes even the people who care about us the most don’t receive our hurts and at the same time expect us not to act out of this brokenness. However, this is not how Christ encounters anyone nor anyone who is truly your friend. On the contrary, if with regard to ourselves. Healing begins with listening/receiving, continues through prayer and culminates in authentic, wholistic compassion that if not truly receiving the whole person, then applies vectors/trajectories in preparation for doing so. Often, as mentioned in the “Quick! Hide!” post, we sooner seek to avoid the consequences of our sins and pretend they don’t exist than to take ownership, face the consequences knowing we are loved, and seek to heal the damage.[1] There is good in this, but we must try to avoid engaging our defense mechanisms our “fig leaves”. These places need to bloom to reveal all their layers and beauty, showing themselves to be a part of us in need of love.
Second, she affirms the reality of the person not what we expect that they are nor what we think they should be. Our hurt is not what God chose for us, but that does not mean it is beyond His understanding or His love. We cannot help our current state, but He will heal us if we progressively follow His commands and see their goodness. We can help others do this with us too, if they choose. We should learn to listen which means to receive the heart of another. When we speak, we should do so calmly and softly. We should experience emotions as they arise rather than hiding them, but we should not need our defense mechanisms either. We spend so much time around people who don't receive the brokenness of others well. We should find those who do, and we should recognize that although we were not safe in the earthly sense at one point which brought our wounds, with God we are immensely safe that if we feel unsafe, we must be free to disobey those instincts and finds ourselves not getting hurt. It is in those places we are as free as anywhere else to experience unity with the Redeemer and Wounded Healer. He can love in us that we cannot seem to.
Third, she recognizes the value of suffering. The Church has long taught that suffering is an immutable aspect of the life of the saint, but no suffering is worse than to separate oneness from Love Himself in our sins.[2] More to the point suffering is the Way to salvation for the Way Himself suffered whole inviting us after Him. The only way concerning suffering is through it. We do this in Gratitude for grace and providence, humility that we may receive what we have no right to refuse with respect to suffering and recognize ourselves as paupers before an all-generous God. Little hearts in our heart can make us find grave evils reasonable, even uncondemnable by our view.[3] Interpreting moments of encounter with Christ via His Chruch and in Scripture affords us a privileged opportunity to encounter the love of God.
In conclusion, if we are Christian who pretend we do not suffer, we do disservice to ourselves and to our aspirant neighbor, who is confounded and felt alone in their suffering. Often there is nothing more difficult to witness to than where Christ has done his greatest work. Sr. Miriam does this because she knows the value of doing so from those who have done so for her. There is no testament to God's love and providence than the Christ Who still suffers in His people, hiding in their wounds. It is difficult to be grateful for God's presence in them if we are hiding (from) them and this makes us poor witnesses to the truth that love in its truth, depth, and grandeur is suffering, but always worthwhile suffering. I am as guilty as anyone for running from the Blessed Cross believing in the reverie of an easier life that does not truly exist where I expect it to be but in Heaven, and there is no way to it that does not make us to go through great trials. Moreover, Sr. Miriam witnesses to the joy and love that is felt in the midst of the trials which again is what makes them bearable on this side of death.
FN:
- Carter Carruthers, "Quick! Hide!", Vivat Agnus Dei, May 7, 2023.
- Carter Carruthers, "Spiral of Sin", Vivat Agnus Dei, February 25, 2024.; Carter Carruthers, "Growing the Human Way", Vivat Agnus Dei, September 25, 2022.; Carter Carruthers, "Our Comparability to the Woman with Hemorrhages", Vivat Agnus Dei, January 31, 2021.
- Ibid.
