By Sister Maria Philomena, M.I.C.M.
From 2016 SBC Conference
Sister spoke eloquently about the rise of the Counter-Reformation as it was nourished, grew, and eventually peaked in the latter half of the sixteenth century into the seventeenth (1560-1648). One could say that the theme of her talk was the Mystical Body. In introducing Father Damien and his work on Molokai (hence the alluring title “Hawaiian Reform”) Sister used leprosy of the body as an analogy to leprosy of the soul. As leprosy is a bacterial infection that infects blood cells that feed the skin, so unhealthy cells (members) in the Mystical Body weaken the strength and vitality of the Church. As in Hansen’s disease, the nerves of the skin are deadened, so, too, corruption among the members of the Mystical Body can furtively go undetected and infect other members unless they are destroyed by healthy cells. Hence, we must be those healthy cells, if we are to “Keep the Counter-Reformation Going”.
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