I never thought I’d see the day that I watched the Oprah Show. I never thought I’d see the day that I actually enjoyed watching the Oprah Show. And, wonder of wonders, I never thought I’d see the day when I’d recommend that others watch the Oprah Show. No, I haven’t gone mad, nor, which is worse, have I become a zeitgeist zombie. I refer to the recent appearance on the Oprah Show of those wonderful, vibrant Sisters of Mary, Mother of the Eucharist. Just as one candle can lighten the darkness, or just as one star billions of light years away can shine for our wondering eyes across an abyss of emptiness, so a handful of Dominicans can shine through the darkness of primetime television. Please take a few minutes, less than ten minutes in total, to watch the three video clips below. Like me, you won’t be sorry that you succumbed to the Oprah Show, albeit only once ….
http://www.oprah.com/oprahshow/Lisa-Ling-Spends-the-Night-at-a-Convent-Video/topic/oprahshow
http://www.oprah.com/oprahshow/Lisa-Ling-Spends-a-Day-in-the-Life-of-Nuns-Video
http://www.oprah.com/oprahshow/Nuns-Reflect-on-Silence-After-the-Show-Video/topic/oprahshow
Yes, I’m glad Oprah had this moment–though she had to diminish its Catholic nature by opening with an expression of her admiration for the Muslim ritual of prayer five times a day. But when prejudice reigns, ignorance rules: the Christian ritual of praying five times a day existed for many centuries before Mohammed was born. Makes me think of the many (like her) who reject Christianity because they have discovered transcendental meditation (by any other name), oblivious to the two thousand years history of Christian contemplative prayer. But when prejudice reigns, igorance rules.