During a jog around the Notre Dame campus in October 2006, several seminarians also exercised their brains. “We were reflecting on ways that we could try to share the hope and the joy that we experience with Holy Cross,” says Andrew Gawrych, CSC, ’02, ’07M.Div.
The beatification of Father Basil Moreau, founder of the Congregation of Holy Cross, was on the horizon, and, Gawrych says, “We also wanted people to get to know him.”
About a year after that jog, Ave Maria Press printed the results of the moving brainstorming session, a daily devotional called The Cross, Our Only Hope: Daily Reflections in the Holy Cross Tradition.
“It’s a way to make our faith more accessible to other people,” says Gawrych, who co-edited the book with seminarian Kevin Grove, CSC.
The duo selected quotes from writings by Moreau, by Father Edward Sorin, CSC, founder of Notre Dame, and other congregational figures, as well as the Holy Cross Constitutions. They then asked congregation members to write a short reflection based on an assigned quote.
About 200 Holy Cross priests, brothers, deacons and seminarians contributed to the book. “People were very excited,” says Gawrych. “They wanted to share the hope and joy from our tradition.”
Garwych estimates that project took him and Grove about 500 hours of work and 5,000 emails to complete, while both also were graduate students with full class loads.
Still, he says, “Kevin and I are really adamant that this is not our book. It’s the congregation’s book.”
Its overall message of hope, says Gawrych, reflects a gift Moreau gave the community. “He had difficulties, but because of his deep faith, he had hope that God was always at work.”
Carol Schaal is managing editor/web editor of Notre Dame Magazine.