The United States is facing a crisis of the spirit, and its citizens can find strength and lessons in the life of Blessed Solanus Casey.
So said the Hon. Maura Corrigan at the Jesuit Friends & Alumni Network of Detroit lunch earlier this month at the Detroit Athletic Club.
A graduate of Marygrove College and University of Detroit School of Law ’73, Corrigan is a trailblazer in Michigan law, having served as chief justice of the state supreme court and director of the Michigan Department of Human Services. She is now Of Counsel at Butzel Long law firm in Detroit. Corrigan is a strong advocate for causes she believes in, including, most recently, the effort to cannonize Blessed Solanus Casey and expand the Solanus Casey Center on Detroit’s east side.
Casey was born in 1870 and came to Detroit after he became a member of the Capuchin order. He was known during his lifetime for his great faith, his spiritual counseling, and his care for the sick. Many people credited miraculous healings after talking to him, and the campaign for his canonization began not long after his death in 1957. He was beatified on Nov. 18, 2017 at a mass before 60,000 faithful in Detroit.
Casey, says Corrigan, is the saint the United States needs now.
“Although our political discourse is certainly ugly,” she told the crowd who attended the event, “the country’s true crisis is a crisis of the spirit. … Where are the shepherds?”
Corrigan says Casey’s example of treating everyone with dignity and bearing witness in a life devoted to Christ is what is needed today.
“Holiness is achievable now in our country and in our church,” she said.
Jesuit Friends and Alumni Network of Detroit is a networking and fellowship organization for those who have been educated by the Jesuits, are associated with a Jesuit ministry or institution, a friend of the Jesuits or simply want to know more about Ignatian Spirituality. They hold events twice a year.
The next event also has a connection to University of Detroit Mercy: The speaker will be Gerald Cavanagh, S.J., longtime professor in the College of Business Administration and nationally recognized expert on business ethics and social responsibility. The event is at noon, Wednesday, Nov. 6 at the Detroit Athletic Club.
You can visit the group’s Facebook page here for more information.
