Life at the Madeleine House
Historical Reminiscences by Bernard Lee, SM

The Madeleine House is the fifth Marianist community in New Orleans (it did not begin with that name). The first two communities were established and concluded when there was a single Marianist U.S. Province in the late 1800s. The second two were established and concluded under the St. Louis Province in the 1920s. The fifth community was initiated in 1988 with the approval and encouragement of the St. Louis Province.

This occurred with some ambiguity, later to be resolved by a decision of the General Administration. When Bernard Lee accepted a position in the graduate Institute for Ministry at Loyola University, the St. Louis Province encouraged the promotion of a new Marianist community in the city, from which there had been a number of vocations (some still living at that time). The ambiguity occurred around a decision that attempted to clarify the boundaries of U.S. Marianist provinces. In the southern regions, what was east of the Mississippi belonged to the Cincinnati Province, west of the river to the St. Louis Province. Presumably, that put New Orleans (on the Mississippi’s east bank) in the Cincinnati Province. Vocation inquiries from New Orleans were handled by the Cincinnati Province. But the fact of the matter is that the city limits of New Orleans covers territory on both sides of the Mississippi River! Given the St. Louis Province history in New Orleans and the Province vocations from New Orleans, the city was returned to the St. Louis Province in 1991.

In 1988-89, Hugh Bihl accepted a one-year position in Xavier University’s Theology Department. Xavier University is the only black Catholic university in the country. Hugh Bihl and Bernard Lee opened the new community in New Orleans on Burgundy Street, just a little east of the French Quarter. A small Christian community was formed, and began meeting regularly in the Marianist community residence. Towards the end of this first year, Hugh Bihl was asked to go to the Cincinnati Province mission in Kenya, which he accepted. He then was offered a continuing position at Xavier University, but had already made the African commitment.

Ed Kiefer joined the New Orleans community in 1989 in the Burgundy house, first as a staff member of the Archdiocesan Office of Religious Education in charge of catechetics. Two years later he became director of the Office of Religious Education, and remained in that position until his death in 2004. As became evident from testimonials at the time of his death, Ed’s work in religious education was influential far beyond New Orleans. He held positions of leadership both regionally (in a four-state religious education organization) and nationally (in the National Conference of Catechetical Leaders).

During this same academic year, Bernard Lee became director of the Institute for Ministry at Loyola University, which has the largest enrollment in graduate ministry education of any Catholic university in the United States. Under his directorship, the institute expanded its presence internationally with extension programs in Canada, Scotland, and Switzerland.

In the fall semester of 1989, Michael Cowan moved from a faculty position at St. John’s University to a faculty position in New Orleans in the Loyola Institute for Ministry. Michael and Bernard had been colleagues in the St. John’s School of Theology, and Michael and his family were a very active part of a small Christian community that met regularly in the Marianist House. During the years at St. John’s, Michael became involved in a number of workshops on small Christian communities in the St. Louis Province.

The New Orleans Marianist community and the Cowan family began conversation about some form of shared living arrangement. A proposal was subsequently made to the St. Louis Province to co-buy with the Cowans a large house on Carrollton Avenue (on the streetcar line). The house, what people in New Orleans call a “double,” has multiple bedrooms and large facilities on both sides of the house. The Province approved. Since the house was not subdivided into condos, it was not possible for each party to own half a house, so that house was purchased with the Cowan family and the Marianist Province as co-owners, with an agreement in writing of what would happen if either party chose to move.

One side of the house had been the home of the house owner, and had been completely renovated. The other side had been rented by Tulane students for some time, and had never been renovated (no central heat or air), antiquated plumbing and heating. In January 1990, the Cowans moved into the renovated half of the house. The other half was renovated, and in July 1990, Ed and Bernard moved in.

The small Christian community that began meeting on Burgundy moved to Carrollton, and the numbers grew considerably. A major development that occurred over the next two years was the Carrollton’s house’s active role, along with Christian Unity Baptist Church, in initiating a broad-based community organization, under the auspices of the Industrial Areas Foundation [IAF]. Bernard and Michael had both gone to IAF national leadership training. Bernard and Vince Wayer together conducted a week-long workshop for IAF lead organizers in the New York area, in return for a week’s worth of presence and organizing activity from Ernie Cortez in New Orleans. Ernie, a graduate of Central Catholic High School in San Antonio, is the best broad-based community organizer in the nation.

This broad-based community organization in New Orleans (Catholic and Protestant churches and synagogues) calls itself “The Jeremiah Group” and it is still functioning. The group took its name from Jeremiah 29:7, which is from a letter Jeremiah in Jerusalem wrote to the Jews in exile in Babylon. He told them that as bad as the situation is, they have no viable option to the city in which they are forced to live. He cites YHWH’s will for them: “Work for the city into which you are exiled, and pray to YHWH on its behalf, since on its welfare your own depends.” The community in New Orleans has continued to be active in Jeremiah and to provide some leadership to the organization’s efforts.
In 1991 Jim Facette visited New Orleans. Jim and Ed were together in community in Wisconsin, and Jim and Bernard had been roommates in the novitiate in Galesville, Wis. Jim decided to remain in New Orleans, and entered the master’s program at Loyola in pastoral studies and specialized in the theology and formation of small Christian communities. After finishing his degree, he worked in parish ministry, and then in the office of Hispanic Ministry for the Archdiocese. He moved to ministry in San Antonio in 1994 and after that to Chaminade University in Hawaii.

In 1992 Dave and Missy Kauffman moved to New Orleans because of Missy’s employment in the judicial system. Missy is a St. Mary’s alum in both business and law, David is in business and was part of music ministry at St. Mary’s (and has been so again in the last half dozen years!) Both are committed lay Marianists, and began an active four-year history with the Marianist community and with the House Church, as the small Christian community was now calling itself. On the morning that their daughter Cameron was delivered by C-section, Missy and David joined with the Marianist community for a celebration of Eucharist, with the birth and infancy narratives as the morning’s scripture—and from there to the delivery room.

In 1993 the Cowan family moved from the Carrolton house, and the St. Louis Province bought the Cowan interest in the house. Cinny Cowan died of cancer in 2004. Katryn Cowan graduated from Stanford with honors. Marin Cowan spent her high school junior year is Russia, and later majored in Russian literature and film (double major) at the University of Wisconsin in Madison. Mike has remarried and continues to live in New Orleans, active in the Jeremiah Group and in his relationship with the Madeleine House.
When the Province bought the other half of the house, the commitment was to encourage lay Marianists to reside in that side of the house. It was a happy coincidence that Mary Lynne Gasaway Hill and Andy Hill were moving to New Orleans, she for a PhD program at Tulane, he for law school at Loyola. They took up residence in the Carrollton house for the next three years. It was a happy New Orleans reunion, since the Hills and Kauffman’s had been friends from their college days at St. Mary’s University.

At this time, since now the Province owned the entire residence, it took the name “The Madeleine House,” to honor with “imitation” the founding of small lay communities throughout Bordeaux, and the intimate apostolic work taken on jointly by lay and professed Marianists. This may be the only residence that has been home for both professed and lay Marianists in the same dwelling. While each side has its own privacy, there have always been shared Eucharists, shared prayer, shared meals, and regular retreats together (often in Gulf Shores, Ala.) The New Orleans Marianist community has shared retreat times with the Houston lay Marianist community. In good weather, late afternoon coffee on the back deck came close to ritual status.

The interaction between the dynamics of lay life and religious life has been the great blessing of this arrangement. Joseph, at age 2, would sometimes wander in through the back door, stand at the bottom of the stairs in the foyer, and shout “Ed! Ed!” upstairs, looking for a play partner with Eddie Kiefer.

The presence of Missy, Dave, Mary Lynne and Andy was responsible for the addition of a number of young adult members into the House church, which in multiple good ways created new energies and new directions.

In the course of the next few years, several Marianists lived in New Orleans, some in the Madeleine House. Jack Ventura spent two years in New Orleans, in a French Quarter apartment, completing a master’s degree in pastoral studies with a focus on small Christian communities. Don Schepers lived in an apartment while completing a master’s degree in business at Tulane. Jack and Don were frequently part of the larger Madeleine House community. Dennis Gatto spent two years as a member of the Madeleine House community, also majoring in small Christian communities in the master’s program. Dennis also was very active in the Jeremiah Group.

When Mary Lynne and Andy completed their studies at Tulane and the Loyola School of Law, they returned to St. Mary’s University, she as a faculty member in English/Communication, Andy as associate dean of students.

On the afternoon of the morning that Andy and Mary Lynne packed and moved to San Antonio, Kevin and Brenda Fitzpatrick unpacked and moved into the Madeleine House with son Dane, and infant daughter Mairin. Joseph was born two years later, and Caitlin another two years later. Earlier, as a temporary professed Marianist, Kevin had spent some summers in the Madeleine House, while studying at Loyola (master’s degree in small Christian communities).

The Pacific Province invited lay Marianist Rick Boesen to get a master’s degree in small Christian communities, and then return to promote them in the Province. Rick was a graduate of Chaminade (Hollywood, Fla.) and of the University of Dayton. He then taught at his alma mater, Chaminade, and then at the Marianist high school in Maui, Hawaii. After his two years of study and deep involvement in both community and Jeremiah, he returned to California, marrying Virginia Mahoney on the way to California (they met through their mutual involvement in the LIFE program)! Rick was very active in the House Church community, and in the Jeremiah group, working for social justice.

In the fall of 2000, Casey Metcalf, a young layman who had just completed a master’s degree at Loyola, joined Ed and Bernard on their side of the Madeleine House. Casey taught religion at the Jesuit high school, then entered the Jesuit novitiate in 2004, and is in formation as a young Jesuit.

In 2002 Bernard was asked by the Province and by the president of St. Mary’s University to accept a position as vice president for mission and identity. He moved to San Antonio in the summer of 2002.

In the following two years, Paul Galantowicz, S.M. joined the Madeleine House community, and a year later Tom Heinle, S.M. joined the community.

In 2003 Ed Kiefer was stricken with melanoma, suffered through ineffective radiation and chemotherapy, and died Jan. 9, 2004, in San Antonio.