All posts by Anne Tschanz

Emotional Holiness: Discovering the Divine Plan for Your Human Emotions by Abbot Austin Murphy, OSB

IRL Board Member, Abbot Austin Murphy, OSB, has written the very timely and timeless book entitled Emotional Holiness: Discovering the Divine Plan for Your Human Emotions, available from Our Sunday Visitor. To become a better Christian, you need to form your emotions aright. The traditional Catholic view—supported by giants in the Catholic tradition such as Saint Augustine, St. Bernard of Clairvaux, and St. Thomas Aquinas—is that ongoing conversion does not mean suppressing, ignoring, or eradicating the emotions, but reforming them.

In Emotional Holiness, Abbot Austin Murphy, OSB, shows how the emotions are to be shaped and trained so that they work with your pursuit of all that is good and avoidance of what is evil. Getting the emotions to work with the mind’s pursuit of God and the things of God is especially important to help you persevere in your God-given vocation.  (OrderOSV.com)

Abbot Austin Murphy was the Abbot of St. Procopius Abbey in Lisle, Illinois, from 2010 to 2024.  He earned a PhD in theology at the University of Notre Dame, focusing on the thought of St. Augustine.

Discalced Carmelite Nuns of Jacksonville to Relocate to Connecticut

From the nuns’ website:  www.carmeljax.org

J. M. † J. T.

MONASTERY OF THE LITTLE FLOWER OF JESUS
Discalced Carmelite Nuns of Jacksonville
8002 James Island Trl
Jacksonville, FL 32256

July 26, 2025

Pax Christi! To all our dear friends in Christ, Praised be Jesus Christ! Many of you have been asking for an update regarding our search for a permanent location, and after months of prayer and discernment, we are now able to share some exciting news.

As we were about to begin fundraising to purchase property and commence building a new monastery in northeast Florida, we were made aware of several Church properties in other dioceses that were available and being offered to us, which would promptly enable us to resume our strictly cloistered life. Our living quarters for the past eighteen months have proven inadequate for daily monastic observance, and unfortunately there are no vacant Church properties available in this area. Moving to a larger and more suitable home had become imperative for a variety of reasons, so we took the matter to fervent prayer. The thought of being able to live our structured contemplative life again sooner rather than later was very appealing, and moving to a larger house would enable us to welcome new vocations.

Therefore, with the sympathetic blessing of our dear Bishop, the Most Rev. Erik Pohlmeier, we investigated these possibilities, and several Bishops who were very eager to have a cloistered Community in their diocese extended warm invitations. After prayerful discernment, we decided to accept Bishop Frank Caggiano’s generous offer and petition the Holy See for permission to relocate to the Diocese of Bridgeport, Connecticut; that request has now been granted. We will reside at a diocesan retreat center in Danbury, Connecticut while a new monastery is built in a lovely rural area about half an hour away. May Our Lord and His sweet Mother reward Bishop Caggiano abundantly for his extremely gracious welcome! We are deeply grateful to all the wonderful friends we have made in Florida and will always keep them in our hearts and prayers! And we will now be much closer geographically to our dear friends in Buffalo, who have never ceased to have a fond remembrance in our prayerful intercession. Updates on our move and building project will be forthcoming! Be assured of our prayers, as we humbly ask your prayers for us. May God reward you!

Gratefully yours in Jesus, Mary and Joseph The Carmelite Nuns of the Monastery of the Little Flower of Jesus

Following the announcement of relocation to Connecticut, the Sisters will be officially moving on September 9th, 2025. Their new address for the time being will be:
71 Southern Blvd
Danbury, CT 06810

Mother Mary Maddalena Bentivoglio, O.S.C. & Liturgical Embroidery

by Sr. Mary Rose Mormino, O.S.C.

The Order of St. Clare hopes that Servant of God Mother Mary Maddalena, OSC, who brought Poor Clare life to America, will one day be canonized.  Here is an article on her exquisite embroidery skills that were used to support the community and to glorify God.

Mother Mary Maddalena, the foundress of the Poor Clares in America, came from an old Italian family, the Bentivoglio’s of Bologna.  She was born in 1834 and received the name Annetta at baptism. The ladies of the Italian nobility received a genteel education, suitable for their rank in society. Their training included proper deportment and manners, as well as the cultivation of singing and music, such as playing the piano, organ, or other musical instruments. They were often fluent in foreign languages, such as Latin and French. The young women were also known for their fine sewing, needlework and embroidery.  Reading her biography, we learn that Annetta Bentivoglio was proficient in all of these areas.

After her parents died, Annetta joined the Poor Clares of San Lorenzo-in-Panisperna, taking with her the needlework skills she had learned as a girl. She became quite a needlewoman, doing all types of embroidery, as well as ordinary sewing.  There is preserved one of her tunics in which none of the original material remains. In the end, the whole tunic consisted of nothing but a series of patches, all done so skillfully that not a seam is to be seen. Years later, in her monastery in Evansville, Indiana, it is said that even though her sight was failing, she could still sew just by the feel of the thread.

After being sent to America, Mother Maddalena’s needle helped support the little Community of nuns, when they had no other means of sustenance. She was over-joyed when she could do liturgical sewing, and felt that nothing was too good for our Lord.  Gradually young women joined her, and she taught these young nuns how to make the various linens for the altar and for the use at Holy Mass.

Mother Maddalena died in the Evansville Poor Clare monastery in 1905, but some of the nuns who had joined her in Evansville were still alive when our founding Sisters entered there.  Several of them entered within a few years of Mother Maddalena’s death and her memory was very much alive in Evansville. All of our founding Sisters learned the fine, liturgical embroidery that is part of our legacy from Mother Maddalena.  At Evansville, the Sisters also painted exquisite pictures and designs on satin and linen.  We possess some of these palls painted on satin, although we do not know if they were painted at Evansville or by one of our founding Sisters here in St. Louis.

The Evansville Poor Clares founded this monastery in 1959 at the request of Joseph Cardinal Ritter. In his sermon at the dedication of the monastery on August 12, 1959, he observed:

For me, this occasion has a very personal significance. I have been associated with the Poor Clares since my Ordination day in a very special manner, due to my association with the Bishop of Indianapolis, their Monastery being in Evansville, then in the Indianapolis diocese.   Aside from the Community being a source of inspiration to me and of help and prayer for my work as a priest, I have always been impressed with the fact that the Community was a constant source of joy and satisfaction to the Bishops of the Diocese — all of them.

The founding Sisters were truly heroic as they struggled to establish in St. Louis a house dedicated to God. One of the ways they supported themselves was in all types of churchwork, the making of altar linens and vestments. The first members to join in St. Louis all became adept at liturgical work. These in turn have taught some of the younger Sisters.

Although we do not support ourselves any longer by doing liturgical artwork, we still occasionally make altar linens and palls as gifts for newly ordained priests or priest-friends celebrating a Jubilee.  Our main work is the baking of traditional altar breads, which Mother Maddalena also did in her time, and one that we cherish.  All of these are part of our Bentivoglio heritage.

For more information about the Poor Clares of St. Louis, contact:
Monastery of Saint Clare
200 Marycrest Drive
Saint Louis, MO  63129-4813
(314) 846-2618
www.poorclaresstl.org

There is also an Aleteia article on her life.

New IRL Affiliate Community – New Melleray Abbey

Located southwest of Dubuque in Peosta, Iowa, New Melleray Abbey was founded in 1849 by Cistercian monks of their Order from Mount Melleray Abbey in Ireland. The Cistercians of the Strict Observance (Trappists) treasure the balance Saint Benedict provides in his Rule between communal prayer and private prayer. From pre-dawn to night fall, the brothers, in union with the whole Church, gather seven times each day to sing Psalms together in praise of God. They also gather each day to hear the Word of God and for the breaking of the bread in the celebration of the Mass.

Through their guest house and other forms of monastic hospitality, they offer to their brothers and sisters a place where they may find acceptance, peace, and prayer. With Trappist Caskets they support themselves and supply employment to local men and women by making and selling simple wooden caskets and burial urns of exceptional quality. They also provide free caskets for children’s funerals as a work of mercy. (NewMelleray.org)

 

Little Missionaries of the Sacred Heart – New IRL Affiliate Community

Welcome to a new  IRL Affiliate Community!

The congregation of the Little Missionaries of the Sacred Heart, based in Livorno, Italy, opened a new foundation in the diocese of Des Moines, Iowa, in 2012. Following the desire of their Foundress, Mother Clotilde Gigli (1872-1928), “to work with humility, so that the mercy of the Heart of Jesus may be known,” they are involved in the fields of education, health care, parish work and missionary evangelization.

There are currently four sisters serving in the community in Iowa who work at the Bishop Drumm Retirement Center as registered nurses and certified nurse assistants. “Their presence is cherished in our Diocese,” says Most Rev. William M. Joensen, Bishop of Des Moines, “and they are well respected as holy and dedicated women giving strong witness to Christ in the grace-filled living out of the evangelical counsels.” (LMSHsisters.com)

Integral Fundraising Services LLC: Supporting the Church with Purpose, Partnership, and Stewardship

A description of a  new fundraising organization whose mission is to support the Church.

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Integral Fundraising Services LLC:
Supporting the Church with Purpose, Partnership, and Stewardship

At Integral Fundraising Services LLC, we exist to strengthen the financial foundations of Catholic parishes, schools, and religious communities—so they can remain focused on their core mission of proclaiming the Gospel, forming disciples, and serving the Church.

Founded by Chris Scroggin, Integral Fundraising Services brings a deeply personal understanding of religious life. Before entering the world of Catholic development, Chris spent nearly 20 years living religious life himself. This background isn’t just a credential—it’s a compass. It informs every aspect of how we approach our work: with reverence for each community’s unique charism, with humility as partners in mission, and with a desire to see Catholic institutions not just survive—but flourish.

A Partner, Not a Vendor

Too many fundraising firms take a transactional approach—launching a capital campaign, checking the boxes, and walking away once the goal is met. That’s not how we operate. At Integral Fundraising Services, we believe the most effective development work is rooted in trust, mission alignment, and ongoing formation.

We walk alongside the communities we serve—not just through a campaign, but well beyond. We help religious congregations, parish leaders, and Catholic school administrators build sustainable fundraising systems, major gift strategies, and donor relationships that will bear fruit for years to come.

Campaigns with a Mission

From new chapels and infirmaries to school expansions and endowment growth, our campaigns are more than financial exercises—they’re expressions of faith. We guide our clients through every phase of a capital campaign: from feasibility studies and case statement development to volunteer training, leadership cultivation, and post-campaign stewardship.

But our focus doesn’t end at campaign success—it’s about long-term capacity building. We equip Catholic institutions with the tools, training, and frameworks they need to build lasting donor partnerships that align with their values and respect the sacred mission they’ve been entrusted with.

Donor-Centric and Charism-Faithful

In every project, we implement fundraising best practices that prioritize clarity, transparency, and gratitude. But just as important, we help our clients maintain fidelity to their founding charism and ecclesial identity. Whether working with contemplative nuns, teaching brothers, diocesan pastors, or school leadership, our strategies are never one-size-fits-all. Instead, we tailor our work to amplify your unique voice and mission—and the unique spiritual value you offer to the Church.

A Proven Track Record of Results

Integral Fundraising Services is helping Catholic organizations across the country raise millions in support of facilities, formation, vocations, and mission advancement. We’re honored to play a small role in the larger work of the Holy Spirit—helping faithful ministries thrive through strategic fundraising rooted in trust, prayer, and relationship.

If your community is ready to grow in its development work—not just for today’s needs, but for generations to come—we would be honored to walk that journey with you.

For a free consult email Chris Scroggin at chris.scroggin@integralfundraisingservices.com or call him at 737-240-9040.

Integral Fundraising Services LLC
Fundraising rooted in mission. Sustained by partnership. Focused on flourishing.

 

Passionist Nuns of Pittsburgh Approved as New IRL Affiliate

The Passionist Monastery of Our Lady of Sorrows in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, was founded in 1910 by five Passionists nuns from Tarquinia, Italy, the first community of Passionist Nuns in the United States. They are a contemplative cloistered community of religious women called to stand at the foot of the Cross with Mary near the Heart of Christ, ready to receive His love so that they might become love in the Heart of the Church.

St. Paul of the Cross founded the Congregation of the Passion (Passionists) in 1720, desiring to gather around him companions who saw the Passion of Jesus as God’s love-message to them and the world. In 1771, the first monastery of the Passionist Nuns was opened in Tarquinia, Italy.

The nuns bake altar breads to support themselves, supplying them to churches and religious communities. They are grateful for this labor of love which is transformed into the Body of Christ.

As Passionists, we are called to keep alive the Memory of Christ’s Passion. We do not only recall it in our minds, but we render it present in our lives by living His self-emptying love in our daily lives for the salvation of souls. Passionists live intensely the Mystery of Redemption for the benefit of the whole Church and for all people.

Our primary apostolate is prayer. We witness to the primacy of God and to the priority of adoration of God. We remain faithful to St. Paul of the Cross’ original inspiration to have the nuns share their contemplative way of life with others. Our House of Prayer provides a place of solitude for those who wish to enter into prayer.

PassionistNunspgh.org

New Video Reveals Mystery of the Seven Spanish Martyrs of the Visitation

By Visitation Sisters of the Second Federation (and Kevin Banet)


One hundred years ago, anti-Catholic sentiment in Spain was high, and nearly 8,000 martyrs suffered for their faith. Among them were seven nuns of the Visitation Order from Madrid, now known as Blessed Maria Gabriela and her Companions.

A new video tells their story and reveals the mystery of the seventh martyr, who was the youngest and who died last. The Seventh Crown — Martyrs of the Visitation is only 35 minutes long but delivers a compelling portrait of the struggles of the nuns while their monastery was under the surveillance of the authorities.

Cross carried by Sr. Maria Cecilia

In 1931, Spain witnessed a political upheaval, and the uneasy climate led the superior of the Visitation in Madrid to order the 83 nuns there to wear lay clothes and leave the monastery. They eventually returned, only to leave again. Seven were chosen to remain, but eventually moved to an apartment. On November 18, 1936, the sisters were apprehended, put into a truck and driven a short distance. When they got out of the truck, six of them were shot dead, and the seventh — Sr. Maria Cecilia, age 26 — escaped by running away.

The movie is told in a flashback mode through the eyes of this sister, whose whereabouts after her escape remained a mystery for five years. Her tense story is revealed in the last scene with her martyrdom.

The sisters had many opportunities to flee, so the question might be asked, “Why did they not try to escape martyrdom?” The primary reason, as stated in the movie was, “We are awaiting the palm of martyrdom and if by shedding our blood Spain can be saved, Lord, may it be as soon as possible.”

The martyrs were beatified on May 10, 1998 by Pope St. John Paul II and await canonization.

The Order of the Visitation was founded by St. Francis de Sales and St. Jane de Chantal in 1610 in Annecy, France. The aim of the Visitation is: “to give to God daughters of prayer, and souls so interior that they may be found worthy to serve His infinite Majesty and to adore Him in spirit and in truth.”

The acting in the movie is realistic and rich in imagery of the Visitation nuns and their monastic surroundings. It was produced by Home of the Mother, an international public association of the faithful with pontifical approval. It has been viewed on YouTube 54,200 times since its premiere on November 22nd. The movie, La Séptima Corona — Mártires de la Visitación is in Spanish, but English subtitles can be turned on.

SOURCES:

https://vistyr.org/blessed-sister-martyrs

Home of the Mother

Diocese of Columbus Establishes the Ordo Vidarum – Order of Widows

On October 16, 2024, Most Rev. Earl Fernandes issued a decree to establish the Ordo Viduarum, or the Order of Widows, as a community of diocesan right. It is open to widows over 60 who have been sacramentally married. The decree was published on October 16th, the feast of Saint Hedwig, a widow. In the Diocese of Columbus, six women whose husbands have passed away are discerning religious life in the Ordo Viduarum.

In 1 Timothy, it mentions the qualifications of for various ministries, including rules for widows, namely, that “she is not less than sixty years old, married only once, with a reputation for good works…” (1 Tim 5:9-10). The widows belonging to the order, through a vow of perpetual chastity,  remain permanently in their widowed state of life and dedicate themselves to prayer and the service of the Church. It is only open to women who live in the diocese.

In the Decree it states: “…there are yet does not exist in the Universal Law for the Catholic Church an order of Widows, and diocesan Bishops are to endeavor to discern new gifts of consecrated life which the Holy Spirit entrusts to the Church” (cf. Canon 605).  (ColumbusCatholic.org)

A Norbertine Priest Discusses Fundraising as a Spiritual and Pastoral Endeavor

Interview with Fr. Ambrose Criste, O.Praem., of St. Michael’s Abbey in Silverado, California

You are a Norbertine Canon Regular at St. Michael’s Abbey in California. Would you briefly tell us about yourself and the Norbertine community of which you are a part?

IRL Affiliates and readers of Religious Life Magazine will know St. Michael’s Abbey as the home of Fr. Thomas Nelson, who has been the National Director of the IRL for several decades. Our abbey in Southern California began with seven Hungarian Norbertines who were refugees forced out of their monastery (also called St. Michael’s Abbey and founded in 1180) under the Communist persecution of the 1950’s.

From those seven Hungarian refugees, St. Michael’s Abbey has grown to nearly 100 members – roughly 60 priests and solemnly professed brothers and 40 novices and juniors preparing for religious profession and priestly ordination. We live the rich liturgical life of canons regular, and we undertake a number of apostolic works, from the administration of parishes and schools, to directing retreats, various chaplaincies, and even evangelization and teaching on social media and our own Abbot’s Circle virtual monastery.

I joined the abbey in the year 2000 after completing my undergraduate degree and some graduate school. I was ordained a priest in 2008, and then served as our abbey’s novice master, master of juniors, and vocations director for nearly 14 years. I have worked closely with our development and finance team over many years to serve our mission with adequate resources. More recently, I am working on a new project our canonry has undertaken called the Evermode Institute, a program of catechetical formation for Catholic school teachers and parish catechists to be used nationwide.

Your community dedicated the newly built St. Michael’s Abbey just three short years ago, after securing more than $120 million in financial commitments for its construction. Could you share with us how your community went about accomplishing such an ambitious project and what it taught you about fundraising and stewardship?

Through the firm and faithful witness of the founding priests and those aspiring to live the Norbertine ideal, a surge of vocations in the late 1990s and early 2000s left St. Michael’s Abbey in great need of more space. We launched a campaign to build a new abbey that was projected to cost north of $120M.

We struggled with fits and starts (and multiple consultants) over the next decade. By 2016 the campaign had stalled by many accounts, and we found that we had no real path to achieve our goal. That prompted us to stop listening to outside consultants and to try to do things differently.

We had originally thought, “We are priests and religious– what do we know about finances? Let’s bring in experts who know how to do this.” But the reality was that that didn’t work. The experts used a templated approach that left aside many of our gifts as consecrated religious, and rendered our fundraising transactional and ultimately unsatisfying.

It wasn’t until we integrated our fundraising effort into our way of life as religious that we found meaningful success. We made it a spiritual and pastoral endeavor rather than a transactional one, and the Lord blessed it. By early 2018, we hit our $120M goal and ultimately raised in the neighborhood of $150M, paid off all of our bank debt, and quadrupled general donations for operations.

It was an authentically Catholic approach to generating and managing resources that allowed us to complete the project our Lord had entrusted to us. It is not a novel concept– it’s a model that dates back to the time and teaching of Ss. Peter and Paul.

You just mentioned that an authentically Catholic approach to managing resources is not novel– but perhaps it is often neglected? What are the challenges you see as religious communities and Catholic institutions seek to manage their finances properly?

Very interesting question. So, on the heels of our campaign, we found ourselves providing a great deal of counsel to other religious communities. We tried to promote the strategy that had worked for us, by providing a tailored and spiritual approach to fundraising, and in this way, ultimately helped raise hundreds of millions of dollars for worthy Catholic projects. While working closely with Catholic leaders, they began to draw us into broader financial conversations and more freely expressed their concerns, particularly as relates to investing.

We quickly realized that of the many financial challenges they presented, the morality of investments was a tacit, yet deadly moral crisis. We have taken a keen interest in understanding this issue in order to help think through ways that religious communities and Catholic institutions can generate meaningful returns from their investment portfolios while not falling into the real moral pitfalls that have recently flown under the radar.

You say there is a crisis in the morality of investing. Can you speak into that a bit more?

Since the Dobbs ruling in 2022, many companies have become abortion activists– and this is just one of the ways that these companies are not measuring up to the USCCB Socially Responsible Investment guidelines.

As a result of this change, many Catholic religious communities were seamlessly transitioned into implicitly cooperating with evil. Further, the Catholic screens then implemented to protect Catholic institutions from falling prey to this cooperation proved to be inconsistent, and in too many cases inadequate.

As Catholics, we are called to be excellent in all we do. For investing, that means generating returns to serve our mission without compromising our morals in the process. As Norbertines, we think there is an opportunity to generate these returns morally, and we are leaning into this opportunity by researching the best ways to do this, especially through dialogue with our fellow religious.

How can our readers, especially orders, congregations, and communities like yours, learn more about the abbey’s work and be part of a larger conversation about raising and managing resources in an authentically Catholic way, and in particular, investing with a clear conscience?

We are taking a great interest in the area of authentically Catholic investing because we feel a call to be good stewards of the resources God has entrusted to us— but as you pointed out, investing is part of a much larger topic. We know these resources are only a means to an end, which is to serve Christ and His Church fully in the way He intended, and that is our motivating drive.

We have recently launched an unprecedented study that will serve to support religious who are trying to to be faithful stewards of what God has entrusted to them.

If any religious community should want to share their experience and perspective in the survey, they can contact me via email at frambrose@stmichaelsabbey.com. If there are broader questions on the topic of investing or fundraising, we are happy to share our research and thoughts in those areas as well.If you are a religious community interested in participating in a brief online survey conducted by St. Michael’s Abbey about this matter, please contact the Institute on Religious Life (irlstaff@religiouslife.com) for more information.