In this Year of Consecrated Life, I think it is time to post this thank you letter that we received from a young girl several years ago. I saved it because I loved it. I think you will feel the same…
Category Archives: Women’s Communities
Ven. Maria Teresa Casini Miracle Approved
Did you know that in a small town in Ohio, sisters are praying and offering reparation for priests? And to carry this ministry further in the Diocese of Youngstown, they also care for priests in retirement in two homes. These sisters are the Oblate Sisters of the Sacred Heart and they are in the news because Pope Francis issued a decree last week approving a miracle attributed to their foundress, Ven. Maria Teresa Casini, thus paving the way for her beatification.
Mother Maria Teresa was born in Frascati, Italy, in 1864. She entered religious life as a Poor Clare until ill health forced her to return home. Here, though, she had a vision of Jesus, His Heart pierced by a thorn, His face contorted with pain. He made it known to Teresa that these wounds were caused by unfaithful priests.
Eventually, Teresa and a small group of companions, formed a community whose mission was to sacrifice, pray, supplicate, work and grow weary for the sanctification of priests. She also opened a boarding school for boys to satisfy the Lord’s request to “give me holy priests.”
Mother Teresa died in 1937. The first of her boys, the Little Friends of Jesus, was ordained in 1938. During her life, she offered “the oblation of herself, in faithful response to the Love that overflows from the open Heart of the Savior, and which she imparted to so many daughters and priests.”
Pope Pius X wrote in 1904: “In order to bring about the reign of Jesus Christ, nothing is more necessary than the sanctity of the clergy.” God bless these sisters for their selfless love for these men of God, for through them, through the sacraments, we are fortified and purified for the journey.
Four Emerging Communities
The National Catholic Register, in a recent article (Jan 3), highlighted four new emerging communities, showing that in this Year of Consecrated Life, there is life anew in the Church in the USA. Late in 2014, I mentioned a new Franciscan community of women in Buffalo, NY, but here are four more….
Sisters of Our Mother of Divine Grace
These sisters are Associate Members of the IRL who were previously part of a sedevacantist community of sisters in Spokane, WA. Two other sisters in Spokane founded the new community of the Marian Sisters of Santa Rosa in California. Four more sisters came to Port Sanilac, Michigan, where they were mentored by the Sisters of Mercy of Alma and were founded as a community by Bishop Joseph Cistone in 2010.
“We are revitalizing parishes through catechesis, perpetual adoration and Marian devotion,” Sister Mary Inviolata said. “We hope to expand to teaching. Ecumenism is part of our charism. We have a vacation Bible school with the Methodists and Lutherans. We have a Week of Prayer for Christian Unity.”
Sister Mary Teresita says, “God in his loving providence has wonderfully blessed us in ways beyond our imagination. We strive to promote a greater unity in the truth of Christ.”
Mother Olga of the Sacred Heart is a convert to Catholicism from Assyrian Church of the East. She was born and raised in Iraq and came into the Church in 2005. As indicated by their name, the sisters take inspiration from the humble spirit of Mary and Joseph. Their primary apostolate is outreach through the corporal and spiritual works of mercy in the Boston Archdiocese. The community, founded in 2011, is attracting vocations, Mother says, because of their faithfulness “to the radical tradition of religious life according to the teaching of the Magisterium.” As someone active in campus ministry for ten years, she says, “Students want to be accepted as people. They hunger and thirst for truth.”
The Brigittines in Amity, Oregon, are IRL Affiliate community members and Sister Margarita Igiriczi-Negy, foundress and only member of the Brigittine Servitores in Tyler, Texas, has a close relationship with them. Brother Bernard Ner Suguitan, the prior, said, “Her prayers are priceless.”
St. Bridget of Sweden founded the Order of the Most Holy Savior (aka Brigittines) in 1346. Sr. Margarita is a convert, having been raised Presbyterian in Hungary. Prayers, such as the Brigittine Divine Office, are said in Latin. She hopes to attract other women who love the traditional Latin liturgy. “At the present, the Brigittine Servitores is the only order of the Brigittine family that follows the Latin traditional liturgy,” she said. “Furthermore, it is contemplative in nature. Contemplative prayer is a strong source of graces, both for the individual and for the whole Church.” Sister Margarita teaches Latin at a local parish.
Lastly, Fraternas (Marian Community of Reconciliation) is a community of consecrated laywomen who live in community but work in the world. They were founded in Peru in 1991 and in the United States, are currently in California, Colorado, Connecticut and Texas. Patricia Pollack is with Fraternas in San Antonio, where she is involved in pro-life activities and ministry to the poor. “We meet Jesus in action,” said Patricia. “We are serving teenagers, the poor and families. We work directly with the parish. I see Jesus as a brother who walks that path before me.”
For more information on all four communities, please see the National Catholic Register article!
Catholic Nuns Top Billboard Charts Again!
For the second year in a row, the Benedictines of Mary, Queen of Apostles, topped Billboard’s list of best-selling traditional classical albums of 2014. Actucally, their two albums, Lent at Ephesus and Angels and Saints at Ephesus were the first- and second-best selling traditional classical albums of 2014.
Mater Eucharistiae by the Dominican Sisters of Mary, Mother of the Eucharist, in Ann Arbor, came in 11th. This album features 15 selections of Sacred Music, all dedicated to Jesus through Mary.
This certainly shows that true beauty never goes out of style. Click below to listen to a sample of the song Duo Seraphim from Angels and Saints at Ephesus.
“He who sings, prays twice” is a quote sometimes attributed to St. Augustine (whether of Hippo or Canterbury is not clear to me) but in any case, the sisters singing here are certainly raising their heavenly voices to God!
Dominicans Sisters of St. Cecilia – “You Belong to Us!”
A little boy once asked a religious sister, “Are you married?” When she said no, he said, “Good, ’cause then you belong to us.” Thus begins an article in the Dominican Sisters of St. Cecilia‘s latest newsletter. I think it sums up perfectly the Year of Consecrated. Let us celebrate consecrated men and women who, because they belong totally to God, belong totally to us.
There are so many news items to relate relative to the Nashville Dominicans that one hardly knows where to start. Here we go:
- Two sisters are now teaching at a high school in Auburndale, Tenessee.
- Sister Anne Frances is full-time on the campus ministry staff at Providence College
- They have a new foundation in the Sittard, Netherlands, where strangely enough the Peruvian Dominican St. Rose of Lima is patroness.
- They acquired Villaggio Betania, 20 miles NW of Rome, Italy, to provide a home base for sisters studying in Rome, for facilities for the study abroad program of Aquinas College, and to support evangelization efforts. It was previously owned by the Dominican Sisters of Bethany so it stays in the Dominican family.
- They are expanding Bethany Retreat House to accommodate the growing number of people seeking a place of quiet and prayer.
According to their last update to us, they are over 300 sisters, including 60 in formation!!
Mother Ann Marie, OP, says: “Each of us is called by God to ‘reach out to others and seek their good’ (Pope Francis). At a time when our world is experiencing so much anguish in its search for the peace that only God can give, let us ask Him to make us instruments of hope. Wherever He places us each day, let us allow Him to be at work in us to bring the peace of Christ and the joy of the Gospel.”
Rocky Mountain Carmelites
There is a nice write-up in a local Catholic newspaper on the Carmel of the Immaculate Heart of Mary in Salt Lake City, Utah. In the article, they talk to Mother Margaret Marie Miller who in October was named the new Mother Superior. Mother was one of the five founders who came from Alhambra, California, in 1952 to found a Carmelite monastery in the then-sparsely populated Catholic diocese.
“To be a Carmelite is a real vocation,” said Mother Margaret Marie. “The Lord gives it [the vocation] to you, but you have to be open and you have to be open to whatever he wants from you.”
Mother was inspired by St. Therese of Lisieux and like her wanted to save souls. She considered becoming a missionary but concluded, like St. Therese, that in the cloister she could reach everybody. “That was the thing that struck me. I didn’t even know what the life was going to be like, I just knew that I was going to pray for the whole world. You pray for the whole mystical body and that is what sounded really great.”
I am reminded of a priest whose father wanted him to become a doctor. He said, “Dad, as a doctor, my patients are going to die. As a priest, I can lead them to eternal life.” Carmelites are praying people unto eternal life.
She has some practical advice on prayer. “Prayer is very simple; it’s not complicated. Prayer is a loving exchange with someone that loves you. God is all-powerful; His will is Him, so it’s pretty simple: Open your mind and He is with you all the time. It doesn’t have to be complicated; it’s simple.”
You can support the eleven Carmelites in Utah by purchasing their candy and holy cards and the like. You can also get a first-hand glimpse into their lives by watching their very appealing YouTube video.
Mercedarian FREE Seven Day Course
The Mercedarian Sisters of the Blessed Sacrament are offering a free 7-day course in Mercedarian Spirituality. Participants in this email course will learn how to discern their vocation and discover more about the Eucharistic-Marian charism of the Mercedarian Sisters.
What are the spiritual values of the Mercedarian sisters?
- The constant giving of our lives as Jesus does in the Eucharist.
- Example and model of Christ the Redeemer
- A life centered on the Eucharist and our Blessed Mother
- Daily Mass, Liturgy of the Hours, Meditation, and Rosary
- Eucharistic Exposition and Benediction
- Faithful to the Magisterium of the Church
The course which is open to everyone consists of an email delivered to your inbox each day for seven days. Catholic women open to religious life may find this course particularly helpful, as it offers valuable insights into religious discernment. The emails will focus on both the specific charisms of the Mercedarian Sisters as well as religious life in general. The purpose of this free course is to promote the beautiful calling to religious life, to foster vocations, and to provide a glimpse into the Mercedarian Spirituality.
Norbertines Break Ground!
Last July, earth moving equipment began to level the ground in Silverado Canyon in preparation for the construction of the new abbey for the Norbertines, replacing the old one which is really bursting at the seams with students and vocations.
This past August, the California abbey welcomed six young men who are studying to become Norbertine canons. Three young women as well became the first Americans to enter the Nobertine sisters from Slovakia (Sr. Adriana, Sr. Roberta & Sr. Benedicta) who reside in a convent nearby Wilmington.
The new abbey will include a church, convent, welcome area/meeting rooms, monastery and cemetery chapel. These buildings will comprise only a small portion of the hundreds of acres of the original Holtz ranch thus preserving an important part of the rural California landscape.
The Norbertine also have a cloistered community of Norbertine Canonesses that is growing rapidly in Tehachapi. The Norbertine Sisters of Wilmington are one of the newest branches on the family tree of the Norbertine Order founded by St. Norbert (1080-1134). They were founded in 1902 in the Czech Republic by Fr. Vojtech Frejka, a Norbertine Father from the abbey of Strahov in Prague. The Slovakian Norbertines reside in SS. Peter and Paul Convent in Wilmington, CA, which was established in 2011.
“Our congregation of Norbertine sisters in Slovakia received an invitation from the Norbertine fathers in California to help them establish a new community of Norbertine sisters in the United States,” said Sr. Benedicta.
In Wilmington, they minister to needy families, teach religious education, and work in the Catholic book & gift store, and in the parish office. Like St. Norbert, they live a common life, “prepared for every good work,” centered daily on the Mass and chanting of the Divine Office.
Wake Up the World!
Pope Francis has called upon consecrated women and men to “wake up the world!” And last weekend the 2015 Year of Consecrated Life officially began.
Religious cannot shake and wake up the world unless there are actually men and women religious. One religious can make a difference! Look at the lives of Sts. Francis, Dominic, Benedict, Mother Cabrini, Don Bosco, Mother Teresa, etc…
Another great foundress was St. Jeanne Jugan, the foundress of the Little Sisters of the Poor in 19th century France. The Little Sisters have issued a new vocation video called Love Serves in celebration of the Year of Consecrated Life. It is free and viewable online here. They want our help in reaching young women who might make a great Little Sister of the Poor in serving the elderly poor.
In a recent poll, more than one in four young Catholics reported that they had never been encouraged to consider becoming a religious sister, brother or priest. Those who were invited to consider a religious vocation said it was a family member, a friend, a teacher or youth minister who broached the subject with them. It could be you!
Please share the vocation video, LOVE SERVES, with a young woman you might know. It may make an everlasting difference!
First Profession in Marbury: A “Twin” Celebration
What makes this picture unique? Well, it so happens that the two happy people pictured in it are Sr. Mary Thomas of the Holy Name of Jesus, OP, and her twin brother, a seminarian at the Pontifical North American College. I have featured twin vocation stories before but never a twin brother and sister!
Sr. Mary Thomas made her First Profession on November 22nd at the Dominican Monastery of St. Jude in Marbury, Alabama. Her brother was given permission to fly-in from Rome, Italy, for the occasion. Also in attendance were her Mother and Father and younger brother. What generosity on behalf of their parents to present two children to the Lord as a religious and priest.
The Feast Day on the 22nd celebrated the life of St. Cecilia. As Mother Mary Joseph said, the readings and chants for St. Cecilia could have been chosen just for a Profession ceremony. “Audi filia, et vide, et inclina aurem tuam: quia concupivit rex speciem tuam: Hearken, O daughter, and see; turn thine ear: for the King desires thy beauty.”
It was also an extra-special occasion because the Mass was a Dominican Rite Missa Cantata (Sung High Mass) celebrated by Fr. Dominic Marie Langevin, O.P. Before Vatican II, the Dominicans celebrated almost exclusively their own ritual of Mass and the Divine Office. Sister’s brothers grew up serving in an FSSP parish, so they quickly picked up the slightly different rubrics for serving the Dominican Rite.
In this Year for Consecrated Life, may many blessings descend upon the Dominican nuns in Marbury. May all families be open to and welcome with joy their children’s call to religious life.