Celebrating the Feast of St. Hildegard

Today we celebrate the Feast of St. Hildegard of Bingen.  She was the Abbess of the Benedictine Abbey in Bingen, Germany.  A woman of great wisdom and understanding, St. Hildegard had a deep love for Christ and glorified him with her words and music.  She lived from 1098 - 1179.  Let us remember her today.  May we, like her, grow in our love of Christ and seek him with our whole lives.

Enjoy these words of hers:

“Be not lax in celebrating. Be not lazy in the festive service of God. Be ablaze with enthusiasm. Let us be an alive, burning offering before the altar of God.”

“There is the Music of Heaven in all things and we have forgotten how to hear it until we sing”.

Row, Row, Row Your Boat

This past summer several of us had the opportunity to go the Monastic Institute held at St. John's Abbey in Minnesota. It is a wonderful conference that focuses on Benedictine life. The speakers were  very good and it was wonderful to meet Benedictines from all over the country.

Another highlight of our time there was enjoying the beautiful campus of St. John's.  They have a beautiful lake that is surrounded by woods.  On two of the days we were there, we had the chance to go canoeing.  The first day the water was calm but the next day was very choppy.  There were several times that Sr. Heather Jean and I almost tipped the boat.  When we were trying to head back to shore, we got stuck in the middle of lake because of the strong wind.  We just kept going in circles.  It took great team work to get back to shore.  Sr. Heather and I had to focus our eyes on the shore and work together to get back.  Figuring out how to use our oars in tandem we slowly headed back to shore.

I learned a lot that day.  How journeying with others makes all the difference.  How we need to focus our eyes on the goal and start toward it.  And, finally, how the oars we have make a big difference in how we proceed.  As I think of the oars of my life, I realize that the Gospel, the Rule of Benedict and the Benedictine values serve as oars that help me navigate the paths of life.

Friday, July 30th

Today is the last day of our annual chapter meetings. The week is a full one with business, input on various topics, reports and of course some fun time together as community.

Yesterday we had a morning session on vocations. Our speaker challenged us to think of our own call to this community and how unique it is to each person. She then went through a list of calls in the Old and New Testament - Moses-Jeremiah-Naomi-Mary, etc. Each was called, each felt that they were not worthy enough for this call from God.

But that is how we all feel from time to time - not worthy of what God is calling us to do.

I take from the meeting the saying - "Is anything too marvelous for God?"

God is the one who calls us - God knows the plan - we just need to listen and respond.

A Wonderful Week

Today we begin the Monastic Live-In, an opportunity for others to experience the daily living of monastic life with us.  We have three women joining us.  They will pray, eat, work and play with us.  They will also have the opportunity to hear some input about the Benedictine way of life as well as some time for reflection.  It is going to be a GREAT week!  They will be with us until Sunday.


Sunday, July 11, the Feast of St. Benedict, is always a very special day for us as we celebrate our founder. This year it is made extra-special as we will celebrate the Final Monastic Profession of Sr. Mary Ann Koetter.  Please keep her and all of our community in your prayers as we prepare for this IMPORTANT DAY!!

98/27 . . . Beautiful Friendship!

On June 17, Postulant Heather celebrated her first birthday in the monastery.  It was a great day for her as she celebrated the gift of life and the gift of friendship in community.  One of the gifts Heather brings to our community is the gift of energy and enthusiasm.  

Heather's parents sent her a birthday gift that no other sister has received - ROLLERBLADES! They came with all the accessories needed to keep her safe.  I was sitting in my office when Heather came rolling in to show me her new gift.  She asked if we could find Sr. Mary Sylvester to show her the gift as well.  So off we went to find her.  As you can see from the picture, Sr. Mary Sylvester has her own wheels and won't be asking to use Heather's rollerblades anytime soon.  

It has been beautiful to witness the friendship that has developed between the two of them.   Sr. Mary Sylvester is ONLY 71 years older than Heather! They share deeply and delight in life together.   She laughs as Heather teases her and Heather listens intently as she shares stories from the history of our community.  Their beautiful friendship shares the gift of generational living.  As St. Benedict teaches us there is always something to be shared and learned by the young and the old.

The Little Things In Life

A good number of the sisters in our monastery are retired from active ministry (although they contribute much to community in terms of both small jobs and prayer) We call them our "senior sisters", not because of their age as much as in recognition of the years of wisdom and life experience which they now share with us. I have the privilege of coordinating activities for them once or twice a month.

Today we had an ice cream party. Nothing fantastic, just a cone or a bowl of some 'fun' flavors, a class of lemonade and some casual conversation. There is something that seems almost decadent about taking an ice cream break at 2 pm in the afternoon. Several of the other sisters and even a guest or two joined us for a tasty treat.

I was overwhelmed by the gratitude the senior sisters expressed for what seemed like such a small thing for me. To have something different in their very scheduled day, to give themselves permission to relax in the midst of their work was something they saw as gift. Their genuinely happy response reminded me again that it is the small things we do each day, sometimes without even thinking, that often have the greatest impact. Imagine how much more our little deeds could mean if we did them mindfully! Who know there was so much wisdom in an ice cream cone?

Sr. Theresine's Jubilee

On Sunday, June 6, Sr. Theresine Will celebrated her 60th Jubilee.  It was a wonderful celebration with her monastic community and her family.  Enjoy the video!