The Easter peace of Our Risen Lord be with you! During this whole Easter season, we rejoice in the resurrection. Our foundress reminds us that during the forty days after the resurrection, He appeared only to His friends. You are one of His friends, so expect some special graces from Him during this special time!
You’ve seen in various places lists of FAQs (frequently asked questions). Here are a few FAQs about the Parish Visitors of Mary Immaculate.
Q. You say you are contemplative-missionaries. Just what does that mean? How can a Sister be both at the same time? Or, are some Sisters missionaries and the others contemplatives who pray for them?
A. As Parish Visitors of Mary Immaculate, we combine contemplation and missionary activity. Yes, both at the same time, not one or the other. To be a contemplative means to be a person of deep prayer. Some people think of cloistered nuns as the only contemplatives, but that is not accurate. Cloistered contemplative life is a very special way to serve the Lord. However, contemplation is not reserved for those who are cloistered.
Jesus was a contemplative, someone of deep prayer, as I’m sure all would agree, yet at the same time He was the Good Shepherd concerned for the lost sheep. He combined the two perfectly, and that is what we strive to do.
Mary was another contemplative-missionary. Right after receiving the wonderful news that she was to be the Mother of God, she went out to visit her cousin in need, all the while pondering in her heart the wonderful things God had done.
Contemplation is a loving union with God, which of course includes Mass, our daily Hour of Adoration, and all our prayer time, but this loving union continues while we’re doing our apostolate.
Along with this we are missionaries. The word “missionary” is often thought to mean only foreign missionaries, but it actually means “one who is sent” to go out to people in the name of the Lord. The ones we are sent to could be right in our own town or city, or anywhere in the U.S., or in one of the foreign countries in which we have missions. The Good Shepherd has wandering sheep everywhere, in need of someone to help them return to Him, as well as children and youth needing to know and love Jesus!
Of course, those Sisters who are elderly, or who care for the administration of the community, etc. are serving the missionary apostolate by their prayer and by their service. All Parish Visitors are contemplative-missionaries!
Q. What is your community life like?
Community life is an aid to our contemplative-missionary vocation, living with other women who share the same ideals and who are striving to love God and each other better.
We pray together and laugh together and share together. Community life is a joyful life. No community is perfect, and as with any family perhaps sometimes there could be misunderstandings, but we know we love each other and are here for the same reason, to follow the Lord. It has been said that only in a convent can a group of women be in the kitchen at the same time and not “kill” each other!
Our Ohio Sisters watching the recent solar eclipse
We are happy to always wear our habit. We come from various states and countries, and together form one family. Our love of the Church, our simple and friendly approach to people, and our simple community life are other traits of the Parish Visitors of Mary Immaculate.
Q. Are you faithful to the Church? Are you Eucharistic and Marian?
Yes, yes, and yes! We are a pontifical community and are lovingly faithful to the Church. And devotion to the Blessed Sacrament has always been a part of our community. We have a Holy Hour of Adoration daily. Also, Mary Immaculate is our community patroness and our model.
If you would like to know more about the Parish Visitors of Mary Immaculate, or would like to have a phone chat or a visit, just email us at pvmi@frontiernet.net. May all of you have a grace-filled Easter season, and may the Lord guide you and help you with your vocational discernment.
In the Easter peace of Jesus,
The Parish Visitor Sisters