by Parish Visitor Editor | Jan 25, 2021 | Events
On January 25th we remember with gratitude the fullness of the inspiration to found the Parish Visitors of Mary Immaculate given to Mother Mary Teresa Tallon, then Sister Mary Berchmans, a Sister of the Holy Cross, on this day in 1908:
“God revealed to me clearly, at Holy Mass, in the chapel at 143 W. 61st Street, New York City, on January 25, 1908, the feast of the conversion of St. Paul, what it was He wanted. I must establish an Institute where women would be trained to greater spiritual perfection and, being formed in the contemplative spirit, go out in search of the lost lambs and bring them back to the fold by means of Christian instruction. I saw God’s will clearly and received strong assurances of His powerful protection. Jesus offered Himself as security for the work, and promised to supply by His infinite perfection, the lack on my part.”
This year we were privileged to have Cardinal Timothy Dolan celebrate Mass with us on that day, with Bishop Gerardo Colacicco and Rev. Stephen Ries as concelebrants.
by Parish Visitor Editor | Jan 10, 2021 | Newsletter
A happy and blessed new year 2021—all 365 days of it!
Advent and Christmas this year have been quite unusual for everyone, and here at Marycrest, our motherhouse, it was very unusual. COVID hit us! From the youngest to the oldest, most of the Sisters caught it, as well as most of our employees. In fact, our oldest Sister, Sr. Mary Elise, celebrated her 100th birthday while in quarantine! Everybody had ice cream in her honor, even the ones quarantined in their rooms. Three Sisters had to be hospitalized for COVID, some had it very mild (as I did), and some were in between.
The few Sisters who tested negative did much extra work, as well as decorating the Christmas tree and putting up other decorations. We were without Mass for two weeks; we didn’t want the priests to catch it. The Sisters who were up and around participated in the Mass by livestream, and the ones in quarantine were brought Holy Communion to their rooms.
Many friends brought us food, hand sanitizer, etc. One of our Bronx Sisters as well as our Pennsylvania Sisters were able to come to Marycrest to help out, and the Sisters of Life cared for night duty in our infirmary until our aides could return. (We helped the Sisters of Life in the beginning of their foundation, and now they were glad to return the favor.)
Those who had the virus ended their quarantine on Christmas morning, though a few Sisters still are a bit weak.
Our apostolate has, of course, been limited by the pandemic, but the Sisters are doing all they can by zoom, phone calls, and so on. Some religion classes are still being held in person, with masks and social distancing. Here is Sr. Alina Marie, of our Bronx convent, teaching Bible history through the Advent Jesse tree.
On January 4 our postulant became a novice. She received her habit and while veil, as well as our Constitutions and the Spiritual Directory of our foundress, and is now called Sister Debra Marie.
Recently the novitiate hosted a belated Epiphany party for all the Sisters, complete with the Three Kings and a marshmallow roast! It was great to have a fun evening together after so much sickness!
In the world, the pandemic continues. In this pandemic, people still need God. In fact, they need Him more than ever! And, God is still calling young men and women to give themselves to Him, to love and serve Him and His people.
The pandemic shouldn’t stop discernment. Discernment is not just making a decision, choosing what seems best for me, and so on; it’s trying to know what God wants for me.
This is not always easy. Many other things vie for our attention. We need prayer and silence to know what He is telling us. Before the Blessed Sacrament is the ideal place to pray, but you can pray anywhere where you can be quiet and undisturbed.
God will not fail you if you are sincerely trying to know His will. A prayer I found helpful in my own discernment was, “God give me the grace to know Your will, and the courage to do it!” These are two steps. Once we discern what God is showing us, we need courage to go ahead! And, who is the source of courage but God!
May God’s guidance and graces be with you! If you’d like to know more about the Parish Visitors, just contact me by email or phone. God bless you!
In Jesus,
Sister Dolores Marie
by Parish Visitor Editor | Jan 4, 2021 | Events
Postulant Debra Comins, from Cleveland, New York, today began her novitiate, and is now called Sister Debra Marie. Please pray with us for her and for all our Sisters, as well as for many more good, holy vocations to the Parish Visitors of Mary Immaculate.
by Parish Visitor Editor | Nov 21, 2020 | Newsletter
God is good! All the time! And we have so much to thank Him for, not only now but always! Here are some of the many, many things we Parish Visitors are grateful for:
Jesus in the tabernacle, all the time, and being able to praise Him daily.
The opportunity to spread God’s word.
The foundation of our community 100 years ago by Servant of God Mother Mary Teresa Tallon, and God’s call to us to love and serve Him here!
The opportunity to serve our Sisters.
The beauty of God’s creation.
Keeping safe in this pandemic.
The joys of community life.
And our Catholic faith, our health, our families, food every day, our education, living in a free country, and so much more!
May you have a grateful heart always!
If you haven’t yet seen the vocation videos done to commemorate the centenary of our community’s foundation, go to the vocation section of our website. There are other videos there as well, including vocation stories of some of the Sisters.
May God continue to guide you in your discernment of His will for your future. God bless you!
In Jesus,
Sr. Dolores Marie
by Parish Visitor Editor | Oct 5, 2020 | Newsletter
Every vocation has its own story. Each Sister could tell you how she happened to enter the convent. There are some similarities but some differences. When did Sister realize that God was calling her? How did she decide on the community? Were there difficulties to overcome? How did her family react?
Our website has a number of vocation stories, and now, in this 100th anniversary year of our foundation as a community, I’d like to tell you about our foundress’ vocation journey.
Mother Mary Teresa Tallon (who was then Julia) lived on a farm in upstate New York. Julia had one brother and three sisters; several other siblings had died in infancy and her father died when she was young.
She went to the local public school, where she and her younger sister Jane were the only Catholic students. This is the schoolhouse she and Jane walked to each day.
In her childhood Julia had never met a Sister, yet “at the age of 12, I knew just what I wanted. I wanted to be a religious. I wanted to give myself to God and work for souls for Him.”
Perhaps she had heard of Sisters from her grandmother, who lived with the family? When she told her mother of her desire, she was laughed at. “It’s only a childish idea.”
She took advantage of the opportunities available to her to spread the faith to others. When families from the city came at harvest time to help with the harvest, Julia gathered the children and informally instructed them in the faith. In addition, she helped arrange for her home to be a mission station for occasional Masses for those who could not get to the parish church three miles away.
Her desire to be a Sister didn’t go away, and when she was in her teens her mother realized that her daughter was serious about this. Despite being a churchgoing Catholic, her mother did not want her daughter to enter a convent. As with many mothers, “It’s fine for someone else’s daughter, but not for my daughter.”
Her mother decided to squelch the idea. After sending Julia for a dressmaking course, she sent her off with a new wardrobe to distant relatives in the city for a winter vacation, so that Julia would be exposed to young people, parties and dances. In addition, a daughter in that family had been in the convent a short while and left, thinking convent life was too hard, and Julia’s mother thought this would be the final blow to Julia’s dream.
God had other plans, however. When Julia arrived at the home she was visiting, the local parish was hosting a parish mission. Julia spent all her free time in church instead of at social events. She spoke with the mission priest, who encouraged her in her vocation.
She later wrote, “After two weeks I returned to my home, a failure in the eyes of my family. They never thought I would amount to much. I was too shy, they said.”
Julia, however, was more determined than ever to be a Sister. Her mother then let her know she was on her own for any travel expenses or other things she would need if she entered a convent. Of course Julia had no money.
After a little time passed, she gained permission from her mother to go to another city, with her younger sister Jane, boarding there and getting a job. The two girls found employment in a dressmaking factory, saving their scant earnings so Julia could become a Sister. Fortunately her sister Jane was “on her side.”
While in the city, Julia was able to attend daily Mass, which had not been possible at home, and she met the Sisters who worked in the area and did some volunteer work with them.
She turned to the parish priest for spiritual direction, and he encouraged her vocation. She also joined the Sodality of the Blessed Virgin. This is the only photo we have of Julia before her entrance to the convent, taken when she was received into the Sodality.
After the local parish priest visited her mother and explained her duty to allow her daughter to enter religious life, her mother reluctantly gave permission.
Julia still had to decide on an order. After considering the Sisters she had volunteered with, she applied to the Holy Cross Sisters, through the encouragement of her spiritual director, and was accepted. Her family was upset and in tears at her leaving, but she did not back down. She entered just before her 20th birthday, and she was a Holy Cross Sister for many years before God gave her the call to begin the Parish Visitors of Mary Immaculate.
We are so grateful for her YES to Him to enter religious life, and for her further YES to Him to found the Parish Visitors of Mary Immaculate 100 years ago!
God still calls! On October 1 we received a new postulant, Debbie Comins, from upstate New York, and on the same day postulant Sally Yu, from California, began her novitiate. Sally is now Sister Sylvia Marie. (Sylvia is her baptism name.) Here is a photo of Sister Sylvia Marie and one of her with Debbie, Sr. Mary Beata, the novice director, and Mother Maria Catherine.
May God bless you as you continue to discern His will for your life. Keep praying and trusting in Him and He will never fail you!
In Jesus,
Sister Dolores Marie
A happy and blessed new year 2021—all 365 days of it!
On January 4 our postulant became a novice. She received her habit and while veil, as well as our Constitutions and the Spiritual Directory of our foundress, and is now called Sister Debra Marie.
Postulant Debra Comins, from Cleveland, New York, today began her novitiate, and is now called Sister Debra Marie. Please pray with us for her and for all our Sisters, as well as for many more good, holy vocations to the Parish Visitors of Mary Immaculate.
In her childhood Julia had never met a Sister, yet “at the age of 12, I knew just what I wanted. I wanted to be a religious. I wanted to give myself to God and work for souls for Him.”
While in the city, Julia was able to attend daily Mass, which had not been possible at home, and she met the Sisters who worked in the area and did some volunteer work with them.
