May 2020
Our Blessed Mother, whom we all love so dearly, gets very special honor in May, with spring flowers, May crownings, and other devotions.
At our motherhouse we had a May crowning on Mothers’ Day. It was planned to be outdoors at our grotto of Our Lady of Lourdes, but the very chilly weather (one inch of snow the day before!) moved the crowning indoors.
Our oldest Sister, Sr. Mary Elise, who will be 100 years old this year, was the crown bearer, while our youngest postulant, Sally, was the crowner. Each Sister placed a flower before Our Lady. We then completed the ceremony with hymns and our Parish Visitor consecration to Mary.
Our juniorate Sisters (those in temporary vows) had planned a marshmallow roast especially for the older Sisters for Mothers’ Day. Again, the chilly weather moved it indoors, and we roasted the marshmallows on the stove! Changes of plans are a standing joke with us!
We were also privileged this year to begin the month of Mary with the reconsecration to Mary of the United States and Canada, by the bishops of all the dioceses. It had to be done individually by each diocese because of the pandemic. What a beautiful tribute to Our Lady!.
During this pandemic our apostolate has to change temporarily, of course. Some of the Sisters have been able to keep in touch with the students in their religion classes by phone calls, email, postal mail, or sometimes zoom. First Communions and Confirmations are unfortunately delayed.
A number of the Sisters at Marycrest phoned all the parishioners of one of the large local parishes, asking the people how they were doing. These calls were very much appreciated.
At the same parish the Sisters in formation helped with bringing the statue of Our Lady to the homes of the delayed First Communion children. Keeping social distance, the children—many in their First Communion clothing—joined the priest and Sisters in a decade of the rosary and a hymn in front of their homes.
Hopefully it won’t be too long before we can safely resume parish visitations, in the footsteps of the Good Shepherd seeking those who need the Lord, and instructing children and others in the faith, in person. Meanwhile, we do all we can, and our prayers and sacrifices go where we cannot!
As our Parish Visitor Constitutions reminds us, Mary, especially in her Visitation to Elizabeth, is a model for our contemplative-missionary vocation. The Sisters are to walk in spirit with Mary, contemplating the greatness of the Lord and imitating her example of charity and zeal.
We have been having livestreamed Masses, and at one of the homilies the priest shared this:
God is more powerful than Wifi. Stay connected to Him!
The signal is always strong.
It’s always reliable, it’s always on, and it’s free!
The password is L O V E.
God bless you and guide you in your discernment of His will!
In Jesus,
Sr. Dolores Marie
Several Sisters went on a pilgrimage to the NYC sites of Mother Mary Teresa Tallon, our foundress (when it was still safe to travel in NYC). We saw the convent on West 71st Street where we were founded in 1920, went to Mass at Blessed Sacrament Church on West 71st Street where the early Sisters went daily, walked to the area where our foundress received, in 1908, the fullness of the inspiration to begin our community, and went to St. Paul the Apostle Church, where she would have gone many times before we were founded.
Several of our Sisters participated in the March for Life in Washington, D.C. Two of our juniorate Sisters traveled by bus from Marycrest, and other Sisters went from Pennsylvania. They joined the many, many thousands of people all hoping and praying for a change in our country’s legislation. Pictured are two of our Pennsylvania Sisters, Sr. Mary Luchia and Sr. Jhoan Marie. Let us hope that before long the law will change and this march will no longer be necessary.