Events

The 100th anniversary of our community was celebrated on the Feast of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary, with a beautiful Mass at which Cardinal Timothy Dolan was the main celebrant. (The original plan was to have a big Mass at St. Patrick’s Cathedral in New York City, but the Cardinal felt it was not prudent during this pandemic.)

Priests joining the Cardinal at Mass were Fr. Stephen Reis, the cardinal’s secretary, Fr. David Rider, Fr. Thomas Byrnes, Fr. Chris Argano, Fr. Paul Sullivan, Fr. Jack Arlotta, and Fr. John Wilson.

Before Mass the Cardinal prayed briefly at the sarcophagus of Servant of God Mother Mary Teresa Tallon. During His homily he spoke of how closely our foundress patterned her life after the Blessed Virgin, her total obedience in following God’s will to found our community, and her emphasis on combining contemplative prayer with missionary outreach and catechetics.

We look forward to the future years with confidence in God, and we praise Him for all the blessings of the past 100 years.

August 15-16, 2020
Because of the pandemic, our 100th anniversary celebration Mass, which was to be at St. Patrick’s Cathedral on August 15, is cancelled.  The August 16 celebration also will not be held this year.  Hopefully next year the pandemic will be over and we can celebrate this milestone properly!   Despite the cancellations, please join with us in praising and thanking God for our foundress, Servant of God Mother Mary Teresa Tallon, and for our community’s foundation on August 15, 1920.  Let us also continue to pray for the speedy end of the pandemic.

July 2 used to be the feast of the Visitation and the day when all the Parish Visitors of Mary Immaculate were received into the novitiate or made their first or perpetual profession of vows. Today we would have been celebrating with Sister Celine Marie Chinasa, for her Silver Jubilee, but she was unable to come from Nigeria because of the pandemic. We prayed for her at Morning Prayer and remembered her at Mass.

This picture was taken when she was at Marycrest previously.

We also celebrated the jubilees of all who had their first or final vows on July 2 in past years. May God bless all of them, Sr. Celine Marie, and all Parish Visitors of Mary Immaculate!

Act of Spiritual Communion

My Jesus, I believe that You are in the Blessed Sacrament. I love You above all things, and I long for You in my soul. Since I cannot receive You sacramentally, come at least spiritually into my heart.

As though You have already come, I embrace You and unite myself entirely to You; never permit me to be separated from You.

Spiritual Communion in Times of Trial

Come, my crucified Jesus, my Beloved, teach me to suffer with You; teach me to suffer for You.

Blessed be God; blessed be Jesus in the Most Holy Sacrament of the altar! I thank You, abide with me.

An Act of Spiritual Communion, under any pious formula, is enriched with a partial indulgence.

These have been most unusual and difficult days.  God has allowed all this to happen to our world.  Let’s make the most of this opportunity to love God and neighbor more!

Recall that many people in the world don’t have frequent access to the Mass, perhaps not more than a few times a year.

Others don’t even know, or don’t care, about the Mass or about Easter, or about Jesus.  Pray much for them!

Pray, too, for the sick, their families, the nurses and doctors, the ambulance drivers, the police, the delivery persons, and so on.

Families need our prayers, too, that this time of enforced togetherness will be a blessing for them rather than a trial.

Those who are elderly and alone need our prayers and concern; even a friendly phone call will help their loneliness.

Pray that those whose First Communions, confirmations, ordinations, weddings, or reception into the Church, are delayed, will not lose heart but will use this time well.

You can think of many other things, too, to pray about and reflect on at this time.

Thank God, too, for all the good things:  

Food every day, when many have so little.

The internet and television, to help us spiritually.

Families and loved ones who care about us.

Our health and strength.

And most of all, that we know Jesus, and that He died and rose for us! For me!  He lives forever!  Alleluia!

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 71^st Street where we were founded in 1920, went to Mass at Blessed Sacrament Church on West 71^st 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.

Two young women, Mary Beth Bracy of upstate New York and Sally Yu of California, arrived to begin their postulancy as Parish Visitors of Mary Immaculate.  We wish them blessed perseverance and much happiness as they take this new step in following Jesus.

Sr. Maria Dorathy Okoro professed her perpetual vows in Nigeria, amidst great rejoicing by the Sisters and by her family and friends.  Unfortunately we don’t have a photo of her in her crown of final vows.   May God grant her much happiness and holiness and apostolic fruitfulness as a Parish Visitor of Mary Immaculate!

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.

The year 2020 is the one hundredth anniversary of the Parish Visitors of Mary Immaculate!  Founded on August 15, 2020 in New York City by Mother Mary Teresa Tallon, we currently serve God and His people in the United States, Philippines, and Nigeria.

Please thank God along with us for all His graces and blessings during these one hundred years!