We Sisters in Bay Ridge are excited as we pray for all the youth of our Diocese attending the World Youth Day with our Bishops and Holy Father in Rio.
Here are some of the young people being interviewed:
http://netny.net/currents/video/wyd-pilgrims-ready-for-morning-catechesis-72513/
The Sisters of the Visitation Monastery of Brooklyn welcome you to a monastic retreat. We invite you into our garden oasis
where you may find God in nature (yes, even in NYC!),
to our choir with its monastic ambience and liturgical chant,
and to the silent refectory where you may learn about Salesian spirituality through our daily reading at table.
Our Founder St. Francis de Sales was a firm believer in the making of spiritual retreats.
He explained, “ The saints retreated to solitary places, so that, with worldly cares left behind, they could more freely and ardently give themselves up to heavenly love.
Souls that long to love God in real earnest, close their minds to talk of worldly matters and use their understanding to meditate with greater intensity on what is divine; they concentrate all their striving in one single aim which is to love God and Him alone.” 1.
To facilitate the accessibility of an environment conducive to solitary retreats by the laity, St. Francis de Sales had approved by the Holy See a unique outreach to laity from within the enclosure of the Visitation Monasteries he founded.
The Constitutions of the Order of the Visitation contain this invitational clause: By virtue of the Order’s own special privilege and in conformity with the initial intentions of the Founder, women and young girls desirous of making a spiritual retreat are allowed to do so within the enclosure.”2
1.Treatise on the Love of God, Book XII, Chapter 3, St Francis de Sales
2.Constitutions of the Order of the Visitation, 59L
The testimony of those women who have made retreats with us speaks for itself. One retreatant said, ” When I make a retreat here I feel a blanket of peace”. The Lord’s presence permeates the Monastery.
Another said that her favorite kind of retreat was a silent retreat.
But the silence is not empty, it is full- of the Lord’s presence.
We offer both private retreats- for those wanting to pray alone and with the Sisters, and discernment retreats, if you are thinking about the possibility of becoming a Visitation nun.
If you are interested in either one, please call us at the Monastery to make arrangements.*
The Lord is waiting for you!
* First time retreatants are asked to send a letter of reference prior to the retreat.
Our Novitiate Sisters are being guided by a new Formation team.
Both a Directress and an Assistant Directress of Formation has been appointed!
The change is related to the establishment of the St. Jane de Chantal Gallery Community at the Georgetown Visitation Monastery. www.visitationgallerycommunity.org
This summer, classes for the Novices and Temporary Professed included the study of the spiritual writings of our Founders, St. Francis de Sales and St. Jane de Chantal, the sharing of Scripture, understanding and practice of the Liturgy of the Hours and a deepening of devotion to the Sacred Heart of Jesus.
Sisterly unity within the Novitiate and the development of a peace-filled interior life is a Spirit-led goal for all of us!
Sister Mary gave her “yes.”
We have another Novice! Sister Mary gave her “yes” like Our Blessed Mother, and oh, how the graces flowed…such happiness comes from within and it was the Holy Spirit overflowing in the hearts and on the faces of each Sister in our Sacred Heart Chapel as our Mother Mary Pauline placed the white veil of a novice upon Sister Mary’s bowed head on May 1st, the Feast of Saint Joseph the Worker. The novitiate is work for the body and the soul and it marks the beginning of a canonical year for Sister Mary during which she will be studying our constitutions and writings of Our Holy Founders in order to absorb the spirit and charism of our Order of the Visitation of Holy Mary. This will be a time of learning for Sister Mary!
Learning what, some will ask? Sister Mary, with God’s grace, will learn many things, not the least of which will be a learning curve of self-knowledge. We must know Jesus Christ intimately and allow His Light of Resurrection to penetrate our very souls…but in order to allow this, we must first come to a deeper awareness of our littleness in His Greatness. We are at first blinded by His bursting Light and the awareness of His Presence. During this time, we pray, pray, and pray…and learn to trust Him more, more, and more. Learning to trust a loving God, who wants our greatest happiness requires a full surrender in faith, hope, and love. The more we open this door to Him, the door of surrender, the more He will fill us with His love…as the Psalmist wrote: Open to me the gates of holiness… Open wide ancient doors… It’s no surprise that the tomb was “opened” and the Risen Lord, in God’s Glory, appeared. A similar resurrection can and does happen in our own lives. If only we accept the grace God offers, He alone can open our heart and mind to His own desires. Jesus Christ, Crucified, is a Teacher of Love…and Jesus Christ, Risen, is a Teacher of Hope. I am grateful to be His student, and just like Sister Mary, I still have alot to learn.
God puts joy in our daily lives, let us ask Him to bless everyone and everything, especially our newest Novice, Sister Mary with all the graces that she needs to continue to grow in holiness. May Our Risen Lord, Jesus Christ, be at her side every day and may Our Beautiful Blessed Mother Mary remain very near to her. May our Founders, Saint Francis de Sales and Saint Jane de Chantal inspire her! Thanksgiving to God for the goodness that He bestows upon our community…God be praised!
AS I WALKED TO MY FOURTH GRADE RELIGION CLASS LAST WEEK, I THOUGHT, I HOPE THIS DEMONSTRATION HELPS GET THE POINT ACROSS ABOUT HOW SERIOUS SIN IS IN A WAY THEY’LL BE ABLE TO UNDERSTAND AND WILL REMEMBER. I WALKED INTO THE CLASSROOM, LIKE ALWAYS, READY TO TEACH AND ENTERTAIN AT THE SAME TIME. IN THESE TIMES, OUR CULTURE DEMANDS A LOT OF SENSORY INPUT TO MAKE THINGS INTERESTING. I NEEDN ‘T HAVE WORRIED, THEY WERE ALL EYES AND EARS THE WHOLE TIME. MY DEMO CONSISTED OF A HALF GLASS OF WATER TO REPRESENT OUR CLEAN CONSCIENCE, A DROP OF RED FOOD COLORING TO REPRESENT SIN, SOME BLEACH AND BAKING SODA TO STAND FOR THE SACRAMENT OF RECONCILIATION WHICH IS DONE WITH A SINCERE HEART. I DIDN’ T DO ANY EXPLAINING ABOUT WHAT WAS GOING TO HAPPEN UNTIL WE BEGAN. WE TALKED ABOUT THE CLEAR GLASS OF WATER AND HOW YOU CAN DRINK IT BECAUSE IT IS SO PURE. THEN I POURED IN JUST A DROP OF THE RED DYE AND IT QUICKLY TURNED THE WATER RED. THIS REPRESENTS OUR SOUL WHEN WE SIN, I TOLD THEM. THEY GASPED AT THAT. WHAT CAN WE DO ABOUT THIS WAS THE QUESTION I POSED TO THEM. AFTER A DISCUSSION ABOUT VENIAL AND MORTAL SIN, WE AGREED THAT WHEN WE COMMIT SERIOUS SIN, WE NEED TO GO TO CONFESSION. NEXT I ADDED A FEW DROPS OF BLEACH, BUT THIS DID NOT COMPLETELY TURN THE WATER BACK TO ITS ORIGINAL CLEAR STATE. I EXPLAINED THAT THERE ARE ALSO TEMPORAL OR EARTHLY CONSEQUENCES FOR OUR SINS AND THAT WE NEED TO MAKE REPARATION TO WHOMEVER WE HAVE HURT BY SINNING. THEN I ADDED SOME BAKING SODA TO THE MIXTURE, WHICH HELPED BUT DID NOT COMPLETELY DO THE JOB. WE TALKED ABOUT HOW WHEN WE BREAK THE TRUST OF SOMEONE, ESPECIALLY THOSE WHOM WE LOVE, IT TAKES TIME AND WORK TO REESTABLISH THAT TRUST. IT USUALLY DOESN ‘T HAPPEN OVER NIGHT. THIS FINALLY LED TO A BRIEF DISCUSSION ABOUT PURGATORY. I ASKED THEM IF THEY HAD EVER BEEN BLINDED BY A LIGHT SO BRIGHT, THAT THEY HAD TO SHIELD THEIR EYES. ALL HANDS WENT UP. IF JESUS WALKED INTO THIS ROOM RIGHT NOW WE WOULD ALL BE BLINDED BY THE AWESOME LIGHT OF HIS NEVER ENDING PERSONAL LOVE FOR EVERY SINGLE ONE OF US. IF WE CHOOSE NOT TO LOVE AND OBEY IN THIS LIFE THERE IS A PLACE FOR US WHERE WE CAN GET ALL CLEANED UP AND READY TO MEET JESUS AND LIVE WITH HIM FOREVER. HE LOVES US THAT MUCH THAT HE GIVES US MANY, MANY CHANCES TO SHOW OUR LOVE FOR HIM BY ACTS OF OBEDIENCE, KINDNESS AND CARING FOR OTHERS. THAT IS WHY WE HAVE THE SACRAMENTS. BUT EVEN AFTER ALL THAT, WE STILL HAVE A CHANCE TO BE WITH HIM FOREVER BECAUSE OF THE GRACE OF PURGATORY. IN CONCLUSION, I POINTED OUT THAT WE HAVE THE SACRAMENTS OF THE EUCHARIST, CONFESSION, ANOINTING OF THE SICK AND PRAYER, THE EXAMPLES OF OTHER GOOD PEOPLE TO HELP US ALONG OUR WAY TO MEET JESUS AND LIVE WITH HIM FOREVER IN HEAVEN. HOWEVER, WE ARE THE ONLY ONES WHO CAN DECIDE TO LOVE HIM WITH ALL OUR HEARTS AND TO KEEP STRIVING TO PUT OUR LOVE INTO ACTION. THIS WAS A POWERFUL LESSON FOR ALL OF US. GOD BE PRAISED!
The Diocese of Brooklyn is preparing its parish members to renew devotion to the Sacred Heart of Jesus so that a diocesan-wide Consecration to the Sacred Heart of Jesus can take place in June 2013. The Sacred Heart of Jesus will be enthroned in homes and in hearts throughout the diocese. All are welcome to devote their heart to Our Lord…more details to come as the month of June approaches.
In the meantime, all are welcome to join the Sisters of the Visitation on the 1st Friday of each month at 7:30pm in our Sacred Heart Chapel located at 8902 Ridge Blvd, Brooklyn.
The Holy Spirit is working on this renewal of devotion and is sparking a fire of devotion in many other places and countries around the world. Pope Benedict XVI writes ” The essential nucleus of Christianity is expressed in the Heart of Jesus; in Christ…the newness of the Gospel was revealed and given to us: the Love that saves us and already makes us live in God’s eternity. Even our shortcomings, our limitations, and our weaknesses must lead us back to the Heart of Jesus. His divine Heart calls to our hearts, inviting us to come out of ourselves, to abandon our human certainties to trust in Him and, following His example, to make of ourselves a gift of love without reserve.”
Stop reading. Only for a moment! Look, really look, at a picture of Jesus’ Sacred Heart…then read again, slowly, the Pope’s words.
His divine Heart does indeed call to our hearts. I have come to realize that every person has that moment of intimate calling, the call of Heart-to-heart, when Jesus’ Own Sacred Heart has reached out to our own poor, weak, lonely, wounded heart…and we respond!
Yes, we must reach that place of being poor in spirit to allow His Spirit to rush in.
Yes, we must set aside all of our own will to become weak, that He may take over and show His Almighty power. Yes, we must be lonely enough within, like realizing we have four walls of our newfound freedom (to borrow Thomas Merton’s thought) which are not walls at all but a spiritual freedom that hovers near, echoing the call to Love. Yes, we must cry out to Our Lord and tell Him we are wounded too, right beside You, Lord, and we feel Your pain and sorrow as You gently pull aside the garments to reveal Your Own Wounded Sacred Heart to us…still beating a pulse of unending Love for us. He calls us to join Him. How do we respond in that intimate moment? What do we say to Your invitation to make our hearts one with Yours, O Lord? To abandon our human certainties and to trust in You while making of ourselves a gift of love without reserve? If anyone is thinking, gee, the Pope’s writing asks alot…not really…it’s Jesus Who asks! It’s exactly what we are called to do. Abandon what we “know”. Let go, and let God. God sent Jesus to us, for us. God allowed His Sacred Heart to become wounded right before our eyes on the Cross. How do we respond to that much Love? If we were seeing the Crucifixion up close, like the Good Thief, then would we respond just like Dismas did? Jesus’ Sacred Heart, so full of Love for us, simply waits for our heart to speak to His with love.
Let us take time to offer ourselves to the Sacred Heart of Jesus, now, in a moment of intimate calling…
He is calling each of us to come closer. To abandon what we already know, and to trust in Him as He offers us the very Heart of Love…His Own Sacred Heart, aflame with Love for us. It is a heart that beat first within Mary, His Blessed Mother. May she remain very near to us as we adore Him and abandon ourselves to Him.
**FRIDAY FEBRUARY 1ST, 2013 MASS AT 730pm WITH BISHOP NICHOLAS DI MARZIO
Our New Postulant
At the Postulancy Ceremony of Sister Mary Louise on the anniversary of our Foundation Day, September 24th, our Mother Mary Pauline spoke of perseverance before gently placing the postulant’s veil upon Sister’s head. Many emotions, not the least of which was joy, rushed through my mind and seemed reflected in the face of our new dear Sister. The journey that God maps out for each of us is unique and surely is one that puts us “to the test” in our faith, our hope, and our love of Christ. Our journey toward God begins in our heart…the more we hand our hearts over to Him, the more he changes our life into what he designed it to be. Amen to that! Sister Mary Louise has made an offering to Our Lord this day, a gift of her life, pleasing in His sight as His own design would have it.
As I observed Sr. Mary Louise bend her head slightly to allow the veil to be placed, the first act of humility before the whole community (knowing it was the same veil that I too wore during my postulancy…), I could not help but pray immediately for continued perseverance for her and for God’s grace to fill her soul. May she be blessed in this community by drawing strength from God. He calls us to love and serve God and each other…and He waits for our “yes” like Our Lady. After all, Our Blessed Mother Mary is the perfect example of perseverance and our role model here at the Order of the Visitation of Holy Mary.
Our monastery wall in the choir says “Nothing can disturb a soul who wants what God wants”. May this be a daily reminder to Sr. Mary Louise as she humbly resolves a “yes” within her heart each and every day. Nothing can disturb a soul who wants what God wants…His will for us is an invitation to joy and is extended to all those who discern God’s calling and wish to please Him. God be praised!
Our Newest Novice!
On the Solemnity of the Assumption of Our Lady, our Postulant, Sr. Synthia, began her Novitiate to follow Jesus in the spirit and charism of our Holy Founders. During the Ceremony, she received our Holy Habit, Veil and Constitutions ~ all of which will help support her on the path of becoming more like Jesus, under the gentle guidance of St. Francis de Sales, St. Jane de Chantal, and the Blessed Virgin Mary. Sister Ana Maria, our newly first-professed sister, commented that receiving the white Veil, “which is such a special and beautiful part of our Holy Habit,” meant so much to her. And she recalled that at that moment she prayed earnestly to Jesus and Mary to help her “Live Jesus” and her vocation more deeply and profoundly. And our Holy Habit and Veil can help us to do just that! Clothing ourselves in our Veil every day can remind us to clothe ourselves with the “mind of Christ … the helmet of salvation” ~ asking Our Lady to help direct all of our thoughts to Jesus in order that they may be transformed into His thoughts. Our Habit can become the “breastplate of integrity” with which we ask Our Lord to free our hearts from all that is not of Him and to grant us His love, gentleness, and stillness of heart. As we put on our Visitation Medal, we can kiss it and ask our Blessed Mother to help us bring Jesus to everyone with whom we will ‘visit’ with our acts of charity during the day. Thus, under our Blessed Mother’s tender care and the assistance of our Holy Founders, all of our daily actions can become supernaturalized …… and, with our gazes continually turning towards our Beloved, can remind us of our ultimate destiny: our heavenly homeland.
A Joyful Gift to the Lord
On July 26th, the Feast of Saints Joachim and Anne, our Sister Ana Maria professed her First Vows within the celebration of the Holy Mass. As the Celebrant reminded us, through these three vows of poverty, chastity and obedience ~ and her life as a contemplative, cloistered nun ~ Sister Ana Maria will be everywhere without ever leaving the Monastery. Staying in Brooklyn, she will be helping the entire world through her prayers and sacrifices; reaching out to the suffering, the poor, the lonely, and the sick. In living her holy vows, she gives everything to God, Who has given everything to her, and she commits herself to walking the royal road of the Evangelical Counsels ~ and to living the Visitandine charism of profound humility before God and great gentleness toward our neighbor. During the Profession Ceremony, Sr. Ana Maria received the black veil of a Professed Sister, showing that she is totally given to Christ Our Lord and dedicated to the service of the Church; she received the Cross of our Order as a seal on her heart so that she may be crucified to the world with Jesus, her Spouse; she received our Holy Constitutions, which will nourish her spirit and heart; and she received her new name, Sister Ana Maria. Infinite Love has given Himself to Sister Ana Maria; and in professing her Vows, she has responded to Him, humbly and with gratitude, and has allowed Him to make a unique, total, and exclusive claim on her heart. Rejoice with us as we rejoice with our Triune God, our Blessed Mother, our holy founders, Saint Francis de Sales and Saint Jane de Chantal, and all the Heavenly Hosts in this gift of her life to Our Lord!
Our Newest Solemnly Professed Sister
On May 13th, the Feast of Our Lady of Fatima and Mother’s Day, Sister Gail Trinité professed her Solemn vows in the hands of our Superior in our Sacred Heart Chapel. We would like to share a reflection from Sr. Synthia, our Postulant, as she witnessed Sister Gail Trinité’s gift of her whole self to God and to His Church:
“At the solemn profession of Sister Gail Trinité, the Priest Homilist said, ‘Every time we’re humble, that is the martyrdom of love.’ From the space of my little pew, I saw a martyrdom of love. And I see it every day in Sister Gail Trinité’s actions with others. I am only a Postulant here, so I am learning from those around me every single day, and I have so much to learn! Daily I watch Sister Gail Trinité respond with a resounding yes that mirrors Our Lady’s yes. The Solemn vows that Sister Gail spoke repeatedly included ‘Yes, I am so resolved’ in giving herself, her life, over to God in loving, humble, gentle service. Nowhere in the vows was it spoken of as easy. Nowhere in the vows was it spoken of exactly what she would do for God and neighbor, unending service to God and to others in docility to the Holy Spirit, to live for God alone, persevering in prayer, humble work, and willing penance…in faithful obedience to her Superiors and loving devotion to all her Sisters. Yes, I am so resolved. As I watched her proclaim her rock-solid faith to Our Lord, I was drawn to her humility, that she would next lay prostrate, humbling herself before God and before everyone present. It brought to mind the Pieta…Christ laying in His Blessed Mother’s arms…letting God’s Will become all. Sister Gail Trinité laid down her life…letting God’s Will become all. The late Father John A. Hardon, S.J. wrote of the Pieta and said ‘Mary, bending herself humbly over that Sacred Heart, freshly wounded, that provides a divine contact of overflowing love for God and for man. Mary receives the strength to say her Magnificat again, an act which puts the crown of perfection on her virtues.’ I pray that Sister Gail Trinité will forever receive her strength from God and forever give her ‘Yes, I am so resolved’ to Him, that His glory may shine in the crown of her own perfection of virtues. She prayed for all of the Sisters while under the pall…even there, face down and prostrate on the floor, she was taking care of others first.”