Today is the beautiful Feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe. It is also the feast day of our prioress, Sister Maria Guadalupe, originally from Mexico City. Our two other Mexican Sisters made a special breakfast for us in honor of the Morena: Bunuelos and Champurrada (fried pastry and thick hot chocolate with cinnamon).
Today is the Feast of St. Francis Xavier, the great missionary to Asia. Together with St. Therese of Lisieux, he is co-patron of the missions. He devoted almost 3 years to preaching the Gospel to the people of southern India and Ceylon (today, Sri Lanka), converting and baptizing many. He built nearly 40 churches along the southwestern coast of India. While on his way to China, Francis Xavier died on an island on the southeastern coast of India.
The community was founded in 1927 by a young diocesan priest, Fr. Varghese Payapilly. \”There were few organized charitable services in Kerala to care for the poor and the destitute, aged and infirm, unwanted and downtrodden … abandoned in the streets or uncared for at home.\” Father Varghese, like Mother Teresa 20 years later, was deeply moved by Jesus\’ words, \”As you did it to one of the least of my brethren, you did it to me.\” (Mt 25:40). He believed God was calling him to found a religious community to care for all these people; providentially, the Archbishop introduced him to five young women who wanted to enter religious life to care for the poor. And so, the Congregation began in 1927. It was first called the \”Little Sisters of the Poor\”, but when they discovered there was already a group by that name, they changed theirs to the \”Sisters of the Destitute\”. He passed on to his spiritual daughters his mystical experience of contemplating the face of Jesus in the destitute and offering loving service to the poor. Unfortunately, while taking care of typhoid patients two years later, he contracted the disease and died on October 5, 1929. He left this world encouraging the young community to seek always God\’s will. The Congregation has spread throughout the world with more than 1,500 Sisters; and Father Varghese\’s cause for sanctity has been opened and he is officially a \”Servant of God\”. Most of their vocations have come from the state of Kerala which is very Christian, due perhaps to the presence of St. Francis Xavier and some say even, St. Thomas the Apostle.
The Sisters of the Destitute have two communities in the USA: Shreveport, LA (4 sisters) and Beaumont TX (3 sisters). So the two groups met half way in Lufkin TX! All the Sisters studying nursing, and currently help in Catholic Hospitals. Because there were 7 and we have only 1 small guest room, they spent the nights at the house of a friend; and the days and meals were here at the monastery. Our chaplain gave them a conference each day on the consecrated life. We were very impressed with their prayerfulness in chapel and walking up and down our main road.
Their last evening here was an opportunity for all of us to meet them and learn about their vocations and ministries. We all had a wonderful visit and will keep them in our prayers. Perhaps they\’ll be back for another retreat.
Today is Thanksgiving Day in the USA, and around the world where there are Americans. But we want to wish everyone, wherever you are, may you have a Blessed Day filled with Thanksgiving to God for all His blessings and graces.
Then at 5:00 it was time to go to Chapel for Vespers (Evening Prayer). After that we went to the Refectory (dining area) to pick up our meal and take it to the Community Room where we could eat and talk more freely. After supper, all the Sisters formed a circle to ask the Bishop questions and get to know him on a more personal basis.
Bishop Strickland\’s birthday was on Halloween, so we presented him with a number of gifts for himself or places in the diocese. For example, we had a beautifully carved statue of St. Peter made from a tree trunk in Vietnam, which he wanted to put in the Chapel of Sts. Peter and Paul in Tyler. Our evening with the Bishop concluded right on time at 8 pm, when he drove back to Tyler and we went to Chapel to pray for his safety and Compline (Night Prayer).
Our dear Sister Mary Anne died on Oct 15 at the age of 89. We were all gathered around her praying and singing the Salve Regina, a tradition going back to the early days of the Order. Sister entered the Dominican Monastery of the Blessed Sacrament in Detroit MI in 1944, and 6-months later came now to found our Monastery of the Infant Jesus in the pineywoods of deep East Texas. She was just a white-veiled novice. Sister loved beauty and was a talented artist, craftsman and seamstress, making vestments and habits. She also served as a Novice Directress and Chantress.
Sister Mary Anne had a very deep devotion to God the Father throughout the years and always kept a drawing of God the Father on her wall. In addition to her consecration to Jesus, Sister had a devotion to the Carmelite mystic, St. Teresa of Jesus (of Avila). She constantly read her books, underlining passages until they were almost in technicolor. Thus, it was most fitting that Sister Mary Anne returned to her loving and merciful God on the Feast of St. Teresa, October 15. May Sister rest in peace.
We also had the official induction of the new officers of our local Dominican Laity Chapter of St. Thomas Aquinas. So it was a very special celebration, indeed.
Dominican Life on Lotus Lane 