laudare, benedicere, praedicare TO PRAISE, TO BLESS, TO PREACH
May 2021
M A Y 2021 Bl. Emily Bicchieri founded the first group of active Dominican Sisters in 1258.
St. Vincent Ferrer was a widely renowned preacher in 14th-c. Spain.
St. Antoninus was a friar and bishop who loved the poor.
Bl. Hyacinthe Cormier was Master of the Order from 1904-1916.
The translation of St. Dominic's relics in 1233 was accompanied by miracles that proved his sanctity.
1 / St. Joseph the Worker 2 / FIFTH SUNDAY OF EASTER 3 / Sts. Philip and James, Apostles 4 / Bl. Emily Bicchieri 5 / St. Vincent Ferrer 6/ 7/ 8 / Patronage of the Blessed Virgin Mary over the Order of Preachers 9 / SIXTH SUNDAY OF EASTER 10 / St. Anontinus; St. Damien Joseph de Veuster 11 / 12 / Sts. Nereus and Achilleus; St. Pancras 13 / ASCENSION OF THE LORD 14 / St. Matthias, Apostle 15 / St. Isidore the Farmer 16 / SEVENTH SUNDAY OF EASTER* 17 / 18 / St. John I, Pope and Martyr 19 / 20 / St. Bernardine of Siena 21 / Bl. Hyacinthe-Marie Cormier; Sts. Christopher Magallanes and Companions 22 / St. Rita of Cascia 23 / PENTECOST SUNDAY 24 / Mary, Mother of the Church *In most dioceses in the United 25 / Translation of Our Holy Father St. Dominic States, the Ascension is observed on 26 / St. Philip Neri the Seventh Sunday of Easter. 27 / St. Augustine of Canterbury 28 / Celebrations from the 29 / Dominican calendar 30 / TRINITY SUNDAY appear in italics. 31 / Feast of the Visitation
The Four Pillars of
Dominican Life Prayer
Community
Study
Apostolate p a r t ii
Preaching Beyond the Classroom BY A DOMINICAN SISTER OF ST. CECILIA
S
hortly after beginning His public ministry, Jesus slipped out in the early morning to pray. Whilepray. we can While only imagine wewhat this intimate conversation between
Father and Son might have been like, we gain some clues from what happened next: “When [Simon and his companions] found him, they said to him, “Everyone is searching for you.” He answered, “Let us go on to the neighboring towns, so that I may proclaim the message there also; for that is what I came out to do”” (Mark 1: 37-39). The harvest is plentiful but the laborers are few! And the Heart of the Savior burns with love for those sheep who have not yet heard His voice. As His brides, we are invited to enter into His conversation with the Father, and to allow the Holy Spirit to set our hearts on fire with this same love for all mankind. That which we hear in the silence of prayer and study, we share in the grace-filled ministry of preaching.
Teaching in the classroom is the primary setting for our participation in the preaching mission of Jesus and the Church. However, the Dominican Order has been marked from the beginning by a remarkable flexibility, allowing its members to respond to the particular needs of the local Church in creative ways. From Catherine of Siena’s letter-writing to Martin de Porres’ ministry to those who knocked on the friary door, any and every opportunity to share the Word of God is seized. Our own sisters demonstrated this flexibility in their response to the cholera and yellow fever epidemics that plagued the postCivil War South. Nursing victims back to health or to a happy death, even to the point of laying down their own lives, was their preaching of the dignity of the human person and the immortality of the soul.
Any and every opportunity to share the Word of God is seized. Today, the sisters participate in a range of apostolic opportunities outside the classroom. Aware that parents are the primary faithformators for their children, we make retreats and workshops for families a high priority. Accompanying young adults on their faith journey, especially through university chaplaincies, is another privileged experience of growing together in truth and love. And holiday programs such as vacation bible school allow us to meet and serve communities where we are not able to have a year-round presence.
In particular, our sisters serving outside the USA have been blessed with the grace of working with many different people in settings as varied as the Catechesis of the Good Shepherd atrium, parish sacramental programs, and vocation discernment groups. The blessing of sharing the fruits of our contemplation, in response to the needs of the Church, constantly draws each sister closer to the Heart of the Divine Bridegroom. “And His delight is in the sons of men” (Proverbs 8:31). Part of my delight in our non-classroom apostolic opportunities stems from feeling myself so closely united with the early Dominican friars. Whether in Paris in the thirteenth century, or in Sydney in the twentyfirst, walking across a university campus in habit always turns heads and attracts smiles. And while jumping in a car for a road-trip isn't quite the same as walking across the fields of France, there is still an excitement in setting out for the sake of the Gospel, never knowing who you will bump into or what conversations you might have at gas stations along the way.
out for the sake of the Gospel, never knowing who you will bump into or what conversations you might have at gas stations along the way. I have the privilege of serving in the very same university chaplaincy where I myself first encountered Dominican Sisters. Although it is surreal to be "on the other side," it is a beautiful experience of the economy of mercy. The students marvel to know that I was, not that long ago, in their shoes, and I am grateful to be a witness to the marvels of God's grace, which can work even in unlikely vessels!
ABOVE / Detail from a stained glass window in the Chapel of St. Cecilia. After only a year of forming the first Dominicans in prayer and study, St. Dominic sent his first friars out to the major cities of Europe on August 15, 1217 to preach the Gospel and live a religious life modeled on that of Jesus Christ and the Apostles.
WE ARE ALL BEGGARS BEFORE GOD, as Saint Augustine reminds us. None of us, no matter how skilled a preacher or teacher, can convert souls on our own merits. Only through prayer and sacrifice can we hope to draw down graces for those whom we serve. When our sisters retire from teaching in the classroom, they continue to participate in our active apostolate by spending time each weekday morning in Eucharistic adoration, interceding for the sisters who are still laboring in the vineyard.
MISSION SPOTLIGHT
Saint Patrick School McEWEN, TN (L to R): Sister Veronica Marie, Sister Anna Kolbe, Sister Joan Marie, Sister Bernadette Marie, and Sister Maria Faustina
S OUR LITURGICAL LIFE
Rosary Procession According to tradition, the Rosary was first given to St. Dominic by Our Lady as a spiritual weapon to combat the heresies that so threatened the Church. The Dominican Order throughout the centuries has honored this tradition by praying, spreading devotion to the Most Holy Rosary, and having Rosary processions. Once a month, the sisters pray the Rosary together aloud while processing to an image of Our Lady. The procession is accompanied by hymns to the Queen of the Rosary, including the Ave Maris Stella (one of St. Dominic's favorites) and To You do We Come, a musical setting of an ancient prayer: To you do we come, seeking mercy, O Mother of Christ our God. Do not turn away nor despise our prayer, but be pleased to hear this plea. Entreat your Son our God to save our souls.
From one of our finally professed sisters
Sr. Rose Dominic Daily, O. P. I grew up in Kokomo, Indiana with my parents and older brother, who is now a priest in the Diocese of Lafayette-in-Indiana. I first recognized a desire in my heart to give up everything to follow the Lord when I was about 9 or 10 years old. As I grew older, through attending Catholic schools, going to Eucharistic Adoration, and meeting different religious sisters, this desire kept growing. I realized more and more that the Lord was calling me to give my life to Him as a religious, as this idea filled my heart with peace and joy. I met our Sisters at our mission in Carmel, Indiana and spent time praying with them and getting to know them. I attended a vocation retreat at our Motherhouse during my senior year in high school and entered in the August after I graduated. Photo: Fr. Lawrence Lew, O.P.
We are made for
love. Last summer I made my final profession of vows in our community. I have come to recognize that my vocation is truly a gift of the Lord’s love and mercy and I am so grateful for it. As human persons, created in the image and likeness of God, we are made for love and communion, to make a complete gift of self either to another person or to the Lord. Making this complete gift of self, for all my life, has given me a tremendous amount of peace, security, and joy!
Holy Week & Easter at the motherhouse
TOP / Three novices prepare for Mass. MIDDLE LEFT / Father Chrismer blesses the palms for the Mass of Passion Sunday. LEFT / The Blessed Sacrament is brought to the altar of repose in St. Dominic's Oratory on Holy Thursday night. ABOVE RIGHT / A sister venerates the Cross on Good Friday.
nashvilledominican.org
TOP / The sisters gather outside to begin the Liturgy of Light of the Easter Vigil. MIDDLE LEFT / Sisters prepare lamb cakes for Easter Sunday. MIDDLE RIGHT / The organ, which is not played at all during the Triduum, makes a triumphant return in the Easter liturgy. RIGHT / Reunited for the first time since the lockdown in March 2020, sisters visit with one another on Easter Sunday morning.
nashvilledominican.org
Creator Spirit, all divine, Come visit every soul of Thine,
And fill with Thy celestial flame
The hearts which Thou Thyself didst frame.
nashvilledominican.org