Pictures.

I have just discovered that there are now a few pictures of us on Phatmass – put on by a good friend (God’s love) so you can now get a glimpse of us – Jennifer already has, i hadn’t seen them until she commented here! Thankyou Jennifer. It’s very odd don’t you think, ( at least for me) that our/my internal image is never the same as the real,external one? I always think i look completely different and get quite a shock. It’s also very strange for me because looking around Chapel etc i can’t see any difference in the community – i still see one novice and a load of black veils as i always have done – of course i know there are now two novices but as i am the second things still look the same. I said this to Sr Mary Magdalen and she said she knows what i mean, because she has never seen a novice here – she has until now been ‘the’ novice – so it is strange for her .For the professed it is completely different and they are enjoying seeing two white veils. I guess we will have to keep praying for more. Looking at our group photo is also quite strange for me; i am still so new that i haven’t yet stepped into the image i see in the picture or in the mirror, i just feel it, which of course the image doesn’t.

I hope all this doesn’t sound too strange and that you get the general idea at least – and enjoy the pics, we will have some soon too… God bless, Sr Marie-Therese.

Therese – a ‘Brummie’ cup of tea…

I am a ‘Brummie’ born and bred and traditionally we drink our tea very strong and sweet – ‘strong enough to stand a spoon up in’ , as my grand dad used to say.

This sums up why I chose to take the name Therese ( Marie surely being self-explanatory).

Therese is always known for her sweetness and childlikeness – and this really put me off for a long time – but on her feast day i felt a niggle to have another look – maybe a nudge from her – and i discovered another side to her – her strength. The strength and tenacity, that enabled her to give herself totally to God in love, through her sufferrings. Her simplicity that saw that everything comes from love – that without love there is nothing and life is meaningless, that with love everything and everyone has value however small or seemingly insignificant.

I have been told that my spirituality is one of simplicity too – now with Therese as my patron,guide and intercessor i hope i can grow in strength and love. I will try to follow the ‘little way’ fo simplicity and love in this hidden life i have been called to. In fact – within every Benedictine house there is a ‘family’ charism too – i think perhaps ours may be simplicity as Mother Abbess often tells me – ‘God loves you, never forget it, it’s all that really matters – prayer and love.

As i said – a Brummie cup of tea’ – strong, sweet, simple to make and very refreshing. Have a cup or two and suddenly life seems a bit brighter – strange but true.Pax Sr Marie-Therese.

NB – a Brummie – a person from Birmingham.

New Novice.

Hello bloggers, i’m back. I had a weeks retreat which i spent quietly walking, reading and praying more. It was relaxing and peaceful at times and also very challenging – i don’t think the devil likes things like Clothings – so i also had some nightmares and doubts and was quite panicky on the day itself but it all turned out lovely – thanks to all your prayers i think.

I was Clothed at 8.15 am on Friday 25th January in our Chapter room with Mother Abbess presiding, i was at a prayer stool in the middle and the community were around us. Mother said ‘sister, what do you ask?’  and i replied – ‘the mercy of God, the grace to share your monastic life and to begin my novitiate in this monastery of Our Lady of Good Hope’. Mother gave an address, then i knelt at her feet to receive the Rule – ‘behold the law under which you wish to serve, if you can observe it, enter, if you cannot, freely depart’ and i replied -’ i do not trust in my own strength, but with the mercy of God, i desire and hope to keep this Rule in its entirety.                                                                                    

   This was followed by a prayer -’ look kindly Lord, upon our sister Marie-Therese as she enters this monastery to serve you in company with us by following the Rule of St Benedict, Keep her in your care and protect her in all the trials she may encounter. Give her the desire to offer her life to you with a firm resolution to embrace your will. In the fight against temptation be her ally and grant that she may find in you the reward promised to those who gain the victory. We ask this through Christ our Lord, Amen.  

 I then went forward to receive the habit – ‘recieve the habit as a sign that you are now enrolled in the school of the Lord’s service’ –  then  i went out with our novice mistress to put it on. When i returned i was given a lit candle – ‘may Christ be a lamp for your steps and a light for your path’, received a blessing from our Chaplain, then exchanged the peace with everyone. We ended with this prayer – ‘ O God, we believe that for those who renounce the world you prepare a dwelling place in heaven. Look kindly upon our sister Marie-Therese . May she be supported by the love of the community and be united with us in observing the monastic rule. May she be moderate, simple and serene in all her ways realising more deeply day by day that her vocation is an unmerited gift of your grace. We ask this through Christ our Lord, Amen.

Sr Mary Magdalen and i led the procession into chapel for Mass and i took up the offertory with Mother Abbess during Mass.

It was all very simple and beautiful, i was so emotional i had problems speaking at all -it just meant so much to me and i feel so priviledged to have been called here and now to be in my canonical year as a novice of this monastery. It is really very awesome in the true sense of the word and i am very happy.

So, now i am fully habited and wear a black tunic and scapular, white cap, wimple, fillet, under and over veils.

As Friday turned out to be the day our diocese prayed for vocations here we kept a day of exposition and prayer and celebrated with our festive tea on Saturday instead. This worked out really well for me as unexpectedly 2 friends i hadn’t seen for some time turned up to surprise me so we spent a lot of time together which wouldnt’ ordinarily have been possible – God worked it all for me !

     On Saturday i was allowed to choose dessert after lunch – lemon meringue pie, and the goodies at recreation – a selection of danish pastries, both baked by our sisters and very delicious. I passed around my cards and gifts for the sisters to see and enjoyed it a lot.

Now in my habit i do feel i have taken a big step forward and i certainly look like i belong here now. Three masses were said for me so i was definitely held  before God. thankyou to all concerned – our parish priest and congregation sent a gift of a yellow and white rose bush called The Pilgrim and apparently will smell like tea  and myrrh – this is going into our inner court to climb up the wall.

So, there you go, my first post as a novice, i will try to put more on this week and sort out the pictures. Thankyou for your prayers and support, with peace and blessings, Sr Marie-Therese ( i can’t type that so well yet )

Clothing Retreat.

Well, as the cartoon says -’that’s all folks’ – this is my last post to you as a postulant, in the next few hours I am going into retreat to prepare for my clothing and will next write to you as a novice, Sr ???. Please keep reading and leaving your wonderful comments and pray for me over this next week.

This morning i had my final habit fitting and for the first time tried everything on together – it was a wonderful experience and I cant’ wait to be able to keep it on – i am now like a child looking forward to Christmas, though nervous about the ceremony itself. Pax Adele.

Blog space

Thanks very much for your responses to my plea for help yesterday, it’s great to see that there are ways around this one other than buying space. As i’m not technically minded i need to read these over several times then try some of them out to see what works then let you know how it goes and ask for more if i need it, hopefully the problem will soon be sorted – though it may now have to be after the 25th as i go into retreat on Thursday. Pax Adele.

Festivities.

In the absence of space for pictures i’ll have to tell you what has been happening instead. We had a very quiet new years eve and didn’t stay up until midnight but went to bed as usual and woke into the new year. For afternoon recreation some of us put on a short version of the panto Cinderella, – in our great British tradition – which went down well and we  had lots of laughs.

Epiphany – at Epiphany recreation some of dressed up for fun and we all did party peices. There was a range of poems, stories, readings and Sr Cordis sang a Nigerian song for us and danced – it was very beautiful. In the evening we got the results of some fun puzzles we had been doing over the weeks and collected prizes – toiletries or sweets. The winning team from the treasure hunt chose prizes, followed by the losing team so no one lost out. The next day, the big clear up began as we took down all our Christmas decorations. There was a lot of mess and now the whole place looks very bare.

Amidst all this mess and busyiness … the long awaited blackcurrants arrived! But they had to wait. We made them comfortable in the court – a sort of inner garden/garth – and left them until the next day. Then Mother Prioress, Sr Davina and i began digging and planting. We managed 20 of them – there are 40 – then did the rest over the next few days. Now they are all in and we are very pleased to see them. It gives us a great sense of achievement to see all these young bushes in and settling well. Over these few weeks we will be mulching and protecting them. As these will take a year or two to fruit we now have to weed and prune the existing bushes to make them last for a little longer. They are pensioners in the fruit world as they are at least 20 years old and are still fruiting – so we do need our young ones to settle and begin.

It is also very strange in Office at the moment as our antiphons and responsories have almost completely gone back to ‘normal’ and the special Advent and Christmas Office books have been packed away again. And so begins another year..

Go well with God, and please, please, please, help us with our space problem. Thanks, Adele.

Space on blog.

Well bloggers, it seems i can’t upload any more pictures on here at the moment as we have run out of space. I’ve read the stuff about buying space and understand it not. Please help. Do we need to buy space or are there other ways of putting pictures on that are easy to do and understand?

If buying space is the only option, how much do we need and is it worth it? I would have to ask Mother Abbess too so…i don’t know how that one would go down. You can see my predicament so some comments would really be appreciated here. Thanks, Adele.

Blog stats

Just a quick one bloggers, i will be putting more pictures on later today if i can, for now i thought i would share our blog stats with you – in just under 6 months we have reached 20,132 which i think is pretty good going for a small monastery in the middle of an English village. Thankyou for your support and prayers and please keep blogging with us.Pax, Adele.

Noviceship recreation and tea.

        

Christmas pictures.

   Christmas Crib in Chapel            Christmas day recreation.

A few pictures…preparing for Christmas.

  Putting up decorations.   Sr Davina picking greenery.   Noviceship advent wreath