Category Archives: Benedictine monastery

Stickwork, part 2

This is week two of three of the sculpture project at Saint John’s University. I went back on Friday and helped with the second step of the project, which was the stripping of the saplings. Three days of gathering willow … Continue reading

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Stickwork

One of the highlights of our trip in March to New York was a walk through the Brooklyn Botanical Garden, where we came across a large-scale sculpture made of twigs. I like this kind of nature-based art in the style … Continue reading

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Sacrament Weekend

It’s been a great weekend of liturgies– after Lent, the Easter season opens up with First Communions and Confirmations and Weddings to celebrate the ever-deepening commitment to life. Saturday we went to our nephew Ryan’s First Communion at Annunciation Church in … Continue reading

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Word on the Secret Report

I’ve written here a few times about the Vatican’s investigations (i.e., harassment) of women religious in the U.S. By far the most intimidating has been the apostolic visitation of all the congregations of women religious in the United States. When … Continue reading

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Watercress Soup

Today Brother Walter from Saint John’s Abbey came by the retreat center where I work to give me a bag of late watercress. He knows I love it– it’s the very first vegetable of the season, growing in the shallows … Continue reading

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Good Friday Planting

I was bonding with my Irish roots today as I planted the first potatoes. I was also bonding with my German Catholic neighbors, from whom I learned it’s traditional to plant potatoes on Good Friday. Although Maurice and Rita Palmersheim … Continue reading

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Poetry and Tea at the Fishhouse

MaryJude at the fishhouse Brother Paul Jasmer has had a fishhouse on Lake Sagatagan at Saint John’s Abbey and University since the mid-1980s. This is the second one, light enough to get on and off the lake and heavy enough … Continue reading

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Two Good Books about Nuns

In my search for contemporary novels about American nuns, I’ve found only two. Both of them are fantastic books I’d recommend to anyone. They both share a strong message about religious life, as well as some other key similarities. The two novels are Mariette in … Continue reading

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All Saints Sans Priest

The All Saints Day Vigil Prayer Service at the Sisters’ cemetery on 10/31/11 Yesterday, the Feast of All Saints, was a holy day of obligation according to the Roman Catholic Church. For me, it was a good excuse to go to the 5 p.m. … Continue reading

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House of Prayer

In mid-September I started a new job. I moved from being the communications director for the Sisters of the Order of Saint Benedict, the largest community of Benedictine women in the United States, to the part-time administrator of a 13-room, 17-bed retreat … Continue reading

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