Monastics On A Journey...

"In the name of the Farmer..."

2012-02-02T12:08:00.005-05:00

Today, the Feast of the Presentation, the universal Church celebrates “consecrated life.” [It will be explicitly named in prayer this Sunday.] Implicit is the lifting up of religious life in its many forms: apostolic, cloistered, monastic [which for us means contemplation and action]. I am usually eager to wave the vocation “flag” on this day and link the offering of so many lives to GOD with the offering of Jesus at the temple. Perhaps it is age, wisdom or just a more earthy sense of the mystery of vocation, but I am someplace else today. I am thinking that GOD calls every woman and man to fullness of life in Christ. By baptism our journey is inextricably linked to his. Though dormant throughout much of life, the grace of our baptism is always with us - one reason I believe infant baptism to be so important. This grace lies fallow like a seed in the cold ground awaiting the warmth of the sun. Then, as we encounter the living GOD somewhere in our journey – in human love, in the depths of grief or the beauty of Earth – the seed splits open and we are on our way. [One lovely thing about seeds is that they know exactly what to do after that. Grace knows, too. Grace is the love that carries us forward as we learn to listen to the Word.] Once the process kicks in, it remains a matter of adequate water and the passing of time. We are the ones who have to water the seed of faith in us. We need to embrace Scripture in some way, make time to be with GOD as we do with other important relationships, and we need to attach our solitary selves to a community of believers. It’s either very simple or, at times, a serious struggle to live the God-life. But because we have consecrated our lives to GOD, GOD will show us the way. So today, when I should be coming out with catchy vocation slogans, I am focused on the great mystery of GOD’s call in every life – the beauty and wonder of it. And, I am praying for every person who has not yet felt the sun’s rays through the soil of human life. The sun is always there. And GOD, the farmer, will not rest until we all begin to sprout shoots and bear good fruit. The harvest is too important. It is the very reign of GOD in every human heart.

Blessings and love to you all…
- Sister Vicki

Living now what is to come...

2012-01-22T13:23:00.004-05:00

The second reading today caught my heart – my imagination. St. Paul is writing to the people of Corinth but his passion around the Second Coming feels very specific to our monastic life.

I tell you, brothers and sisters, the time is running out.
From now on, let those having wives act as not having them,
those weeping as not weeping,
those rejoicing as not rejoicing,
those buying as not owning,
those using the world as not using it fully.
For the world in its present form is passing away.

We who follow the Rule of Benedict do believe that the world is “passing away.” God’s reign, God’s kingdom is breaking through. Because we want to live ready for his coming, we don't take a marriage partner. We embrace celibate loving – love that is for all. Celibacy frees us to focus on the “bigger picture” of salvation and point to the love that is more than any human expression in time. Because we believe that Christ comes now - in each day, in each moment, in each breath – we practice eternal peace. We accept what is – the joy, the pain, the beauty, wonder and mystery of the human heart – and we trust that it all belongs in our personal or collective story. Because our real treasure is the love of Christ, we hold everything here in common. No thing must preoccupy us – tempt us from the singular joy of believing we are precious.

We love the world in all its fractured, terrible beauty but we recognize that it is not our true home. We have set our sights on Zion – the New Jerusalem – the beauty of God’s face. Until we get there, we keep on – together. We gather to pray, to eat, and to share the everyday sweetness of life lived in the Presence. We live aware of grace - how God’s love shapes us gently but firmly into something more wonderful than the sum of our parts. We live with urgency – Christ is here among us. We can let the world, as we have each known it, "pass away." No longer defined by what we did there, we delight in what we are becoming here – the Body of Christ. Hands, hearts, eyes of love for the world – we pray to be a sign that God is near, God cares, God comes and God is making all things new.

Blessing and love to you all...

- Sister Vicki

Your Kingdom coming...

2012-01-12T14:26:00.007-05:00

There are moments here when the reign of God seems to burst in – shake us from the stupor of “to do” lists, worry and dis-ease and remind us that the Kingdom is, in fact, among us. Those moments are priceless. They make life really real – even for just a few moments. We had such an in-breaking here on Sunday afternoon when a gentle woman went from “stranger” to “sister”. I felt it. I saw it in the faces of my sisters gathered in our circle. I heard it in the joyful voices parting in harmony.

As I sat next to our newest member, I had the sense that this great step in her faith journey was allowing something to be perceived in ours – a taste of resurrection, a dawning of some new grace. Perhaps, as one sister said, days like this remind us all of why we came to the monastery and why we remain. I believe that to be true because days like this one confront us with the reality of God’s love for us. It’s literally right in our faces as we open the door to welcome the seeker into our midst. Maybe, it is this love – unending, enveloping and certain – that we feel when we gain a new sister. The risen Christ becomes especially tangible in the welcome of a novice - incarnate. In this presence there is deep is joy, lasting peace. This presence is the love that flows between us and among us – especially in the unbridled hope that wraps the gift of a new vocation. I felt it – felt something stirring in our hearts – what Benedict calls, “the inexpressible delight of love (RB Prologue, 49).” This is a taste of heaven here – our glimpse of what waits for us eternally - this same joy, this mysterious peace. Yes, the reign of God is begun among us. It is here – now – in the threshold places, in the beginning and end of things, in the love and the loss felt with equal measure. It is breaking through all that distracts us from loving or intends to be the true measure of our usefulness. Listen…learn…love. It is really that simple. Dear sister, child of God, welcome to your life with us in Christ.

[Read more about Sister Mary Frances at http://www.osbva.org/.]

Blessings and love to you all...

- Sister Vicki

Now, Lord...

2011-12-30T08:07:00.001-05:00

Old Simeon made me laugh this morning. The Feast of the Holy Family tells the story of the Presentation of Jesus at the Temple. There, Simeon and Anna see what sages have long foretold – the Christ of God. It is a moment of recognition, joy and surrender. Now, Master, you may let your servant go in peace, according to your word, for my eyes have seen your salvation, which you prepared in sight of all the peoples, a light of revelation to the Gentiles, and glory for your people Israel. Maybe, it’s the translation [NABRE] but it sounds a bit bossy to me. Simeon reminds me of myself. “Now, Lord, I’m ready to ______blank______.” “Now, Lord, could you _____blank____?” What makes Simeon so lovable is his utter conviction that his life had a purpose. God gently revealed a truth to him – as only God can do. Simeon knew that he would see the messiah. So, when the moment came he believed his last breath would be imminent. The narrative never tells us if the faithful old man goes “in peace.” It’s not really important, is it? Simeon is so close to God that he knows salvation is coming. He knows it like I know my birthday or the color of my mother’s eyes. Simeon understands that this knowledge is not for him but for people of faith who have waited centuries for Love to come and visit us. Everything we know about God’s love is meant to be shared. And, like old Simeon, our lives have purpose in the coming of the kingdom. If salvation history could be views as a jig-saw puzzle, most of us would be blue sky or indiscriminate border pieces. Even if we are not the beautiful pieces that make up the tableau – the Mary or the Joseph – we have a role to play in the completion of God’s plan. Each Christian life fits in there somewhere. Each human being brought to the waters of baptism carries a message for the world – a message that only we can deliver in our choices, our loving, where we give our time and energy. Like Simeon we know that Christ is coming. At our last breath – when he comes for us – we will know Simeon’s deep joy.

Blessings and love to you all…
- Sister Vicki

A poem...

2011-12-27T08:41:00.003-05:00

Christmas
It’s a season not a day.

From the first star
to Jordan’s bank
a message:

Peace.
Justice.
Love.

Be at peace…
because God so loved the world.

Do justice…
because all flesh is holy.

Love…
because nothing else matters.

T-minus 8 hours!

2011-12-24T15:45:00.009-05:00

We celebrate Midnight Mass - at midnight. Fewer and fewer parishes do. I love it. I love the absolute darkness, the stars shining bright and the beautiful candles that line the driveway! We are nearly ready. We've been decorating, cleaning and polishing for three days. If it weren't for some very good friends, we'd be lost. The scrambling is all part of the excitement that's building in our house. The change from purple and pink to greens, red ribbons and a host of angels takes energy and imagination. Praise God, we've got a lot of both! At 5:00 PM we will pray EPI of the Nativity, then bless our tree and exchange gifts. [Each sister has one present under the tree!] Then, as darkness falls, we prepare our hearts for the midnight liturgy. Know that all of our friends, oblates and benefactors will be remembered this night and throughout the Christmas season.

Blessings and love to you all...

- Sister Vicki

Believe...

2011-12-22T09:34:00.004-05:00

I love the Macy’s Thanksgiving Parade. I saw it this past November in its entirety for the first time in over 10 years. [I am usually in the monastery kitchen assisting with the meal preparations.] I was struck by several things: ten years in a monastery changes one’s ability to identify cartoon floats; the performers still lip-sync but better than they used to; the appearance of Santa at the end of the parade still signals the beginning of wish lists, letters to the North Pole and VERY good behavior! Yet, as all the color and sound took center stage on 33rd Street, my eyes were drawn to a single word ablaze on Mr. Macy’s building: believe. A little research soon yielded a deeper story. Macy’s “Believe” Campaign raises funds for the Make-A-Wish Foundation – the non-profit that makes dreams come true for seriously ill children. How beautiful! While "corporate America" is under fire for selfishness and greed, it is a sign of a hope that does not disappoint. Truly, to whom much has been given, much will be expected. When companies use their resources to lighten the burden of suffering in our world, they must be praised.

Today is December 22nd. The "O Antiphons" - the liturgical countdown from the 17th to the Eve - are nearly finished. We are just three days from the Feast of the Nativity. It is a feast of faith that the promise fulfilled two thousand years ago in Bethlehem, is a sign of hope yet unfulfilled. Christ is coming. He is coming back for all of us and he will take us into the heart of God. As we wrap pretty packages and feel our hearts expand through these holy days, may we all believe.

Believe...
…that something new will be born in us this Christmas
…that even death cannot take spouses, friends, dear children from our hearts
…that this feast is a promise of a greater gift – a moment beyond understanding, but accessible now in faith

Believe...
…that the Word still becomes flesh in us
...that the love we feel at Christmas is but a fraction of the love that awaits us

Blessings and love to you and a Merry Christmas!
- Sister Vicki

Incredible but true...

2011-12-05T10:38:00.005-05:00

In today’s gospel the followers of Jesus are witness to a cure. A paralytic is brought before him on a mat. The obvious faith of those involved moves Jesus. He forgives the man’s sins by his word which scandalizes the rabbinic authorities. His response is an outright miracle. "I say to you, rise, pick up your stretcher, and go home." Those who witness this mysterious healing are stunned by what they have beheld. “We have seen incredible things this day."

I did a dumb thing yesterday afternoon. [Trust me, this will connect.] I took a cell phone picture while I was driving. The sunset over the city of Richmond was so beautiful, I wanted to capture it. It was a winter/Advent sunset – bright pink, dusty blue and purple. It was truly incredible. I was, in my own defense, off the Interstate and on a quiet back road not far from our convent - still, not something I want to make a habit of doing. I’m certain incredible sunsets happen all the time and I just miss them. Or I see them, without really seeing. When my heart is attuned to beauty I know it is God’s Word – a whisper of Presence and faithful love. The funny thing is that I don’t know how to get a photo from the phone to the computer. But, I can send a picture to a friend. Sometimes it’s a photo of Lily – one of our monastery dogs. She just delights me to no end! Once, I sent a picture of a car we were considering to the prioress so she could say “yes” or “no”. Yesterday’s urge was the very human desire to share something beautiful with another human being. When we are moved by something, we want to give it away. So, last evening, I sent a little text message to a friend before I went to sleep – with the picture. Of course, I am not equating a sunset with a miraculous healing. I am suggesting that God is always the source of wonders – large and small – in our lives. God heals us with beauty, comforts us with the rhythmic changing of the season and loves us through our friends, families and, in some lives, a monastic community. We have seen incredible things – individually and communally – and it is our baptismal responsibility to share the Good News in whatever form it comes to us. Like those first disciples we must tell the story of God’s love for the world – a Love that became flesh for our blessing. Yes, it is incredible - incredible but true. It is our faith.

Blessings and love to you all…
- Sister Vicki

As it should be...

2011-11-29T09:22:00.004-05:00

There are things I just wonder about on a regular basis– life on other planets, what puppies really think, what really might be in a hot dog. There are other things of which I am certain – love is the way, God is good, dying is the beginning. In the latter list I would add something from today’s reading. Isaiah paints us a picture of the world after Messiah’s coming. We may hear it as Israel’s preparation for the Incarnation. But we are in a new age now. We cannot neglect the empty tomb as we reflect on the humble manger. Isaiah asks us now to dream not of the birth but of the return. This Scripture affirms something I believe with all my heart. On that day…there shall be no harm or ruin on all my holy mountain; for the earth shall be filled with knowledge of the LORD, as water covers the sea [Isaiah 11:1, 9]. When Christ comes again everything will be as it should be – as it was intended from the beginning. Not only has our relationship to the Creator been fully restored by his selfless sacrifice but all creation will know the harmony of Triune love. This is the same passage with the famous metaphor of the beasts – the wolf shall be a guest of the lamb, and the leopard shall lie down with the kid, etc. Imagine! What if it read something like this?

People of every faith will worship God together,
Israel and Palestine will share the “Promised Land”;
terrorists will lay down their explosives,
and the widow and orphan will forgive the unforgiveable.

“Yours” and “mine” will disappear,
And there will be only “ours”;
No one will go to sleep hungry
for feeding one another will replace the need for sleep.

Death will be forgotten unless we tell the story,
Bodies will be made whole and shine like the sun;
Words will be unnecessary,
For the Word will teach us to speak with the heart alone.

This place of pain and longing will become the garden God intended,
The Christ will reign with love and justice;
And through Him, with Him, in Him, in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
All glory and honor shall be yours, Almighty God, forever and ever!

Yes, this someday is for certain. This is the promise of Advent. We wait with joyful longing for the One who has taken our flesh into the heart of God and will return for us – for all creation. May we live this day and every day certain of our destiny in Christ. May we bear the sufferings of this time, these bodies with courage and trust. As Christ is, so we shall be.

Advent joy and love to you all…
- Sister Vicki

"Come down quickly"...

2011-11-15T07:32:00.003-05:00

My brother, Andrew, has three sisters. If he wanted playmates he had to deal with the feminine principle. We had a little playhouse in our backyard that my grandfather built for us. It looked just like our house in miniature. It was one room with a porch, windows and a shingled room. We played inside and on top thanks to a sturdy tree. It was the epicenter of outdoor play until one day when a carpenter came and built a tree house. I think my Dad figured he needed something more boyish to play in. After the tree house was finished, my brother began to spend more time up in the air than on the ground. He spent less and less time with me and more time with the neighborhood boys. All of a sudden I had “cooties” and the tree house was a girl-free zone. As you might imagine I didn’t like that very much. I remember climbing the ladder, slowly because I was afraid of heights. I made it to the trap door and knocked hoping my brother would suddenly remember how much fun I was to play with. His response was immediate and decisive. The trap door opened and a bucket of acorns was dumped on my head. I held on for dear life and then returned to earth in tears. As soon as I told my Dad what the boys had done, he came down the hill to the tree house and barked, “Andrew Ix, get down out of that tree and apologize to your sister!” He did, of course. It didn’t change things. I still wasn’t welcome in his clubhouse, but he stopped trying to kill me. My Dad made my little brother accountable for his actions and gave him the opportunity to make things right between us.

I think the Lord, Jesus did the same thing for Zacchaeus. He called him down from his safe place in the treetops and offered him the grace to change. There are times in the spiritual life when we get stuck in some tree house of our own creation. We stay up there...comforted by the safety of monastic routine. We stay up there…so we can focus on what others are doing. We stay up there…because we fear the work of change that awaits us on the ground.

Yes, Jesus calls each of us to “come down.” The Lord wants to enter the house of our heart and do what the divine physician does best. He wants to heal us. Jesus makes it clear here that he’s especially interested in hopeful sinners who are willing to do the work of GOD. Our patron, Saint Benedict, has shaped that very desire into a beautiful way of life. May we each have the courage to “come down quickly” when the WORD calls us by name and embrace the challenge we find there. “Salvation has already come to this house.” We need only accept it.

Blessings and love to you all...

- Sister Vicki

They are at peace...

2011-11-02T08:36:00.001-04:00

The Feast of All Souls is an opportunity to pray for all who have gone before us. Do they need our prayers? The Church teaches that if we’re not ready to see God face-to-face, the prayers of the faithful can help us. Do we really understand what that means? Not really. No one has come back from the dead except the Lord Jesus and his message was peace, eternal life, freedom from fear. So…what to do on this solemn day? I suggest we make a visit – not to grave or columbarium – but a visit with them in our hearts. When we image the face of a loved one and remember the love we shared, the love returns to us in prayer. Though beyond our sight, they come very close because they miss us, too. Should we worry about the state of their souls? I suppose we could but real faith in God means trusting the promises expressed in today’s readings. Jesus says, “I will not reject anyone who comes to me [John 6].” The psalmist prays, “even though I walk in the dark valley I fear no evil; for you are at my side [Psalm 23].” And in Wisdom we hear, “they seemed to the foolish to be dead; and their passing away was thought and affliction and their going forth from us utter destruction. But they are in peace [Wisdom 3].”

When my Mother died in 1990, it was faith that saved me. What Jesus said from the cross to the Good Thief kept me from despair. “This day you will be with me in Paradise [Luke 24].” “This day,” Jesus said - not tomorrow or next week or fifty years from now. When I pray for my Mother and all my beloved dead, I pray as if they are in the fullness of God’s embrace. It feels right. It feels true. They are at peace.

Blessings and love to you all…
- Sister Vicki

Such a "mother hen"...

2011-10-27T08:52:00.002-04:00

Today’s gospel offers us a very interesting image of JESUS. As he describes his love for Jerusalem he says, “I yearned to gather your children together as a hen gathers her brood under her wings.” The gospel is a sad one – filled with ominous undertones and the personal exasperation of the greatest prophet to enter the City of David. Yet, as he contemplates his destination, JESUS offers us yet another testimony of the depth of his love. This image comforts me.

I’m from Northern New Jersey so I know as much about hens as I do about the surface of the moon! But, I had a mother. This experience is all I need to make sense of his love for us. If we were to make a list of every moment of mother-love, it might speak of the time before we had words – when being held and fed and comforted changed something in us, made us feel safe and worthy of love. The list might mention the way a mother gives the best of everything to her child – takes the burnt piece of toast or uses the money in the cookie jar for a doll instead of the dress she was saving for.

This hen-GOD has big wings under which we are kept safe. Most of us have had the experience of "the arm" – mother’s arm holding us back when the brakes were suddenly applied. Unconscious, instinctual and determined – a mother’s love knows no end. We can be 40, 50, 60 and still be someone’s little girl or baby boy. Imagine GOD loving us this way…and more! Remember, JESUS uses the natural world and all we understand to get the message through that we are loved beyond our deepest imaginings. GOD is always more. The gospel also highlights our freedom. JESUS longed to love the Chosen in this way but they “were not willing.” GOD still needs our “yes”, needs our permission to love us to death. Often, it is fear that stands in our way – a wall we build around our hearts because we can’t really believe that we are loveable. The spiritual life is about getting over ourselves and letting this love into our lives. All the wounds, the disappointments can be healed. Earthly mothers are always limited in their loving. Some even fail to provide the basic love a child needs to thrive. If that is the case we must find new mothers – women who will love us "as is" and put a Band-Aid on our hearts. Do not abandon or desert me, my savior, my God. If my parents rejected me, still God would take me in. (Psalm 27:9b-100). And, thanks to the Lord, JESUS, we have this beautiful image to contemplate. In our prayer we can try to imagine the warmth and safety JESUS offers to all people. God will cover you like a nesting bird. God’s wings will shelter you. (Psalm 91:4).

Blessings and love to you all...

- Sister Vicki

Tea, anyone?

2011-10-11T10:07:00.002-04:00

In the monastery we have a “House Meeting” once a month. It’s a forum for bringing up the nitty-gritty things inherent in community life: cleaning the lint out of the dryer, leaving the seats back in the cars for ease of entry, turning the glasses over after they’ve air-dried, etc. Once, long ago, I remember the tea cup discussion. Apparently, tea stains and the dishwasher can’t quite do the job. We were asked – “we” being the tea-drinking nuns – to wipe out the mugs before sending them to the dish room. Easy enough to do, I thought. Today’s gospel gives us a similar reminder. The inside of the cup – the human soul – takes more work than the outside. It’s easy to look holy. It is far more difficult to actually be holy. But a little extra effort goes a long way in the spiritual life. One of the nice things about monastic life is the common goal – we are all trying to clean the inside of the cup.

Blessings and love to you all…
- Sister Vicki

News from the Monastery...

2011-10-06T10:11:00.002-04:00

The Benedictine Sisters of Virginia are happy to announce...

The "Bristow Bulletin" has gone paperless! Sister Joanna Burley, OSB, one of our novices, is the new editor. You'll notice more color photos, expanded formats and more articles. http://www.osbva.org/Index_Images/Bulletin_Sept_2011_(5).pdf Subsequent issues will be available on the homepage of our website, www.osbva.org or by e-mail subscription. Enjoy!

We have a cricket in the Chapel...

2011-09-22T09:46:00.001-04:00

It was hiding under the cart of GATHER hymnals behind our Chapel. Now, I think the little guy is somewhere in the body of the church. The cricket sings in the morning darkness before Morning Prayer and even during. I like the sound. It doesn’t disturb me or diminish the silence we keep. It reminds me that we are vigiling – waiting for the dawn to come – and listening deeply for the voice of God. It’s funny. If I saw the cricket, I’d probably gasp or suppress the instinct to smoosh him. Yet, as he adds his song to ours, I feel him a brother – part of God’s good creation. Although 6AM prayer is not physically easy, it is spiritually energizing. I find myself coming to wakefulness in the midst of a circle of faithful, loving women and we are all tuning in to the Presence together. The little one chirping in the hollows reminds me that all creation is waking to a new dawn – a new moment of grace. Such is the gift of life for all who wait in stillness. If we wait, God will come.

Blessings and love to you all…
- Sister Vicki

Galileo would love this!

2011-09-14T09:53:00.003-04:00

Theology and science are not “strange bedfellows”. The God who created all things reveals the perfection and genius of creation through science. As our knowledge expands over the centuries, we discover new marvels wrought “in the beginning” – the work of the Word and Spirit at play making something wonderful from utter chaos. Today we celebrate the Exaltation of the Cross. The wood of humiliation became a standard of victory over sin and death. Christ’s obedient surrender to the violence and politics of his day opened a pathway for all who believe in his name. What does this have to do with science? This cross we adore and glory in is not only ours to embrace externally. It is actually a pattern found within the chemistry of the human body. “Laminins are major proteins - an important and biologically active part of the basal lamina, influencing cell differentiation, migration, adhesion as well as phenotype and survival [Wikipedia].” These proteins, when viewed microscopically, reveal the familiar shape. Many think it a simple coincidence. I’m not big on coincidences. We are God’s – body and soul. If we can see it now because of science, then it must be time to see it and bend a knee to the cosmic Christ who is first and last, within and beyond.

“Lord by your cross and resurrection you have set us free. You are the Savior of the world.”
Blessings and love to you all…
- Sister Vicki

The BIG Weekend...

2011-09-05T14:15:00.008-04:00

[below] Sisters Joanna and Shirley
[right] Sister Andrea

[below] Sister Pat and her director, Sister Doris, receive a blessing. [right] Sister Pat signs her profession document before laying it upon the altar.

We’ve just concluded a three-day celebration of monastic life. Labor Day weekend is the time we have all our formation ceremonies and get individually commissioned for a new year of ministry to God’s people. This weekend contained three separate liturgical rites, three receptions and the blessing of ministries. In the blur of moving furniture, setting tables, tuning instruments, ironing our Sunday best and cooking for 60, we did for our newest members what was done for each of as we moved deeper into the monastic life. Here’s the good news:

We have three novices! Sister Joanna Burley, OSB, hails from Florida. A musician and educator, Joanna has been giving her gifts graciously in her postulancy. Sister Shirley Arce, OSB, moved to Bristow from California. She is an artist and serves the community as webmaster. Sister Andrea Westkamp, OSB, was born in Germany. A citizen of the United States for over a decade, Sister Andrea spent over twenty years of her life as a missionary Franciscan. Now, she embraces a new path as a Benedictine Sister of Virginia. We are blessed to call these three women our sisters.

Sister Pat Novak, OSB, made her First Monastic Profession at Evening Prayer Sunday night. This three-fold promise of obedience, stability and fidelity shape the Benedictine life. Sister Pat’s profession is for three years with the hope that she will make perpetual profession – a permanent commitment to this community and to the Benedictine search for God.
This morning – this Labor Day morning – our prioress, Sister Cecilia, blessed each of us for the individual works to which we have been assigned. A beautiful prayer card with our “jobs” for the year came with a hug and a smile. There is a happy/sad moment on Labor Day, too. Our sisters on mission return to Richmond and Arlington. More hugs, kisses and yes, some tears. Sister Kathleen Persson, OSB, is moving into Saint Gertrude Convent today. Though we will see our missioned sisters several times a month, I am still left with the feeling that a few pieces are missing from the puzzle. That’s community – this mysterious entity which, like the Body of Christ, is so much more than the sum of its parts. Community is where the living God dwells among us. We are sisters in Christ – daughters of Benedict and Scholastica. And somehow, when all days end, Christ will bring us all together to everlasting life [RB 72:12].

Blessings and love to you all…
- Sister Vicki

We are all connected...

2011-08-25T08:45:00.002-04:00

I woke up at 1:15 this morning. I grabbed the cell phone which had been set to vibrate at 5 AM. Realizing that it was still time to sleep, I happily rolled over. At breakfast I learned that there was an aftershock at 1:15. It wasn’t the phone vibrating. It was the earth.

The 5.9 earthquake two days ago continues to be a hot topic of conversation at table and on the local news. This sturdy cement-block structure was built 50 years ago and resembles the Catholic elementary schools of the 1960’s – solid as a rock! Other structures in the area were not as sound and suffered cracks and crumbles. Several historic structures in DC – the National Cathedral and the Washington Monument – had more damage because of age and design, I suspect.

I am in awe of creation and grateful that we were spared the sufferings of Haiti or Japan, Alaska or California. Earthquakes are not fun or to be taken lightly. All in all, this earthquake did little to harm but much to awaken us to the power of nature and our interconnectedness. Twenty-two eastern states felt this quake – not because of its magnitude, though 5.9 is significant. These states rest on one tectonic plate – share real estate in a primordial sense. Interesting to see one event ripple out so far – touch so many lives and light up so many cell towers simultaneously! The earth can teach us many lessons. We are, in fact, interconnected. Our joy, our pain, our love sends out a ripple into the world. Every act of goodness blesses and every selfish sin has its repercussions. This truth is from the beginning – when we were made in God’s image and likeness. We have within us the capacity for great love – the love that changes things and transforms lives. This redemptive love is building in the world – not unlike the earth’s energy beneath millions of layers of clay and shale. That building up of love’s power is the kingdom coming. And, one great day, there will be a new heaven and a new earth. We need not fear its coming. Our loving, our relentless pursuit of right relationships, our longing for wholeness simply beckons Christ to come.

Blessings and love to you all…

- Sister Vicki

August 16th...

2011-08-16T08:54:00.008-04:00

“Jesus said to his disciples,… it will be hard for one who is rich to enter the Kingdom of heaven.”

Today is the memorial of the death of Elvis Presley. [I’ll bet you thought I was going to say St. Stephen of Hungary or Brother Roger of Taize.] Actually, all three men have something to teach us if we can hear today’s gospel through the lens of their lives. We can learn what being rich really means and what is truly possible for God.

Stephen was a strong advocate for the Catholic faith and was crowned the first king of Hungary by the Roman pontiff. Rich in faith, rich in power, rich in wisdom, Stephen was acclaimed a saint less than fifty years after his death. Brother Roger – the founder of the Taize community in France – was killed by a mentally ill woman during Evening Prayer six years ago. An ecumenist by vocation, Roger helped to pen the community rule, nurture the simple chant that drew thousands on pilgrimage and gave his life as a martyr for Benedictine hospitality. Rich in faith, rich in imagination, rich in holiness – Brother Roger’s dream of Christ’s body made whole continues to be enfleshed by his brothers.

Last, but not least, Elvis Aaron Presley – a poor Mama’s boy from Tupelo, Mississippi – died on this day in 1977. “The King” of rock n’ roll was 42 years old when he died alone in a mansion called, “Graceland.” Rich in fame, rich in material wealth, Elvis was plagued by addiction, spiritual restlessness and a deep loneliness.

Jesus has taught us that the kingdom of God is at hand – here, in our midst. To “enter the kingdom” means living with God now in fidelity and joy – confident that the kingdom will come in its fullness later – in God’s time. I suppose it’s Elvis’ kind of rich that Jesus was talking about in this gospel. Although he was a believer in the gospel and a spiritual seeker throughout his life, somehow he was unable to know the true freedom of the children of God. Fame, money, sex, drugs – all these things became stumbling blocks – as they can for all people. St. Stephen and Brother Roger possessed another kind of wealth – the riches of faith, hope and love. When these are our real treasures, no stumbling block will keep us from entering the kingdom – right here, right now. Our simple Benedictine life is the path that leads us to the kingdom. And every now and then, when we have our priorities straight and our hearts open wide, the One who called us here beckons us to enter through the narrow gate. Here, now, we are given a taste of heaven in Word and wheat and in the intimacy of the common life. We are the rich ones. We know that God does the impossible within us and for us every day of our lives.

Blessings and love to you all...

- Sister Vicki

"Eye has not seen..."

2011-08-15T08:44:00.003-04:00

The Feast of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin gives us a wonderful opportunity to meditate on the glories of heaven. In her person God manifests the wholeness and dignity which is proper to every believer. The Blessed Mother experiences death – crosses the boundary between here and there. In that she shares our humanity. But the Church teaches a different end to her story. Her body is not returned to the earth but taken to heaven. Her body and soul know no separation. She is, by virtue of her faith in the angel’s word, given a special prerogative. And we, in her assumption, are given a glimpse of what we can only imagine. “Eye has not seen nor ear heard what God has prepared for those who love God (I Corinthians 2:9)." But one day when the human project reaches its fulfillment, we shall each be made whole in Christ. Our bodies, like our souls, shall be raised and glorified. It is too much to understand but not too much to believe. If God raised Jesus from the tomb, God can raise us as well. Perhaps one of the greatest gifts of this Marian feast is the knowledge that God wants this wholeness for us. To her who bore the Son of God, this special gift was given first. We who have followed Christ through death into life by baptism will know this sacred unity of body and soul at the end of the age. What we celebrate today for Mary, we celebrate also for ourselves. Where she is – body and soul – we shall also be. Happy feast!

Blessings and love to you all...

- Sister Vicki

What I learned from "Real Time"...

2011-08-07T14:24:00.006-04:00

We’ve had two wonderful women with us this week for our “Real Time” in the Monastery program. We’ve never done this before so I’ve been looking for its worth and graces. Typically, interested women come for a weekend of discernment or a vocation retreat during the sacred seasons. This has been most fruitful. Yet, women often express the desire to spend more time with us – real time, ordinary day-in-day-out time. We have a "Live-In" Program to meet that need, but that’s long term. Women in our Live-In Program are usually in for a year of discernment. So, finally, after seven years of vocation ministry, I’m trying something new. As usual, there are things to tweak and improve but overall, I am pleased to have this kind of time with women who are eager to pray and to work. That’s basically what they’ve been doing this week – ora et labora – pray and work.

Two of our monastery gardens needed serious watering. Our first arrival taught me much about how living things. Did you know a flower can be beautifully in bloom, yet its roots dry and longing for water? I had no clue but I guess people are that way too. Any one of us can look A-OK on the surface and deep inside there is a dryness – a spiritual or emotional longing that needs attention. All the more reason to give one another some room to be less than we wish them to be. We never know what another person is carrying inside. I also learned that “puzzle people” abound – and not just in monasteries! And working a puzzle with someone can be an opportunity for building relationship – elbow to elbow, searching for the last piece of a blue sky.

Even what might have been disappointing became a blessing. Our “luau” at the pool turned into an indoor event due to thunderstorms. It was the best “pool party” we’ve had in seven years! We skipped the swimming and went right to the dancing. After a few tropical tunes we switched to Big Band and dancing classics for the benefit of the elders who came to join the fun. Every one was welcomed with lei and invited into the circle of fun. The Vocation TEAM outdid themselves on the decorations. When we were worn out, we moved on to popcorn and a movie. Great fun…special for us as well as our guests. As we blessed our friends this morning, I wasn’t so much thinking about the party – as fun as it was. I was thinking how much I’ll miss them in the oratory and in the dish room. [We spent a lot of time there!] I guess that’s another plus for the “real time” program. Retreat days have their highs and Benedictines are ALWAYS looking for a party. Yet, it is the “normal” routine of prayer and work that steadies our feet on the path to God. In the Chapel, in the garden, in the library or the dishroom - time spent in prayer and work sanctifies us gently over a lifetime. Real time is holy in the monastery. Maybe, that's once of the reasons I came and, more importantly, of the reason why I stay.

Blessings and love to you all…
- Sister Vicki

Back on the grid...

2011-08-04T13:48:00.004-04:00

It’s been too long since I’ve written. I’ve missed the writing and perhaps you’ve found my absence curious or even disappointing. It’s been a VERY full summer. In the last six weeks alone, I’ve been to Minnesota, North Carolina, Indiana, Deltaville, VA & Richmond. I’ve never had to be in so many places in quick succession. But grace abounds! I’ve been content – pleased to be exactly where I was for a few days or even a week. All but one trip were monastic “business.” The exception to that was my vacation week – the long-awaited “week 52”. [See last summer for an explanation of that term of endearment.] The rest was just glorious and sufficient to fill the tank for the rest of my journeys. Each little jaunt was a blessing in its own way – something learned, someone I needed to talk with, experiencing life in other monasteries. While I haven’t really had time between trips to process and sort, I know God will use all of it in some way – for vocations, formation, liturgy or leadership. [That’s the newest hat – being a member of the Council. I was actually “in charge” the other night in the absence of both the prioress and subprioress and didn’t realize it until a sister made the point. I suspect it will take some getting used to…for all of us.]

Although summer is far from over, here, in the monastery, we are gathering our energies for a new year. The first blessing of August has been the addition of a new member of our administrative staff. Mary C. Finnigan is our new Director of Operations & Human Resources. A friend to our community for years, Mary will now lend her considerable professional gifts to our ministries.

I’m busy, too. [smiling] Summer is a wonderful time to organize things a bit better. [I’m a “J” on the MBTI. Organization is key to my ability to be productive. OK…I still color-code my calendar with highlighters. It’s just so pretty!] Things are disappearing into the shredder. Office supplies are en route. A lovely woman who’s here for our “Real Time” vocation program is organizing our Formation Library. Agendas are nearly finished for the planning retreats still ahead of me this month. AND…after four years in Richmond, I’ve re-learned where all the dishes go, what constitutes "doing the tables", how to lead Midday Prayer and the voicemail numbers of all the internal offices. It’s all good – all part of being home and in the heart of our community life. Ora et labora – pray and work. That’s what I’ve been doing and what I hope to be doing for a very long time.

Blessings and love to you all…
- Sister Vicki

PS - I missed haircuts because of travel so this is my shaggy self.

A poem...

2011-07-18T10:13:00.001-04:00

There are things of which I am certain,
many I can’t begin to understand.
By grace,
the former take care of the latter
and I live in the land called, “faith.”

Vicki Ix, OSB

Happy Feast!

2011-07-11T08:14:00.004-04:00

July 11th is the summer feast of Saint Benedict - Patriarch of Western Monasticism. This feast is observed by the universal Church. Benedictines everywhere keep holy the 21st of March - the death of our Holy Father Benedict. Today, every daily-Mass-going Catholic is hearing of our patron and celebrating the gift of monastic life to the Church. We have a special horarium today in his honor: 9 AM Morning Prayer (sweet!), 11:30 Eucharist w/ festive meal following at 12:15. Around the world Benedictines observe this feast in a variety of ways. Some claim this day for professions and jubilees. If you know and love a Benedictine, today would be a great day to send them a greeting or offer a prayer for their perseverance in monastic life. As we pray and feast here in Bristow, know that our sisters on mission, our oblates, friends and benefactors are all held in grateful prayer.

Blessings and love to you all...

- Sister Vicki

It's like this...

2011-07-03T07:13:00.010-04:00

We have three community options for vacation: mountains, ocean or river!

Five sisters will attend the Monastic Worship Forum, St. Meinrad, IN, July 12-18.

Sister Kathleen and Karen Lynn are at BSWR, Cullman, Al, for three weeks!

Summer in the monastery is a different season entirely! From Community Retreat in June through the dog days of August, we pray intensely, travel for meetings, conferences and monastery planning and, eventually, take a week of much-needed VACATION! I have been “off the grid” now for two weeks because of silent retreat and The Monastic Institute conference in MN. This morning, after brunch, “Week #1” goes to Nags Head, NC for a week of rest and play. (I’ve never been in “Week #1” before nor have I ever needed it as badly!)

Summer is strange because so many sisters must come and go throughout. Our choir is diminished in size but not in heart. It is for this reason that no vocation programming happens until August. The house is just too weird in July! As each group goes and comes home – for whatever reason – the rest of the community prays for safe return. Being gone just one week can seriously reinforce a vocation. Hugs and kisses abound and we are always told how much we are missed. Everything thing we learn in summer study or meetings will be shared with everyone at the October Chapter. And, practically, the community never fails to be blessed as we each get a week at the beach. We return refreshed, rested and five pounds heavier (OK, that would be me). As each one returns to wholeness and inner balance, we are all blessed. Summer in the monastery is unusual – especially as you consider our promise of stability. Yet, it is a season of grace. When autumn comes we will be very glad to return to “normal” but the gifts of summer travel and rest will see us through another year in the life. Monastics on a journey – winter, spring, summer, fall - together unto everlasting life (RB 72:12).

Blessings and love to you all…
- Sister Vicki

The memory of grace...

2011-06-30T22:01:00.007-04:00

We’re on I94 East heading toward the Twin Cities. The Monastic Institute, sponsored by Saint John’s School of Theology – Seminary, is over. And now we’re six nuns in the minivan again for the two-day drive home. The blessings of this week are two numerous for a blog. Many unimagined will surface in time as we unpack the experience in the days ahead. From a communal perspective our learnings are manifold and we will share the wisdom at Chapter in October. From a formation perspective I think the trip has been gift for Sisters Mary, Pat and Doris. The Benedictine world gets a lot smaller when you attend a conference like this one. Old friends, new friends, ammas and abbas – it’s all good.

It’s been about a year and a half since my last visit to Collegeville, MN. Every return brings a flood of memories – images, people, and moments from my days in graduate school. In the fall of 1999 I left my life in NJ for full-time study at St. John’s. So long ago…such a lonely time but a time of great grace. It was in the midst of two monastic communities (St. John’s & St. Ben’s) that I accepted the gift of a Benedictine vocation. It was a very long three years of study, but worth it in the end. I loved the learning even though I felt homesick for Bristow. I spent almost every break in VA and returned to MN only because I knew it was the right thing to do. Now, when I return to St. John’s, my heart swells with deep gratitude. When I greet so many sisters by name I am struck by the depth of my affection for them. All my wailing and gnashing of teeth ten years ago has been replaced with awe at God’s loving plan for me. This place, these good monks and nuns, are all part of my salvation history. Funny, how places become part of us. Places that change us or that create the condition of possibility for our changing – they hold the memory of grace at work in our lives. They testify to the Potter’s hands on the clay – proof that God is intimately involved in our journey and determined to bless our lives with peace.

Blessings and love to you all...

- Sister Vicki

SJU SOT-Sem '02

A very happy day...

2011-06-24T20:16:00.008-04:00

This evening Sister Cecilia Dwyer was installed as prioress – her sixth term! In a private ceremony (our custom if the prioress is continuing service) we asked God to bless her with wisdom, strength and every grace needed to be Christ in our midst. Elected for the first time in 1987, Sister Cecilia served three consecutive four-year terms. Then, ineligible canonically after 12 years in office, she enjoyed a sabbatical year at St. John’s School of Theology – Seminary and then served three years as Vocation Director until her reelection in 2003. Please join us in thanking God for the gift of Sister Cecilia’s leadership and her willingness to serve time and time again. The new monastic council (sisters elected and appointed to advise and support the prioress) was blessed after the installation rite. Council members beginning service are Sister Lisbeth Cruz, Sister Veronica Joyner, Sister Lisbeth Cruz, Sister Vicki Ix and Sister Glenna Smith.

Now I know why...

2011-06-20T08:26:00.002-04:00

Now I know why Jesus loved the little children. Yes, parts hurt that I never knew I had, but the marathon is over and I am left to contemplate the blessings. Spending five days with 12 little girls forced me to remain in the present moment – ok, barely two steps ahead of them. But, inside, I had the feeling that they were my only work and in them, the Christ was in our midst. When they sang to us, I think the angels stopped to listen. When they prayed, their desires were pure like rain water. And, when they danced at Evening Prayer, we were moved by the reverence of little bare feet moving in a graceful circle. In them I got a glimpse of the purity of heart we long for as adults. I saw the child I was and long to be again. “WONDER WEEK” was BIG fun, physically exhausting and a time of grace. These 12 little girls will remain in our hearts and in our prayers until next summer. Now I know Jesus loved the little children. "Let the children come to me; do not prevent them, for the kingdom of God belongs to such as these. (Mark 10:14)”

Our annual silent retreat begins today. Next blog from the Monastic Institute at St. John's next week. Blesings and love to you all...

- Sister Vicki

"Wonder Week"...

2011-06-14T05:56:00.005-04:00

Friends,

This is day #2 of a 5-day program called, "Wonder Week." We sponsor this day-program for girls ages 10-13 who want to experience the workings of the monastery - and have BIG fun! I am director of"WW", so expect to hear very little from me until the weekend. It's 12 girls, 2 counselors and the old girl until Saturday morning. Oh, I forgot to mention the slumber party Friday night. The Subiaco Room becomes a rec room - Karaoke, movies, sleeping bags everywhere, and a "campfire" made of Lava Lamps. Yup. So keep us in prayer. All I ever ask of God this week is to keep the children in our care safe and sound. I am grateful for your spiritual support. When it's over I have a date with a tube of Ben Gay.

Blessings and love to you all...

- Sister Vicki

Between here and there...

2011-06-09T08:35:00.001-04:00

In the days between the Ascension and Pentecost, the scriptures invite us into the intimate space between Father and Son. The “farewell discourse”, John 14-17, reveals Jesus’ hopes and dreams for his friends. Conscious that his time among them in the flesh is coming to an end, Jesus prays for the disciples – and for us. This prayer reveals the depth of his faith and gives us a glimpse of the mysterious unity within the Godhead. “May they be one as we are one.” In this long, sometimes meandering prayer, we can learn the meaning of real obedience. “I glorified you on earth,” Jesus says, “by accomplishing the work you gave me to do.” It’s that simple. You and I – unique persons by God’s design – have something to do here – something that nudges the kingdom toward fullness. Only we can do this thing. And in that comes true peace and deep joy.

I love being inside Jesus’ head. I love hearing what was on his heart. I even love that he kind of rambles. (I stop myself every now and then from assaulting God with my words.) But his words are all blessing. His words assure us that we are precious to him. “Father, they are your gift to me.” I suspect most people don’t feel like God’s gift to Jesus. How wonderful to hear him say those words!

Another comfort in the “farewell discourse” is Jesus’ experience of transition. He is still with them but keenly aware that he will be returning to the Father. It is a liminal moment – one foot on earth and a soul longing for heaven. Grace comes when we are on the threshold of something new and wondrous. If you’ve ever sat with a dying friend, you know what I mean. Grace makes us aware that God is nearer than flesh on our bone. Grace comes and carries us over. Grace – Love – beckons us home.

In Jesus’ farewell prayer we learn that we are designed with purpose, gift to Jesus and on our way home.

Blessings and love to you all...

- Sister Vicki

Five sisters celebrate...

2011-06-05T14:01:00.002-04:00

Left to right: Sister Henry Marie, Sister Mary Patricia, Sister Anne Marie, Sister Miki
Seated at right: Sister Anita

The profession formulas of five Benedictine women were placed on our altar - again. Between them, two-hundred and sixty years of fidelity to the monastic way of life. Our Gathering Space was filled with gifts and flowers from friends, family and sisters - small tokens of love and gratitude for staying on the path of God's commandments. Each sister raised her hands three times offering her life to God as she did on the day of her perpetual profession. Together they sang the ancient words: Receive me, O God, as you have promised that I may life. Do not disappoint me in my hope.

Flowers, festive dress and glorious music marked the day as sacred. My promises are still so new...it was gift to see that the life brings each of us to wisdom and holiness inasmuch as we are willing to accept the graces along the way. Whether 25, 50, 60 or 75 years, these five women of faith have in common an ever-deepening hunger for God and a determination reach the goal of eternal joy. Joyful tears, a bit of laughter and deep awe - these were the gifts blessed and broken. Sorrows remembered and empty places acknowledged - the cup taken and shared. In each one of us is all of us. When we celebrate jubilee, we remember that God is with us and walks each of us into a future of blessing.

Sister Anita Sherwood, OSB, made her profession 75 years ago! We were so happy that she was able to enjoy her special day. We welcomed over 200 to our table. Among our guests and sisters were 14 graduates of Saint Gertrude High School - our private secondary school for young women in Richmond. They gathered around Sister Anita who was principal to nearly all of them!

Family and good friends were the best gift of all for our five jubilarians. Remarking on her 75 years of professed monastic life, Sister Anita was heard saying, "I think I'll stay."

More photos on Facebook so be my "friend."

A feast hits home...

2011-05-31T08:53:00.006-04:00

Today is the Feast of the Visitation. Mary goes to stay with her cousin, Elizabeth who is also with child. God has done something wondrous and impossible for both women. Elizabeth has conceived in old age and Mary has conceived the Savior by the power of the Holy Spirit. Both women have been given the grace and strength to do something great for God. Though their time together was brief – just three months – it was significant in reinforcing for each of them the power of God’s promises.

Earlier today at Morning Prayer, it was my turn to give the reflection as part of our shared Lectio Divina. Although this story seems easy to explore from a theological perspective, today it felt very personal. I am leaving our Richmond mission tomorrow and returning to the monastery. This “visit” lasted four years - the first three before the accident and the last 10 months in its wake. I have very mixed feelings, which is not unlike me. I feel joy at the prospect of “home” – of returning to the place where my heart first heard the whisper of God’s voice. I am looking forward to the everyday blessings of the life – cooking, dishes, choir practice and a lifetime of Sundays. Yet, I am leaving this house aware of God’s unique presence here in my sisters.

The common life is intense among three women (instead of 30). There are challenges, to be sure, but so many blessings. This last year, in particular, has been total gift. Sister Mary joined me here early on in difficult days and then came to stay. She continues to be our presence at SGHS. I am so touched by her love for our school. Being here to welcome Sister Charlotte home has meant the world to me. We were friends before the accident. Now, having shared in her recovery, we have a bond that can’t be explained or denied. Love is a mystery and a gift – whenever, however it comes. I will miss sharing life with her and with Sister Mary. Each group of sisters in the convent here is a unique configuration of souls and personalities. In a few months Sister Kathleen will arrive and the sisters here will make a new bond of interdependence and care. It’s what we do – it’s how Benedictine community is lived out in the faithfulness of each woman to The Rule and to the Gospel.

Today, I pack the "office" and take care of some house business. Sister Charlotte will take over as House Coordinator – BIG relief for me and a wonderful gift to the sisters here. I know I will still chew on the gospel for today – still wonder at the friendship of Elizabeth and Mary. Intergenerational and faith-based, their love for one another was a reflection of God’s love for them. Great grace and joy came in their meeting and I know God blessed them both in their parting. Today, I pray a blessing on this little house of God and on the sisters who have been community for me. I will return as often as I can to support our school and its mission. And, when I need to stay the night, I know I will always have a place in this house. In his daily reflection John F. Wallenhorst gives poetic shape to the Magnificat. This small part feels like the song in my heart.

Love moves the mighty from their thrones and promotes the insecure,
Love leaves hungry spirits satisfied; the rich seem suddenly poor.
Praise God, whose loving covenant caresses those in distress,
remembering promises made long ago with present, loving faithfulness.

Blessings and love to you all…
- Sister Vicki
Original oil painting by Austin artist James B. Janknegt

What they got right...

2011-05-26T07:13:00.004-04:00

Last weekend the Second Coming had more visibility than the Good Year blimp over the Super Bowl. Like most of the world, I found the countdown to the end of the world very interesting. Good people were caught up in an apocalyptic movement and driven to save as many souls as possible before the “event.” I found it strange that people who clearly love Jesus had not integrated all of his teachings: “Only my Father in heaven knows the day and the hour.” I found it sad that many believed the window of salvation was closing. In the days after the predicted end, some were just dazed and confused. Others reconfigured the message assuring us that some opportunity for salvation had come and gone. Still more went home physically exhausted from the mission. It was more than easy to make fun of them. Talk show hosts and evening news personalities had much to say as the clock moved successfully into a new day. There was so much in the message that felt wrong. But, I want to raise up one thing these “doomsday” Christians got right. God wants every soul to come to faith.

All created souls belong to God. We get lost in earthly life. We forget where we came from or lose sight of where we are going. God sent Jesus to share our journey and assure us that God’s love is stronger than death. We are redeemed. We need only to recognize it, embrace it, claim it and live in risen love. No one knows when Christ will come again. But he will. And it will be a great day. All people will know that he is the way, the truth and the life. For now we remain in his love – like branches clinging to the vine. And we live unafraid, filled with Easter peace. “Do not let your hearts be troubled.” And we wait in joyful hope for the coming of our savior, Jesus Christ.

Blessings and love to you all...

- Sister Vicki

"What can you do?"

2011-05-10T10:23:00.004-04:00

In this morning’s gospel, the people ask Jesus an interesting question: “What can you do?” I found myself smiling. Poor Jesus lived in an age of great teachers and magicians. They all had wisdom for sale and even a few tricks or “signs” that bolstered belief. The people didn’t understand who they had in their midst. You and I get to read the gospel backwards – through the lens of the resurrection. We know and believe. We want to tell them, “Wake up! He’s the one!” But their question is all too human and there are times in every life that we ask the Lord, “What can you do?” There are times when our prayers feel unanswered – when we wonder why GOD doesn’t act. People die, natural disasters occur, acts of evil and violence continue – we want a sign that GOD is still GOD. When the people threw GOD’s gift of manna in Jesus’ face, hoping it would encourage him to work a miracle; Jesus – the Word made flesh – chose to give them the truth instead. “I am the bread of life; whoever comes to me will never hunger, and whoever believes in me will never thirst.”

Many heard it and but only some believed it in their hearts. This one sentence is more powerful than any wonder. The truth contained is so deep it is nearly beyond our comprehension. Jesus is the true bread sent from heaven – he is all that we need to sustain us on the human sojourn. In his dying he freely gave his body – literally – the supreme act of surrender and solidarity with we who must one day walk that path. In his rising Jesus freed us from the fear of death. It will not have the last word. It is not the enemy. It is a gateway – a portal to joy in GOD’s presence. The Lord’s self-emptying love is the love of the Father – a love that gives all, that heals all, that rights all. It is a love we can touch and taste and savor in the Eucharist – the bread given us by the One who wants to be with us here and now. Whenever we eat this bread and drink this cup, we proclaim his death – the death which released us from its power – until he comes again in glory. “What can you do?” Oh, how I hope all the world will come to know what the Lord Jesus has done and can do in every human heart.

Easter peace and risen love to you all...

- Sister Vicki

ART: Resurrection, St Paul de Meythet Church, by Arcabas (Jean-Marie Pirot), 1998

What resurrection looks like...

2011-05-05T16:07:00.014-04:00

Sunday, May 1st, marked eight months since “the accident.” Although this event affected three of my sisters irrevocably, I’ve been thinking about how we as community have also been changed. In some ways it feels like it was yesterday and in other ways like a very bad dream. “For then you shall forget your misery, or recall it like waters that have ebbed away. (Job 11:16).”

Because I have the privilege of sharing life with Sister Charlotte in Richmond, I am keenly aware of her physical and spiritual transformation. Sister is working four days a week at Bon Secours, St. Mary’s Hospital. Having been on the receiving end of “good help” in the ICU and step-down unit there, Sister Charlotte is able to walk with the sick and suffering in a new way. She is, for me, an icon of the resurrection – a glimpse of God’s grace at work in the hearts of all who prayed her back to life. Sister Charlotte’s courage in recovery and determination to find the blessings in this tragedy make her an exceptional woman of faith – in the world and in my life.

Sister Connie Ruth has made wonderful strides, literally - from wheelchair to cane and from our monastery Infirmary back to her own room. Throughout these months of recovery, she has been grateful for every kindness shown by nurses and sisters alike. Sister Connie Ruth beams when she talks of her time in Richmond – both at our high school and at the convent. Sister made new friends wherever she went in the city – most especially at Zacharias Ganey Health Institute. Although Sister Connie Ruth will not be returning to the mission house, she is serving the monastic community – contributing to the daily labor as her recovery permits.

This past Easter has new meaning for us as a community and certainly for the two sisters who have tasted new life. We are living in gratitude for the love and prayers of so many. We are able to lend our love and prayers to those who suffer now. Our hearts are with the people of Alabama who have lost loved ones, homes and livelihoods to tornadoes this past week. We are tethered by prayer to the Benedictine sisters there at Sacred Heart Monastery as they continue to live without power or light – even as they reach out to those around them who have been devastated. We pray to God for the victims of war – the innocent and the guilty. Lament and psalms of confidence are sung side by side. The cross and open grave herald the new order in which we are all bound together in Christ – one Body, though many parts. In the "Great 50 Days" of Easter joy, let us all be peace and risen love for one another. Let us live now what will be ours for eternity. “Then your life shall be brighter than the noonday; its gloom shall become as the morning, and you shall be secure, because there is hope (Job 11:17-18a).”

- Sister Vicki

The graces of Triduum...

2011-04-25T11:16:00.006-04:00

The graces of Triduum often surprise me. Ever-ancient, ever-new, this seamless liturgy takes three days to complete. Like the Christians of the fourth century, we remember and enact anew the mystery of our salvation. This means that something is accomplished in us as we do this important work of praise and thanksgiving. Somehow, this memorial increases the measure of God’s grace at work in us – draws us more deeply into the reality of the risen Christ among us. It’s very hard to put words around this truth. Because we are still bound to bodies, there is a veil that separates us from the fullness of God. Yet, through these powerful rites we encounter the living God in moments – flashes of insight.

This year, perhaps because of the events of last August, our community seemed very in touch with the mystery of Christ’s sacrifice and the grief of those who loved Him so. It was good to be silent, as the prophet says in the Lamentations. The silence we shared had character and depth. It wasn’t empty silence. It was like diving deep in the ocean – separated so that we could breath – but together. When the great silence ended Saturday evening, we were ready to speak again, but I had the longing – even yet – for what could be shared in the absence of words.

As we gathered at the New Fire, the gathering joy overflowed in song: “Christ yesterday and today, the beginning and the end, Alpha and Omega; his are the seasons and the ages: to him glory and dominion through endless ages. Amen. By his wounds holy and glorious, may he guard and preserve us. Christ, the Lord, Amen!” Then, Sister Andrea sang the Exultet – the ancient hymn/story of the Easter mystery. “This is the night...” Sister is the only one among us who can do justice to the beauty of this chant. The glow of candlelight in the faces of women I love only added to the richness of the moment.

On Easter Sunday morning, we were sleepy from the late night Vigil, but energized by the astounding beauty of the Chapel in daylight. Sister Laurence, Sister Mary and several dear friends transformed the sanctuary into a flowering garden. We will immerse ourselves in this beauty for 50 days. It is our taste of paradise – the Eden reclaimed for us by Christ.

Easter Blessings and risen love to you all…
- Sister Vicki

Into Great Silence...

2011-04-21T15:33:00.004-04:00

Well, the house is full of activity: the schola is singing, the sacristans are laying out vessels and linens, the liturgists are "encouraging" everyone to sign up for a ministry. The last day before the Paschal Triduum is always holy chaos. If you've never seen 20 women turn a dining room into a banquet hall, it's quite a complex ballet of action and reaction. "This table has no napkins." "How many chairs at Table 5?" "All the wine glasses on each table should match." "Let's start moving tables." "Where does the water glass go?" Fresh flowers, new candles, good wine and white linen tablecloths - we pull out all the stops for this festive meal. And, after we dirty every single dish in the house, we all pitch in and clean until is finished.

The moment we leave the Dining Room, the Great Silence begins. We keep silence from Thursday Evening until Saturday night - no talking, no bells, no phone calls. It feels right to keep silence before the mystery of Christ's death and resurrection. And, on Saturday night, if will feel right to ring all the bells and sing the one word we have held in the custody of our hearts. (You know, the "A" word!) So, dear friends and oblates, I am signing off to live the "three days" with my sisters. You can expect some photos sometime on Easter Monday. May the richness of the liturgy touch your soul and bring you closer to the God who gave us Jesus.

Blessings and love to you all...

- Sister Vicki

Last stop, Bethany...

2011-04-18T15:16:00.002-04:00

Today’s gospel sets the stage for Holy Week. John tells us that six days before the Passover, Jesus returned to Bethany – home of his dear friends, Martha, Mary and Lazarus, who was the Lord’s greatest miracle so far. “They gave a dinner for him there (John 12:2).” Some dinner that must have been! How could Lazarus not view his friend differently after what happened at the tomb? Surely, nothing was beyond the rabbi’s power to redeem – not sickness, not sin, not even death. What did Lazarus share with Jesus about the experience of death? Did Jesus want to know what lay ahead of him in Jerusalem? Were the events before and ahead too much for words? Perhaps, they drank wine together and talked of nothing, as only real friends can?

What about the sisters? Martha, we’re told, is preparing the meal. No grumbling this time – a sure and certain sign of the reign of God breaking through! And Mary – dear, Mary – she is again at the Lord’s feet but this time she is anointing them with expensive perfumed oil. In this tender act she anticipates both his kingship and impending death. It is six days before the Passover. He is going to Jerusalem – a city renowned for killing its prophets. This dinner is the last they will share with him at their home in Bethany. Many have suggested that Jesus’ friends in Bethany were his respite from the road – his resting place when the unrelenting preaching and healing sapped his strength. What better place to dine before the journey? What better company than those who just loved him? A few moments of rest…some home-cooking…some laughter among friends – surely, one night of peace is not too much to ask. Yet, poor Judas had to pick a fight with Mary over the expensive oil – his greed not benevolence operative in the exchange. Poor Judas…he, too, will have the worst week of his life.

There is so much in this tiny gospel that points to the holy days ahead. If Martha, Mary and Lazarus knew what we know, they would never have let Jesus go. Or maybe, they did know and that’s why this meal was so important to all of them – so important that no expense was spared, no pettiness allowed to displace the simple goodness of being with him. May this Holy Week bring all of us to the house at Bethany – the house where Love has come and nothing else matters.

Blessngs and love to you all...

- Sister Vicki

A poem...

2011-04-13T09:02:00.006-04:00

I’ve been quiet inside -

no words for the mystery.

When death comes suddenly

God comes close –

so close

that grief and grace get tangled,

loss and love are one.

I’ve been standing still in the desert –

sandals in hand

before the flame that will not consume.

I know God is here

comforting widow and orphan.

I've been praying at a tomb

knowing my brother lives.

New plans now

for an unexpected future.

I know God is here.

because Jesus wept.

Sister Vicki Ix, OSB

We have an election!

2011-04-02T11:30:00.004-04:00

Sister Cecilia Dwyer, OSB, has been re-elected by the Chapter for another four-year term as prioress of the Benedictine Sisters of Virginia. Sister Susan Quaintance, OSB of St. Scholastica Monastery, Chicago and Sister Roberta Campbell, OSB, of Mount St. Mary’s Monastery, Pittsburgh, PA facilitated the election. Sister Lynn Marie McKenzie, OSB, First Councilor of the Federation of St. Scholastica, presided and witnessed the canonical election. Sister Cecilia served as prioress from 1987-1999 and then again from 2003 – present. Her sixth term in office will begin in June. The community is overwhelmed with joy and grateful for Sister’s willingness to serve again as our prioress. We thank you, friends, Benedictine sisters and Oblates, for your prayers through these sacred days. It is only through prayer that we are able to "listen with the ear of our heart (RB Prol.1)."

BIG weekend ahead...

2011-03-30T11:43:00.002-04:00

Evening Prayer on Thursday evening marks our entrance into the sacred space of election. Every four years we gather for a long weekend of prayer, discernment and group process that leads us to the election of a new prioress. Sister Cecilia Dwyer has been our prioress for two consecutive terms (8 years). She may, according to the Constitution of the Federation of St. Scholastica, be elected for a third term. (I call that hitting a triple!) We have always been blessed with wonderful leadership. I have no doubt that when the Holy Spirit begins her dance in our midst, we will be moved to elect just the right woman for the next four years.

We have been praying already – a nine-day novena in preparation for these holy days. Unlike the “real” world, there is no campaigning – no t-shirts, bumper stickers or buttons for our favorite “candidate.” No, this prayerful enterprise is dependent on God’s grace and the skillful facilitation of our election process. As is our custom, two sisters from within our Federation were invited to guide us through these days – Sister Susan Quaintance, OSB, from Chicago and Sister Roberta Campbell, OSB from Pittsburgh, PA. Normally, the President of the Federation witnesses the election, but since she happens to be one of us, she cannot. In Sister Glenna’s place the First Councilor of the Federation, Sister Lynn Marie McKenzie, OSB of Cullman, AL, will represent the Federation in our process. (You might remember Sister Lynn Marie from our Visitation process last October.) On the home front our Election Committee – appointed by the current prioress – has things well in hand. Sister Andrea, Sister Lisbeth and Sister Veronica have planned for these days months in advance and enabled the community to communicate our hopes to the facilitators as well as our new plan for the next four years. This plan, in essence, becomes the new prioress’ “job description.” Although having the right skill set is a plus, it is not the main determinant for election. For that we go to the The Rule.

Saint Benedict clearly states what is most important: Goodness of life and wisdom in teaching must be the criteria for choosing the one to be made prioress, even if she is the last in community rank (RB 64:2). And in chapter 2 the spiritual weight of the office is made clear. She is believed to take the place of Christ in the monastery (RB 2:2). So, dear friends and Oblates, please hold us in prayer this weekend. After the “white smoke” there will be news here on our blog and on Facebook. Stay tuned…and ask God to bless the one who will say “yes” to this great ministry.

Blessings and love to you all…

- Sister Vicki

A Lovely Incongruity...

2011-03-18T11:06:00.003-04:00

It’s Lent and the birds are singing their hearts out. It’s Lent and the Hyacinth are in bloom – lilac, blue and white. It’s Lent and the trees in Richmond are flowering with fat buds of pink and white. It would seem the earth is out of sync with the liturgical season – arriving early at the promises of Easter. I don’t feel the cold starkness of the desert. I can’t feel anything but the warmth of the sun piercing the the memory of winter. Is this some cosmic mistake? Is it some twist of global warming ruining God’s plan? I don’t think so. The beauty of God’s creation is always gift. In fact, in her Ash Wednesday exhortation, our prioress urged us all to find comfort in the beauty of nature. In a year of great loss and unrelenting presence to one another in our grief and in our healing, Sister Cecilia wants each of us to find some comfort in these desert days. So, I am sitting on our back deck enjoying the rays of a nearly-too-hot sun. I am listening to those birds sing their prayers and smelling the first sweetness of spring.

Sister’s message may seem counter-intuitive against a lifetime of Lents. It is, however, in harmony with our paradoxical faith. The resurrection is a "done deal." By His passion death and rising to new life, the Lord Jesus has freed us from the fear of death. Still, every year, we wait for it to come anew – for the Paschal Mystery to take deeper root in our lives as we await the joy of yet another Easter morning. We are capable of living Lent and, at the same time, know that we are already redeemed. The joy and peace I am feeling in my heart this morning is but a taste of Easter joy – a microscopic hint of the eternal joy that awaits all who believe in Christ. I accept the gift of this joy and offer it as a sign that He is risen. If that wondrous truth comes to us before the great Triduum, we must receive it and give thanks.

Blessings and love to you all...

- Sister Vicki

A Clean Heart...

2011-03-09T13:36:00.002-05:00

I went to Mass with our girls this morning. Nearly 250 students marched from Saint Gertrude High School to nearby St. Benedict’s Church to celebrate the beginning of Holy Lent. Another 250 cadets from Benedictine High School marched in and sat across the aisle from our young women. The two schools nearly fill every pew! I found a seat in the back with staff and some local families.

Though all of the readings today are powerful, I was struck by the responsorial psalm: “Create in me a clean heart.” What does that mean? My heart didn’t feel “dirty” this morning. My heart was joyful at the prospect of these forty days. I must need a clean heart, or we wouldn’t sing those words on this sacred day. As I was trying to chew on this, I couldn’t help noticing the toddlers and babies in the pews around me. There was a little boy next to me for whispered to his mother, “I don’t want to go to school. I want it to be Saturday. And I want to go to a birthday party and have birthday cake.” I couldn’t help but smile at his mother and share her giggle. In front of me, there was a tiny infant – maybe, three or four months old – in a baby-bucket. He woke up somewhere around the Gospel and his little yawns were absolutely precious. His big brother had a container of pretzels and that seemed to help him focus on Father’s homily. A few pews ahead another baby was grinning at all of us – like it was Christmas.

Children have clean hearts. They are perfectly transparent and without guile. They say what they mean and allow every feeling to surface. Little ones don’t miss much. They are very sensitive to what goes on around them. They show affection freely and ask for what they need. They haven’t made any serious mistakes yet. They haven’t wounded the people they love or disappointed Mom and Dad. They are fully alive and carry in their faces the child Jesus for all to see. On this first day of this holy season, I know exactly what I want. I want a clean heart – a child-like heart. The ashes on my forehead remind me that I have a ways to go, but filled with the graces of Word and wheat, I feel excited about this Lenten journey. And ready for GOD to create in me a clean heart – a heart that loves more faithfully, lives more joyfully and gives all without reserve.

Blessings and love to you all…and Happy Lent!

- Sister Vicki

My first "community"...

2011-03-02T09:58:00.002-05:00

It is an error, some believe, to say that a monastic community is “a family.” I agree. After all, the monastery is comprised of adults who choose to live under a rule and a prioress in perfect freedom. They are not children nor is the prioress their mother. She takes the place of Christ in a household that belongs to God. Her spiritual leadership is ultimate in the life of the monastic woman, but it is a relationship grounded in a specific period of time and made transcendent by the grace of office. We are not a family bound by blood, birth order and common parentage. We are mature women choosing to rely on grace and one another in our common search for God.

That said, I have to say something about family – my family. I just spent one week in Charleston, SC with my Dad, my siblings and their children. Though my week of “family visit” is over, the graces of those days are very present to me. The long drive home from Charleston to Richmond on Monday was like a retreat day – 7 ½ hours to mull over the little faces and the amazing adults who have become my friends. I expect to revisit those days in my heart many times over until the months pass and we are together again. Here’s what I think this morning:

Although monastic community is NOT a family, it can be said that our earliest experiences of being in a family have much to do with the way we approach our new life in monastic community. To the degree that we were loved, we learned to love. That love, for most of us, became our first taste of God’s love. I have decided that everything in my childhood belongs in my salvation story. No parent is perfect. No child grows without making mistakes. We wound and are wounded. We fail, our parents fail and somehow, we come out the other side the person we are in the world. Father Richard Rohr, OFM, would say, “Everything belongs.” (It’s one of my favorite books!)

I am overwhelmed, still, by the love I was given by my parents. It is a love that courses through veil of eternity and through my Father’s flesh and bone. It was enough to show me the face of a loving God. I am in awe of my brother and sisters. From the rivalry and misunderstandings of childhood, we have arrived at mutual respect – a love that acknowledges common hurts and remembered joys. We share the precious memory of a time lost to us in adulthood. We remember…and that is truly a gift. We knew each other from our Mother’s womb and became unique individuals within safety of belonging to something much bigger – a family. My brother and sisters are parents now of children between the ages of 3 and 9. My seven nieces and nephews are loved. They all know that God exists and holds them in tender care. Watching them I see their parents and our parents all mixed together. I see a miraculous web of faithful love that continues one generation to the next. I see the face of God in the gift of the family. My family was my first “community.” In our struggles and in our blessings I am who I am. By God’s grace and wisdom of the Holy Rule, I am still becoming who God wants me to be. For this, and for so much more, I am truly grateful.

Blessings and love to you all…
- Sister Vicki

What we don't know...

2011-02-10T08:31:00.004-05:00

What we don’t know about Saint Scholastica makes me love her all the more. Twin sister of our holy father, Saint Benedict, she is considered the patroness of all Benedictine nuns. In addition to the brief narrative on their birth at Norcia, we are given just two vignettes about holy Scholastica in The Dialogues of Pope Gregory the Great. This is slim pickings next to the many miracles attributed to her brother’s great faith. In The Rule of Benedict she is given no mention at all. Yet, given these few breadcrumbs we can follow Scholastica into the heart of God if we pay careful attention to what is given, but more importantly, to what is absent.

Today, in Benedictine monasteries all over the world, the story will be read again. Throughout their lives in community, the holy twins would meet once a year for a day. The story is about their last meeting. As evening began to fall, Benedict prepared to return to his monastery, as was the custom. Scholastica, eager to keep talking with her brother about the things of heaven, begged him to stay the night. Saint Benedict refused. It was, very simply, against the rule. Unable to bear his departure, Scholastica lowered her head, wept and prayed. Suddenly, a storm worth of the Weather Channel began to roar and pour. Benedict, more angry than surprised, asked her what she’d done. “When I appealed to you, you would not listen to me. So I turned to my God and He heard my prayer." Her prayer was heard, we are told in the narrative, because she loved more. It’s no wonder the gospel read on this feast is the story of Martha and Mary. Mary, who chose the “better part”, would not, Jesus says, have to suffer its loss. Scholastica died three days after this last meeting. Her spirit was made visible to her brother soaring as a dove into the heavens. He commands that her body be brought to his monastery and placed in the tomb prepared for his burial, where, some time later, they are reunited – as it was in their beginning.

So, like “Columbo” in a trench coat, I want to walk around this scene and see beyond the mystery of their relationship. I see in her longing a deep love for God and her need to process that longing in relationship. That feels like our life as monastic women – why I need community. OSB stands for the Order of Saint Benedict. Yet, there is a softness in the Holy Rule – an uncompromising call for compassion, moderation and forgiveness. What Saint Benedict calls “good zeal” can be rightly understood as the heart on fire with love for God and for one another. Scholastica’s heart was indeed on fire with love – a love more powerful than the monastic structures that governed her life. Benedict encourages us to “prefer nothing to the love of Christ.” Perhaps, he learned that priority from someone he loved very deeply – someone who knew that truth in her heart. Will we ever be able to unearth her story from these two sources? Probably not. But, these two stories can attune our ears for the sound of her voice between the lines. Saint Scholastica was content with her place - first prioress of the first “Benedictine” monastery for women. The absence of her story in his, tells me that she was a woman of great humility. We can only imagine the impact of her love in his monastic life and her example of holiness within her own household. Pope Gregory, in The Dialogues, tells me all I need to know about Saint Scholastica as he reflects on her answered prayer: “Do we not read in St. John that God is love? Surely it is no more than right that her influence was greater than his, since hers was the greater love.”

Happy feast!

Blessings and love to you all...

- Sister Vicki

"All in"...

2011-02-04T13:48:00.005-05:00

It’s a poker term. I learned it the other night when my software provider offered a FREE download of a game called, “Texas Hold ‘Em.” Now, I’m not seeking hours of stress relief, just 5 minutes of play between tasks. These “apps” are great in that they teach a complete novice in a few short hands. I’ve learned that three of a kind beats 2 pair. And, there are two kinds of “straights” – five cards in order or five in order of the same suit which constitutes a “flush”. OK…I think I’m getting into it. Will I have to give it up for Lent? I don’t think so. But I have noticed an interesting character trait in myself. When I think I’ve got a really good hand going, I press the button that says, “All in.” That means I invest everything - all my chips - in that hand. I know. It’s a little extreme. If I’m wrong, it’s not pretty. But, when I’m right, it’s very nice. (I have the same feeling when some poor thing on "Jeopardy" gets the “daily double.” I find myself shouting, “Bet it all!”

This new game intrigues me. The learning curve is pretty steep and so much is, literally, the luck of the draw. But that’s what makes it exciting. It’s a bit like our monastic life. New members have a big learning curve. Well, it’s not quite as hard as NASA training, but it does require that one just keeps breathing O2 as one investigates a totally new world. I guess I wouldn’t say that our life has anything to do with "luck," but given the events of the past year, we are all too aware that life happens – the good and the bad – and how we respond to it is the key to our spiritual journey. It’s been six months since the car accident. Sister Charlotte has been at the convent in Richmond since the New Year. Sister Connie Ruth is home at the monastery giving her energy to prayer and P/T. As a community of monastic women, we have never been more aware of God’s abiding love for us and of the power of intercessory prayer. God is so close…and in moments of personal or communal suffering, that presence is intense for those who believe. We are on to some new kind of “normal.” And we know the One who walks with us as we journey forward.

Yes, I’m playing poker on the computer - no cigar, no beer can, no felt under my fingertips. I am surprised by the delight it brings – especially when I have the winning hand. For me choosing to be a Benedictine Sister has made all the difference in my life – it is a winning hand. And there is no other way to live it than to be “all in.”

Blessings and love to you all...

- Sister Vicki

One of those moments...

2011-02-02T09:05:00.007-05:00

photos: Michelle Sinkhorn, OSB (Ferdinand, IN)

There are moments in life that feel huge – they crystallize even as you are still experiencing them. I had that feeling this past weekend as 100 Benedictine women - under the age of 55 - from across North America and Puerto Rico gathered to celebrate a hopeful future. This assembly was especially significant because we met beyond the boundaries of our federations/congregations – the structures that currently exist to organize our houses. I saw women I haven’t seen since I was a novice and met many I had never met before. New friends - all daughters of Benedict and Scholastica – it doesn’t get any better than that for an extrovert!

What Hilton or Holiday Inn did we co-opt for this nun-fest? Truly, monastic women are happiest at home so we chose to meet in one of two monasteries large enough to accommodate a group of this size – Mount St. Scholastica Monastery, Atchison, KS. We are indebted to the prioress there, Sister Ann Sheperd, OSB and the many sisters who made hospitality seem effortless.

Today, the Church celebrates the Feast of the Presentation – the special day that Mary and Joseph brought their baby to God in the Temple at Jerusalem. The first male child – consecrated, set apart for God’s service and glory – just happened to be the long-awaited Savior of the world – his very flesh the temple of the Most High God. It was surely an overwhelming moment for his parents, Simeon and Anna – the holy prophets who longed to see his face.

There is another layer to this feast – it is one day in which our Church acknowledges religious women and men everywhere who have consecrated their lives to God’s service. As we celebrated (a little early) with Bishop Di Lorenzo yesterday, I couldn’t help thinking of those 100 women in Kansas. Each sister represents a family that gave a daughter to God through the Order of St. Benedict. Those 100 are just a small segment within the Benedictine household - and a tiny speck in the great gathering of all women religious - so many lives given in true freedom, so many faithful parents willing to give back to God a most precious child. May God bless the women in discernment with our monasteries and give their families the courage to support them in their search for God. Happy feast!

Blessings and love to you all…
- Sister Vicki

Through Him...

2011-01-20T07:42:00.003-05:00

This morning I prayed to JESUS. Not a big deal for a sister, you say. It is for me. Usually, when my heart is moved to pray, I tell my hopes and fears to God. I don’t know why. It’s just how I work. How wonderful that our God is Three! For each of us who believe, one face of God touches us, draws us in. For me, it has always been the Creator and Source of all being. That said, I love JESUS. I remember being very little and knowing that the stories about Him were absolutely true. I was taught (circa 1970) that JESUS was the Good Shepherd, my brother and friend. And, because He loves the little children, I suspect He was very close to my entire First Grade class. But as I grew older I sensed that there was Someone there for me – Someone even there for JESUS. I have had no image to go with that Mystery. I just have always known God’s abiding presence.

So…this morning I broke protocol and asked the Son for something really important. Today in Paul’s letter to the Hebrews we read, “Jesus is always able to save those who approach God through him, since he lives forever to make intercession for them (Heb 7:25).” I was stunned by this one sentence. I’m certain I’ve heard it a dozen times or more in the Sunday celebration. (That’s the beauty of the practice of lectio divina – every word can become the Word on any given day.) This morning I was overwhelmed at the thought of His permanent divine function – to talk to God for me! My mind says, “Yes, of course,” for in His very person the finite and eternal are mystically, eternally joined. This morning, however, that gracious offer of endless intercession reached my heart. May we never fail to turn to Him who first turned to us in the irreversible act of the Incarnation. The Lord JESUS has already brought all that we are to the Father. He offers now to place our needs in the hollow of God’s hands. Today, it was an offer I just couldn’t refuse. "Through Him, with Him, in Him, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, all glory and honor is yours, Almighty Father, forever and ever. Amen."

Blessings and love to you all…
- Sister Vicki

On the last day of Christmas...

2011-01-10T08:14:00.007-05:00

We received a very special gift - two faithful, loving women intent of seeking God in our midst. Joanna Burley, a Florida native and Shirley Arce, of California, knocked on our chapel door at Evening Prayer last evening. Both women have been participating in our Live- In Program for the past year and a half. This day marks the official beginning of their monastic journey. Shirley and Joanna knocked together and were greeted at the door by our prioress, Sister Cecilia. Their family and friends followed them over our threshold - a sign that they, too, are becoming part of our extended community. On the last day of Christmas, God gave us joy. Rejoice with us and keep our newest postulants in your prayers.

Blessings and love to you all...

- Sister Vicki

Star of wonder...

2011-01-03T15:53:00.001-05:00

When was the last time you followed a star? I’ve been asking myself that question since the Sunday celebration of the Epiphany. You know the story: three mystics from the East bring gifts to the King of kings whom they find resting in some straw. This wonderful story highlights the cosmic nature of the incarnation. God became flesh – not just for we who would come to believe but for the salvation of the whole world. Twentieth-century scientists have analyzed the appearance of “the star of Bethlehem.” It turns out that a celestial event did occur in the night sky in the winter of 7 BC. The convergence of Jupiter and Saturn has been documented in ancient texts and confirmed by modern astronomers. Those three wise ones knew the prophecy of ancient Israel and understood the stars as markers of the divine will. They left the considerable comfort of their nation to travel by night – by the light of a star. So convinced were they that God was revealing a great secret beneath its beams.

I think God sends us a “star” when we need some direction. There are moments in every life when we find ourselves at a crossroad and don’t know which path to take. The last star I followed took me from my home, my friends and everything I knew to be my world. It was a long trek by modern standards – a three-day drive into the heart of the Midwest. It was only a year into this journey that I discovered God’s purpose. It was on the 4th day of January, 2000 when I drove up the driveway of St. Benedict Monastery. My heart pounded as the cedar grove gave way to a country chapel. The bell beneath the cross was the most beautiful thing I’d ever seen. It made no sense – this visceral response. But that’s how God works sometimes – in the mystery of our feelings. God sent me a star that led me home. It came to rest over a big house of red brick and stained glass. Like those first travelers I found Him there – in their midst. When was the last time you followed a star? Epiphany is an excellent moment to give thanks for this God who goes to great lengths to lead us on.

Blessings and love to you all…

- Sister Vicki

Christmas is still coming...

2010-12-28T11:37:00.001-05:00

I thought Christmas came early in mid-December when Sister Connie Ruth came home. Having both sisters home again made any gift under the tree seem like overkill. Then, a few weeks later, I thought Christmas came when we were given the OK to decorate the monastery. (We live the fullness of Advent so greens, red ribbon and lights don’t go up until the 23rd!) And on Christmas Eve, as good friends and annual Mass-goers came together at midnight, I thought Christmas came in the candlelight and the bells and bows. Then, early in the darkness of Christmas morning, I sat alone by our Christmas tree with a blessed cup of coffee. Most of the house was still asleep as the Midnight Mass festivities ended around 2 AM. I felt Christmas come again in the silence of my heart.

Christmas comes whenever we think of GOD’s great leap into the human condition, whenever bells and bows remind us of the real gift we have in Jesus. Christmas comes whenever we allow the Word into our flesh, whenever we welcome the stranger as guest or make peace our quest and aim. The older I get the more I love this great feast. Every Christmas is an opportunity to receive Him in the heart, to adore Him with our humble gifts, to proclaim Him with our love. Today is liturgically the 3rd day of Christmas – it is a season. Christmas is still coming, friends. Welcome it…share it…give thanks for it. From our house to yours, a Merry Christmas!

Blessings and love to you all…
- Sister Vicki

Fire and water...

2010-12-16T09:05:00.001-05:00

It’s still early yet. Sister Mary and Karen have headed north to our monastery ahead of a snow storm expected here in Richmond. I am working in front of the fireplace in our Community Room. OK, not really working. I think I am still praying. When I came downstairs at 5:15, I turned the fireplace on – even before I started the coffee! Praying in front of the fire is a winter gift in this house. It’s easy prayer – if there is such a thing. All I have to do is look at the beauty and feel the warmth and I know GOD is. Water has a similar effect on my soul. When we have our precious week at the beach each summer, watching the waves and listening to them crash becomes my prayer. The immensity of GOD – the sheer breadth and depth of Love – washes over me there. Later this morning when water turns to snow, the earth will feel GOD’s love – like a great white blanket. And beauty will speak of a Love that can often elude me in my everyday searching. Sometimes, my search for GOD is purely elemental – as simple as opening my eyes to the wonder for fire and water and accepting those gifts as GOD’s love.

Blessings and love to you all,
Sister Vicki

Carrying our friends to Jesus...

2010-12-06T09:54:00.004-05:00

The first time I saw Sister Connie Ruth walk, I wept. It was nearly one month ago in the therapy gym at Sheltering Arms Rehabilitation Hospital. I watched quietly, as two physical therapists stood on either side to help Sister stand. Then, with the use of a walker, Sister Connie Ruth took a step…and then another…and then another. By the time she reached the middle of the gym, I was handed a box of Kleenex by another staff member. The tears were unexpected and unrelenting. There was a time, not so long ago, when I thought I’d never see Sister walk again. It was truly a miracle to behold.

In today’s gospel the friends of a paralyzed man bring him to Jesus for healing. The crowd around the Lord was so dense that they opened up the roof and lowered him down. By his word alone, Jesus healed the suffering man. All were astonished as the paralytic picked up his mat and walked on legs that were thought to be useless. I suspect there was some weeping in that crowd, too, though the evangelist only tells us of the outrage of the Pharisees. It’s obvious why this gospel grabbed my heart today. We have been carrying our sister to Jesus in prayer for four long months. We expect Sister Connie Ruth to be released from the hospital sometime this week and return home to the monastery. Soon, my sisters with know the joy of seeing what I saw. God’s power is shining through both of our injured sisters as they continue to return to health. May God bless all the doctors, nurses and therapists who have given their gifts to this effort.

Blessings and love to you all…
- Sister Vicki

Message received...

2010-11-30T09:17:00.004-05:00

It was about 6:50 AM when I saw it through the kitchen window. I gasped and walked briskly to the oratory where Sister Mary was preparing her books. I decided to go "Trappist" and motioned for her to follow me. As we headed to the back of the house, Karen noticed the parade and followed with her coffee cup. I unlocked the back door which leads to a small deck. Out we went into the cold morning air to see the most breathtaking sunrise about to burst over the trees. It was cloudy blue and pink and orange - layers of pulsing color that heralded a the coming of a new day. I knew if we waited even 30 minutes, it would be long gone. Standing briefly with our arms wrapped around ourselves for warmth, we could no longer hold our morning silence. "Oh, my!" "Wow!" I smiled and then we quickly scooted back into our little oratory just in time for Morning Prayer. I was still thinking about that sunrise after the reading of the Holy Rule - so much so, that I forgot I was the prayer leader and we sat in silence a bit too long. It was so beautiful...surely Saint Benedict wouldn't mind a few "ooh's" and "ah's" before the liturgical release of our tongues. Maybe, I'm not giving my housemates good example. There are times, Benedict says, when even good words should be held in deference to silence. I don't know... We finally stood to worship the Trinity and sang the most perfect hymn for the feast of St. Andrew. We sat and opened our books to the proper page for the first psalm and there it was!

"The sky tells the glory of God,

tells the genius of God's work.

Day carries the the news to day,

night brings the message to night."

Psalm 19 goes on to extol the rhythm of night into day. It is really an ode to the wisdom of God's creation and a hint of the salvation to come in Christ, the Light. I couldn't believe it! I'm not an advocate of breaking morning silence. But I do know that Benedict's Rule is flexible is it is anything at all. God gave the world a gift in the pre-dawn light and we were blessed to receive it. All my second-guessing just pulls me from the simple joy of gratitude. The psalms are always a blessing to me. There are days, like this one, when I feel as if a message has been tucked inside a bottle - just for me. Thank you, God, for the message received.

Blessings and love to you all...

- Sister Vicki

King of kings...

2010-11-21T18:39:00.004-05:00

I love the royal family. Maybe, like most Americans, I am enamored of an ethos beyond my grasp. OK, a woman could pull a “Grace Kelly” and marry into the system. But there is something mythical and mysterious in a royal bloodline – a covenant of leadership and service passed on from generation to generation. I got up in the early hours of morning to watch the wedding of Charles and Dianna Spencer – along with a few million other folks. It’s hard to believe it was almost thirty years ago! But as Buckingham Palace announced the engagement of Prince William to Kate Middleton, it seemed like yesterday when the world stood still for a royal wedding.

Today the Church celebrates the last Sunday of the liturgical year with a special feast commonly referred to as, “Christ the King.” Like Trinity Sunday, it’s a tough one to preach. What does it mean that Christ is our “king?” Certainly, he is like no king we’ve ever heard of. Scripture tells a different story. There was no royal entourage – just eleven guys who peeled off and left him in his hour of need. He had no throne – just a tree reserved for criminals and enemies of the state. And the crown? Well, you see where this is going. This Son of David laid aside his power to show us another way. This visible image of the invisible God accepted suffering and death to show us that love will always be the last word. By his wounds we were healed. Now, truly free, truly forgiven…we can choose that love as our guiding star. We can choose to serve a King who knelt to wash feet, who touched the leper and ate with sinners.

I’ll probably watch the next royal wedding. (It will probably be a community event!) I wish William and Kate well. It is a bit of a fairy tale. Every girl wants to be a princess, they say, and most women might long to love a king. My heart wants more. My king is love. My king wants to rule hearts not nations. This king reigns wherever peace is preferred to power, where the least are loved and cared for, where the sinner is welcome at table and the stranger becomes the honored guest. His kingdom is within each of us who claim him as Lord. And that kingdom will come in its fullness when love is the only reason, the only answer, the only way.

Blessings and love to you all...

- Sister Vicki

Share our joy...

2010-11-13T11:36:00.004-05:00

It’s Saturday morning. The warm sun is shining through my “office” window on the second floor of the convent in Richmond. I am answering e-mails and working with my calendar. Karen is enjoying a free day which means extra sleep, lots of good coffee and connecting with her family. Sister Mary is working at the monastery this weekend – grant research for development. And, last but not least, Sister Charlotte Lange is resting and praying in the first floor “recovery room.”

Yes, our sister was discharged on Tuesday and has settled in to the new but very familiar rhythm of the mission house. Physically, she is improving daily beyond my initial expectations. Sister is walking independently with the help of a cane. Home Health nursing, PT and OT are coming here now. The rigorous therapies are paying off in increased independence and moments of sheer joy. She is all smiles and full of gratitude for every small help or kindness. Being back in community, I think, is making a huge difference. Sister Charlotte is even joining us for the Liturgy of the Hours! (She’s not ready for her prayer book yet, but she’s singing the hymn and the canticle with all her might.)

Although the physical achievements are huge, it is Sister Charlotte’s attitude that feels miraculous to me. From the moment she woke up – two weeks after the accident. Sister Charlotte has maintained the certainty that God has everything in hand. She has not searched for the “why.” She simply accepts the events of this summer in faith and trusts that God has a plan – a vision beyond our own that sees every joy and suffering in some sacred context of meaning. When asked if the accident has changed her, Sister Charlotte responds, “How could it not?” Some regular joys have returned – like watching “Law & Order” in the Community Room. But Sister Charlotte spent the first eight weeks of her recovery in contemplation – no TV, no ordinary distractions. Illness, I think, can be a hermitage – a sacred place in which we encounter God in a way that transforms us. We are changed by what has been and experience of being vulnerable and dependent. I believe every moment of the last 15 weeks (tomorrow) has been the ultimate gift of her life to God. Sister Charlotte’s acceptance of the accident – the loss of Sister Denise and the critical injuries sustained by her and Sister Connie Ruth – is evidence of the power of God’s grace to sustain and transform the heart of faith. I know the lessons are not over. Each day as I assist her, I am the one who is gifted. It is a mystery – an experience of being in the present moment with someone through whom Christ is shining. I am not the same, either.

Blessings and love to you all…
- Sister Vicki

Birthday blessings in Ohio...

2010-11-10T16:40:00.002-05:00

1) a gift of time from the cosmos – an extra hour of sleep!
2) Facebook greeting from friends that span four decades!
3) a voice mail from my community singing and sending love
4) being serenaded by 400 vocation directors
5) thanking my Dad for falling in love with my Mom
6) a body healthy enough to walk 10 blocks to the red line train (saving us $33 in cab fare!)
7) listening to my nieces and nephews sing “happy birthday” Aunt Vicki
8) a bubble bath and fluffy hotel bathrobe
9) chatting with my sibs
10) wanting nothing more than to be a 47-year-old Benedictine Sister of Virginia

Traveling...

2010-11-04T10:03:00.002-04:00

Friends,

I will be off-line for the next few days as I attend the National Religious Vocation Conference in Cleveland, OH. You can look for me again on November 9th.

Blessings and love to you all...

- Sister Vicki

Requiem eternum...

2010-11-02T16:53:00.003-04:00

Tonight, in our Evening Prayer, we will read the names of every sister in our community who has gone to glory. It is the Commemoration of All the Faithful Departed also known as All Souls Day. It’s a day set aside by the Church to pray for all those who have gone before us. We pray for them because we believe in the infinite mercy of God.

All souls… That’s every created soul since the beginning of the world! Those who died before Jesus Christ walked the earth and those born after the salvific moment of his resurrection are held in the prayers of the universal Church. The implied theology is powerful. Our prayers for the dead are effective. How? In what way? We can’t quite say because the portal to eternal life is not yet open to us. But the mere fact that we have the capacity to intercede for one another – even after death – speaks of the power of love and the expansive heart of our God. In the gospel today the Lord Jesus makes us a promise. “I will not reject anyone who comes to me (John 6:37)…” We must take him at his word and trust that our loved ones are safe in his arms.

Blessings and love to you all…
- Sister Vicki

Autumn Came While I Was Sleeping...

2010-10-27T11:06:00.002-04:00

Autumn came while I was sleeping –
ochre and topaz blaze outside my window.
It was my mother’s favorite season,
and so it became mine.

Funny creatures, children –
so filled with love-longing
that we give up our native aesthetic
to wrap ourselves in the heart of the other.

It’s a confusing day here in the south.
The leaves, in their dying, a beauty beyond compare,
yet, the summer heat continues.
It will be eighty degrees again today.

The dissonance is palpable,
makes we wonder if the swelling colors are some cosmic illusion
or if God pushed the button too soon.

Autumn was autumn in New Jersey.
Corduroys and a plaid wool jacket
kept me warm

as I worked the tiny rake in our backyard.

She would watch us from the kitchen window
steamy with heat from the stove.
I can see her smile as we jumped into crunchy piles.

I bless God for the gift of memory.
Eyes closed, I am five again,
bundled up and swimming in a sea of color
beneath the gaze of love.

Vicki Ix, OSB
October 27, 2010

Canonical Visitation...

2010-10-22T11:20:00.002-04:00

We are being “visited.” Every six years each monastery in our Federation is visited by two Benedictine sisters charged with observing our common life. We are blessed to have Sister Lynne Marie McKenzie and Sister Patricia Crowley as our special guests this weekend. Sister Lynn Marie is from Sacred Heart Monastery, Cullman, AL. She is First Councilor of the Federation. Sister Patricia hails from St. Scholastica Monastery, Chicago, IL. She is serving her community as prioress.

Canonical Visitation is a blessing on a house because it requires the community to spend the better part of a year “looking in the mirror.” We prepare by self-evaluation and revisiting our core documents – philosophy, vision statement, monastery norms, etc. We produce a document – roughly 200 pages in length – that is sent to the Visitators one month in advance of their arrival. Then, when the sisters finally arrive, we greet them with a special Evening Prayer and a feast. (Last night was beautiful!)

Today, the official work begins for our guests. Tours – inside and out – come first. Then, for the next two days, they will meet with the entire community in small groups. By Saturday evening they will write their report which will be delivered first to the prioress and then to the community on Sunday afternoon. It’s a whirlwind four-days for our Visitators, but this intense immersion is necessary so that the Spirit can speak through their insights. They will commend us for certain strengths and make recommendations that will yield fruit in our future. It is a graced time for us.

In the first reading this morning, St. Paul speaks to the faithful in Ephesus, and, as grace would have it, summarizes the message of canonical visitation. “Live in a manner worthy of the call you have received.” I have no fears for us in this process only the expectation of blessing. But, as always, we are grateful for your prayers.

Blessings and love to you all…
- Sister Vicki

Being with Macrina...

2010-10-18T20:46:00.002-04:00

God uses people. Not in the way people use people – manipulative efforts made to bend another to our will. God uses people in a good way – and on a regular business – for the building of the kingdom. This weekend we had the gift of being with Macrina Wiederkehr. God uses Macrina – often and with wonderful results. A day in her company means poetry, prayer and song. A day with Macrina means new vision and a graced perspective on the holiness of just being. Sister has written seven books, copious poems and prayers. She has even collaborated with a gifted composer who set her words to music. But being with Macrina is an experience. When God uses people, something of the Mystery shines through. Held together in the present moment, God is found there – ever-ready to bless us. We are richer for her having visited our tent.

Blessings and love to you all...

- Sister Vicki

On Faith and Solitaire...

2010-10-10T10:13:00.003-04:00

I play “Spider Solitaire” backwards. When the game deals out the cards, I click on the spare pile until all eight decks are fanned out. Then I try to put them back together. I’ve won 14 games in two years. That’s 1% of the 826 games played. I don’t know why I play backwards except that it’s harder so the wins are just so satisfying! When I start the game it’s very relaxing. Sliding those cards into their proper places feels like an easy task. King, Queen, Jack, ten…it’s so simple and logical. Five on the six, ace on the two…this is so gratifying! Can’t put the seven anywhere, the games going to end any minute…even my failures make sense. Oh, this is working! Three decks, four decks…nope - just dealt a bad hand.

I’ve always played in between tasks to clear my brain, but I’ve been playing more in recent months. I’ve been struggling with all the things on my “To Do” list. Yet, I hear myself thinking, just one more game. I’ve been wondering why I want to play more just when I have so much more to accomplish. Stress relief? Sure. But I think there’s more to it. Life doesn’t make sense. The mystery of suffering has been very present to us since the accident. There are no logical reasons for tragedy. And asking “why” doesn’t really get me very far. It takes far too much energy and brings no return. I prefer to live beyond the question and focus on the One who will be with me no matter what happens. Our sisters were dealt a bad hand. No reason. No explanation. Bad things just happen in our earthly journey. But God has picked up the pieces – comforted us and held us in our grief. God has carried our sisters into a place of healing and peace. This God who suffers with us – this is the only thing that is beyond a doubt. And I am so grateful for the gift of faith – this lens through which even sorrow can be transformed. In today’s gospel Jesus says this very thing to one of the ten lepers – “Go on now. You faith has saved you.”

We are going on now. There are little signs of normal reappearing in our personal lives. Life after the accident is new, though. We know things now that we didn’t know before. Our priorities have shifted. We know the gift of the present moment and the healing power of prayer. Simple things bring greater joy and things on that “To Do” list will still be there tomorrow. I’m not sure why “Spider Solitaire” has been part of my recovery from all this. (I don’t think I’m headed for a 12-Step group, but I may have to give it up for Lent!) There is this sweet moment in the game when I know it’s going to work – when six or seven decks have been laid out nice and neat. That is the moment – not the end where the screen lights up with fireworks to celebrate my brilliance. That moment right before the victory when I’m certain things will all work out – I think that’s what I love so much. I think that is exactly where we are as a community. Our faith has saved us.

Blessings and love to you all...

- Sister Vicki

The "better part"...

2010-10-05T07:55:00.004-04:00

Today we hear the gospel story of Martha and Mary - a moment of domestic reality lodged in the Good News. I usually focus on Martha because, truth be told, the woman is cooking. This morning at our shared lectio, I was struck by Mary's silent vigil at Jesus' feet. - by her wordless refusal to budge from His company. I came to the monastery to sit at His feet - to be in His presence all the time - to listen to Him speak in my heart. For me, monastic life is the "better part." Before I entered I felt Him in our house and heard Him in our times of silence. This morning I got a wonderful reminder. No matter how busy I must be or what's been asked of me by community, the "better part" will never be taken from me. It is who I am. It is a gift given at profession - a promise of contemplative joy. I am a woman who sits and listens at His feet -no matter where I am or what I'm doing in His service. Abbot Brendan Freeman, OCSO,writes: "The awareness of the mystery of our vocation unfolds slowly, and it is only after many years of monastic living that we realize communication with each other happens through silence." [Come and See: The Monastic Way for Today The Liturgical Press, Collegeville, MN] I want to be the kind of monastic who can be God's worker bee and, at the same time, hold fast to my place at the Lord's feet. Freeman continues, "Attentiveness of heart leads to mindfulness of God." I never want to forget whom I am really serving - whose voice is guiding my days. I am so grateful for the gift of monastic life. Slowly, over time, I am waking up. The Mystery is all around me and within me. I will not budge from His feet. It is too wonderful a place.

Blessings and love to you all...

- Sister Vicki

In this together...

2010-09-23T09:05:00.005-04:00

In my new office on the second floor of the convent, I have seven photographs lined up on the desk. Each wood frame holds a woman who has entered the monastery in the last six years and who remains in Initial Formation. These 4x6 frames have an order. They are arranged according to monastic rank. Although “rank” sounds military, it is not about personal authority or pay grade. For Saint Benedict rank indicated only one thing – the moment an individual came to the monastery. For us that moment is marked by the entrance rite. In his world people were divided by social class, wealth or political power. Benedict wanted to remove all those distinctions and set God-seekers on equal footing. Today, as in his day, we reverence one who came to the life before we did – knowing that it is only time in the monastery that molds and shapes the soul.

These seven photos are lined up from the first – Sister Kathleen – to the most recent – Rosa Farrar, a new postulant. But, because they are so close together, when one photo gets nudged, several fall down at the same time. I am constantly moving a pile of “stuff” and knocking someone over. Then, the “domino” effect takes over and several women collapse. This has become a treasured moment for reflection. As I set them all back up in their proper order, I remember how close we are to one another on the journey. I think about their futures linked together in the monastery and of how much they will need each other as the years pass. I pray for our women in formation. I ask GOD to help them grow in love for one another. I pray that they will pick each other up when they fall down and forgive one another’s weaknesses. I pray that they will come to cherish the Christ who abides within and among them. Then, I pray for Sister Andrea and Sister Doris who walk with our women in formation. Last but not least, I pray for myself. I ask for the grace to love each woman “as is” and love them enough to encourage them to keep becoming. It is our way – an ancient way. May Benedict and Scholastica protect and strengthen their daughters along the narrow road that leads to salvation (RB Prologue, 48).

Blessings and love to you all…
- Sister Vicki

Just a Bad Dream...

2010-09-17T08:37:00.003-04:00

The cars had teeth – real teeth. It was pouring rain and I needed to go to the monastery. There were many cars to choose from, but they all had teeth. What made it worse was that they were alive. They weren’t just lined up in the driveway waiting the turn of a key. These cars were actually writhing and snapping like alligators. I had to wrestle them apart – watching for the jaws and the swinging back end. I heard a door close and I was awake – at least I thought I was. I was so deep in sleep when I went downstairs for coffee that I woke up on the stairs with my hairbrush in my hand. Karen turned the corner to ascend, coffee mug in hand. I broke morning silence – not good – to tell her I didn’t know what I was doing on the stairs with my hairbrush. All three of us – Sister Mary in the community room trying to pray – tried not to laugh. It was a very strange beginning to the day.

Today is the feast of Saint Hildegard of Bingen – an 12th century abbess, artist, musician, poet, liturgist, mystic and all-around friend of God. A woman of great courage in the face of a Church constricted by rules, Hildegard stood her ground to safeguard love. She and her whole community paid a price for that faithfulness, but in the end, the God who called her to lead gave her justice. Mystics, in general, have a hard road. I doubt that the visions she was given compare to any bad dream, but she must have been frightened at times as she struggled to make sense of them. Her art can appear a bit frightening without explanation. I find her choice of colors earthy and beautiful. The truths contained are often less accessible to me – not unlike my own bad dreams.

It’s been six weeks since the accident. Both of my sisters are still struggling with the aftermath - physically and emotionally. When they collide, cars do have teeth. In my waking life there is greater peace and sense that "all shall be well." But in my sleep I guess I am still working out the events of August 1st and the suffering of my sisters. Although we have no control of what happens in life, I feel very responsible for the safety of the sisters I’m living with now. We are funny creatures – fearfully, wonderfully made (Psalm 139). Fortunately, God gives us the grace to live our days in faith and a place to work out our fears during the night. May Saint Hildegard intercede for us all today and guard our hearts from every fear. Please keep our sisters in your prayers.

Blessings and love to you all...

- Sister Vicki

Triumph of the Cross...

2010-09-14T08:56:00.003-04:00

The readings for this feast are absolutely brilliant! On days like this I just want to hug the theologians that placed them together for our blessing. Today the Old and New Testaments are like bookends that hold the mystery of our salvation. Moses, in the first reading, raises up a staff with a bronze serpent to cure those bitten by snakes in the desert. In the gospel Jesus draws the dotted line saying: "So, too, must the Son of man be lifted up." There it is - the simple truth - the power of the cross. For the Chosen People that snake on a stick was the source of their healing. For us who believe, the death and resurrection of Christ heals us of every sin.

This morning we did shared lectio at Morning Prayer. (I just love it!) Sister Mary and Karen were both wearing red - the color for this feast. (They are such nuns!) The sharing was rich and Spirit-led. When I heard the gospel proclaimed this morning, Jesus' words felt like a command: "So, too, Son of man must be lifted up." So many have not heard the Good News. "God so loved the world that God gave the only Son...(John 3:16)." So many feel trapped by failure and weakness. What can I do today to lift him up so others might see his love and mercy? A great challenge for all who believe.

Blessings and love to you all...

- Sister Vicki

Three bowls...

2010-09-08T16:00:00.003-04:00

This morning I laid out three cereal bowls and spoons – one for Sister Mary, one for Karen and one for me. (You probably can guess which one us eats from the melamine "Spiderman" bowl. It was a gift, OK?) It was such a happy sad moment. I felt a rush of joy because this simple ritual means that our house in a home again – we are three. I felt a twinge of sadness, too, because that was always Sister Charlotte’s gift in the early morning. I remember how it made me feel loved when I first moved in three years ago. It really is the little things in community – or in a family – that touch the heart deeply. I missed her this morning - even as I thanked God for Sister Mary and Karen.

Today was their first day at Saint Gertrude High School. I can’t tell you how many teachers and students stopped to greet us! There is great joy around their arrival and the gift of their presence at Saint Gertrude this year. Miss Alexander, who did her undergrad in Mathematics, will intern with Campus Ministry and be a Math resource for students who need some one-on-one support. Sister Mary, a former research librarian – will do special projects in the Library & Media Center. They both have many gifts to share, though it is their joyful Benedictine selves that will be the real gift to our school. Both received homemade “welcome” cards from Miss Fusco’s theology class. Very sweet… And there were some real sweets in the mailbox marked, “Benedictine Sisters.” It was a lovely first day of school that began with a very good morning. Three bowls on the kitchen counter mean that my days of dining alone are over. More importantly, three bowls mean our Benedictine way of life is continuing in Richmond. That is something to celebrate!

Blessings and love to you all…
- Sister Vicki

Sister Mary makes First Profession...

2010-09-06T07:07:00.005-04:00

At Evening Prayer last night Sister Mary Clark, OSB, made her First Profession. Surrounded by the monastic community and invited guests, Sister Mary made the three-fold promise of stability, obedience and fidelity to the monastic way of life. This ancient formula makes monastics distinct among religious. Benedictines predate the evangelical counsels: poverty, chastity and obedience. Our profession rite is over 1500 years old and reflects the direct instructions of our Holy Father, Saint Benedict.

In making this profession, Sister Mary has bound herself for a period of three years to the Holy Rule. Sister Cecilia Dwyer, OSB, our prioress, spoke to the assembly about monastic profession. Sister Cecilia explained that although this moment constitutes a three-year commitment, Sister Mary must believe that it is truly the beginning of a life-long covenant between her and the monastic community. The power of this rite comes from its focus on Christ. Sister Mary signed her profession formula on the Book of the Gospels - a symbolic act that represents a lifetime of love for the Word. It is a public act in the Church - before God, the saints and the prioress who holds the place of Christ in our house.

Sister Mary is the daughter of Mary Elizabeth Diebler of Mt. Carmel, IL. Sister's family was held in prayer as they are part of our extended community. On Labor Day Sister Mary leaves the monastery to help re-establish the Richmond mission. She will reside at St. Gertrude Convent and serve in the library of our high school. Please keep Sister Mary in your prayers as she continues to search for God as a Benedictine Sister of Virginia.

Some weekend!

Blessings and love to you all...

- Sister Vicki

"Someone's Knockin' on the Door"...

2010-09-05T12:45:00.012-04:00

As the bell rings Rosa Farrar walks, surrounded by her family, to the door of our Chapel.

The community waits inside the Gathering Space for the new postulant to knock.

Sister Cecilia opens the door and asks Rosa the question: "What do you seek?"

Rosa introduces her family to the community: three sons, one daughter and many beautiful grandchildren! After the entrance rite, her family joined us for Evening Prayer and supper on the patio. What a beautiful day God gave us for a celebration!

Our new "sister"...

2010-09-05T12:12:00.005-04:00

Sister Pat Novak, OSB, entered the novitiate on Saturday morning. The private rite begins her year in the womb of community - a year of study, prayer and internal ministry.
Sister Doris Nolte, OSB, is our Novice Director. Sister Pat will be in her care for the next 12 months. Though Sister Pat will be limited in her ability to travel during the coming year, she will experience the true freedom of the monastic life. It is the most intense year of initial formation. Sister Pat is looking forward to the journey...and we are blessed to have a new sister among us!

Sister Pat received the blessing of the entire community. After hugs and kisses, we shared a WONDERFUL breakfast buffet with Sister Pat's family.

The mind of Christ...

2010-08-31T15:52:00.004-04:00

In today’s first reading St. Paul differentiates believers from those “of the world.” People without faith cannot make sense of the the world. They have no spritual vocabulary – no lens though which to understand this human/divine enterprise. “But we,” St. Paul says, “we have the mind of Christ (1 Cor 2:16).”

I have the mind of Christ? It must be so if Paul says so, I just can’t fathom it. My mind is filled with thoughts – random and conscious, fleeting and stubborn. The last few weeks especially have been taken up with very complex mental operations and very mundane realities. “What should our three scholastics be reading this year?” “What size filter goes in the A/C vent upstairs?” “Where does Sister Charlotte get her courage?” “Did I wheel the garbage to the street?” “Have to start that report for Chapter.” “God, I need ice cream!” “I miss you, Denise.” “Call Catholic Mutual to get insurance for the new car.”

My mind feels very much like my mind right now. I can’t imagine the Lord living with that torrent of information coursing through his grey matter. But he must have had worries…and a “To Do” list of his own. “So many to heal…I can’t bear their suffering.” “One hour ALONE would be so good.” “I need to visit my Mother.” “These fishermen just aren’t getting it.” “Father, I love you.” “Jerusalem means death.” “Five loaves will be plenty.” “Am I doing your will?” “I need a weekend at Bethany.” “Father, I love them so much it hurts.”

Maybe, having “the mind of Christ” doesn’t mean a life without worry or earthly concerns. Maybe, it means believing that whatever happens to me today will be part of God’s plan to bless my life. Maybe, it means doing just what I can do in a day and knowing that God will take care of the rest. There is more, though. If I have the mind of Christ it is by way of grace and I become him only as much as I desire it to be so. To really have his mind, I must see the most difficult person as a child of God. I must never give up on anyone or fail to forgive. I must, ultimately, empty myself, like he did and open my arms to suffering and death. It is the gift of “his mind” that will enable this to happen in the life of every Christian – a gift given at Baptism that unfolds as we engage the mystery of faith. For right now? It is a great comfort to know that my thoughts – as ordinary as they are – are known to Christ. He knows what this journey is like and can strengthen me for any bump in the road. Now, that’s a lovely thought.

Blessings and love to you…
- Sister Vicki

The Plan...

2010-08-26T12:53:00.004-04:00

I am returning to our convent in Richmond for a year. Actually, I am already there. I am here because I want to help take care of things until Sister Charlotte and Sister Connie Ruth are recovered from their injuries. Two members of the community will join me after Labor Day - Sister Mary Clark, OSB and Karen Alexander, one of our postulants. Both will be of service in our high school. Sister Mary will be in the Library and Karen will intern in Campus Ministry. Me? I’m in a new bedroom and have set up a small office on the second floor in a window well overlooking the avenue. I will continue vocation ministry from here as well as some new duties in formation. The three of us will be community for one another and maintain our Benedictine presence in Richmond. Yes, I did just move home to the monastery on July 1st. I asked to return. Sister Cecilia and the council prayerfully affirmed this request.

I’ve been thinking that much of life just happens. Ours, especially, is a life of everyday things that focus our hearts on God. Every now and then something BIG happens – a moment of great joy or immense sorrow. These big things – happy or sad – bring the gift of clarity. For a short time we see what is truly important – what really matters. I believe I am exactly where I am supposed to be. This year will be a time of grace – for me and for the women who will join me here. I ask your prayers for our mission house as well as continued prayers for our sisters’ recovery.

Blessings and love to you all…
- Sister Vicki

Raised in Kane...

2010-08-21T14:18:00.003-04:00

Small towns are like people – no two are the same. Kane, Pennsylvania – Sister Denise’s hometown – has been home to generations of faithful Catholics who treasure the land and one another. Yesterday, the good people of St. Callistus parish celebrated a memorial Eucharist for Sister Denise. The church was packed with friends and family who were gathered to pray with the Mosier family and extend their sympathy. It was a tender moment for all who loved Denise – a chance to thank God for the gift of her life and for the faith that assures us that she, too, is risen.

Kane is town with priorities. Family, faith, hard work…this is the stuff of life in a farm town. Each home is tended with care. Flower pots hang and gardens sprout with vegetables and berries. The church is the epicenter of the community. Corner taverns offer the local brew – Straub’s Beer from nearby St. Marys. Spending just 24 hours in Kane clarifies things. Though the complexities of life abound, some things are very simple. People come first. God is always God. And, work is holy. It is easy to see how such a place, such a people formed our sister, Denise. It was hard to leave Kane yesterday. Our goodbyes felt weighted with the knowledge that things will never be the same. When we lose a sister in death, it feels like we lose her family, too. The intensity of relationship formed for love of her will fade into a new future – for them and for us. The Mosier family will always have a place in the community heart – even if we never meet again. Today, I miss them already. In their company Denise was so present. Maybe, we brought her to them, as well. This love we have for Denise still binds our hearts – a mystery, a gift. May God bless them in the days and months to come.

Blessings and love to you all…
- Sister Vicki

Our "road to Emmaus"...

2010-08-18T13:01:00.004-04:00

In the last few weeks I’ve found myself in a strange position. I have begun so many sentences with the words: “There was a car accident…” The disclosing of a tragedy to someone is a difficult thing. The look of a dawning realization or the sound of a gasp has become the expected response. Yet, in the telling, the story doesn’t get any easier. It reminds me of the disciples who run into Jesus on the road to Emmaus. They don’t recognize him at first and are shocked that he doesn’t seem to know about the “terrible things” that have happened in Jerusalem. (Given the media attention around our sisters’ accident, I guess I think the whole world knows.) Just this morning a man came to the convent in Richmond to repair our A/C. He asked me, “Are the sisters at church this morning?” Soon, he realized that our sisters were THE sisters in the newspaper and on television for the past few weeks.

One of the things I love about the Emmaus narrative is how Jesus doesn’t rush to identify himself. He meets his friends were they are - lets them tell their story of pain and disappointment. Telling the story – though painful – does help us to shape every suffering into the Paschal Mystery. It has been crystal clear, though, from the beginning that the risen One has been walking with us. Christ has been with us in the many Benedictines who have joined their prayer with ours. He has been with us in the friends who’ve brought food to the monastery or sent donations in Sister Denise’s memory. Christ has been with us in the hundreds who came to the funeral or wrote cards of sympathy. Most especially, the risen One has been with us in the Liturgy of the Hours. Here, we have been held and comforted, challenged and transformed. We have never been alone on this road – not for one moment. In our dying and rising God’s power and glory are made known.

Blessings and love to you all...

- Sister Vicki

"I Will Raise You Up"...

2010-08-15T13:59:00.004-04:00

The Dogma of the Assumption is relatively new – 1950. Yet, the faithful embraced this notion long before it became an ecclesial reality. It is often the people of God who make known to the Church a new reality. Today, as we celebrate her final journey – body and soul – into heaven, it is helpful to glean our tradition for insights into the mystery of her being.

In Chapter 8 of LUMEN GENTIUM, (solemnly promulgated by his holiness, Pope Paul VI on November 21, 1964,) the role of Mary is considered both in her relationship to our salvation and to the Church. Her “yes” to God’s plan of is a definitive moment – an unparalleled model of perfect discipleship. Prepared to mother the Savior from her own conception, Mary becomes a model for the Church as it shall be – perfect and without sin. Even in her dying, God uses her to reassure us – to give us a glimpse of the resurrection that awaits all who believe. “Finally, the Immaculate Virgin, preserved free from all guilt of original sin, (12*) on the completion of her earthly sojourn, was taken up body and soul into heavenly glory, (13*) and exalted by the Lord as Queen of the universe, that she might be the more fully conformed to her Son, the Lord of lords (297) and the conqueror of sin and death. (l4*) (LG 8, II, 59.)” Mother and Son together at last…what joy there must have been!

It’s been just two weeks since we carried Sister Denise’s precious body to the grave. This solemn feast feels like a gift. It is a reminder that the human body is dear to the Lord who made our flesh His home. Death divides the body and soul. Like an eagle the soul soars home, but on the “last day,” the body will be raised with it. That is our faith. That is the promise made to us in this feast of Mary. We must follow Mary in her example of faith. We must strive for the depth of her love and fidelity. And for our striving and struggling we shall win the prize of perfect wholeness. May she who has gone before us watch over her children now, “and at the hour of our death.”

Happy Feast....

- Sister Vicki

Trauma ICU...

2010-08-13T10:15:00.002-04:00

St. Paul writes, “There are different gifts but the same spirit (1 Cor. 12:4)." I have spent several of the last 13 days in the Trauma ICU at Fairfax Hospital. The women and men who work there were given a special gift by God – a gift most do not receive. It is their task – their burden – to care for our loved ones in critical circumstances, and often, to sustain life itself. 24/7 ICU nurses watch and tend our sisters. In spacious, glass-enclosed rooms, they monitor vital signs and administer medications. Everything in the room has a function. Everything has been placed there to support or to heal. It is the ICU nurse who is on the front lines of the battle for life. I have been in awe of these good women and men. They are doing for our sisters what we cannot do. They are ever-watchful, respectful of our presence and attuned to the needs and dignity of each patient. They never seem to forget that these “patients” are our sisters - that every person in ICU is loved by someone.

Yesterday, Sister Anne Marie took a huge tin of her chocolate chip cookies to the nurse’s station. Their delight in that small act of gratitude was so genuine. Today, I praise the God of many gifts who has blessed our nurses with the courage, skill and knowledge to walk the line between life and death – the tender place where God decides what is best for each one who suffers. May God bless them and all who use their gifts to comfort and heal.
Blessings and love to you all…
- Sister Vicki

Our "good shepherd"...

2010-08-12T09:33:00.003-04:00

On the day of the accident, some time after we learned of Sister Denise’s death, a familiar face walked into the Waiting Room at Fairfax Hospital. Bishop Loverde had received a phone call from the hospital chaplain, Fr. Charles Merkel. He came to be with us – to bless us in the hour of our anguish. Bishop stayed with us for nearly an hour. He listened patiently as we told the story. Then, with Sister Cecilia, Bishop entered the Trauma ICU to anoint and pray for our sisters.

Several days later Bishop came to be with us again as we buried our sister, Denise. Bishop came knowing that there would be a sea of mourners and media trucks camped out across the street. He came because we needed him and I will never forget that gift. At the end of the funeral Mass, Sister Veronica and I, as pall bearers, wheeled Sister Denise’s casket out of the Chapel. As we passed by him, Bishop Loverde blessed her body over and over again with the sign of the cross. In that moment Christ was truly present to me in our good shepherd. In his blessing I felt peace.

Blessings and love to you all...

- Sister Vicki

Words fail...

2010-08-08T13:02:00.002-04:00

It’s been one week since the accident. I’m sorry I’ve been away so long. I have had no words to express what these days have been like for us. What I say now I say as one sister among many. First, I want to thank everyone who has offered prayers for our sisters and for our community. We feel them – they are holding us up. Never has the power of prayer been clearer to me. So many people have reached out to help us through these awful days: Benedictines from PA, MD, NJ, AL, MN, KS, Oblates, friends and family. In this pain we have discovered the depth of love around us. Words fail…both in sorrow and in gratitude.

We buried Sister Denise on Friday. Several hundred mourners gathered with us to sing God’s praise for the gift of her life. Our Gathering Space was transformed into Africa – tables laden with art, photos and fabric told the story of our sister’s life and ministry. Even in our grief there was real joy for the sister whom we love is forever in God’s embrace.

Sister Charlotte and Sister Connie Ruth remain in critical condition. We are waiting in hope by their beds for signs of improvement and healing. Your continued prayers are a gift to us.
I find myself wondering if we will ever get back to “normal.” It would seem that time itself has been divided – “before” the accident and “after.” The only “normal” is our prayer. When I am with my sisters praying those ancient words I feel peace. The psalms are so rich with feeling. They speak alternately of profound sorrow, deep joy, righteous anger and genuine thanksgiving. No matter which one we pray, it touches a feeling inside me for I have felt all these things in the past seven days.

There is so much we cannot know now. The days and months ahead will bring new challenges and new graces. I do know that I have never been prouder to be a Benedictine Sister of Virginia. We have been of one mind and heart throughout this tragedy. We have clung to each other and to our loving God. We have clearly articulated the Gospel mandate of forgiveness and given witness to the grace that comes when we walk in His footsteps. The love we have for one another in Christ is truly stronger than death. It is a love without limit or exceptions. It is ours to give to God’s people through the Church and to the young man behind the wheel of the car that killed our sister. Forgiveness, mercy and compassion…Sister Denise would have laid down her life for less.

Blessings and love to you all...

- Sister Vicki

"I'll meet you halfway"...

2010-07-29T09:45:00.006-04:00

In today’s gospel we hear that after the death of Lazarus, when Martha heard that Jesus was coming “she went out to meet him.” That initiative in the midst of her grief was the foundation of a miracle. Martha left the comfort of her home – the privacy of her pain – and went to the One who would understand her loss. “If you had been here, Lord, my brother would not have died.” Whoa! That’s either a profound expression of faith or a major guilt trip! Maybe, it was a little of both. Yet even in the grip of a powerful sorrow, Martha went out to meet him.

As a child in the 70’s, I remember a song on a "Partridge Family" album that I just loved: “I’ll Meet You Halfway.” Cheesy? Yes. But that refrain came to the surface this morning as Sister Anne Marie read the gospel at Morning Prayer. “I’ll meet you halfway. That’s better that no way.” Martha gives us good example. The Lord Jesus is always coming close – always walking in our direction. We can just stay where we are – stuck in the feeling of the day – or we can put one foot in front of the other and meet Him in the middle. He is certain to be there…smiling… as the gap between us closes.

Blessings and love to you all…
- Sister Vicki

"shine like the sun..."

2010-07-27T08:57:00.004-04:00

Today’s gospel offers us the rich imagery of the sower. I can’t help but picture the illumination in the Saint John’s Bible of a Midwestern Jesus in blue jeans casting the good seed on the soil. Being the “good seed” is certainly a worthy goal for all Christians especially we who call ourselves “monastics.” This parable could encourage us to consider our importance in the building of the Kingdom or the ultimate concerns of the end time, but the verse that grabs my heart comes at the very end of the story. “Then the righteous will shine like the sun…” (Matthew 13:43)

This verse was the theme of the Diocesan Youth Conference this past weekend in Richmond. Imagine 500 rainbow tie-dye t-shirts proclaiming, “Shine like the Son.” Amazing! Many of you, who didn’t attend DYC, might be thinking of Thomas Merton’s mystical experience on the corner of 4th and Walnut. Merton, watching the people pass by at that intersection in downtown Louisville, realizes, in a moment of grace, that he loves all of them – these total strangers. He knows in that instant that any separation between us as human beings is an illusion. There are two accounts of this moment written by the monk himself. The first is an entry in a private journal in March of 1958. But it’s in the second recounting of this experience in Conjectures of a Guilty Bystander that we get the full story. Thomas considers his vocation and the temptation to think that monastics are holier than everyone else. He meditates on the great mystery of the Incarnation and how that moment has forever sanctified our flesh. He writes:
“And if only everybody could realize this! But it cannot be explained. There is no way of telling people that they are all walking around shining like the sun.” Conjectures of A Guilty Bystander

So, not only will the righteous “shine like the sun” at the end time, according to Thomas, we have already begun to shine. I believe this is true. I believe it because every now and then I see my sisters shine. Sometimes, it’s when we’re praying or singing. More often it happens in the everyday – a small act of kindness, a personal gift used freely and fearlessly for God’s glory or just a fleeting awareness that what we have together is more real than anything else I’ve ever had in my life. I’m fairly certain that most Christians have had many “Merton moments.” As we persevere in the monastery they become more frequent. We don’t need to look beyond one another for the GOD we seek. May our eyes be opened to the wonder of that holy presence among us. If we are faithful to The Rule and to community, we will surely "shine like the sun" - here-and-now.

Blessings and love to you all...

- Sister Vicki

"The Hours"

2010-07-23T09:15:00.002-04:00

Sometimes, when we pray together,
the sound of us
resonates in my bones.
The psalter strikes my heart
like a tuning fork
and it rings and rings…

Sometimes, when we pray together,
we share one breath –
slow and deep,
like the rhythm of sleep.
In those moments I am the many –
and there is only “we.”

Sometimes, when we pray together,
the ancient texts tell me secrets –
of how to be
in relationship with all that is
and how to love the strangers
who have become my home.

Sometimes, when we pray together,
I remember the most important thing.
We are on our way
together
and God smiles when we pray.

Vicki Ix, OSB
July 3, 2010

In a Kansas cornfield...

2010-07-19T13:13:00.003-04:00

"All guests are to be welcomed as Christ (RB 53)." Hospitality...it's just the heart of the monastic endeavor. I travel more than most so I am blessed to experience this Benedictine value in other monasteries from time to time. This past weekend I was working on a Federation project at Mount St. Scholastica Monastery, Atchison, KS. Though the focus of the weekend was work - preparation for the next "55 & Under" meeting in 2011 - the sisters at Atchison were pleased to include us in their Saturday night plans. I just happened to be visiting during the "Amelia Earhart Festival" - a weekend celebration of Atchison's most famous native. After the BEST hamburger I've had in a long time, our small group joined several sisters who were "camping out" for the evening festivities. Perched on the bed of a pick-up truck, folding chairs were poised to see the trick flyers - bi-planes that swooped over the Missouri doing death-defying loops and white-knuckle dives! Then, as we waited for darkness to fall, Sister Judy made s'mores over a folding charcoal stove - messy but way worth it! Sister is also the monastery fireworks expert. I watched - from a safe distance - as Sister Judy set off Roman Candles and various other small explosives. As evening fell and the real fireworks show began, I couldn't help but marvel at the fact that I was sitting in the middle of a cornfield by the shore of the Missouri River. For a girl from New Jersey, it was a once-in-a-lifetime pleasure. The Benedictine sisters in Kansas live the mandate of hospitality with joy - and creativity!

Blessings and love to you all...

- Sister Vicki

Grief Unfolding...

2010-07-15T09:21:00.003-04:00

Today is the 20th anniversary of my mother’s death. I am feeling the grace of time – the promise of healing paid-in-full. When I remember those awful days, it still feels like a bad dream. (I thought I was so grown-up then…just 26. I think, in retrospect, her death was the end of my adolescence. It was a defining moment in the journey – for all of us, I think.) "Fresh" grief is the worst – an open-wound that just won’t stop bleeding. It requires every inner resource – every ounce of faith. Grief doesn’t seem to have an ending, but it does seem to recede - like big waves in the ocean that eventually turn to a tired, soft ripple. I have made friends with the grief that abides in my bones – the loss of her. So much has gone on without her and yet, over time, she has visited me in my thoughts and dreams. Perhaps, it is the certainty of faith – the knowledge that she IS – that has carried me to a safe shore. I can still hear her voice, see her smile and remember her touch. And, thanks to my siblings, I meet her anew as they each reveal a precious part of her to me. She comes close from time to time – as best they can in glory – and I tell her things. Twenty years in, grief is much easier to bear – almost a gift. Something inside me is the richer for having negotiated this sorrow. I am joined to her still through Christ and the love that never ends.

Blessings and love to you all…
- Sister Vicki

"No place like home"...

2010-07-13T10:56:00.001-04:00

I had a normal day yesterday – a perfectly, normal day in the monastery – and it was so good! Just prayer, work and some dirty dishes – the uneventfulness of it was just stunning. It’s not that I object to "highs" and "lows." Those places are usually my best teachers. But an ordinary day in the monastery is like breathing – it just happens. Bells that direct me to Chapel, meals shared with good women who make me laugh and just enough work to make me feel I’ve been creative – that constitutes the perfect everyday day. I hope I never get used to this feeling – the gratitude that flows from a good, solid life centered in Christ. Sometimes, we have to leave a place to see exactly what makes is it our place. What a gift…what a blessing!

Blessings and love to you all…
- Sister Vicki

"Week 52"...

2010-07-03T19:00:00.003-04:00

I've been home just two days and it's time to pack a bag again. Not a business trip - VACATION! Yes, even nuns get one week of sun and fun. I am off to our rental house in the Outer Banks of NC. We've been going down to Nags Head for over 25 years. I think it was Sister Ernestine who instituted the beach week. My group is week #4: Sister Cecilia, Sister Kathleen and Karen who, as a postulant, is experiencing "the beach" for the first time. When we arrive around midday, the sisters in week #3 will have lunch ready for us. We'll help them pack their cars and then settle in for some serious holy leisure. I wait for this week all year and then, magically, it almost sneaks up on me. Here's what I love: sleep when you're tired, eat when your hungry and pray when the Spirit moves you. For one week we will live our monastic lives without the bell. It is an opportunity to rest in God - unplug from the Internet, the phone, etc. We will follow, instead the rhythm of the sea - the pounding waves and the gentle breezes. We might be up for sunrise or not. (Probably not!) And there will be a gracious common meal in the evening - lots of laughter and good conversation. Oh, and did I mention cable TV? Yup. That means "The Food Network!" Oh, I can't wait... I'll be back, on-line and on Facebook, Monday, July 12th.

Blessings and love to you all...

- Sister Vicki

Last Run in Richmond...

2010-06-30T10:12:00.002-04:00

This morning I took my last run around our neighborhood here in Richmond. Tomorrow, the monastery pick-up truck will carry me and my belongings back to the Monastery. Three years of life and ministry in this city come to an end. I’ve been preparing for this departure for quite some time – on a practical level. The vocation office at SGHS has been deconstructed. I’ve packed most of my room at the convent. But the movement from one place to another happens mostly in the heart. So many good memories…so many relationships deepened by time and life shared. As I made my way around the big square that is my running route, I felt like blessings everything – the flowering trees, the Honeysuckle bushes, the fellow-joggers who usually pass me by. I prayed a goodbye to the Yeshiva on Patterson Avenue where daily I could see the rabbinic students praying Morning Prayer by the second floor window. I prayed a blessing on the “Boo Radley” house – an abandoned cottage that I’m certain inspires the creepy fantasies of the local children. I prayed for Sister Charlotte and all who work at St. Mary’s Hospital as I cut through Maple en route to Monument Avenue. I’ve never been strong enough to run to our high school, which feel like a blessing today. I can’t run and cry at the same time. SGHS is in my heart now and that’s a good thing. It’s been said that when we leave a place something of our spirit remains. I hope that’s true. I know Richmond will come with me – the memories, the friendships, and the good work done by the sisters here. It might be a long time before I run these roads again. Until then I remember Richmond with love.

A "Must Hear" CD...

2010-06-28T10:28:00.004-04:00

A good friend introduced me to a Minnesota trio several years ago. The "Three Altos" have produced their second album (I still think in records!) and it's as rich and satisfying as their first. "One Voice" is an eclectic mix - some composed by the folk-singer in the group, Sara Thomsen, and the rest by others. What I love about the songs is how they seem to reflect the inner life of this trinity. Three women - all with "regular" jobs - come together and sing for their souls and for ours. A folk-singer, a psychologist and a rabbi share more than tight harmonies. It is their friendship grounded in GOD that produces these contemplative and challenging songs. My favorite track (today) is called, "Echoes." It suggests that every second of life we spend loving somehow changes things - ripples out into the unfinished creation, nudging God's plan forward. There is a wonderful rendition of Bobby McFerrin's "The 23rd Psalm." And another track, "We Are Women," was written by the trio for the students of The College of Saint Benedict, in St. Joseph, MN. VERY cool. Whether these women sing in English, Spanish, Swahili or Hebrew, my heart is moved. Like their first collection, "Camaradas," I will use these songs for private prayer and for retreat work. If you are interested in hearing a sample or placing an order, visit the "Three Altos" at http://www.threealtos.com/.

Blessings and love to you all...

- Sister Vicki

Bristow Benedictine Elected Federation President...

2010-06-25T08:50:00.004-04:00

Last night, Sister Glenna Smith, OSB, was installed as President of the Federation of Saint Scholastica. Her election, amid the work of the Federation Chapter, was clearly the work of the Spirit. Sister Glenna follows Sister Esther Fangman who gave our Federation twelve years of service – the maximum allowed by our constitution. Sister Glenna’s term will take her from monastery to monastery – 22 houses in all. She will officiate at elections, oversee canonical visitations, mediate difficult situations and be our liaison with the Holy See. Sister’s new duties will call upon every gift and the wisdom of all her experiences. We are certain God has prepared her for this ministry and will grant the grace of office all in leadership depend on.

Bristow is bursting with pride! The gift we know in Sister Glenna we will now share with the larger Benedictine world. What does this mean for the Benedictine Sisters of VA? Well…it means that Sister Glenna can no longer serve as subprioress. That is a huge sacrifice but one that Sister Cecilia makes willingly for the good of the Federation. In her wisdom, Sister Cecilia has appointed Sister Andrea Verchuck, OSB, our new subprioress. God prepares the way and provides for our every need. It is a new day full of hope and possibilities. Please join us in praying for Sister Glenna as she makes this important transition.

Blessings and love to you all...

- Sister Vicki

"Where in the world..."

2010-06-14T15:43:00.002-04:00

It’s been two weeks since my last blog entry. That, in and of itself, indicates a level of busy-ness that is unusual – even for me. If you were to ask me what I’ve been doing or where I’ve been, I could look in my calendar book and paint you a picture: Richmond, Baltimore, Dallastown, PA, Bristow. Projects, talks, travel and meetings – these things constitute “business as usual” for me. But, May and June are particularly challenging. And then there’s “Wonder Week.”
Girls grades 5-8 spend five days with the monastic community. Parents drop them off at 8:15 and pick them up at 5 PM. Our day-program draws them into our daily routine – meals, prayers and even work. We have classes in pottery, arts & crafts and ASL. Our girls have schola practice and hit the pool every afternoon. And on Friday, the day doesn’t end. Our “Wonder girls” bunk in sleeping bags in our Subiaco Room. (Guess who gets to join the slumber party?) By the time Mom and Dad roll up on Saturday morning, these young people have made a place in the community heart. We say our goodbyes and begin the countdown to next year’s “WW.” So, 51 weeks from now, we’ll do it again. We’ll greet old friends and make new ones. There will be songs to sing and adventures to have. In spite of a typical “WW” fatigue, I confess to missing those six young faces. I hope they miss us, too. T-minus 363 days…and counting!

Blessings and love to you all...

- Sister Vicki

"Getting" grace...

2010-05-28T20:21:00.003-04:00

Only the Blessed Mother is “full” of it. The saints, I suspect, enter eternal life with nearly a full tank. The rest of us – simple, struggling, hopeful sinners – go through life learning the difference between a life of grace and “running on empty.” The CCC – Catechism of the Catholic Church – defines grace in this way. “Grace is favor, the free and undeserved help that God gives us to respond to his call to become children of God, adoptive sons [and daughters], partakers of the divine nature and of eternal life.” [Part II, Chapter 3, Article 2, 1996] Advanced theological study might include such topics as “sanctifying" grace, prevenient" grace, “ created” vs. “uncreated” grace. All these things are important, but as I continue on the journey, I am more compelled by moments of realization that confirm the reality in question. Yes, God is taking the initiative in the relationship. God is busy loving us before we even get around to loving God. God is, simply put, always loving us first.

I guess I’m interested in how we "wake up" to grace – how, over time and through life experience – become more and more aware that God is with us. It’s so easy to know when the tank is low – when we are consumed with our own issues, concerned about “many things”, like Martha. When we’re there we are generally miserable. We see only what is lacking in us – we feel “grace-less.” But then there are days when we are available to God’s unrelenting invitation. We welcome the Love that wants to inhabit our flesh and God’s uses us – in a good way! God uses our words, our actions, our faces, our hands…our love. And we become a blessing. This kind of graced-living happens more than we realize. The more we cooperate – welcome grace – the more sweetly it flows through us. Over time we begin to recognize what’s happening – believe that God is with us and working through our frailties to make something good happen. This reality – this kind of grace – can change us and others. How God’s unrelenting love does this is beyond our grasp, but it is too good to resist. It just feels good to be used by God.

I am 46 years old and I feel as if I am just getting grace. Three years in seminary and several letters after my name, and it is only through God’s gift of self that I’m getting anything. God – our God – is always there first - waiting, inviting, gifting without limit or measure. Grace is all around us. Grace is unrelenting. Grace…is God being God.

Blessings and love to you all...

- Sister Vicki

Peace..."on top"

2010-05-20T11:47:00.003-04:00

I don’t wear much jewelry – not that I couldn’t. Many sisters wear lovely, simple earrings or rings that belonged to a family member. I tend to stick to the holy “bling” – the medal of Saint Benedict and the ring that was given to me by my community on the day of my perpetual profession. When I put the medal on a chain, it’s easy to put on. But when I choose to wear the super-cool lapel medal, I have difficulty getting things right-side up. One Sunday morning as we were gathering for Morning Prayer, my prioress saw me struggling and said, “Put peace on top and you’ll have it right.” Peace on top? Oh…the Latin word pax can be found on the border of the cross. If the word, pax, is on top, then my medal is on straight! That woman is so brilliant! Now, in addition to having fewer “issues” getting myself dressed and in chapel, I now have this wonderful piece of advice to chew on. “Put peace on top.” Good advice and very in keeping with the message of the risen Christ. "Peace be with you."

The month of May is psycho. Our schools are getting ready for graduation. Vocation programming is at its height. Extra jobs and projects are demanding my time and attention. And the travel just won’t let up until June. My “To Do” list is obscene – even for me – and deciding what must be done first is not an easy exercise. “Put peace on top…” Can I do that? Can I grab hold of that peace that only Christ can give and let everything else take a back seat? Can I move through the days ahead doing what must be done all the while holding tight to the One who wants to keep my heart calm and gentle? I certainly can’t do it on my own. But, if I ask for help? For the gift of peace? I know I will not be disappointed. What gift would you ask of Christ today? Don’t be afraid.

“Rejoice in the Lord always. I shall say it again: rejoice!
Your kindness should be known to all. The Lord is near.
Have no anxiety at all, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, make your requests known to God.
Then the peace of God that surpasses all understanding will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus.” Philippians 4:4-7

Bessings and love to you all...

- Sister Vicki

"I have so much more to tell you..."

2010-05-12T11:43:00.005-04:00

“...but you cannot bear it now.”

I love this sentence. As the days dwindle down to his return to the Father, the Lord Jesus tells his friends that there is "so much more" to share with them. Now, in his glorified body, the Lord Jesus can see beyond our flesh and bone. He can hear the songs of the angels and taste the sweetness of being wholly in God’s presence. Now, beyond death, he knows everything and longs to help us understand the Mystery. But, the Lord knows too well, that we “cannot bear it now.” Though there is so much we long to see and understand, from our human vantage point the veil can only be lifted so much. We are still flesh and bone – still straining to hear the morning birdsong and looking for God in the mess of being human. So, to satisfy his desire to give us “so much more,” he will send us his Spirit. The Spirit will reveal what is true and good and holy. The Spirit will give us strength to abide in these bodies – to mark the days in time and space – until the Lord comes to bring us home.

But something is fascinating me. What is it, do you suppose, that we “cannot bear” now? I suspect it has something to do with the unconditional love of God – the limitless compassion and mercy in which we dwell every minute of every day. I think the Spirit is working within us and among us to make this love known to us. Now, here, we cannot bear the weight of this love. We cannot believe it to be real. We find it hard to accept that no sin, no loss, no suffering in our journey will keep this love at bay. Nothing will keep this love from taking over our world – one soul at a time. The Spirit is preparing us for the day when days will end - working to draw every human heart into the light of God's love before Christ comes again in glory. Then, the eternal Word will speak to us one more time and all shall be revealed. Until then, only the Spirit can prepare us for this great movement into Mystery. Only the Spirit can teach us to trust that this Mystery will never let us go.

Blessings and love to you all...

- Sister Vicki

"Jesus Christ," by Pablo Renauld, 2007

Don't forget your change...

2010-05-10T11:45:00.004-04:00

Most of us don’t like change so we respond to it in a myriad of creative ways. There’s the “If I don’t acknowledge it, it won’t really happen,” school of thought. Then, there are those among us who face it head-on and react from our feelings – sadness, fear, anger. Some of us, a small brave, cohort, embrace change. It is, after all, a mark of being alive. All that is by God’s good hand is in the process of living and dying. Nothing – no one – is the same one moment to the next. You’d think we’d get on board and celebrate change as a sign of God’s activity – accept change as if it were a gift wrapped in pretty tissue and ribbons. I think this proactive approach to change comes slowly in our journey toward God. I think we get better at it as life gives us practice – as circumstances beyond our control turn everything upside-down and then we survive. We learn – through many changes – that change itself is inseparable from growth. Over a lifetime of bending to the realities of life, we learn that it is God’s grace that keeps us from breaking. We learn that change – even the painful kind – makes us stronger, more resilient, more open to God’s Spirit at work in our lives.

This morning I told our girls at SGHS that I am being reassigned to the monastery effective July 1st. It is time for me to go home. The joy of going home is mixed with a sadness that comes from loving our students, faculty and staff. Being “on mission” here at our high school for the past three years has been such a gift. There are things I’ve learned about being a Benedictine Sister of Virginia that I could not have learned any other way. SGHS has a place in my heart now, as do the people of Richmond. That love is a done deal. Though I will return once a month for “Monastic Monday,” it won’t be the same. The girls know it, too. But they are accepting this change well and coming to trust that every sister who serves at SGHS will remain part of the community heart. When love is real, it never ends. It is that love – that grace – that will help us all to embrace this change and trust that the Spirit is hard at work.
Blessings and love to you all…

- Sister Vicki

Time to hit the breaks...

2010-05-04T15:44:00.004-04:00

I was wondering today how I got so busy. I know I’m getting out of balance when I can’t remember the last day off. (Monasteries are interesting places. We make our own time to rest and play. It’s a life, not a Monday through Friday enterprise!) So…that last day off? OK, I’ve got to peak at the calendar. I found it! April 6th. Dear God, no wonder I’m getting a bit goofy!

It’s not easy being me. I love work. I love teaching, writing, talking to people about our life. I love supporting the programs of our Benedictine Pastoral Center – that means giving a “First Friday” talk. I love our Oblates – that means time spent in Bedford and Richmond this past month. I love planning our community’s future as part of the Strategy Team and organizing our efforts in preparation for our Visitation in October. [It’s a voluntary Benedictine visitation – as opposed to the current Apostolic Visitation and happens every six years. It’s like when a school gets reaccredited by VAIS. We receive commendations and suggestions about how we live the monastic life.] In fact, I love everything that I am asked to do by and for community. That’s the problem. I want to do everything all the time. Well, last time I looked, that divine attribute belonged to the Creator!

It's settled then. On Friday morning I am going to sleep in and let the birds be my alarms clock. I’m going to eat breakfast on the back porch of the convent in Richmond in my pajamas. Then, I will sip coffee and do my spiritual reading. After prayer, I will have no plan, no “to do” list. I will have a day-off from the Internet. Yes, that’s right. No e-mail. No Facebook. No blogging. [Now, if Hell freezes over, don’t call me. Just trust I am partially responsible and pray me a good rest.] It’s only Tuesday, but I can feel it coming. I can see the light at the end of the tunnel. I have my eyes on the prize! Now, all I have to do is make sure that I keep my Sabbath holy. Hmmm… Did I ask for prayers?

Blessings and love to you all…
- Sister Vicki

Sister Charlotte celebrates her 50th....

2010-04-26T14:06:00.014-04:00

Sister Charlotte renewed her Monastic Profession before our prioress.

Sister Charlotte receives the blessings of the entire assembly.

The reception line went on and on...smiles, hugs and great joy!

Old friends, new friends, colleagues past and present...

...the Church of Richmond richly represented in the person of Rev. Michael Renninger...

...schools and hospitals enriched by the presence of one who lives the Gospel with unrelenting commitment.

Never have so many from different "worlds" come together in our house because of one person. Fr. Michael wondered, "Is there anyone left in Richmond today?"

The beautiful Eucharist was followed by a festive meal. So many hands and hearts go into a celebration like this one. Jubilee is about one of us, but really about all of us. In one we see the fruits of fidelity and perseverance. In sharing this day with the community, our guests come to understand why strangers choose to live together in love.

We thank you, GOD, for the witness of our sister, Charlotte Lange, and for the gift of monastic life through which we seek and find you each and every day.

A Prayer...

2010-04-22T10:54:00.006-04:00

In the beginning, O God,
your Spirit brooded above the waters,
and all that is
came to be by your life-giving Word.

May we who are sustained, by the wonders of creation,
live gently upon this earth.

May we who draw breath,
protect the trees that purify our skies.

May we who eat,
plant seeds where we have reaped a harvest.

May we who drink the earth’s clear water,
become its constant guardians
so that, generation to generation,
no people shall die of thirst.

We ask this in your name, O God,
who fashioned us from clay to bear your image,
and through your Son, the Word made flesh,
who walked upon this tender earth,
and in the power of your Holy Spirit,
Breath and Sanctifier,
one God – forever and ever.
AMEN.

Always on the front lines...

2010-04-20T10:47:00.002-04:00

[This is the second in a series of blogs on “Women & Spirit,” a current exhibit at the Smithsonian Museum.]

It’s interesting what surfaces after the fact. When the Leadership Conference of Women Religious set about the task of creating this exhibit, no one could have known the power of the story to be told or the timeliness of its unveiling. Seeing “Women & Spirit” as a woman religious, brought some unexpected feelings to the surface. Could my little life, given in love to God and my monastic community, be part of this great story? Are my failures and gifts some thread in this massive quilt of faith and service? Whoa… All those women…all those faces in holy habit and 70’s polyester…they are my sisters – every one! I am still unpacking the blessing of this truth.

I was struck, too, by the variety of ministries in which sisters have served over the past 200 years - by the prominent place of American sisters on the front lines of every human need. We did not open schools because sisters belong in schools. We were there because the children needed to be taught the faith. We were not in hospitals because nuns belong in hospitals. We were there because the poor were sick and dying and they needed bodily care and the love of Christ. We didn’t open orphanages because nuns belong in orphanages. We just took in babies who had no one – who had nothing – but a blanket and an empty stomach. It was that simple.

Today, my Benedictine sisters are still living at the edge of the world where human need begs for justice and compassion. My sisters give shelter to homeless mothers and their children. My sisters offer treatment to those who suffer mental illness, or who are overwhelmed by grief, depression or disaster. My sisters access available funds to keep families in their homes and reverse the tide of foreclosure. My sisters teach small children and not-so-small teenagers how to love God and respect one another. My sisters offer spiritual direction to those who seek a closer walk with Christ. My sisters offer compassionate presence to the sick, the dying and the home bound. My sisters train and support tutors who teach English to adults from all over the world who want to make their way in our great country. My sisters do all these things – not because they are what sisters should be doing. My sisters do them because the need is real and Christ asks us to be His hands and feet. Fifty years from now I don’t know what the Benedictine Sisters of Virginia will be doing. But God does…and God is counting on us to say, “Yes.”

Blessings and love to you all...

- Sister Vicki

Lost and Found...

2010-04-14T11:51:00.003-04:00

(This is the first in a series of blogs on the Smithsonian exhibit, "Women & Spirit."

I got lost in Washington, DC, last Sunday. We took five nun-mobiles into the District to see the exhibit on American sisters sponsored by the Leadership Conference of Women Religious [LCWR]. The ride in was lovely. In spite of preparations for the Nuclear Summit, we sailed over the Potomac and onto Constitution Avenue with little difficulty. The trouble began after I let mys sisters off at the museum and went in search of a parking space. I got myself so lost that I had to break DC law and use the cell phone to call our subprioress for help. Forty minutes later - after many tears, one illegal u-turn and lots of prayer, we arrived back at the exhibit with plenty of time left to see and experience what was so lovingly prepared.

What we found there was more than history. "Women & Spirit" chronicles a love for God's people that knows no boundary - a faith that believes especially when we cannot see. The exhibit touches the heart, mind and sense. Video, audio, artifacts and documents bring to life a powerful story of American women living the Gospel and building the Kingdom on earth. What I found there is too rich for broad strokes or a "review." If you're interested, check back over the next two weeks to see powerful images and reflect on the gift of religious life in America. If you can, go and see it for yourself. Oh, and take the Metro.

Blessings and love to you all...

- Sister Vicki

Easter 2010...

2010-04-06T15:13:00.012-04:00

It was a HUGE new fire!

Ster Andrea sang the Exultet...and made the angels envious!

Joan directed the Schola. We never sounded better!

Sister Laurence, Sister Mary and some dear friends transformed the barreness of Lent into a lush Easter garden.