Yesterday was Sister Celine’s 97th birthday. She is our eldest in years and in rank. No one in this house has lived the monastic life longer than she. No one has her memories or her wisdom. If you know Sister Celine, you have a sense of who she is to us – a tree firmly planted by a flowing stream that gives its fruit in due season and whose leaves never fade (Psalm 1:3). If you don’t know Sister Celine, suffice it to say that she is revered as a master teacher, reverenced for her faithfulness to the Liturgy of the Hours and loved because of her generosity of spirit to those who seek her friendship and wisdom. In short, Sister Celine is a cornerstone of this community. Many sisters have leaned on her for strength and stability over the past 75 years of her monastic life.
At the end of the Prologue, Saint Benedict writes: “Never swerving from his instructions, then, but faithfully observing his teaching in the monastery until death, we shall through patience share in the sufferings of Christ that we may deserve also to share in his kingdom (RB Prol. 50).” Yesterday we celebrated a monastic life lived to its fullness of grace. In Sister Celine’s eyes I see the possibility of my days in the monastery. This is what fidelity looks like.
Blessings and love to you all…
- Sister Vicki
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